Category: Lifestyle

OAKLAND, Calif (Reuters) – The dance floor is packed, the disco lights are flashing and the DJ is spinning R&B and pop beats. But this is no sweaty, late-night club. It’s 10 a.m. on a Sunday; the only drinks are in sippy cups, and the energetic dancers have to leave before nap time. This is…

LONDON (Reuters) – A midnight blue velvet gown that Princess Diana wore when she danced with John Travolta at a 1985 White House state dinner is up for auction on Monday, with an estimated price tag of 250,000-300,000 pounds ($320,750 – $384,900). The off-the-shoulder bodiced Victor Edelstein frock, which flares up at the knee, is…

HOGE VELUWE, Netherlands (Reuters) – A national park in the Netherlands is making an unusual offer to visitors this holiday season: come and chop down your own Christmas tree – for free. Rangers in Hoge Veluwe Park, near the eastern city of Arnhem, have set aside areas where Scots pines are threatening to overwhelm land…

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A lovelorn singing whale, a world-famous feline sourpuss and ravenous goats credited with thwarting a dangerous California wildfire were among animals whose escapades across the United States made news in 2019. Animal antics drawing attention this year included: WORLD’S FIRST AIRPORT THERAPY PIG HOGS CALIFORNIA LIMELIGHT Anxious airline passengers who may…

HAMME-MILLE, Belgium (Reuters) – The Belgian village of Hamme-Mille became Christmas central on Saturday when “Elf Serge” turned on more than 25,000 lights in his garden. The display by the Belgian aeronautical engineer, known as Serge Hennebel outside the festive season, brings visitors from across the world to his small garden, some 15 km from…

VALASSKA POLANKA, The Czech Republic (Reuters) – Masked devils march through the village, rattling their chains and clanking bells, going door-to-door to search for badly-behaved children. The sinister-looking pre-Christmas tradition in the Czech village of Valasska Polanka is actually a celebration of the 4th-century Saint Nicholas, who appears in costume to soothe the children with…

LONDON (Reuters) – From vintage posters to action figures, Star Wars collectibles are up for grabs in an online auction, days ahead of the release of the sci-fi saga’s highly-anticipated ninth chapter. “Star Wars Online” features more than 100 items dating back decades, with prices ranging from 100 to 60,000 pounds, according to auction house…

LONDON (Reuters) – From a superfan’s shrine to a replica of the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest stage where they triumphed with “Waterloo”, a new exhibition opening in London on Friday looks back at the huge success of Swedish pop sensation ABBA. Personal items such as member Bjorn Ulvaeus’ school report as well as pictures, gold…

PARIS (Reuters) – Chanel turned little gilded birdcages into handbags on the catwalk in Paris on Wednesday, at an annual “Metier D’Art” fashion showcase of its most intricate craftwork that also included lacy creations and shiny tweed suits. The French couture house recreated the Parisian apartment where founder Coco Chanel lived in the early 1900s…

TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) – In a barn in southwest France, farmer Valerie Fosserie squirts serum into a gosling’s mouth as a prelude to what she says is production of the world’s first ethically friendly foie gras. The delicacy, long a feature on the menu of gourmet restaurants across the globe, is made by force-feeding geese…