AP PHOTOS: Hindu holy men lead bath rituals in Indian river

Naked Hindu holy men wait to bath in the Godavari River during Kumbh Mela, or Pitcher Festival, at Trimbakeshwar in Nasik, India, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2015. Hindus believe taking a dip in the waters of a holy river during the festival, will cleanse them of their sins. According to Hindu mythology, the Kumbh Mela celebrates the victory of gods over demons in a furious battle over a nectar that would give them immortality.  

AP PHOTOS: Thousands bathe at riverside festival in India

Hindu devotees take holy dip in the River Godavari on the first official day of bathing as part of Kumbh Mela celebrations in Nasik, India, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2015. Hindus believe that sins accumulated in past and current lives require them to continue the cycle of death and rebirth until they are cleansed. Bathing in sacred waters on the most auspicious day of the Kumbh festival, or Pitcher Festival, believers say rids them of their sins.  

AP PHOTOS: Kashmiris suffer as India, Pakistan trade fire

In this Thursday, Aug, 20, 2015, photo, Indian villager Pritam Lal carries his grandson on his shoulder as he walks back to his house, near international border of India and Pakistan in Akhnoor sector, 33 kilometers (21 miles) from Jammu, India. On the face of it these villages in the Jammu region of Indian Kashmir seem idyllic, but over the last two weeks these villages have been witness to an angry exchange of fire and mortar shells between Indian and Pakistani soldiers. This isn't the first time that these villages have borne the brunt of the animosity between India and archrival Pakistan. And this likely won't be the last. 

26 Real Places That Look Like They’ve Been Taken Out Of Fairy Tales

Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany. As a way to seek refuge and withdraw from public life, Ludwig II of Bavaria built this extravagant castle in 1868. Seven weeks after his death in 1886, the structure was opened to the paying public and has since become one of the most visited castles in Europe. Neuschwanstein is also the inspiration for the Sleeping Beauty castle in Disneyland, so it’s clearly magical!

AP PHOTOS: Kimono-clad foreigners get a taste of old Tokyo

In this Aug. 1, 2015 photo, Nyrul Ain binti Ahmad Danial of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, right, tries authentic green tea for the first time with other participants during a Japanese tea ceremony at the Kyu Yasuda Garden in Tokyo. With some help from Japanese volunteers, more than 80 foreigners from around the world, including the United States, Russia and Malaysia, donned casual summer kimonos called “yukata” for a stroll around old Tokyo earlier this month. Originally part of a samurai residence in the 1600's, the garden, which is now free of admission, was donated by the Yasuda family, to the city of Tokyo in 1922. 

Madonna

Madonna poses at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sept. 14, 1984 in New York's Radio City Music Hall. The singer was nominated "Best New Artist" in video.  

10 Things to See: A week of top AP photos

Luis Enrique Tuanama, 17, rests while climbing the Cerro de Saraja , a mountain of sand, in Ica, Peru, Friday, Aug. 7, 2015. 

Famous left handers (Left Hander's Day is Aug. 13)

Scarlett Johannson