Visitors to Beijing should plan to see the changing of the guard in front of the Mao Mausoleum on Tiananmen Square. The marching is very distinct from Greek Evzones or Danish guards.
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Stride Specialist
Category: blog
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Lion Dies In Argentine ‘Torture Zoo’
The death of an African lion in Mendoza Zoo in Argentina has revived allegations of the zoo keeping its animals in awful conditions, said Clarín earlier this week. The lion reportedly died two weeks ago, though the zoo apparently concealed this while they investigated the cause of death. Provincial environmental authorities recently declared it had […]
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A New Chapter
There is a French saying that goes les voyages forment la jeunesse (“traveling is learning”). Well in that case, I am quite happy to keep learning, at age 84: A couple of weeks ago, I traveled back to Turkey with my family to visit one of my two granddaughters who now lives near Izmir. We […]
Dogs are adorable. Granted. But sadly, as it turns out, some of them need a helping hand to attract new humans to them. A project by Hungarian artist Sarolta Bán aims to “help dogs with images,” by photoshopping different scenarios to really bring their personalities out and tell their stories. You can check out the […]
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Eventful Past
Don’t be fooled by the apparent peacefulness of this Icelandic plain — lots of things happened there. Not only is this valley the birthplace of the oldest parliament in the world, the Althing, but it is also located right on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, meaning that major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions can basically happen anytime.
While billionaire incoming president Petro Poroshenko takes over in Kiev, the fate of the country may also be in the hands of another super-rich businessman from contested eastern Ukraine.
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Rolex Religion
I like the symmetry in this photo, taken on the doorstep of a Hindu temple in Kathmandu. The subjects are so kindred — except for the fact that the statue isn’t wearing an expensive-looking watch.
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Bored At The Border
I remember the border between Mexico and Guatemala as being very, very quiet. This was a bit surprising considering how close it is to Tapachula, a bustling Mexican city where the state of Chiapas’ Ruta del Café (“Coffee Route”) begins.
An orangutang at the Berlin zoo. Photo: achschav via Instagram Animal welfare groups and German zoos have been working together to fix minimum standards for the keeping of animals. An assessment, a kind of catalogue, launched earlier this month is meant to be the definitive reference point for German zoos both large and small, game […]
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Pottery For The Ages
Continuing our discovery of Thailand’s inland wonders, we spent some time in Chiang Rai, where we watched local artisans make and decorate plates, bowls and vases in a traditional way.
Iran’s Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani-Fazli is blaming drug addiction for just over half of all divorces in Iran, warning that “youth addiction to drugs” is growing, the official IRNA agency reports. “The judiciary has declared that the reason for 55% of divorces is one partner being addicted to drugs,” the minister told a Tehran conference […]
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Tied To The Job
Between the 1950s and the 1970s, we witnessed how Spain’s Costa Brava gradually lost some of its charm. Such picturesque sights as this ropemaker are impossible to find nowadays.
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Slavic Soul
During our 2001 cruise on the Volga, we got to see some of the many faces of Russia, including the famously melancholic tunes that Slavic music is famous for. It’s a pity the photograph doesn’t allow you to hear the tear-jerking balalaikas and accordions.
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By Golly, The Bison Are Back
ARMENIS — Much to the delight of the residents of Armenis, a small village in the Romanian Carpathian Mountains, 17 bison were released into a local acclimation enclosure Saturday. The operation, carried out by the WWF and Rewilding Europe, is part of an international effort to restore the emblematic animal in the region, more than […]
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Rising From Its Ashes
Tunisia’s economy was flourishing in 1970, a time when the country was opening itself up to tourism. This was particularly clear in Sfax, the country’s second city, a large portion of which had been destroyed during World War II.
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Remember Pablo Escobar’s Hippos?
Remember the story of Pablo Escobar’s hippos running wild in Colombia a few weeks ago? Although the late King of Cocaine’s half-wild hippos may be damaging farms and the environment in this southern region, it seems some locals are growing fond of them. Officials have warned people living near the Hacienda Nápoles park to avoid […]
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Latitude Attitude
Unless I have a good reason for it, I don’t usually ask people to take pictures of me. Five years after this shot in Brazil, my wife Claudine and I would again cross paths with the Tropic of Capricorn, on a different continent.
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Coal Hill, Sooty View
The view of the Forbidden City from Jingshan Park’s Coal Hill is stunning. That is, when the Beijing pollution allows you to actually see something.
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Two Men In A Boat
In contrast with the imposing river that flows through Vienna and Budapest, the Danube Delta is sleepy and accessible. It was noon and the sun was high, so this Romanian fisherman decided it was as good a time as any to open a bottle — and who was I to disagree?
Run. h/t Brain Magazine
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King Of The Animals, Queen Of The Photobombs
Wildlife photographer Will Burrad-Lucas was snapping a picture of this young male lion in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve when a lioness emerged from the bushes with a strong urge to sniff the camera. Photo: Burrad-Lucas Photography
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The Father Of All Geysers
Not only is the Geysir geyser in southwestern Iceland one of the most impressive we’ve ever seen (sorry, Old Faithful …) but, as you may have guessed, it gave its name to the geological phenomenon.
Long revered amongst the founders of modern India, the Gandhi family is now facing the most delicate political moment in memory as its INC party risks losing national elections.
In Tehran — Photo: Kamyar Adl As Iran approaches another long, scorching summer with possible water shortages, the Energy Ministry is telling millions of Iranians to make cautious use of their air-conditioning systems because each could use up to 200 liters of water a day, the newspaper Jaam-e Jam reported. The Ministry characterized it as […]
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Old But Gold
Considering the remarkably preserved state of these stone elephant bas-reliefs, you would never guess that Anuradhapura, one of Sri Lanka’s ancient capitals, is actually among the oldest cities in the world. Perhaps that’s what this Buddhist monk was thinking about too?
In a small country like Israel, land is finite and costs continue to rise. Burials are expensive, and the rich and poor are laid to rest depending on their means.
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Spider Collector In A Web Of Trouble
Main picture: Santa Rosa Press Democrat/ZUMA With great passion comes great trouble: This could be the lesson learnt by a spider-and-bug-lover in northeastern France after he was suspected of trafficking the creepy crawlies. Investigators were puzzled by how the fifty-something man could afford his many trips to Guyana, Brazil and Madagascar despite living off state […]
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See You Later, Alligator
It’s a small crocodile — and a small world too: We had already crossed paths with this lady handling a baby crocodile at Victoria Falls’ nature sanctuary, four years earlier … in Ecuador!
Watch out, Argentina — a deadly caterpillar with a bristle-like appearance is on the loose. Cristian García, 22, was sipping maté on the porch of his Santa Ana home when a rare venemous Hylesia nigricans catepillar dropped into his lap. Authorities say the young man is fighting for his life in intensive care. Contact on […]
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Big Bay, Small Statue
We once spent a month in Brazil, which allowed us to see many areas of different cities — including, here, Guanabara Bay in Rio de Janeiro. On top of the highest mountain in the photo is the tiny statue of Christ the Redeemer. It is actually about 30 meters high, which gives you a fair […]
Like the rest of the Internet, we too at Zoo’d have become momentarily obsessed with that video of the cat running into a French bakery’s glass door. If you haven’t seen it yet, here it is just below. If you’re like us, you’ll probably watch it again… and then three more times after that. Meowch!! […]
History of toilets? Inner workings of the kiwi? Lawnmowers? More than you ever wanted to know about things you might not even want to know anything about. Unless you do…
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Redundant Dunes
The road to El Oued is paved with good intentions! We’ve seen our share of strange road signs over the years, but being told to beware of sand while you’re driving in the middle of the Algerian desert definitely takes the cake.
A 19-year-old has died from machete injuries in north-central Colombia, after trying to stop a drunken man who appeared set to decapitate a dog with the same machete. The alleged killer has been arrested. The attack occurred Saturday night when Miguel Ángel Palacio Montoya and his brother approached a man taunting a dog with his […]
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Something Pretty In The Kingdom Of Denmark
Helsingor’s Kronborg Castle, in the background, is perhaps more famous as “Elsinore,” where most of Shakespeare’s Hamlet takes place. Maybe this is where our braided 8-year-old daughter Cécile got her love for all things English?
ANTARCTICA — Researchers have detected a new kind of bird flu in Adelie penguins for the first time, yet the virus does not seem to make them sick. File photo: Gerard LACZ-VWpics/VWPICS/Gerard LACZ The report published Tuesday in mBio, an online journal of the American Society for Microbiology, said that this virus (H11N2) is unlike […]
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A Champion’s Demise
This may not be the Tour de France, but the atmosphere was definitely comparable. One of my best friends (on the right) and I were watching this unfortunate cyclist struggle with a flat tire, right on the street where I lived then, which is just one block away from where I live now.
MUNICH — Surely vegan offerings are healthier, and easier on the figure. More natural in any case. Many consumers have even become moralistic about the vegan products they put into their shopping baskets. But a survey by a Hamburg consumer group, the Verbraucherzentrale, shows that these attitudes and expectations are often wrong. They tested 20 […]
Iran is facing the risk of “critical” water shortages if the country does not dramatically cut water use, Energy Minister Hamid Chitchian declared in a speech to the Iranian parliament. Citing several years of drought, climate change and increased population, Chitchian told legislators on Sunday that usage needed to drop by by 40%. Average annual […]
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Custodians Of Style
At the height of Greece’s economic crisis, Syntagma Square was the site of mass protests, but it is also where the presidential Evzones perform their peculiar changing of the guard. Watching their exaggerated movement as they marched around in kilt-like fustanella and red shoes with black pompoms was indeed a treat.