“Dubai is sometimes called the “City of Gold” because of its stunning growth from a sleepy Gulf port to a world-famous business crossroads in the space of a single generation. Its nickname has a literal meaning for traders in the precious metal. The city is building itself up as a center for the gold trade, between sources in Africa and consumers in the rising economies of China and India”. – Kamran Jebreili via Associated Press

Photo: A gold press operator collects 10 gram gold blanks to press them with the logo of the Emirates Gold company in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Gold prices remained relatively steady in 2012, close to $1,700 an ounce. (Photo by Kamran Jebreili/AP Photo)

“Super Enerji”. Taken on my road trip through Turkey. (Photo and caption by Michelle Brandemuehl/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

ATTENTION! All pictures 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.

This tiny hedgehog is in a prickly position as hes unable to grow spikes, leaving him needing round-the-clock care. The woodland critter was found with no spikes and has been taken in by a family hoping to nurse him back to health so he can be released into the wild. Named Mr Prickleless, the hedgehog was rescued by Dina Nixon and her daughter Jennifer, 25, after being taken into a rescue centre in December last year. It is not known what happened to his spikes, but Dina has vowed that if they ever do return he will be returned to the wild. But for now the hedgehog has taken shelter in a rabbit hutch in her garden. (Photo by Caters News Agency)

A Chimpanzee is seen with funny expressions at Hanover Zoo on September 27, 2013 in Hanover, Germany. (Photo by Barcroft Media)

Firefighters carry a woman on a stretcher after a car drove into the crowded seaside boardwalk along Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Thursday, January 18, 2018. Military police said on Twitter that at least 11 people were injured and that the driver has been taken into custody. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)

Animal rights activists perform, demanding the abolition of bullfights, during a demonstration in Medellin, Colombia February 11, 2018. The Colombian Constitutional Court overruled on February 7, 2018, a judgment that allowed to hold a referendum regarding bullfights. (Photo by Fredy Builes/Reuters)

Vice President of Lebanese Wildlife Alexandra Youssef, checks a fox at a vet clinic in Beit Mery, Lebanon on March 26, 2021. (Photo by Mohamed Azakir/Reuters)

A Romanian honor guard soldier stands still as three military aircraft carriers are crossing the sky during a ceremony held at the Unknown Soldier Memorial, in Carol I Park, on the occasion of the Heroes' Day commemoration, in Bucharest, Romania, 10 June 2021. (Photo by Robert Ghement/EPA/EFE)