Showing 1 - 10 of 1,566
Takanakuy, the Andean 'fight club' that clears the air for a new year
AFP, Published on 01/01/2024
» LIMA - The fighting begins and ends with a hug, part of a singular ritual that has residents of the Peruvian Andes punching and kicking in a year-end fight competition known as Takanakuy.
US-Canada military 'tracks' Santa for 68th year
AFP, Published on 24/12/2023
» WASHINGTON - The joint US-Canadian military monitoring agency has continued its decades-long tradition of tracking Santa's whereabouts, helping children around the globe find out when his reindeer-powered, present-filled sleigh is coming to town.
'Pooper' figures star in nativity scenes in Spain
AFP, Published on 22/12/2023
» BARCELONA - Look closely at a nativity scene in Spain's Catalonia region and you will likely spot an unusual figure -- a peasant with his pants down and doing his business in the holy scene.
Japan's hand-forged knives a slice of samurai metallurgy
AFP, Published on 22/12/2023
» TAKEFU (JAPAN) - Blacksmith Yoshihiro Yauji pulls a piece of glowing metal from the forge in a Japanese village, continuing a tradition dating back centuries to when the region was renowned for crafting swords carried by samurai.
Spain braces for annual 'Fat One' lottery
AFP, Published on 21/12/2023
» MADRID - Spain kicks off its festive period on Friday with the world's richest lottery, splashing prize money and festive cheer across the country.
Fading colours: Bangladesh's threatened rickshaw art
AFP, Published on 21/12/2023
» DHAKA - Vibrant greens and swirling yellows, film stars, birds and architecture: Bangladesh's bicycle rickshaw drivers have for decades used their transport as a unique moving canvas of urban folk art.
Macron tries to calm tensions over French immigration bill
AFP, Published on 20/12/2023
» PARIS - French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday sought to restore unity to his centrist ruling party after the adoption of a tough immigration bill under pressure from the far right sparked an unprecedented rebellion within its ranks.
UK's iconic King's College Chapel gets controversial solar makeover
AFP, Published on 15/12/2023
» CAMBRIDGE (UNITED KINGDOM) - High above the historic streets of Cambridge in eastern England, the installation of solar panels atop King's College Chapel, the world-famous university's most recognisable landmark, has stirred excitement -- and controversy.
Shaggy dog yarn: Study unravels history and demise of long-haired canine
AFP, Published on 15/12/2023
» WASHINGTON - A little-known dog lineage with fur so thick it was spun into blankets was selectively bred for millennia by Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest until its rapid demise following European colonization, a study in Science showed Thursday.
The dangerous rise of 'medicalised' genital mutilation in Kenya
AFP, Published on 12/12/2023
» KISII (KENYA) - As Edinah Nyasuguta Omwenga fought for her life after developing complications during childbirth, she overheard doctors in the Kenyan hospital describe her condition as a textbook example of the damaging -- even deadly -- effects of genital mutilation.