Balloons are released into the air to celebrate the coming New Year in Sao Paulo, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008.
Good Luck Charms
A zookeeper holds two Meishan piglets at the Tierpark zoo in Berlin on Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008. In Germany, the pig is a traditional symbol for good luck at the beginning of a new year.
On The Fence
A Thai protester flashes a victory sign as he climbs the gate in front of Parliament during a protest Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008 in Bangkok, Thailand. Thailand's government, beset by months of virtual paralysis, was again at a standstill Tuesday as thousands of demonstrators loyal to exiled former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra surrounded Parliament.
Anniversary Preps
A woman sweeps a street in Havana, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008. Cuba will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the 1959 revolution on Jan. 1, 2009.
Back Home
An elderly released Pakistani prisoner walks with her luggage to cross to the Pakistan side of the border at the joint India-Pakistan check post of Wagah, in Amritsar, India, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008. India Tuesday repatriated 65 Pakistani nationals who were lodged in different jails, as a goodwill gesture.
Puckish Grin
Team Canada's defenseman Colten Teubert plays with a puck during hockey practice at the world junior hockey championships in Ottawa Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008.
Crossing The Line
A visitor steps over the Greenwich Meridian Line at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008. Scientists will mark the end of 2008 by tacking a second onto the clock, ever-so-slightly slowing the arrival of the new year. The addition of the "leap second" has been used sporadically since 1972 to help keep "atomic time" and "earth time" in closer union.