1.   And this takes place amid displays of magic and art from any and all worlds.

2.   For as long as people can remember, the dealmaking to buy a bride has taken place amid ceremony and solemnity, de la Cruz said.

3.   He is not out of place amid the azaleas, the pine trees, and the giants of the game.

4.   It is a town of hidden shafts and abandoned pits, a treacherously hollowed-out place where the class struggle takes place amid swirling clouds of coal dust.

5.   Reading and conversation took place amid the grunts of weight lifting, the groans of massage.

6.   Seventeen passengers were injured during the rescue, which took place amid three-foot waves.

7.   Such jockeying is taking place amid some tough political realities, said a spokesman for the governor and others close to the negotiations.

8.   The Bush-Qian meeting takes place amid fresh tensions over human rights.

9.   The break-up of Yugoslavia took place amid an economic downturn.

10.   The conference takes place amid rising concern that the looted assets of Holocaust victims may be held in many European countries, in Israel and in the U.S.