Oddly Enough

ABOARD A U.S. AIR FORCE JET (Reuters) - Barack Obama is not afraid to admit it -- he got a little emotional before leaving Chicago for Washington where he will soon become the next president of the United States.

BERLIN (Reuters Life!) - The son of the late German zookeeper who nurtured celebrity polar bear cub Knut at Berlin zoo has raised nearly 7,000 euros ($9,748) by selling off his father's belongings on internet auction site eBay.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Three German children aged five, six and seven who said they were fed up with cold weather at home set off on a voyage to Africa but only got as far as the local train station, police said on Monday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A statue stolen last month from Wall Street financier Bernard Madoff's Florida home has been returned undamaged, and with a note attached, to a country club where the accused swindler is a member, Palm Beach police said on Thursday.

LONDON (Reuters) - A Polish woman has become only the second person to give birth on London's underground rail network since it opened 146 years ago, the transport authority confirmed on Friday.

LONDON (Reuters) - A rare Bugatti motor car, which has been parked in a garage gathering dust for nearly 50 years, is expected to fetch millions of pounds when it is auctioned next month.

BEIJING (Reuters) - A computer glitch at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China gave gold traders a 23-minute bonanza that cost the bank dearly last week, sparking a debate on Monday as the bank reclaimed the windfall.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Fears of a prolonged recession in China have triggered a sharp increase in divorce inquiries addressed to lawyers and financial advisers, state media reported on Monday, with timing a key issue.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Those eager to put 2008 behind them will have to hold their good-byes for just a moment this New Year's Eve.

LIMA (Reuters) - Virgin Mary, a 20-year-old Peruvian woman, gave birth to a baby boy on Christmas day and named him Jesus, Peru's state news agency said on Friday.