15-meter-tall Christmas tree

15-meter-tall Christmas tree

SAPPORO, Japan - A 15-meter-tall Christmas tree is illuminated in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Nov. 2, 2013.

15-meter-tall Christmas tree

15-meter-tall Christmas tree

SAPPORO, Japan - A 15-meter-tall Christmas tree is illuminated in Sapporo, Hokkaido, on Nov. 2, 2013.

Dusting off Great Buddha

Dusting off Great Buddha

NARA, Japan - Monks at Todaiji temple in Nara dust off the 15-meter-tall Great Buddha statue on Aug. 7, 2011, in the annual summertime ''body wiping'' event.

'Tetsujin 28-go' robot statue lit up

'Tetsujin 28-go' robot statue lit up

KOBE, Japan - Two children pose for photos in front of a 15-meter-tall statue of ''Tetsujin 28-go'' from a robot comic and animation series at a park in Kobe's Nagata Ward on Oct. 10, 2010. The statue, set up in October 2009 to encourage people hit by the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, was lit up in various colors as a pre-Christmas illumination event.

Eco-friendly LEDs illuminate Tokyo's Christmas season

Eco-friendly LEDs illuminate Tokyo's Christmas season

TOKYO, Japan - A 15-meter tall fir tree is decorated for the Christmas season with around 100,000 eco-friendly light emitting diodes at the foot of Tokyo Tower in Tokyo on Nov. 18, 2009. People can get into the festive spirit when the lights blink to music on the hour against the backdrop of Tokyo Tower.

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

TOKYO, Japan - A lighting ceremony for a 15-meter tall Christmas tree, about the size of a five-story building and one of the largest in Japan, is held at the Mitsukoshi department store in the plush Nihonbashi shopping area in Tokyo on Nov. 2, 2009. The eco-friendly tree made of metal for repeated use and decorated with 25,000 light-emitting diode bulbs that require less power will be set up at the store's central hall until Dec. 25, store officials said.

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

TOKYO, Japan - A mother and her baby pose for a commemorative photograph in front of a 15-meter tall Christmas tree, one of the largest in Japan, at the Mitsukoshi department store in the plush Nihonbashi shopping area in Tokyo on Nov. 2, 2009, with a ''Green Santa Claus,'' an environmental goodwill ambassador from Denmark. The eco-friendly tree made of metal for repeated use and decorated with 25,000 light-emitting diode bulbs that require less power will be set up at the store's central hall until Dec. 25, store officials said.

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

TOKYO, Japan - A lighting ceremony for a 15-meter tall Christmas tree, about the size of a five-story building and one of the largest in Japan, is held at the Mitsukoshi department store in the plush Nihonbashi shopping area in Tokyo on Nov. 2, 2009. The eco-friendly tree made of metal for repeated use and decorated with 25,000 light-emitting diode bulbs that require less power will be set up at the store's central hall until Dec. 25, store officials said. (Kyodo)

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

15-m tall Christmas tree lights up Tokyo department store

TOKYO, Japan - A mother and her baby pose for a commemorative photograph in front of a 15-meter tall Christmas tree, one of the largest in Japan, at the Mitsukoshi department store in the plush Nihonbashi shopping area in Tokyo on Nov. 2, 2009, with a ''Green Santa Claus,'' an environmental goodwill ambassador from Denmark. The eco-friendly tree made of metal for repeated use and decorated with 25,000 light-emitting diode bulbs that require less power will be set up at the store's central hall until Dec. 25, store officials said. (Kyodo)

Dusting off Great Buddha

Dusting off Great Buddha

NARA, Japan - Monks at Todaiji temple in Nara dust off the 15-meter-tall Great Buddha statue on Aug. 7, 2011, in the annual summertime ''body wiping'' event. (Kyodo)

'Tetsujin 28-go' robot statue lit up

'Tetsujin 28-go' robot statue lit up

KOBE, Japan - Two children pose for photos in front of a 15-meter-tall statue of ''Tetsujin 28-go'' from a robot comic and animation series at a park in Kobe's Nagata Ward on Oct. 10, 2010. The statue, set up in October 2009 to encourage people hit by the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, was lit up in various colors as a pre-Christmas illumination event. (Kyodo)

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of the 15-meter-tall Tetsujin 28 monument continues in the western Japan city of Kobe on Oct. 18, 2016. The new paint work of the iron monument, built in 2009 as a symbol of reconstruction from the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, will be revealed on Nov. 6. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of the 15-meter-tall Tetsujin 28 monument continues in the western Japan city of Kobe on Oct. 18, 2016. The new paint work of the iron monument, built in 2009 as a symbol of reconstruction from the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, will be revealed on Nov. 6. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of Tetsujin 28 under way in Kobe

Repainting of the 15-meter-tall Tetsujin 28 monument continues in the western Japan city of Kobe on Oct. 18, 2016. The new paint work of the iron monument, built in 2009 as a symbol of reconstruction from the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, will be revealed on Nov. 6. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Eco-friendly LEDs illuminate Tokyo's Christmas season

Eco-friendly LEDs illuminate Tokyo's Christmas season

TOKYO, Japan - A 15-meter tall fir tree is decorated for the Christmas season with around 100,000 eco-friendly light emitting diodes at the foot of Tokyo Tower in Tokyo on Nov. 18, 2009. People can get into the festive spirit when the lights blink to music on the hour against the backdrop of Tokyo Tower. (Kyodo)