Cologne, Germany - Carnival celebrations in Germany have been marred by brawls, police said Friday as the festivities shifted into high gear in a band of cities along the Rhine valley.

The annual celebrations are set to reach a climax on Monday with nationally televised parades of papier-mache floats through the streets of Dusseldorf, Cologne, Mainz and other towns.

Rio de Janeiro - Three days before its "official" beginning, the world-famous Brazilian Carnival started Thursday in the historic city of Salvador, in the northeatern state of Bahia.

According to municipal tourism body Salvatur, over 650,000 tourists were expected in the city for the event, where hotels showed an occupancy rate of over 90 per cent.

Rio de Janeiro  - Young foreign tourists who travelled to Brazil for the world-famous Rio de Janeiro Carnival were facing an unexpected threat Thursday: the raids of criminal gangs on youth hostels in the city.

In just 24 hours, police investigated two such raids, affecting at least 50 tourists, most of them foreigners.

London, Feb 19: White wine

Cologne, Germany - In the 1950s, people met to watch television in so-called TV parlours. Now, a young Cologne man says he has founded the first cinema living room.

The Ivory Tower living room cinema fills the void between the cinema and a DVD at home, said founder Markus Altmeyer. The room, which seats up to 30 people, is decorated like a cinema with film posters on the walls, but guests sit on sofas and living room chairs as opposed to cinema seats.

Los Angeles - What used to be frowned upon in the fashion world, is now in style: More and more artists in the United States are exhibiting their work in boutiques.

The hip store Confederacy in Hollywood sells etchings by Julian Schnabel along with designer clothes and lingerie, while in New York, Robin Richman decorates her high-priced boutique with works by young artists.

In these dire economic times, boutiques have to be creative, said Richman in an article in the New York Times. Clothing stores want to attract customers with something different, while artists see it as a saving grace at a time when more and more galleries are closing.