A vendor sells seafood at a market in East Broadway in New York City's Chinatown. There was a 17 percent drop in the population of New York City's Chinatown over the past decade, and some say it's a sign that Chinatown is becoming more of a symbolic touchstone. Rebecca Sheir/NPR hide caption
Asia
A trader walks in New York City's financial district on Sept. 12, a day when stocks fell early based on fears that the Greek government would default, then rallied on news that China might buy Italian debt. This year, what sent the market into a tailspin often took place overseas. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption
Anna Hu at the Ao Hua Farmers Market in Shanghai. After years of working long hours and eating only in restaurants, Hu has learned how to cook vegetables and eat more healthfully. Eliza Barclay/NPR hide caption
In Japan, the colorful New Year's meal is packaged in special, lacquered boxes. R. CREATION/amanaimages/Corbis hide caption
This image, released by the North Korean Central News Agency, was taken within seconds of the one above. An analysis shows that it was digitally altered, removing the cluster of men on the left edge and enhancing the perfect line of mourners. KCNA/EPA /Landov hide caption
At Vow's Bar in Tokyo, Buddhist monks run the place and serve up advice along with cocktails. Here's a monk serving drinks on Monday. Lucy Craft/NPR hide caption
Filipino soldiers install solar light bulbs through a roof in a shantytown in Manila, Philippines. The bulbs are actually old plastic soda bottles filled with water and bleach, and powered by the sun. Jay Directo/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
Samoa: Would you argue with getting an extra day in a place like this? D. Kirkland/Samoa Tourist Authority/AP hide caption
Kim Jong Un, center, walks with his hand on the limousine bearing his father Kim Jong Il's body earlier today in Pyongyang. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
NPR's Anthony Kuhn, reporting from Seoul
This photo provided by Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows Kim Jong Un, center, with his hand on the limousine bearing his father Kim Jong Il's body during the funeral procession in Pyongyang. Korean Central News Agency hide caption