Page 136 - Hospitality Recreation

Possible Singapore venues for historic Trump-Kim summit

Singapore, a highly manicured city-state shaped by skyscrapers and luxury hotels, is preparing for perhaps the most crucial international diplomatic event of the decade. The June 12 meeting between tough-talking President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, a brash young ruler with a nuclear arsenal, brings a bombastic set of personalities to the small island nation, which has hosted plenty of important meetings, but nothing as big as this. Kim wants security and Trump wants Kim to get rid of his nukes. A breakdown in the talks could be costly a collapsed faith in diplomacy would heighten fears of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula or maybe even spark a destabilizing arms race in Northeast Asia. Whatever the outcome, the meeting will be a media spectacle. While the venue has yet to be announced, rooms appear to be fully booked on days surrounding the summit at the Shangri-La hotel and the Marina Bay Sands resort, two major properties seen as potential locations ..

Chinese double amputee finally summits Everest, decades after first bid

A Chinese climber who lost both legs to frostbite on Everest four decades ago finally reached the summit Monday, just months after the revocation of a controversial ban on double amputee climbers attempting the world's highest peak. Xia Boyu, 69, summited Everest early Monday on his fifth attempt to reach the top of the 8,848-metre (29,029-foot) mountain. "He reached the summit this morning, along with seven other members of his team," said Dawa Futi Sherpa of Imagine Trek and Expedition, who organised Xia's Everest bid. Xia's dream of standing at the top of the world was nearly thwarted by the Nepal government, which last year banned double amputee and blind climbers from summiting its mountains. The ruling was overturned by Nepal's top court in March, which branded it as discriminatory towards people with disabilities. Xia first attempted to summit Everest with a Chinese government-backed team in 1975, but was thwarted by bad weather. He became stuck in the frigid low-oxygen ...

Inculcating good eating habits in kids, is difficult: Maria Goretti

Celebrity chef Maria Goretti says it is difficult to inculcate good eating habits in children for long term benefits, especially in an age when television and internet rules.

Australian climbs 7 peaks in 7 continents in record time

An Australian mountaineer scaled Mount Everest today, completing his quest to climb the highest peaks on all seven continents in record time, an expedition organiser said. Steve Plain scaled Everest today, 117 days after he began his mission in Antarctica. Iswari Poudel of Himalayan Guides Nepal said he got a phone call from Mount Everest base camp saying that Plain along with two guides reached the 8,850-metre peak at around 7 a.m. and were descending. The 36-year-old Plain, from Perth, began his mission by climbing Mount Vinson in Antarctica on January 16. He followed that with Mount Aconcagua in South America, Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa, Mount Carstensz Pyramid in Papua New Guinea, which covers Australia and Oceania, Mount Elbrus in Europe and Denali in North America. A surfing accident in 2014 nearly left Plain with multiple injuries but he recovered to continue mountain climbing. Polish climber Janusz Kochanski had the previous record of fastest to climb the seven peaks, doing ..

Australian tourist falls to death from Assam hotel

An Australian tourist fell to his death from a hotel in Assam capital Guwahati, police said on Sunday.

Manali-Leh highway reopened after five months

Closed for over five months due to heavy snowfall, the Manali-Leh highway was reopened to motorists on Sunday on completion of the snow-clearing operations, an official said.

Agra sizzles at 45 degrees

Markets in Agra wore a deserted look and there were fewer vehicles on roads as the maximum temperature crossed 45 degrees Celsius on Sunday. The number of tourists too dwindled at the Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikri.

As price comes down, risk goes up for Everest 'trophy hunters'

Everest is the ultimate mountaineering "trophy", but the rising number of inexperienced climbers attempting to tackle the summit are running huge risks to reach the top of the world. An Indian airline pilot, a builder from Ohio and a former online media sales executive are all waiting at base camp for a chance to scale the 8,848 metre (29,030 foot) mountain this climbing season. They haul themselves up the same ropes to the top and face the same dangers of frostbite, avalanche and exhaustion -- and yet they pay vastly different amounts for the privilege. Cheaper fees means far more people can attempt a lifelong dream of conquering the world's highest peak, but there are grim predictions that an increasing number will never make it home. Critics warn bargain operators -- who have slashed the price of an Everest ticket to as low as $20,000 -- accept even the most inexperienced climbers. Meanwhile, more expensive rivals, who charge around $70,000, have smaller teams and require proven ...

Pharrell Williams launching restaurant and cocktail lounge

Rapper Pharell Williams is all set to launch a restaurant and cocktail lounge in Miami. The "Happy" hitmaker has teamed up with businessman David Grutman to launch his restaurant which will be called Swan and Bar Bevy, reported Billboard. The restaurant will be operated by Grutman's hospitality company, Groot Hospitality, which also services other restaurants like Komodo, LIV Hard Rock Stadium, OTL, and Planta in Miami. "(Pharrell) has some great ideas and visions. I think it's going to the be the most beautiful restaurant in Miami," Grutman said. No date has been announced for the launch of the restaurant but more details are expected to be released soon on its official website.

Phrasebooks and the travails and traumas of translations (Column: Bookends)

An essential attribute of humanity, languages serve the purpose of communication, but given their sheer multiplicity and variations, they are more liable to create barriers to understanding, than paving the way towards it. Though human ingenuity evolved translation to bridge the gap, this didn't entirely solve the problem, given the differences in syntax, idiom and connotation. How does literature deal with this linguistic phenomenon?

Record 14.25 lakh tourists visited Sikkim in 2017

Tourists visiting the northeastern state of Sikkim shot up by nearly 77 per cent to 14.25 lakh during 2017, according to the state's tourism department. As many as 8.06 lakh tourists visited the Himalayan state in 2016, a tourism department official said. "The tourist footfall could have been a few lakh more if the strike in Darjeeling Hills for more than 100 days between June and September last year not spoiled the festival mood," the official, who did not wish to be identified, said. Tourists mostly reach Gangtok from Siliguri. Commuting between the two places became difficult during the 104-day strike as several vehicles came under attack on the route. The monthly tourist footfall declined by almost 90 per cent with only 15,350 visitors in July followed by 17,723 in August last year, the official pointed out. Once the strike was called off in late September last year, the tourist inflow in Sikkim increased sharply, he said. However, it was the first six months of 2017 ..

Open-toes, loafers: Trending footwear for women, men

Getting the perfect footwear which has both comfort and style is difficult, but important. Invest in loafers, colourful slip ons and pair them with the right attire, as suggested by experts.

Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi receives Janakpur-Ayodhya bus

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday received the Janakpur-Ayodhya Bus flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday.The bus, which is also known as the Nepal -India Friendship Bus Service, completed its maiden trip as it arrived at Ayodhya.The bus was launched jointly by Prime Minister Modi and his Nepali counterpart KP Sharma Oli in Janakpur as part of the Ramayan Circuit Bus Service.The new bus route is aimed at increasing tourism between the two countries.On Friday, Prime Minister Modi said, " Tourism is developing at a fast pace across the world. The Ramayan Circuit has immense potential."It has been further reported that there will be a number of routes to be launched between India and Nepal.

Triumph Motorcycles India launches Tiger 1200 XCX

Luxury bike firm Triumph Motorcycles India on Friday launched "the brand-new Tiger 1200 XCX" priced at Rs 17 lakh.

Rlys plans major overhaul of catering: airline-like food, modern kitchens, AI module to flag anomalies

Soon airline-like food would be on the plates of train passengers as the Railways has decided to initiate major reforms in its catering services under which it would "rationalise the menu" and use Artificial Intelligence (AI) and CCTV cameras to flag irregularities in preparation. Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani today said the "high-in-quality- and-taste" food would be served from July -- first on premium trains such as Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto on experimental basis and then on all other trains. "The menu would be simple, could be in the form of combo meal, comprising at best two to three items similar to what is served by airlines. High in quality and taste," he told mediapersons here. The existing menu, he added, comprises six-seven items, but is often low on quality and also at times compromised on hygiene. The public transporter has come under repeated criticisms over the quality of food served. Last year, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), in its report had ...

800 kg of artificially ripened mangoes seized, destroyed

A total of 800 kg of artificially ripened mangoes were seized and destroyed here today by personnel of the department of food safety, police said. The seizures were effected from 10 shops, following complaints from customers about the taste, they said, adding that the mangoes were found ripened with carbide stones. Such artificially ripened mangoes cause stomach-related ailments and are not fit for consumption, police said. The value of these destroyed mangoes was not mentioned.

HC pulls up Delhi govt, DDA for allowing parks to be converted to parking lots

The Delhi High Court today pulled up the AAP government, various civic bodies and DDA for converting playgrounds in residential areas into "ornamental parks" and multi-level parking, asking them "where will children go to play?" The poser by a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar came during hearing of a PIL moved by a Defence Colony resident who alleged that several parks in the area were being converted into ornamental parks or parking lots. It also issued notice to the Centre, the Delhi government, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), the national and state commissions for protection of child rights and the South Delhi Municipal Corporation, seeking their replies to the plea. The petitioner contended that such actions impinge on the children's right to play in the parks and violate their fundamental right for a proper environment for their growth and development. Taking note of the contention of the petitioner, the court said,"So you (authorities) .

Punjab CM congratulates noted horticulturist Harkirat Ahluwalia

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today congratulated noted horticulturist Harkirat Ahluwalia for being selected for the World Agri Tourism Awards-2018. In his congratulatory message, the chief minister said it was a matter of pride for the state that 'Ahluwalias Citrus County Farm Stays' was chosen for the award, in recognition of its immense contribution towards the promotion of rural tourism through its innovative and modern agri-techniques. The World Agri Tourism Awards-2018 would be given to Ahluwalia at the National Agri Tourism Conference on 11th World Agri Tourism Day to be held on May 16, 2018 in Mumbai. The chief minister pointed out that initiative of farm stays by the Ahluwalia family at Chaunni Kalan village on the outskirts of Hoshiarpur had set a benchmark in farm tourism, besides motivating his peers to opt for rural tourism, which had a huge potential to transform the fortunes of farmers grappling with the agrarian crisis. The chief minister said that this was ...

Snapdeal launches curated Mother's Day store

Snapdeal launches Mother's Day store to bring pocket friendly offers with great gift ideas to express your love. It has an interesting mix of items across categories like fashion, beauty and health, kitchenware, smart health products and gifting essentials.The mother' day store has a special collection covering the following:• Fashion - Let your mother make a style statement. Gift her beautiful embroidered sarees under Rs. 899 and footwear with up to 70 percent off that will add-on to her beauty. You can also go for kurtis priced below Rs. 599, perfumes that have minimum 30 percent off and sunglasses up to 70 percent off.• Smart health products - Take care of her health and help her stay fit by shopping fitness equipment and smart watches starting at just Rs. 599 and Rs. 499 respectively. Products such as running shoes with 67 percent off and fitness accessories like toning tube, yoga mat, gym ropes, starting from Rs. 99 make for unique gifts.• Kitchenware - Save her some time from ...

5 killed in Pakistan hotel explosion

Five members of a family were killed and two others injured in an explosion at a hotel in Pakistan's Peshawar city, police said on Friday.