Sunday, March 15

Blog

Scottish road trip guide: from London to Edinburgh and the Highlands
22Nov By No Comments
Life Style

Scottish road trip guide: from London to Edinburgh and the Highlands

Drunk on visions of silver lochs, kilts, castles and general Scottish fantasy, my husband and I crafted our Google maps loop, in great anticipation of cinematic car journeys connecting each turreted hotel with the next Victorian coaching inn or swishy treehouse. We fancied ourselves a bit of a Highland fling — a two-week road trip absorbing the incalculable majesty of those craggy, soaring peaks and losing our city cortisol somewhere in the soft, watercolour landscape of the glens. We wanted our minds to be rattled by the winds and our eyes stretched across the inky spines of distant hills, occasionally broken by a roaming stag. I wanted to wear tartan, to peel back the thick tartan curtains of a laird’s four poster and dress my children head to toe in the stuff, like an American losing th...
Read More
Gautam Adani: US court issues arrest warrant for one of India’s richest men over ‘$250m bribes’ | World News
22Nov By Aditi PawarNo Comments
Business

Gautam Adani: US court issues arrest warrant for one of India’s richest men over ‘$250m bribes’ | World News

A US federal court has issued an arrest warrant for one of India's richest men.Billionaire Gautam Adani has been charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with allegedly defrauding investors and bribing officials. The 62-year-old Adani Group boss, worth $116bn (£91.77bn) faces the allegations along with his nephew Sagar Adani and six others in relation to one of the world's largest solar projects. Image: Adani Group has been accused of fraudulent practices in the past. File pic: AP/Manish Swarup An investigation conducted by the FBI claimed Mr Adani and others agreed to bribe Indian government officials to obtain lucrative solar energy supply contracts.Deputy assistant attorney general Lisa Miller said: "T...
Read More
The Western tourists going to Iraq for vacation
22Nov By No Comments
World News

The Western tourists going to Iraq for vacation

By Richard Collett, CNN Janet Newenham visited Iraq for the first time in 2021 — and returned three months later with an all-female group. Photo: Courtesy Janet Newenham via CNN Newsource As Tommy Driskill, a YouTuber from Hawaii who's better known by his moniker, 'Dude Abroad', sat down for a traditional Iraqi breakfast of kahi and geymar (pastries and clotted cream) outside a hole-in-the-wall cafe in downtown Baghdad, he couldn't help but think it was a surreal experience. "It was peaceful, calm, and rather quiet," Driskill told CNN Travel after visiting Iraq in 2024. "The street table view, though, is that of a bullet-ridden building across the road. [It was] a scar left from a darker time - in an area [that,] I was reminded, was once not suitable to stand even for five minutes on...
Read More
British tourist who fell ill from methanol poisoning dies after ‘free shots’ giveaway in Laos resort | UK News
22Nov By Aditi PawarNo Comments
Business

British tourist who fell ill from methanol poisoning dies after ‘free shots’ giveaway in Laos resort | UK News

A British tourist being treated after a suspected mass methanol poisoning in Laos has died, according to UK officials.Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, fell ill after reportedly drinking "free shots" from a local bar in Vang Vieng - a resort popular with backpackers.Four people had already died following the suspected poisonings - an Australian named Bianca Jones, 19, from Melbourne, as well as two Danish women in their 20s and a 56-year-old US citizen.They are believed to have consumed drinks tainted with methanol, which is sometimes added to mixed drinks as a cheaper alternative to alcohol, but can cause severe poisoning or death."We are supporting the family of a British woman who has died in Laos, and we are in contact with the local authorities," the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth a...
Read More
Fifth person dies after suspected methanol poisoning in Laos
22Nov By No Comments
World News

Fifth person dies after suspected methanol poisoning in Laos

Australian teenager Bianca Jones died in hospital in Thailand. Photo: Facebook A New Zealander who is unwell may be a victim of methanol poisoning in Laos, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says. MFAT confirmed it has been contacted and was providing consular assistance. No further details would be provided for privacy reasons. MFAT is advising travellers to be cautious about drinking alcoholic beverages, especially cocktails and drinks made with spirits that may have been tainted with harmful substances. "Know the signs of methanol poisoning and seek immediate medical attention if poisoning is suspected." Lawyer Simone White has become the fifth person to die after drinking tainted alcohol in Laos, British media are reporting. Melbourne teenager Bianca Jones died in hospital in...
Read More
Thales faces bribery and corruption investigation | Money News
21Nov By Aditi PawarNo Comments
Business

Thales faces bribery and corruption investigation | Money News

An investigation is under way into the France-based defence company Thales for suspected bribery and corruption, the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has announced.A statement, released shortly after French financial markets had closed for the day, said a joint investigation involving the SFO's French counterparts PNF was under way. It did not detail any allegations beyond the suspected offences though the Reuters news agency, citing a French judicial source, said it was related to claims of bribery of a foreign public official, influence trafficking, handling stolen goods and money laundering.It concerned an arms contract awarded in Asia, the person said.Money latest: JD Sports faces wrath of shareholders Although based in Paris, the multi-national aviation and defence electronics group em...
Read More
TV personality Andre Rerekura captures snake on the plane
21Nov By No Comments
World News

TV personality Andre Rerekura captures snake on the plane

By Gareth McKnight, Rosanne Maloney, Mya Kordic and Tabarak Al Jrood Andre Rerekura re-entering the plane after taking a non-venomous Stimson's python off the aircraft. Photo: ABC / Screenshot A snake was found on a plane before it took off from the West Australian town of Broome on Thursday morning. In bizarre scenes, Disney TV personality Andre Rerekura was the passenger who took the non-venomous snake off the aircraft before it embarked for Perth. The airline said the flight took off as planned following a 20 minute delay. In scenes reminiscent of a Hollywood blockbuster, a television personality has helped wrangle a stowaway snake on a plane in Western Australia's north. Virgin flight VA1482, scheduled to take off from Broome at 10.30am and destined for Perth, was delayed by...
Read More
Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro among 37 people facing charges of attempting coup | World News
21Nov By Aditi PawarNo Comments
Business

Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro among 37 people facing charges of attempting coup | World News

Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro is among more than 30 people facing charges of allegedly attempting a coup after his electoral defeat in 2022.Federal police have delivered the results of their investigation to the country's supreme court, which must decide whether to refer them to prosecutor-general Paulo Gonet to bring formal charges. The former right-wing president has denied claims he tried to stay in office after his narrow defeat to rival, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva - the leftist politician who won with 50.9% of the vote.Mr Bolsonaro posted on X that investigators and the supreme court judge overseeing the case had been "creative" and done "everything the law does not say".The final police report completes a near two-year investigation into Mr Bolsonaro's role in a m...
Read More
Tabi shoes are turning heads from Hollywood to Melbourne. What makes this Japanese footwear so special?
21Nov By No Comments
World News

Tabi shoes are turning heads from Hollywood to Melbourne. What makes this Japanese footwear so special?

By Seena Katayama, ABC Photo: 123RF These oddly shaped shoes are turning heads from Hollywood to Melbourne's Swanston Street. First released in the late 1980s, high-end French fashion brand Maison Margiela's cloven-hoof-like tabi shoes were inspired by the Japanese footwear of the same name. Designer Martin Margiela said he first saw them being worn by construction workers during a visit to Japan. The brand's range these days include loafers, boots and ballet flats - the most popular retailing for A$1430 (NZ$1590) a pair. They even have a rhinestone cowboy-boot style with a price tag of A$12,790. In the West, Margiela's polarising designs have long been a symbol of wealth and style. But recently a new generation of celebrities have discovered the tabis, bringing them into the public...
Read More
Will the Liberals’ ‘tax holiday’ pay political dividends? What it signals – National
21Nov By Aditi PawarNo Comments
Politics

Will the Liberals’ ‘tax holiday’ pay political dividends? What it signals – National

The Liberal government announced a suite of affordability measures Thursday that Ottawa says aims to put more money in Canadian bank accounts, a move experts say is likely to boost Canada’s economy and could register with voters who are still feeling the pinch of a higher cost of living. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Toronto to unveil a GST/HST “holiday” on select grocery items and other consumer goods ranging from video games to Christmas trees. He also announced the Working Canadians Rebate — a plan to send $250 cheques this spring to every individual who worked in 2023 and made up to $150,000.“We’ve been able to get through the past couple of years. Everyone had to tighten their belts a little bit, and now we’re going to be able to give a tax break for all Canadians,” Trudeau sai...
Read More