- by Reuters
The baguette - a mix of wheat flour, water, yeast, salt and a pinch of savoir-faire and as much a symbol of France as the Eiffel Tower - may soon join UNESCO’s listing of cultural treasures.
- by Monika Malla
A group of the LGBTQI community celebrated Valentine’s Day on Sunday with a stage show at Patan Durbar Square, Patan. Bibeksheel Sajha Party organized the event where groups of sexual minorities expressed their feelings of love showcasing dance, poem recitations and speech delivery.
- by Associated Press
Robin Wright used to joke that her directorial debut had already been made. It was called “Blue Valentine,” it starred Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling as a couple falling apart, it came out in 2010 and it was directed by Derek Cianfrance, not her. And she’d always assumed that hers would eventually be in that vein, but then “Land” fell into her lap a few years ago.
- by Associated Press
Prominent film and TV creator Joss Whedon, who faced a claim of abusive behavior on the set of “Justice League,” drew criticism Wednesday from actors who worked with him on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.”
- by Reuters
Deborah De La Flor has been a florist for over 40 years. She’s never experienced a February like this one. “At a time when someone is sending you an ‘I love you’ card, someone is sending an ‘I loved you’ card,” said De La Flor, who is preparing bouquets and cards for Valentine’s Day - the busiest and most profitable time of year for florists - while making sure other orders are filled for those who have lost loved ones to COVID-19.
- by Reuters
Vietnamese kicked off preparations for the Lunar New Year festival on Thursday by releasing ornamental carp into rivers and lakes - an age-old ceremony held one week before the “Tet” holiday officially begins.
- by Associated Press
The only thing predictable about the Golden Globe nominations are their unpredictability. And the Hollywood Foreign Press Association went overboard with the chaos in this very strange year in which the nominations were announced before the eligibility period was even up (that happens on Feb. 28), meaning a few of the nominated movies and performances aren’t even out yet.
- by Reuters
An iconic cafe and show venue that symbolises Japan’s “kawaii” pop culture, and is beloved by tourists and celebrities, has shut its doors in Tokyo, the capital, after business dried up following the COVID-19 pandemic.
- by Associated Press
It’s feeding time at Greece’s only zoo, and a capuchin monkey grabs as many mandarins as it can — even tucking one into his long, supple tail. It might be wise to stock up.
- by Associated Press
Cloris Leachman, an Oscar-winner for her portrayal of a lonely housewife in “The Last Picture Show” and a comedic delight as the fearsome Frau Blücher in “Young Frankenstein” and self-absorbed neighbor Phyllis on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” has died. She was 94.
- by Associated Press
You just can’t keep a good city down, especially when Mardi Gras is coming. All around New Orleans, thousands of houses are being decorated as floats because the coronavirus outbreak canceled the elaborate parades mobbed by crowds during the Carnival season leading to Fat Tuesday.
- by Associated Press
When COVID-19 first swarmed the United States, one health insurer called some customers with a question: Do you have enough to eat?
A raging pandemic, tumultuous presidential election and deadly Capitol insurrection have combined to make the annual tradition of Dry January more moist than air-tight for some. Not Sarah Arvizo. She considers it her easiest yet.
- by Associated Press
Larry King, the suspenders-sporting everyman whose broadcast interviews with world leaders, movie stars and ordinary Joes helped define American conversation for a half-century, died Saturday. He was 87.
- by Reuters
Among the young sumo wrestlers lifting weights in the ring, 10-year-old Kyuta Kumagai stands out. At 85 kilograms (187 lb), Kyuta is twice the size of the other children his age and is so dominant that he wrestles, and beats, boys five or six years older.
- by Associated Press
Yassin Saeed remembers when the Nile’s annual flood drenched his village in the years before the construction of the Aswan High Dam. Now, former flood lands are green fields year-round.
- by Republica
Presidential Business School (PBS) in Kathmandu organized a two-day IT Career Conclave keeping in view those seeking their future career in the IT sector. The two-day IT Career Conclave that concluded on Sunday featured 25 experts in the field in various five sessions.
- by Associated Press
In Zimbabwe, where girls as young as 10 are forced to marry due to poverty or traditional and religious practices, a teenage taekwondo enthusiast is using the sport to give girls in an impoverished community a fighting chance at life.
- by Associated Press
A subdued Carnival season began Wednesday after the coronavirus pandemic put an end to the crowd-heavy balls and street parades that draw thousands of people to the city every year.
- by Associated Press
In this winter of hunkering down at home, there’s a trend that’s just right for the times: quilts as décor and as art.