This & That, Ceci et Cela

China's scary control freaks make for sore losers: Singaporean diplomacy, fuelled by a desire to remain on good terms with nearly everyone, tends to be unspectacular stuff. That changed this month, when Prime Minister Lee travelled to Taiwan one quiet weekend in July on a “private and unofficial” trip to see some friends. One such friend, however, was Chen Shui-bian, the president, whose pro-independence stand angers China. Beijing, predictably, was ...

Freaky factoid of the day = 10,000 bullet-proof cars in Mexico City: "Safety on the roads has a whole new meaning in Mexico City, where there are an estimated 10,000 bullet-proof cars in circulation. With fear of violent crime at an all-time high, it's a booming sector, despite the hefty price-tag: converting your Mercedes or BMW can cost anywhere from $20,000 to $90,000, depending on the level of security. According to ...

Once every two years in August, a carpet of flowers is laid down over the Grand Place. This year the 800,000 begonias feature an Art Nouveau theme, covering 300 square metres and kept fresh by fountains built into the pattern. There will be a music and light show followed by fireworks above the Grand Place on August 14th; visitors ...

Mystery is swirling around Berlin's five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel on Potsdamer Platz. The Ritz opened to great fanfare in January, but has since been plagued with odd problems. An unexplained fire took place two weeks after the hotel opened, and now a deadly bacteria infects the pipes. On July 8th, the hotel suddenly stopped taking bookings, insisting they were full despite obviously empty rooms. Guests ...