The Frame
A photo blog of world events by Sacbee.com Assistant Director of Multimedia Tim Reese.
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December 23, 2009
Holiday lights
'Tis the season. Happy holidays from The Frame.(26 images)

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Homes in suburban Sydney are decorated with Christmas lights and illuminations in Matraville on Dec. 21, in Sydney, Australia. The struggling economic climate of 2009 doesn't seem to have dissuaded Sydney residents from adorning their houses for the festival season, with home owners recreating Sydney landmarks including the Sydney Opera House, Luna Park and the Harbour Bridge alongside more traditional festive icons such as Frosty The Snowman and Santa Claus. Getty Images / Lisa Maree Williams


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People walk past a Christmas tree displayed at a shopping mall in Beijing on Dec. 22. Although China officially provides for freedom of religion in practice the ruling Communist Party restricts independent worship by forcing groups to register with the government and this winter, Christians in northern China are facing a Christmas of fear after 10 local religious leaders were jailed in recent weeks and their new church shuttered amid a crackdown on unauthorised worship. Despite the problems Christians in China can face, businesses have latched onto Christmas as a fashionable, commercial venture as living standards have risen and contact with the West has increased with many shops in Beijing decked out with surface displays of decorations and trees. AFP / Getty Images / Frederic J. Brown



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Christmas lights on display at Tokyo Midtown on Dec. 18, in Tokyo, Japan. Getty Images / Koichi Kamoshida



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Visitors walk through Christmas illuminations at a Tokyo park, Japan, Tuesday, Dec. 22. AP / Itsuo Inouye



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A pedestrian walks past the Christmas decorations on display for the upcoming Christmas celebration in Petaling Jaya, near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Dec. 11. AP / Lai Seng Sin



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Motorists drive through the Christmas decorations on display for the upcoming Christmas celebration in Petaling Jaya, near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Dec. 11. AP / Lai Seng Sin



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Homes in suburban Sydney are decorated with Christmas lights and illuminations in Matraville on Dec. 21, in Sydney, Australia. Getty Images / Lisa Maree Williams



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The traditional Christmas tree, a gift from the Norway is lit in Trafalgar Square London, Thursday, Dec. 3. The tree is a yearly gift from the people of Norway since 1947 and is a token of appreciation for Britain's support during WWII. AP / Alastair Grant



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People stop to admire Christmas lights displayed on a detached house in a suburbian street on Dec. 5, in Melksham, England. The lights, which involve over 115,000 bulbs in a display that is estimated to be worth over 30,000 GBP, are the brainchild of householder Alex Goodwind. Last year the bill for electricity was over 700GBP and the house has had to have an uprated electricity supply installed to cope with the additional power needed. Goodwin who starts planning it in July says he does it to raise money for charity and last year donations from visitors to the spectacle raised over 3000GBP for a local hospice, Dorothy House. Many UK households have been feeling the pinch on the run up to this Festive season as the British economy looks to spend a second Christmas in recession. Getty Images / Matt Cardy



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Christmas trees decorate the square in front of the Monte Carlo Casino, Thursday, Dec. 10, in Monaco. AP / Lionel Cironneau



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People walk past Christmas lights in the town of Varna, east of the Bulgarian capital Sofia, Thursday, Dec. 10. AP photo



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The centre of the Dutch city of Gouda is lit by many candles during the 54th edition of candlenight on Dec. 15. Every year, Kaarsjesavond (night of candles) is celebrated on the second Tuesday of December at the Gouda market place and around the City Hall. The Gouda Christmas tree is lit with 10,000 LED lamps, consuming a total of 800 W, instead of the previously 5,300. AFP / Getty Images / Valerie Kuypers



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A tree decorated with festive lights glows at dusk, near Arosa, Switzerland, Thursday, Dec. 17. AP / Alessandro Della Bella



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A Christmas tree is seen on the Grand'Place in Brussels, Tuesday Dec. 22. AP / Thierry Charlier



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The chateau of Chambord on the Loire Valley decked in Christmas lights on Dec. 21. AFP / Getty Images / Alain Jocard



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Traffic moves past a statue of St. George decorated like a Christmas tree in the centre of Tbilisi on Dec. 10. AFP / Getty Images / Vano Shlamov



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A Christmas tree and illumination are seen near the Georgian Parliament building in the centre of Tbilisi on Dec. 10. AFP / Getty Images / Vano Shlamov



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People visit the illuminated Christmas market in Heidelberg, southwestern Germany, Sunday, Dec. 6. AP / Daniel RolandVano Shlamov



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More than 200 booths offer traditional Thuringian handcrafts and sweets and a big ferris wheel stands on the Christmas Fair in front of the Mariendom (Cathedral of Mary) and St. Severi's Church in Erfurt, central Germany, on Thursday, Dec. 10. AP / Jens MeyerVano Shlamov



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Athens' central Syntagma Square is lit up on Friday, Dec. 11, during the official inauguration of the Greek capital's Christmas celebrations. Police are on standby in the square for fear vandals might attack the city's main Christmas tree, which was burnt during rioting last year sparked by the fatal police shooting of a teenager. AP / Thanassis Stavrakis Vano Shlamov



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The Christmas lights on Alcala Street, in Madrid on Dec. 11. The street is decked out in lights every year, ahead of Christmas celebrations. AFP / Getty Images / Dominique Faget



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Pakistani Christians prepare for Christmas in Islamabad, Pakistan Wednesday, Dec. 23. The Pakistani Christian leadership have decided to celebrate Christmas cautiously due to ongoing violence by alleged militants and attacks on the Christian community in Gojra left six people people dead and burned 40 houses in August. AP / B.K. Bangash



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Fireworks explode over a floating Christmas tree as it is lighted for the holiday season in Lagoa lake in Rio de Janeiro, Saturday, Dec. 5. AP / Felipe Dana



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Boats in the 101st annual Newport Beach Christmas Boat Parade are lit with Christmas decorations as they move through through the night on Dec. 16, in Newport Beach, Calif. The boats travel a 14-mile circuit through Newport Harbor each night from Dec. 16 through Dec. 20. Getty Images / David McNew



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The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree glows in front of the General Electric building in New York's Rockefeller Plaza during the 77th annual tree lighting ceremony in New York on Dec. 2. AP / Frank Franklin II



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The 2009 National Christmas Tree Lighting on Dec. 03, at Presidents Park in Washington, D.C. AFP / Getty Images / Tim Sloan



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