Athens annual Christmas tree lighting took place in the main square on Monday (December 14), but unlike other years, it was without ceremony - there were no marching bands, no crowds, nor famous celebrities singing carols for the event.

Locked down Athens is lit up for the holidays without fanfare

With traditional Christmas markets banned and restaurants closed under Germany's second partial lockdown, one enterprising restaurant owner has opened a drive-through Christmas market to keep his staff busy and his customers happy.

Drive-through German market brings festive cheer despite coronavirus

With festive bread and decorated tombstones, Bolivians marked the Day of the Dead on Monday (November 2).

Bolivians decorate graves to remember loved ones on Day of the Dead

392 new festival special trains -&nbsp;&nbsp;The festive season is just around the corner and number of people intending to travel to their hometowns and other places within the country is expected to rise. Keeping this massive demand in mind, Indian Railways has decided to run 392 special trains during the festive season.

These special trains will be operated from October 20 to November 30.

"To clear the festive rush, Ministry of Railways has approved 196 pairs (392 trains) of “Festival Special” services over Indian Railways to be operated from 20th October 2020 and 30th November 2020. Zonal Railways will notify their schedule in advance," The railways announced on October 13.

Check out the full list of&nbsp;392 new festival special trains -&nbsp;&nbsp;

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392 new festival special trains list-&nbsp;&nbsp;

The trains will mainly be run for destinations such as Kolkata, Patna, Lucknow among others to facilitate travel during festivals such as Durga Puja, Diwali, Chath Puja and more

Ticket price for these trains will be at par with the special trains. These trains will mostly have third AC coaches.

392 new festival special trains - The festive season is just around the corner and number of people intending to travel to their hometowns and other places within the country is expected to rise.

392 new festival special trains - The festive season is just around the corner and number of people intending to travel to their hometowns and other places within the country is expected to rise. Keeping this massive demand in mind, Indian Railways has decided to run 392 special trains during the festive season. These special trains will be operated from October 20 to November 30. "To clear the festive rush, Ministry of Railways has approved 196 pairs (392 trains) of “Festival Special” services over Indian Railways to be operated from 20th October 2020 and 30th November 2020. Zonal Railways will notify their schedule in advance," The railways announced on October 13. Check out the full list of 392 new festival special trains - pic.twitter.com/QdBjR3JufV — Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) October 13, 2020 × pic.twitter.com/QdBjR3JufV — Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) October 13, 2020 × 392 new festival special trains list- The trains will mainly be run for destinations such as Kolkata, Patna, Lucknow among others to facilitate travel during festivals such as Durga Puja, Diwali, Chath Puja and more Ticket price for these trains will be at par with the special trains. These trains will mostly have third AC coaches.

Indian Railways to run 392 special trains during festive season

Samba schools in Rio de Janeiro decided on Thursday (September 24) to delay Brazil's most famous Carnival parade that would normally have been held in February 2021, as the country grapples with the second-deadliest coronavirus outbreak in the world.

Rio de Janeiro samba schools delay 2021 Carnival parade over coronavirus

Gazans are thronging beaches and crowding markets filled with holiday sweets and clothes as they prepare to celebrate the Eid largely free of the coronavirus restrictions affecting the Muslim festival elsewhere.

Cut off from world, and virus, Gaza prepares for Eid like nowhere else

Dragon boat teams in Taipei competed in a downsized festival amid lingering coronavirus fears on Thursday (June 25).

Taiwan dragon boat racers compete in scaled-back festival amid virus fears

The Riviera resort of Cannes should have been playing host to the world's biggest names in film. Instead, with its annual film festival postponed and the red carpet rolled up, locals made do with a drive-in cinema in a beachfront car park.

Popcorn, palm trees and face masks: Cannes rolls out drive-in cinema

During the month of February, one of the darkest months of the year, people in Copenhagen can brighten it up by looking at illuminated buildings and light art scattered around the city or take part in a light run during the Danish capital's 23-day Light Festival.

Hundreds take part in light run during Copenhagen Light Festival

Kew Gardens' annual orchid festival will celebrate Indonesia's wildlife and culture this year.

Kew Gardens infused with colour for festival

A multitude of witches and wizards took Buenos Aires by storm during "Harry Potter Book Night," which allows fans to dress up and test their knowledge of the popular children's saga.

Argentine Harry Potter fans take part in magical book night

Chinese authorities for railway, air and highway transport are taking measures to guard against any epidemic outbreak in the Spring Festival travel rush, said officials at a press briefing in Beijing on Thursday.

Transport authorities to guard against epidemic outbreak in travel rush

As thoughts of Australia's fire crisis hung in the air, hundreds of hip-shaking and wig-wearing Elvis Presley impersonators and fans of the late King of Rock and Roll began their annual pilgrimage to the Elvis Festival in outback Australia on Thursday (January 9).

Bushfires won't stop Elvis enthusiasts as they rock and roll to Australian town

There was a rare spark of festive cheer on Monday (January 6) for a group of Bolivian children growing up behind bars inside a La Paz prison.

Rare festive joy for Bolivia's prison children as Catholics mark Epiphany

The annual and vibrant Black and White carnival, which has its origins in a mix of Andean, Amazonian and Pacific cultural expressions, took place on Sunday (January 5) and Monday (January 6) in the southwestern Colombian city of Pasto.

Colombia celebrates colourful Black and White carnival

Letters to Santa are wrongly addressed each December to an apartment on West 22nd Street in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood, far from the North Pole. Watch to know more.

Far from North Pole, New York home gets avalanche of Santa letters

Bright panda bears, pagodas and a 40-metre long dragon lit up a park in the Estonian capital Tallinn, where daylight at this time of year is no longer than six hours.

Pandas and dragons light up Estonian Chinese lantern festival

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump took part in the lighting of the National Christmas Tree Thursday (December 5), the same day that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi directed a House committee to draft articles of impeachment against President Trump, a historic step that sets up a fight over whether to oust him from office.

Christmas Season in Washington: From articles of impeachment to the National Christmas Tree

Nineteen different groups from all over Austria took part in a traditional Krampus run Saturday (30 NOV. 2019) in the Austrian town of Hollabrunn.

US fans drawn to Austria's Krampus run

Day of the Dead: Mexico's colourful cult festival

The Ason Bazar, one of the oldest markets of Kathmandu, is all decked up for Tihar. The roads are flooded with hawkers selling a variety of good for the festival of lights and decorations. 
 
The five-day Nepali festival of Tihar shares some traditions with Diwali. 
 
Amongst the goods on sale in landlocked Nepal, people usually buy spices for brothers to offer them on Bhaitika along with the gifts such as "Dhaka Topi" and other cloth items as well as the materials needed for puja. 
 
"The market is buzzing with people with the arrival of Tihar. Flowers, tikas and other items are in high demand these days," Ram Karki, one of the shopkeepers told ANI. 
 
The shops are also are adorned with decorative and light materials. People flowing into the market these days are seen buying the items targeting the Bhaitika. 
 
"For Bhaitika, I bought sweets, spices, colours, beetle-nut, garlands of flowers," Bidhya Dahal, one of the shoppers who came onto the market for Tihar's shopping, told ANI. 
 
The first day of Tihar is marked with the worship of crow, the messenger of Yama, the God of Death. The second day is for worshipping dogs and the third day is for Laxmi pooja or Dhantaresh when people light up their houses and worship Goddess Laxmi and seek her blessings. 
 
The fourth day of Tihar is marked as Gobardhan pooja when people worship ox used to plough. 
 
The final day of Tihar, Bhaitika is celebrated with much fervor when sisters put seven coloured tika on the forehead of their brothers praying for their success and long life. 
 
Sisters also offer a variety of sweets, cuisines and other items along with gifts to their brothers. While the brothers also give gifts and money to their sisters as per their capacity.

The Ason Bazar, one of the oldest markets of Kathmandu, is all decked up for Tihar. The roads are flooded with hawkers selling a variety of good for the festival of lights and decorations.

The Ason Bazar, one of the oldest markets of Kathmandu, is all decked up for Tihar. The roads are flooded with hawkers selling a variety of good for the festival of lights and decorations. The five-day Nepali festival of Tihar shares some traditions with Diwali. Amongst the goods on sale in landlocked Nepal, people usually buy spices for brothers to offer them on Bhaitika along with the gifts such as "Dhaka Topi" and other cloth items as well as the materials needed for puja. "The market is buzzing with people with the arrival of Tihar. Flowers, tikas and other items are in high demand these days," Ram Karki, one of the shopkeepers told ANI. The shops are also are adorned with decorative and light materials. People flowing into the market these days are seen buying the items targeting the Bhaitika. "For Bhaitika, I bought sweets, spices, colours, beetle-nut, garlands of flowers," Bidhya Dahal, one of the shoppers who came onto the market for Tihar's shopping, told ANI. The first day of Tihar is marked with the worship of crow, the messenger of Yama, the God of Death. The second day is for worshipping dogs and the third day is for Laxmi pooja or Dhantaresh when people light up their houses and worship Goddess Laxmi and seek her blessings. The fourth day of Tihar is marked as Gobardhan pooja when people worship ox used to plough. The final day of Tihar, Bhaitika is celebrated with much fervor when sisters put seven coloured tika on the forehead of their brothers praying for their success and long life. Sisters also offer a variety of sweets, cuisines and other items along with gifts to their brothers. While the brothers also give gifts and money to their sisters as per their capacity.

Nepali markets abuzz with arrival of Tihar festival

With the festival of lights Tihar around the corner, manufacturers of clay potteries are finding it difficult to meet the high demand for oil lamps (diyas or palas), which are traditionally used for celebrations. 
 
"Some makers produce between one thousand to five thousand in a day, it depends on the manpower, and those with higher manpower can produce more compared to those with lesser manpower," Prajapati told ANI. 
 
Even on the day of Laxmi Pooja, potters say they do not get time to rest as they have to meet the rush of the orders. 
 
"On the day of Laxmi Pooja also we make Palas. Here in Bhaktapur people purchase those which are not baked over the fire. Those who have to transport it to other places they buy the baked ones so that it won't break," Prajapati added. 
 
On average, it takes a week for the potters to prepare clay pots, lamps and other by-products that will be used for the festival. 
 
The average income of the potters here during the festive seasons sees a surge to as much as 50,000 Nepali rupees per month whereas it stands at around 20,000 Nepali rupees a month in other times. 
 
Pottery is the ancestral business of people of a majority of people living in and around Nepal's one of the ancient town of Bhaktapur who has been preserving and promoting it since years. 
Most potters here have inherited it from their grandparents with some practicing the craft for over 50 years.

With the festival of lights Tihar around the corner, manufacturers of clay potteries are finding it difficult to meet the high demand for oil lamps (diyas or palas), which are traditionally used for celebrations.

With the festival of lights Tihar around the corner, manufacturers of clay potteries are finding it difficult to meet the high demand for oil lamps (diyas or palas), which are traditionally used for celebrations. "Some makers produce between one thousand to five thousand in a day, it depends on the manpower, and those with higher manpower can produce more compared to those with lesser manpower," Prajapati told ANI. Even on the day of Laxmi Pooja, potters say they do not get time to rest as they have to meet the rush of the orders. "On the day of Laxmi Pooja also we make Palas. Here in Bhaktapur people purchase those which are not baked over the fire. Those who have to transport it to other places they buy the baked ones so that it won't break," Prajapati added. On average, it takes a week for the potters to prepare clay pots, lamps and other by-products that will be used for the festival. The average income of the potters here during the festive seasons sees a surge to as much as 50,000 Nepali rupees per month whereas it stands at around 20,000 Nepali rupees a month in other times. Pottery is the ancestral business of people of a majority of people living in and around Nepal's one of the ancient town of Bhaktapur who has been preserving and promoting it since years. Most potters here have inherited it from their grandparents with some practicing the craft for over 50 years.

Bhaktapur's potters get busy as Tihar festival nears

The streets of Guadalajara filled with musicians and colourful dancers as mariachis from around the world gathered for the annual mariachi festival, the biggest Mexican folk music and cowboy event in the world.

Mariachi bands showcase talent in festival

Participants of Red Bull Flugtag competition took their chances on Sunday (July 28) to entertain themselves and the spectators gathered at a Moscow canal with colourful costumes and quirky attempts to make their machines fly.

Best flights and fails of Russian Red Bull Flugtag

Three people were killed and 12 others injured Sunday after a shooting at an annual food festival in Northern California, according to a city official. Witnesses reported confusion and panic as shots rang out at the Gilroy Garlic Festival in the city of 50,000 located about 80 miles (176 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco.

Witnesses describe US festival shooting

Hong Kong locals scaled a bun-laden tower to collect the traditional desserts on Sunday (May 12) as part of celebrations to mark the end of the Cheung Chau bun festival.

Hong Kong's Cheung Chau Bun Festival ends with vibrant celebrations

A charity on Tuesday provided Iftar meals to families in the capital of Yemen who are observing the fasting month of Ramadan.

Charity provides Ramadan meals for Yemen families

Valentine's Day: 'Gaekkebrev', 12 days of love, mass weddings and other strange ways to celebrate day of love

In pics: Naga sadhus exude charisma and mystery at Kumbh

Chinese President <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/opinion-china-is-giving-xi-jinping-unprecedented-power-34422">Xi Jinping</a> dropped in on surprised diners at a small Beijing restaurant and chatted with deliverymen on Friday on an apparently unscripted visit ahead of next week's Lunar New Year holiday.

Such relaxed interactions between senior politicians and the public are uncommon in a country where even leaders' birthdays or family backgrounds are often closely held secrets.

Leaders generally use the time around the festival to make carefully choreographed, well pre-arranged inspection trips around the country where they flag important policy initiatives or areas of concern for the year ahead.

Xi last year visited villagers in a poor southwestern part of China, to press home his campaign against poverty.

On Friday, state television showed Xi walking into the restaurant in a southern district of Beijing known for its traditional alleyways and courtyards, asking how much the food was and how long the owners had been in the city.

As diners stood up to take pictures, Xi told them not to stop eating on his account.

"I'm just passing through," he said.

As he chatted at a separate location with deliverymen, who speed around Beijing delivering packages on motor-bikes, passersby could be seen in the background walking right behind him, or in one case cycling by.

"Are you not able to go home for the Spring Festival?" he asked one of the deliverymen.

Still, Xi was almost certainly accompanied by his security detail throughout, even if they were not directly shown in the television footage.

In another much more obviously scripted part of the day, he visited policemen and made dumplings with residents in a courtyard dwelling.

While Xi has cultivated a man-of-the-people image and is genuinely popular with many Chinese for his war on corruption, he has only rarely had such relaxed interactions since assuming office six years ago.

In 2014, Xi shocked Beijing residents by visiting courtyard homes and chatting with passersby near a shopping street during one of the city's notorious smoggy days, drawing praise from social media users for his unusual public diplomacy.

The week-long holiday, starting on the eve of the new year, on Monday, is the most important in the Chinese calendar, when millions of people travel home, many for the only time in the year.

Chinese President Xi Jinping dropped in on surprised diners at a small Beijing restaurant and chatted with deliverymen on Friday on an apparently unscripted visit ahead of next week's Lunar New Year holiday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping dropped in on surprised diners at a small Beijing restaurant and chatted with deliverymen on Friday on an apparently unscripted visit ahead of next week's Lunar New Year holiday. Such relaxed interactions between senior politicians and the public are uncommon in a country where even leaders' birthdays or family backgrounds are often closely held secrets. Leaders generally use the time around the festival to make carefully choreographed, well pre-arranged inspection trips around the country where they flag important policy initiatives or areas of concern for the year ahead. Xi last year visited villagers in a poor southwestern part of China, to press home his campaign against poverty. On Friday, state television showed Xi walking into the restaurant in a southern district of Beijing known for its traditional alleyways and courtyards, asking how much the food was and how long the owners had been in the city. As diners stood up to take pictures, Xi told them not to stop eating on his account. "I'm just passing through," he said. As he chatted at a separate location with deliverymen, who speed around Beijing delivering packages on motor-bikes, passersby could be seen in the background walking right behind him, or in one case cycling by. "Are you not able to go home for the Spring Festival?" he asked one of the deliverymen. Still, Xi was almost certainly accompanied by his security detail throughout, even if they were not directly shown in the television footage. In another much more obviously scripted part of the day, he visited policemen and made dumplings with residents in a courtyard dwelling. While Xi has cultivated a man-of-the-people image and is genuinely popular with many Chinese for his war on corruption, he has only rarely had such relaxed interactions since assuming office six years ago. In 2014, Xi shocked Beijing residents by visiting courtyard homes and chatting with passersby near a shopping street during one of the city's notorious smoggy days, drawing praise from social media users for his unusual public diplomacy. The week-long holiday, starting on the eve of the new year, on Monday, is the most important in the Chinese calendar, when millions of people travel home, many for the only time in the year.

Xi Jinping drops in on diners at Beijing restaurant, chats with deliverymen

Hindu devotees celebrate Thaipusam in Malaysia

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