Samoa Skips Friday, Wakes Up Saturday

Country goes to bed on Dec. 29, rises on Dec. 31
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 30, 2011 7:35 AM CST
Samoa Skips Friday, Wakes Up Saturday
Map locates Samoa; country plans to move their calendar forward one day by moving across the International Dateline.   (AP)

TGI ... S? There was no Friday, Dec. 30, in Samoa, as residents went to bed on Thursday and woke up Saturday. Or, some did. The rest celebrated as fireworks overtook the sky and sirens blared, marking the tiny South Pacific island's jump into the future as it crossed west over the international date line. The shift, which neighboring Tokelau also made, syncs Samoa's time with that of key Asia-Pacific trading partners, reports the AP. Samoa's 186,000 citizens will have one less day to prep for New Year's Eve—they'll now celebrate it first in the world, rather than last. Click for more on what prodded the change. (More Samoa stories.)

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