Children from ski schools practice on a thin layer of snow towards the resort of Leysin, Swiss Alps, on December 28, 2015.  In a season traditionally associated with ice-skating, snowball fights and mulled wine in wintry Europe, birds are chirping, flowers blooming and fake snow covering Alpine ski slopes in one of the warmest Decembers on record. / AFP / FABRICE COFFRINIFABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images ORG XMIT:
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