Christmas and other mass holidays celebrate these days almost around the world. The German weekly Wirtschafts Woche offers to get acquainted with the customs and traditions inherent in these celebrations in different countries. (Full text of the article on the website inopressa.ru .) Netherlands. In Holland and Flanders, everything revolves around Sinterclaas (St. Nicholas, Dutch Santa Claus - approx. Ed) and his assistant Black Pede.

The mortgage crisis and the ongoing weakening of the dollar make investments in American real estate more and more popular among wealthy foreigners, writes k2kapital.com . A striking example of this? Buying a luxurious apartment in a fashionable Battle Park City, which is reported by the Associated Press from New York. The manufacturer of expensive carpets of Panden Rota (Panden Rota) justifies his deal with the need to spend more time in the United States to demonstrate his carpets.

In Ukraine, the first ATM appeared in the country to make religious donations. "Tsdakamat" (from the word "tsdak" - donation, approx. Ed.) Established in the Dnipropetrovsk synagogue. With its help, parishioners will be able to make donations to the synagogue using their payment card, make money to a deposit, transfer it to various funds or send it to certain programs, reports Newsru ISRAEL .

At his meeting on Wednesday, the Central Election Commission of Russia is expected to officially register Gennady Zyuganov and Vladimir Zhirinovsky as candidates from the Communist Party and LDPR for the post of head of state. Zyuganov and Zhirinovsky were nominated by candidates from political parties who went to the State Duma following the results of the December 2 elections, and in this regard, 2 million voter signatures are exempted from the obligation to collect their candidates.

The head of the Russian Ministry of Emergencies Sergey Shoigu predicts the growth of natural emergency situations in 2008. He stated this on Wednesday at a press conference. “Unfortunately, we have a tendency to grow natural emergencies, these are earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes. This year they recorded 400, which is 7% more compared to 2006,” said Sergey Shoigu.

In California, the former house of Ringo Starra, the drummer of The Beatles, is put up for sale. The mansion can be bought for $ 4.2 million, writes KP.ua with reference to Los Angeles Times. The area of ​​the estate exceeds four thousand square meters. The mansion has five bedrooms, a library, a gym, a pool and six fireplaces. In addition, the premises for servants are also provided.

LDPR leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky became an official participant in the presidential election. The CEC of the Russian Federation on Wednesday registered him with a candidate for president of the Russian Federation. Zhirinovsky issued a certificate of the corresponding sample, ITAR-TASS reports.

Under the threat of a breakdown was the good undertaking of the Tatarstan government to provide all the conscripts of the republic with mobile phones. According to human rights activists, upon arrival at the military unit at the place of military service, the phones from the draftees sees the command, referring to a certain order of the Ministry of Defense. The irony is that the program is implemented with the assistance of the military department itself.

In 2007, many significant events in the field of culture occurred. In particular, this year was remembered by the return to the country of the collection of Soviet cartoons and meetings of Russian art of Mstislav Rostropovich and Galina Vishnevskaya and the triumph of Nikita Mikhalkov at the Venice Film Festival. In addition, we can note the outstanding successes of Russian art at world auctions.

In order to disperse the opposition rally in Tbilisi on November 7, Georgian authorities used a psychotron weapon - an American acoustic generator, causing people a sense of panic and mental disorders. The generators were installed on police jeeps and were the hexagonal shields on the movable rack, which made a sharp whistle. These shields, being directed towards the demonstrators, turned those to flight, reports the Moscow Komsomolets .

Forbes magazine has chosen 20 cities in which the most people live on one square kilometer of land. The list is given on the Prian.ru website. 1. Mumbai, India. Total area: 484 sq. km. The number of residents per sq. km: 29650 people. Population: 14 million 350 thousand people. 2. Calcutta, India. Total area: 531 sq. km. The number of residents per sq. km: 23900 people. Population: 12.7 million people. 3. Karachi, Pakistan. Total area: 518 sq. km. The number of residents per sq.

Ratings in Russia for a week from 10 to 16 December The Russian audience chose Russian-Ukrainian co-products on a review week. The film "Indie" (channel "Russia") turned out to be the main event in the film screen. Neither Shatko nor Valkko has recently been held in cinemas, the melodrama of directed by Alexander Kiriyenko went around competitors on the body (rating - 6.6% of the share - 18.2%).

On January 3, the migration service of France will consider the issue of providing political asylum to the ex-minister of the Georgian defense, Irakli Okhaashvili, his lawyer Eka Beselia said on Wednesday. According to her, until that time, Okabashvili will remain in the Berlin prison Moabit. "France was transmitted to the decision of this issue because the Visa for the entrance to the European Union was issued by the France Embassy in Georgia," the lawyer said.

Five people died in the result of the helicopter fall, which occurred on Wednesday in Belgian Flanders, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the VRT TV channel. The plane crash occurred between the settlements of Merkhtem and Wemel in the province of Flemish Brabant. The pilot and his wife, who were about 50 years old, as well as their children and his son’s girlfriend crashed as a result of an accident, ”the police representative told reporters.

Rosprirodnadzor sent to the General Prosecutor General and the Department for Combating the Economic Crimes of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia the materials of inspections of compliance with the requirements of environmental legislation and the terms of the licensing agreements of CJSC STS, CJSC Khanty-Mansi Oil Company and LLC CHC Chernogorskoye. The relevant documents were signed by the deputy head of Rosprirodnadzor Oleg Mitvol.