Europe, Anniversary | featured news

A year after the Costa Concordia cruise ship sank in Italy, drowning 32 passengers and crew, the ship’s owner acknowledged Saturday that efforts to salvage the wreck were behind schedule, even as survivors of the disaster expressed anger at being told to keep away from anniversary ceremonies.

Just three years ago, the euro was being praised as the can-do currency that had delivered unprecedented prosperity in Europe. Now, it's widely derided as a hugely flawed experiment in the wake of a debt crisis that's threatening its very existence — an uncomfortable backdrop as the currency's notes and coins hit their first decade in circulation on Jan. 1.

With concerts and memorials, Germans will celebrate the day the Berlin Wall came crashing down 20 years ago.