Romanian children wearing real bear skins coming from the Bacau region (some 340 km northeast from Bucharest) perform the bears' dance, an ancient tradition before Christmas, in Bucharest, December 23, 2012. Such ceremonies are still popular in the Balkans and Romania, especially during the days between Christmas Eve to Epiphany. Originally, they were ceremonies related to the periodic return of the dead, with people wearing all sorts of masks and behaving like animals such as horses, goats or bears. It is believed that bears banish demons from houses and farmyards and wish inhabitants a happy year. (Daniel Mihailescu/AFP/Getty Images)
{}