Europe

Pussy Riot members Yekaterina Samutsevich (left), Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova sit in a glass-walled cage in a Moscow court on Oct. 10, 2012.

The 'Pussy Riot' Arrests, And The Crackdown That Followed

4:19pm January 08, 2014

According to Russian journalist Masha Gessen, the 2012 arrests were the start of a campaign by Vladimir Putin and his supporters against government critics. Gessen, who is also an LGBT rights advocate, recently moved to New York with her partner and their children in response to the anti-gay laws Russia passed in June.

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23 Years Later, Message In A Bottle Answered

8:03am January 06, 2014

When she was 10 years old, Zoe Averianov tossed a bottle into the North Sea with a letter talking about her love of the flute and hamsters. Now 33, she's hard back from a Dutch couple who found her bottle.

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Early 20th century British maids worked long, hard days with little time off.

Books
Arts

Visible And Invisible: 'Servants' Looks At Life Downstairs

5:28pm January 02, 2014

Author Lucy Lethbridge explores the history of British servants through their diaries, letters and memoirs. She says, "What I found particularly fascinating was how ... butlers were so butlery"; the old caricature of the clever manservant and the silly master is one "butlers have appeared to play to the hilt."

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Ice Cream Truck Switches From Jingles To Text Messages

7:39am January 01, 2014

Sweden's icy winter leads a lot of people indoors which didn't deter one enterprising ice cream truck driver. He simply played his truck's jingle louder. So loud, that residents complained. Which led the ice cream company to come up with a quieter substitute to the traditional jingle: texting.

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World News

Nativity Scenes Liven Centuries-Old French Village

7:04pm December 25, 2013

by Eleanor Beardsley

The small French village of Flavigny was dark and quiet around Christmas time until a resident organized a Nativity wonderland. There are 85 Nativity scenes in the windows of village houses and a treasure map to help visitors find them.

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Laura and Thanos Ntoumanis recently moved from Greece to Germany, where Thanos, a psychiatrist, got a job.

World News

With Its Economy Hobbled, Greece's Well-Educated Drain Away

6:54pm December 23, 2013

by Joanna Kakissis

Since the start of its financial crisis, Greece has been exporting some of its most highly trained professionals. Thanos Ntoumanis is just one of thousands of medical professionals who have left their struggling homeland for jobs in Western Europe.

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World News

Russian Amnesty Decision Made Before Start Of Winter Olympics

11:13am December 20, 2013

Two members of the Russian activist band Pussy Riot and billionaire Mikhail Khordorkovsky are expected to be released from prison by Russian President Vladimir Putin. David Greene talks to reporter Masha Gessen about whether this move signals a liberalizing trend, or is simply a calculation ahead of the 2014 Olympics.

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There's a campaign underway in Hastings to stop the authorities from allocating the lion's share of fish quotas to big boats, in an effort to protect smaller, family-run operations. Many fear the local fleet is dying out, as fishing families face intense

World News

The Shipping Forecast: From Britain's Seas Into Its Soul

2:29pm December 19, 2013

by Philip Reeves

Britain is a maritime nation that a century or two ago boasted the world's largest navy. Today, the names of shipping areas in the surrounding seas are embedded in the British national psyche — thanks to the BBC's Shipping Forecast bulletin, a cultural phenomenon beloved by seafarers and landlubbers alike.

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Is A 500-Year-Old German Beer Law Heritage Worth Honoring?

8:56am December 18, 2013

by Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson

A German brewers association is seeking UNESCO World Heritage status for a 500-year-old law that dictates how to make beer. The brewers argue that the law ensures purity in German beers. But others say the law is from a bygone era.

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World News

Protesters In Ukraine Agitated By Economic Deal With Russia

8:02am December 18, 2013

As pro-Europe protests continue in Ukraine, the country's president signs a deal getting billions of dollars worth of loans and gas discounts from Russia. It's the latest move in a tug-of-war over whether that brawny country will align itself economically with Europe or Russia.

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