“Touring the Koko-en Gardens adjacent to the Himeji castle was an unexpected highlight of our visit”, wrote Jeff Solar, 64, of Silver Spring, Md., about his trip to Japan. “The fall colors were outstanding and the gardens were both amazing and a bargain (just a few Yen added to the cost of the Himeji Castle admission)”. (Photo by Jeff Solar/2017 Washington Post Travel Photo Contest)

Children carrying guns and flags or wearing Soviet-style uniforms have become a common sight at Victory Day parades and other events in Russian-controlled Crimea. Russian and Ukrainian human rights activists have warned that such displays point to a growing trend of promoting Russian patriotism among kids on the Crimean peninsula, annexed from Ukraine in 2014. Here: A young Crimean girl wears military-type clothes during a Victory Day celebration in Sevastopol on May 9, 2018. (Photo by Oleksandra Surgan/Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty)

A young man dressed as “La Llorona”, participates in a parade called “La Calabiuza” on the eve of the Day of the Dead in Tonacatepeque, El Salvador, November 1, 2019. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)

This week's full Moon as photographed from on board the International Space Station by NASA astronaut Jeff Williams on August 19, 2016. Jeff is currently Commander of the Space Station for the Expedition 48 crew. (Photo by Jeff Williams/NASA)

Female sea lion “Sarasa” holds a hose with her mouse to help a trainer clean her room at the Shinagawa Aqua Stadium aquarium in Tokyo on December 30, 2014. The aquarium is carrying out year-end general cleaning of their facilities. (Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP Photo)

Belarussians in costumes sing songs during the traditional rite of Shchadrets (Schedry vecher or Generous Eve) in the village of Osovo, some 190 km from Minsk, Belarus, 13 January 2015. Shchadrets is a Belarusian folk holiday celebrated on the New Year's Eve in accordance with the Julian calendar (Old New Year). The holiday is similar to Koliady, when youth in costumes walk from house to house singing holiday songs, performing, and asking for a reward afterwards. (Photo by Tatyana Zenkovich/EPA)

This picture taken on March 21, 2015 shows a couple kissing in front of blooming cherry blossoms in Wuhan in central China's Hubei province. The cherry blossoms, now in full bloom, attracted tens of thousands of visitors, local media reported. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)

A Pakistani monkey handler Naseer Khan plays flute to attract passers by for a monkey show to earn his living in Islamabad, Pakistan, Monday, September 7, 2015. (Photo by B. K. Bangash/AP Photo)