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Switzerland

Spring Rolls Sprung At Swiss Border Crossing

Spring Rolls Sprung At Swiss Border Crossing
Hannah Steinkopf-Frank

Drugs, weapons and... spring rolls? Add the Asian fried staple to the list of contraband items that have been seized in the illegal international smuggling market.

Police discovered 61.5 kilograms (136 lbs) of chicken spring rolls stashed in a car trunk during a control at a France-Switzerland border crossing on Feb. 16. The driver, a Vietnamese national, and the passenger, a French national, were returning to Switzerland where they own a restaurant. But they did not declare the rolls to the Swiss administration at Ferney-Voltaire.


The tasty snacks were concealed in the spare tire compartment, a common hiding place officials often check. The stash was destroyed as it did not comply with "conditions for the transport of food goods," and the restaurateurs also face fines for violating VAT and customs laws.

Donatella Del Vecchio, spokesperson for the Federal Customs Agency, told the Tribune de Genève that incidents of bringing delicacies into Switzerland aren't as rare as they may seem. Last month, an Italian was busted crossing into the Ticino enclave with 1,400 kg of assorted goodies: salami, mozzarella, olive oil, flour and canned tomatoes. That, folks, is known as pizza trafficking.

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Society

Sleep Divorce: The Benefits For Couples In Having Separate Beds

Sleeping separately is often thought to be the beginning of the end for a loving couple. But studies show that having permanently separate beds — if you have the space and means — can actually reinforce the bonds of a relationship.

Image of a woman sleeping in a bed.

A woman sleeping in her bed.

BUENOS AIRES — Couples, it is assumed, sleep together — and sleeping apart is easily taken as a sign of a relationship gone cold. But several recent studies are suggesting, people sleep better alone and "sleep divorce," as the habit is being termed, can benefit both a couple's health and intimacy.

That is, if you have the space for it...

While sleeping in separate beds is seen as unaffectionate and the end of sex, psychologist María Gabriela Simone told Clarín this "is not a fashion, but to do with being able to feel free, and to respect yourself and your partner."

She says the marriage bed originated "in the matrimonial duty of sharing a bed with the aim of having sex to procreate." That, she adds, gradually settled the idea that people "who love each other sleep together."

Is it an imposition then, or an overwhelming preference? Simone says intimacy is one thing, sleeping another.

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