Valentine’s Day celebrations around the world
Flowers, chocolates, handwritten cards — and flash mobs. People around the world expressed their love in myriad ways on Valentine's Day: hanging hundreds of paper hearts in the streets to honor a recently deceased “Valentine's Day Bandit" in Portland, Maine; vowing to cherish and obey democracy by casting votes in Valentine's Day-themed polling stations in Indonesia; and donning heart-shaped sunglasses at a victory rally for the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs. Images captured by Associated Press photographers around the globe Wednesday showed love is a many-faceted emotion, employed not just to root for long-lasting romances but to fight for justice and counteract anger and hatred.
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VIDEO BY AP
While February 14th marks a day full of flowers and chocolate, some used the day as an opportunity to rally for change. Watch how countries like France, Japan and others celebrated Valentine's Day.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A couple take a selfie photo in front of a heart formed with lights switched on in hotel rooms during Valentine's Day in St. Petersburg, Russia, Wednesday, Feb. 14.3/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A Kansas City Chiefs fan brought her Valentine's Day spirit to the Super Bowl victory rally in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 14.4/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A couple embrace next to the Bosphorus during Valentine's Day in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 14.5/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Justin Shady, left, kisses Nicolette Miller after she accepted his marriage proposal during a Love in Times Square event, Wednesday, Feb. 14, in New York's Times Square.6/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Couples pose for a photograph during the Valentine's Day in London, Wednesday, Feb. 14.7/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
People look at a skeleton couple kissing installation dubbed " 'Till Death Do Us Part" during a Valentine's Day event in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, Feb. 13.8/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A couple kiss after a mock marriage ceremony dubbed "Married for one day" during a Valentine's Day event in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, Feb. 13.9/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A couple pose for a photographer in front of the Eiffel Tower, during Valentine's day, in Paris, Wednesday, Feb. 14.10/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A man shows his finger inked to mark that he has already voted during the election at a Valentine's Day-themed polling station during the election in Solo, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Feb. 14.11/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A message drawn in the dirt on a van is seen on Valentine's Day following a nor'easter winter storm that dropped several inches of snow in Halifax on Wednesday, Feb. 14.12/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A man sells a heart shaped balloon to a couple next to the Bosphorus during Valentine's Day in Istanbul, Turkey, Wednesday, Feb. 14.13/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
An electoral worker shows a ballot paper during the vote counting for the presidential and legislative election at a Valentine's Day-themed polling station in Solo, Central Java, Indonesia, Wednesday, Feb. 14.14/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Decorations for Valentine's Day adorn the White House lawn, Wednesday, Feb. 14, in Washington.15/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Women hold candles and flowers during a "Dark Valentine" vigil to demonstrate against the rising cases of femicide, in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, Wednesday, Feb. 14.16/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Activists perform during a "One Billion Rising" event at the Rome's Spanish Steps during a flash mob on Valentine's Day in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 14. The global campaign "One Billion Rising" calls for an end to violence against women and girls.17/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Visitors to the White House take photos in front of Valentine's Day decorations in the East Landing, Wednesday, Feb. 14, in Washington.18/20
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A vendor uses a phone as she waits for customers at a flower shop on Valentine's Day in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, Feb. 14.19/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
A couple waits for their turn in a mock marriage ceremony dubbed "Married for one day" during a Valentine's Day event in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, Feb. 13.20/20
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Valentine's Day Hearts decorate a storefront on Exchange Street, Wednesday, Feb. 14, in Portland, Maine. The public has helped honor the memory of Kevin Fahrman, the Valentine's Day Bandit who secretly hung hundreds of red paper hearts throughout the city every Feb. 14th. Farman died last year.
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