Jorge, an immigrant from Mexico, dressed as the Sesame Street character Elmo rests in Times Square, New York July 29, 2014. Elmo and Cookie Monster have long delighted young viewers on TV's “Sesame Street”, but the recent antics of New York street performers dressed as the beloved characters have drawn the ire of city officials and now the show's producers. Sesame Workshop, which owns the rights to Big Bird, Ernie and the assorted puppet monsters on the 45-year-old program, said on July 29, 2014 it was drafting plans to stop performers who dress up as the characters from appearing in Times Square, where they pose for photos with tourists and then demand tips. (Photo by Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

The annual calendar features stunning shots of lighting, cloud formations and the aurora australis. Hundreds of photographers from every Australian state and territory submitted images to the Bureau of Meteorology for selection in the year’s calendar, with only the best chosen to represent the full spectrum of Australian weather. Here: April. A path through the clouds between Townsville and Richmond, Queensland. (Photo by Captain Victoria Harrison/Australian Bureau of Meteorology)

A street artist dances tango in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tuesday, January 20, 2015. Tango is a partner dance that originated in the 1890's along the Rio de la Plata, the border between Uruguay and Argentina. UNESCO approved in 2009, a joint proposal by the two nations to include the dance in its Intangible Cultural Heritage List. (Photo by Rodrigo Abd/AP Photo)

A long skater speeds away on the rain-wet ice on lake Orlangen, South of Stockholm on December 15, 2013. Meteorologists forecast temperatures around 5 degrees for southern Sweden. (Photo by Tobias Rostlund/AFP Photo)

P.S. All pictures, as usual, are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture (if available; this principle works anywhere on the site AvaxNews).

Two young dancers take pictures while waiting for the start of the Koenji Awa-Odori dance festival, in the Koenji neighborhood of Tokyo. Saturday, August 24, 2019, Started in the 1950s, the Koenji Awa-Odori has grown to be one of Tokyo's largest and most popular summer festivals an estimated 10,000 dancers participating in the dance festival. Hundreds of thousands of spectators gather in the neighborhood to watch the two-day summer spectacle. The event is held on the last weekend of August each year. (Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)

A view of lava crossing the main road to Grindavík and flowing on the road leading to the Blue Lagoon, in Grindavík, Iceland, Thursday, February 8, 2024. A volcano in southwestern Iceland has erupted for the third time since December and sent jets of lava into the sky. The eruption on Thursday morning triggered the evacuation the Blue Lagoon spa which is one of the island nation’s biggest tourist attractions. (Photo by Marco Di Marco/AP Photo)

A young Thai man jumps in the air and cheers as his rocket takes off at the Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival on May 10, 2015 in Yasothon, Thailand. During the Bun Bang Fai rocket festival, Thai residents launch enormous home-made rockets into the air to gain Buddhist merit and to celebrate the beginning of the rainy season. (Photo by Taylor Weidman/Getty Images)

A traditional Chinese opera actress wearing a face shield poses for a picture during Lunar New Year celebrations in Bangkok, Thailand, February 12, 2021. (Photo by Chalinee Thirasupa/Reuters)