Europe

Survey Asks Britons How Often Bedsheets Are Changed

4:57pm August 26, 2013

The mattress company Ergoflex sponsored the survey. Among men aged 18 to 25, more than half said they put fresh sheets on just four times a year. Half of those guys said they thought this was perfectly fine.

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Madrid Creates 'Acoustic Protection Zone'

12:43pm August 22, 2013

In downtown Madrid, music floats through the air — amateur musicians playing for money. But many are not that good. To shield residents from mediocre musicianship, the city created an "acoustic protection zone." Buskers who wish to perform will be talent tested.

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English Debate What To Do With Richard III's Remains

6:49am August 20, 2013

More than 500 years after the Wars of the Roses, the English are again fighting over Richard the Third. Archaeologists from the University of Leicester last year unearthed his remains under a parking lot in the city. Leicester Cathedral has earmarked more than a million pounds to give him a proper burial. But not so fast say the people of York.

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Relying On Old Artisan Ways, French Brand Makes Itself Anew

6:58pm August 19, 2013

by Eleanor Beardsley

Founded in the mid-19th century, luxury leather goods maker Moynat won renown for its traveling trunks for the moneyed set. But it fell on hard times and closed in the 1970s. Now, it's undergoing a rebirth, turning out limited quantities of luxurious, handmade bags that utilize centuries-old craftsmanship.

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U.S. Marines with 4th Force Reconnaissance Company slide off F470 Combat Rubber Raiding Crafts during training in Waimanalo, Hawaii. The French company Zodiac has been the U.S. military's choice for inflatable rubber rafts for roughly two decades. Now the

French Maker Of Military Rafts Gets An American Identity

8:40am August 16, 2013

by Jackie Northam

Zodiac produces most of the inflatable rafts used by the U.S. military. But a California company challenged that contract, saying it violates a requirement that the Defense Department use products made with American material and by U.S. workers. In response, Zodiac set up a factory in Maryland.

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Cecile Kyenge's appointment in April as integration minister was hailed as a landmark for diversity in Italy. But since then, she's been the target of death threats and vicious racial slurs.

World News

Italy's First Black Minister Finds Herself A Target Of Slurs

6:31pm August 13, 2013

by Sylvia Poggioli

Congo-born Cecile Kyenge's appointment in April as integration minister was hailed as a landmark for diversity. Instead, the mood of racial progress in Italy has suffered. The debate highlights growing intolerance and what the prime minister has called a shameful chapter for the country.

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The Angolan exhibit consists of tall stacks of large photographic posters by artist Edson Chagas. The country, which is exhibiting at Venice for the first time, won the Golden Lion award for best national pavilion.

Art In Context: Venice Biennale Looks Past Pop Culture

11:56am August 12, 2013

by Sylvia Poggioli

Every two years, Venice hosts the largest and oldest noncommercial art exhibit in the world. It's a dizzying and eclectic array of sights by both celebrity artists and total unknowns. More than 150 artists from 88 countries will be on display through November.

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Taxi Riders In Oslo Surprised By Who's Driving Them Around

8:53am August 12, 2013

As part of his re-election campaign, the Norwegian prime minister went under cover as a cab driver for one day in June. A video of the stunt was just released. In it, some passengers are shocked to see their leader taking fares, others were just very critical about his driving skills.

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Kerry, Hagel Aim To Ease U.S.-Russian Tensions

7:43am August 11, 2013

by Michele Kelemen

The U.S. secretaries of state and defense met their Russian counterparts for a day of talks in Washington on Friday. They hope to find common ground despite U.S.-Russian friction over the Edward Snowden asylum case.

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Tightrope walker Andrea Loreni performs in front of the Coliseum in Rome on Saturday. Rome's new mayor is on a crusade to make the ancient monuments more pedestrian friendly, and the city held an all-night street party as it permanently blocked off part o

World News

Rome's New Mayor Wants The Monuments Pedestrian Friendly

9:38pm August 09, 2013

by Sylvia Poggioli

Many cities hold arts festivals during the summer. Rome joined the party last Saturday as part of a larger effort to radically revamp traffic and make the area around the Coliseum and other monuments more welcoming for pedestrians.

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