Fukuoka, Japan — The wooden treasure ball is said to bring good fortune. Teams vie for the 8-kilo ball in Fukuoka, Japan, during the Tamaseseri festival at Hakozaki shrine. Teams of farmers and fishermen hope for a rich harvest or the largest catch. The festival dates back some 500 years.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: JIJI PRESS / AFP

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Innsbruck, Austria — Talk about catching some air. Robert Kranjec of Slovenia takes a training jump at the FIS World Cup Four Hills competition in Innsbruck, Austria.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: MICHAL CIZEK / AFP

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Getxo, Spain — A participant surfs during the Punta Galea EVE Challenge in Getxo in northern Spain.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: RAFA RIVAS / AFP

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New Delhi — It was a foggy morning in New Delhi as monkeys helped themselves to fruit offered by devout Hindus. Tuesday was the day of the Hindu deity Hanuman, when devotees give fruit and other food to monkeys. Hanuman, in the Ramayana, was a general among an ape-like race of forest dwellers.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Saurabh Das / Associated Press

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Allahabad, India — Women hold up saris to dry after taking holy dips in the Ganges river in Allahabad, India, an important pilgrimage site for Hindus.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Rajesh Kumar Singh / Associated Press

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Depok, Indonesia — A customer shops for used goods at what is called "A Mall of Junk" in Depok, Indonesia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ADI WEDA / EPA

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South Shields, Great Britain — A woman holds on to a lamp post in strong winds in South Shields, England. There was a severe weather warning for gale force winds across the region.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: SCOTT HEPPELL / Associated Press

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Beckley, W. Va. — Firefighters approach a burning building in downtown Beckley, W.Va., on Monday. Three buildings were destroyed; no one was hurt.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Chris Tilley / The Register-Herald

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Innsbruck, Austria — A ski jumper launches onto the ramp during a training round for the 60th Four Hills Tournament at the Bergisel ski jump in Innsbruck, Austria.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: DANIEL KARMANN / EPA

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London, England — Keeper Adrian Walls tries to count penguins at the London Zoo, where the annual animal count was in progress.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press

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London, England — Zookeeper Tom Lowry makes close contact with a camel during the annual count at London Zoo.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: KERIM OKTEN / EPA

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Sydney, Australia — Australia matches up against the United States at the Water Polo by the Sea event in Sydney at Icebergs pool at Bondi Beach.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Kolbe / Getty Images

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Bodhgaya, India, — Buddhist monks pray with their spiritual leader the Dalai Lama during the fourth day of the Kalachakra Festival in Bodhgaya, India. The festival of teachings and meditations spans 10 days in the northern Indian state of Bihar.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: DIPTENDU DUTTA / AFP / Getty Images

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Beijing, China — Holiday travel ramps up at a train station in Beijing. The days-long Chinese Lunar New Year celebration, also known as the Spring Festival, is built around the Jan. 23 event. It spurs the world's biggest annual migration of people as more than 200 million board trains and buses to celebrate with their families.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ED JONES / AFP / Getty Images

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Qaliubia, Egypt — An Egyptian Christian shows an ink-stained finger after voting at a polling station in Qaliubia as Egyptians headed to the polls again in the final round of a phased election to choose the first parliament since a popular uprising toppled Hosni Mubarak in February.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: MOHAMMED ABED / AFP / Getty Images

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Ramallah, West Bank — A Palestinian woman joins hundreds of people celebrating in the central city of Ramallah to mark the 47th anniversary of Palestinian revolution and the establishing of Fatah movement.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ABBAS MOMANI / AFP / Getty Images

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Tokyo, Japan — Businesspeople pray at the Kanda Myojin shrine in Tokyo on the first day of business in 2012. Japanese stocks rose in the first day of trading, with the Topix Index posting its biggest gain in 10 weeks, after reports from the U.S. and Germany added to signs that the global economy is so far weathering Europe's debt crisis.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Kiyoshi Ota / Bloomberg

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Dover, Fla. — Temperatures in central Florida dipped into the 20s overnight. Icicles form a pattern on a fence outside a strawberry field in Dover. Farmers spray a protective coating of water over their plants to help keep them from freeze damage.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Chris O'Meara / Associated Press

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Prague, Czech Republic — Dagmar Havlova, widow of former Czech President Vaclav Havel, holds the urn with Havel's ashes before placing it in the family tomb at the Vinohrady Cemetery in Prague. Havel died Dec. 18 at age 75.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ROMAN VONDROUS / Associated Press

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Allahabad, India — In in Allahabad, India, a worker sweeps a corridor at the Allahabad University campus on a cold and foggy morning.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Rajesh Kumar Singh / Associated Press

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Palu, Indonesia — Thousands of Indonesians have donated flip-flops and other old sandals in a show of support for a 15-year-old boy who is being prosecuted for lifting an old pair of sandals. Those shown here are lined up at a collection point in Palu. The boy could face up to five years in prison if found guilty, the same sentence given to many terrorists, drug pushers and rapists.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Associated Press

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Harbin, China — In Harbin, China, visitors traverse stairs made from blocks of ice as part of the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival. The festival officially opens on Thursday night.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Andy Wong / Associated Press

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Ostend, Belgium — German tourists lean into the the wind at the shore. A powerful storm, with winds of up to 90 kilometres an hour, reached the North Sea region of Belgium.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: JULIEN WARNAND / EPA

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Ostend, Belgium — A woman and child brave the wind as a storm blasts the area.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: JULIEN WARNAND / EPA

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Muncie, Ind. — The sun rises behind a silo on a chilly winter morning.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Kurt Hostetler / The Star Press

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Harbin, China — An ice castle provides an irresistible backdrop to a group of girls visiting the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Andy Wong / Associated Press

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Harbin, China — Ice buildings glow at the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Andy Wong / Associated Press

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Bodhgaya, India — Young monks enjoy a fun fair during the Buddhist Kalachakra Festival.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: DIPTENDU DUTTA / AFP / Getty Images

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Kabul, Afghanistan — At a refugee camp, children peek through a gap in a makeshift wall of cloth.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Ahmad Nazar / Associated Press

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Tokyo, Japan — Participants show off their work at a calligraphy contest.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Shizuo Kambayashi / Associated Press

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Colombo, Sri Lanka — Policemen stand at alert during a protest by university students demanding the removal of a vice chancellor.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ISHARA S.KODIKARA / AFP / Getty Images

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Cairo, Egypt — Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak arrives by gurney for his trial. The prosecutor on Thursday demanded the death penalty, claiming that the ousted Egyptian leader was complicit in the killing of protesters during last year's uprising against his rule.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mohammed al-Law / Associated Press

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Catania, Italy — A cloud of hot ash erupts from Mt. Etna, near Catania.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: DAVIDE CAUDULLO / EPA

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Sofia, Bulgaria — Bulgarians dive into icy water as they compete to catch a cross in the middle of a lake as part of Epiphany Day celebrations. It is believed that the man who is the first to grab the cross, thrown into the water by an Eastern Orthodox priest, will be healthy throughout the year.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: NIKOLAY DOYCHINOV / AFP

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Kefenrod, Germany — A person sets up a spiral of dominoes. Patrick Sinner, 15, and friends will try to break the world record by constructing the longest spiral-shaped wall of dominoes.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: EMILY WABITSCH / DPA

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — A young girl stands underneath the artificial blossoms on display for the upcoming Chinese Year of the Dragon celebration at a shopping mall.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Lai Seng Sin / Associated Press

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Baghdad — New Iraqi army tanks take part in a parade during a ceremony marking the Iraqi army's 91st anniversary in the Green Zone.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: ALI ABBAS / EPA

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Karachi, Pakistan — A Pakistani currency changer waits for customers at his roadside shop. Reports state that Pakistan's central bank said there's a strong likelihood of a sharp fall in foreign exchange reserves due to large repayments of external debt.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: REHAN KHAN / EPA

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Bodh Gaya, India — Indian beggars with their arms stretched ask for alms from Buddhist devotees visiting the Mahabodhi temple, believed to be the place where Buddha attained enlightenment, during the Kalachakra Buddhist festival.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Altaf Qadri / Associated Press

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Bodh Gaya, India — Buddhist monks attend a teaching session by Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama during the Kalachakra Buddhist festival in the town believed to be the place where Buddha attained enlightenment.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Altaf Qadri / Associated Press

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Bishkek, Kyrgystan — People light fireworks near a church as they celebrate the Orthodox Christmas, celebrated Saturday in the Middle East, Russia and other Orthodox churches that use the old Julian calendar instead of the 16th century Gregorian calendar adopted by Catholics, Protestants, Greek Orthodox and commonly used in secular life around the world.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP

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Bethlehem, West Bank — Christian Orthodox monks tour the Church of the Nativity in the biblical West Bank town of Bethlehem as Orthodox Christmas celebrations kicked off to the sound of bagpipes and protests by Palestinians accusing church leaders of selling land to Israelis.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: MARCO LONGARI / AFP

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Damascus, Syria — A Syrian police station building is seen through a smashed car windshield soon after an blast in the Midan neighborhood. An explosion ripped through a police bus in the center of Syria's capital Friday, killing many in an attack authorities blamed on a suicide bomber, an official and state-run TV said.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Muzaffar Salman / Associated Press

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