Around the world, nights look brighter this time of year. Illuminations of all kinds help celebrate holidays or festivities.
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People enjoy an annual yearend illumination in Shiodome district in Tokyo, Japan, Nov. 24.
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Children and teenagers from the Neptun synchronised swimming club perform during a Saint Lucia concert at the Forsgrenska pool on Dec. 12, in Stockholm
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Christmas lights illuminate the Medellin River on Dec. 9 in Medellin, Antioquia department, Colombia.
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Students in the childcare program watch candles in the menorah burn after a celebration for the first day of Hanukkah at the York Jewish Community Center in York, Pa. on Dec. 16.
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A Chinese security guard is seen in his booth among trees decorated with Christmas lights outside a shopping mall in Beijing, China, Dec 17. While few Chinese celebrate the religious side of the Christmas holidays, many enthusiastically get into the shopping and gift giving tradition, granting much cheer to the retail industry during this period.
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The Champs Elysees avenue in Paris is illuminated by Christmas lights hanging from trees, as rush hour traffic fills the avenue leading to the Arc de Triomphe, in Paris, Dec. 17.
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Over one million lights have been set up in Canberra's CBD officially breaking the Guinness World Record for the largest LED image display on Nov. 29 in Canberra, Australia. The display will raise money for SIDS and Kids ACT.
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View of Color or Not installation by artist Yves Moreaux at the Saint-Jean Cathedral during the rehearsal for the Festival of Lights in central Lyon late in the night Dec 4. The Festival of Lights (Fetes des Lumieres), with designers from all over the world, is one of Lyon's most famous Festivals to date
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Visitors walk through Christmas lights at Tokyo Dome City in Tokyo, Dec. 6.
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A costumed Romanian man, seen through Christmas light decorations, takes part in the charity amateur race 'Santa Runs' at the Mogosoaia Park near Bucharest, Romania, Dec 6.
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People watch Harley Davidson motorcyclists, wearing Santa Claus dresses, driving through the streets of Basel, Switzerland, Dec. 6., as they take part in a parade of the Harley Owner Group (HOG) Northwest Chapter Switzerland.
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Shoppers tour a shopping mall decorated with light installation for the Christmas season in Beijing, China, Dec. 7.
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An element of the installation "Voyageurs" by French artist Cedric Le Borgne is suspended at Place Bel Air in Geneva Dec. 1. The installation is part of the Geneva Lux Festival presenting four art installations in the town city center until Jan. 11, 2015.
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People walk past and take photographs next to a decorative light in the shape of a Christmas parcel at the Rossio square in Lisbon, Dec.
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A person is silhouetted in front of a giant illuminated Menorah or Hanukkah lamp in the port of Tel Aviv, Israel, Dec.18. Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights and Feast of Dedication.
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Buildings are illuminated on Dec. 7, in the central French city of Lyon during the 16th edition of the Festival of Lights, a secular version of a religious tradition devoted to Virgin Mary and dating back to 153 years ago.
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Community members look for the nameplates of their loved ones Dec. 9, at Myers Funeral Service and Crematory in Porterville, Calif. during the 20th year of the memorial tree lighting.
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Trees illuminated by Christmas lights are pictured on Unter den Linden street near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin,
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Belvedere palace is reflected in a pond behind the lights of an advent market in Vienna Dec. 15.
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People enjoy the Christmas lights on the 700 block of 34th Street in the Hampden community of Baltimore, Maryland on Dece. 12. The display called "Miracle on 34th Street" dates back to 1947 and attracts thousands of tourists each year.
