Photos of the Week, Jan. 23-27

A group of pals proving there's nothing better on a cold night than the embrace of friendship as they pose for the camera during "Hugs Day" on Satuday at Patriarch's Ponds.

A female visitor to Moroz City's ice hotel posing for a photo shoot on a large double ice bed, wrapped in furs. Related article

A snow-topped Lenin statue peeking out of a drift on Ulitsa 1905 Goda on Wednesday, with the remainder of his bronze torso shrouded from view.

Presidential candidate and billionaire businessman Mikhail Prokhorov holding his portrait at a meeting with supporters on the campaign trail in Kazan on Saturday. Related article

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told students in Tomsk on Wednesday that he would rather see people enjoying football than drinking vodka. Related article

Putin took time during his swing through the coal heartland of Kemerovo to meet with young judo enthusiasts.

Azeri leader Ilham Aliyev, right, preparing to go skiing with President Dmitry Medvedev during an informal meeting near Sochi on Monday.

Passersby pause by an advertisement in Sokolniki Park, lifting their faces up to the cutout gaps in the display.

As if driving in Moscow wasn't dangerous enough, pandas appear to be behind the wheel Tuesday in this car parked near the McDonald's on Pushkin Square. Yet the car seat covers didn't seem to fool these pedestrians.

A well-bundled Muscovite enjoying a rare ray of sunshine Tuesday as frigid temperatures continue to embrace the city.

Exhausted after a long day of classes, a boy taking a nap in the metro as he rides home from school with his grandmother, left, on Monday afternoon.