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Reuters A giant straw Yule goat in the Swedish town of Gavle, 200 miles northwest of Stockholm, was set ablaze on December 17 for the first time in five years, reviving a long-running tradition of locals illegally attempting to torch it and authorities scrambling to stop them. Police said they had arrested a man in

Megan C. Hills Remember when Bruce Willis’ character in “Die Hard” fought a group of terrorists at an office Christmas party, barefooted and wearing a tank top? Throughout the movie, Willis, who played John McClane, sported a white undershirt that got progressively dirtier and bloodier — a sight so legendary that a screen-worn version of

By Forrest Brown, CNN For the past six months, the days have grown shorter and the nights have grown longer in the Northern Hemisphere. But that’s about to reverse itself. Winter solstice 2021, the shortest day of year and the official first day of winter, is on Tuesday, December 21. How it all works has

By Lilit Marcus, CNN While many of the world’s most popular tourist destinations are expected to reopen to travelers in 2022, there are still some places that will be off-limits. Some of these iconic spots are undergoing construction or upgrades that will make them even better when they do reopen, while others are doing the

Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN Omicron is continuing to spread at an alarming rate across Europe and governments are once again being forced to make tough decisions in order to contain the highly contagious variant. As more and more restrictions are brought in, travel to and across Europe is becoming increasingly difficult for tourists, particularly those from

Julia Buckley, CNN Flying into Venice, on the right hand side of the airplane, you’ll see the city unfurl beneath you: a mass of terracotta roofs, brick bell towers and those canals, knitting the 118 islands of Venice together. Then, as the plane continues northwards across the lagoon to land at Venice airport, just outside

Thomas Page, CNN Julia Ducournau lights a cigarette, as if to punctuate her point. The French writer-director had been musing about love in her film “Titane,” a through line buried beneath much hysteria since it won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. Love, she insisted, is the foundation of the

Jacqui Palumbo, CNN When you think of an engagement ring, what do you picture? Perhaps a sparkling solitaire stone, or a halo of smaller gems encircling a central jewel. No matter the style, you’re likely imagining white diamonds, which have been the reigning symbols of marital commitment for over a century. But within the past

Hilary Clarke, CNN | Jonny Hallam, CNN Pritzker Prize-winning architect Richard Rogers, whose landmark buildings include the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the 3 World Trade Center tower in New York and London’s Millennium Dome, has died aged 88. Rogers “passed away quietly” on Saturday evening, his representative Matthew Freud of Freud Communications confirmed to CNN

Jeevan Ravindran, CNN A stunning gold-wrapped jar crafted out of rock crystal has finally been uncovered in its entirety, revealing a Latin inscription that might provide new clues about its mysterious origins. Researchers at National Museums Scotland, where the Viking-Age vessel is being conserved, think the receptacle was probably used for religious purposes. And one

Jacopo Prisco, CNN Beloved by passengers for its spaciousness and comfort, but disliked by airlines because of its running costs, the Airbus A380 has already entered its sunset years, even though it debuted commercially just 14 years ago. Its final chapter was brought into sharper focus this week, when Airbus delivered the last ever A380

Francesca Street, CNN For Kristy Burns, her partner Annette Demel and close friend Lynn Edminston, hitting their 50s and 60s marked a beginning, not an end. Around six years ago, the trio reached retirement age and sold their homes — first, heading out on the road in RVs, and then beginning several hiking odysseys across

Francesca Street, CNN The last Airbus A380 ever made has been delivered to Emirates, marking the end of an era for the superjumbo that was once touted as the future of aviation until airlines cast it aside for smaller aircraft. The huge double-deck aircraft, call sign A6-EVS, arrived in London on Thursday and will soon

John Walton, CNN One of the greatest luxuries when we fly is space: the space to stretch out, relax, work and sleep while flying seven miles above the Earth at nearly the speed of sound. These days, that’s international business class, with fully-flat beds longer than most people are tall. But some are roomier than

By Paula Newton, CNN Canada issued a travel advisory to its citizens Wednesday asking that they avoid all nonessential international travel as the Omicron variant spreads throughout the world. “We see the situation abroad, and we’re afraid and concerned with what could happen to Canadians who would choose to go abroad in the next few

By Lianne Kolirin, CNN A 16th century globe depicting the world before Australia had even been “discovered” could be the oldest ever to come to auction. The “priceless” artifact — which features sea monsters, ships and a depiction of Triton, a Greek god of the sea — emerged at a free valuation held by British

By Sherry Liang, CNN Airport security lines can be a holiday traveler’s nightmare, but this year a handful of airports across the United States have introduced programs that let you reserve a spot in the TSA line for free. You can reserve a spot in a “fast lane” by signing up online for a slot

By Maureen O’Hare, CNN The Airbus A380 superjumbo holds a special place in many aviation fans’ hearts — and when the last of its kind made its final test flight, it returned that love with a message in the sky. The world’s largest passenger airliner made its last pre-delivery flight on December 13, taking off

Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN It’s undoubtedly one of the coolest hotels in the world, and Sweden’s ICEHOTEL has just launched its 32nd incarnation with a touch of royal magic. The world’s first hotel built out of snow and ice has unveiled a brand new suite designed by Prince Carl Philip Bernadotte, or Prince Carl Philip of

Amy Woodyatt, CNN A distracted trader accidentally sold a non-fungible token (NFT) for a hundredth of its market price. NFTs are the latest cryptocurrency phenomenon to go mainstream. In the simplest terms, NFTs transform digital works of art and other collectibles into one-of-a-kind, verifiable assets that are easy to trade on the blockchain. The Bored

Marianna Cerini, CNN If a Wes Anderson fan were to make a list of all the things that make them so bewitched with the director’s films, it might include the following: bespoke design, symmetrical close-ups, a highly saturated color palette, eccentric characters and impeccably studied outfits. But also carefully shot compositions, elaborate sets, observant human

Story by Reuters The operator of Ghana‘s main international airport will fine airlines $3,500 for every passenger they fly in who is not vaccinated against COVID-19 or who tests positive for the coronavirus upon arrival, it said on December 13. The rule comes into effect on Tuesday at Kotoka International Airport in the capital Accra,

By Forrest Brown, CNN As of Tuesday, December 14, some travelers going to Las Vegas may notice a change in their itineraries. That day, the airport formerly known as McCarran International Airport is set to become Harry Reid International Airport. Its FAA code, LAS, will stay the same. The Clark County Board of Commissioners voted

Sana Noor Haq, CNN A 17th-century painting showing a Black woman with her White companion has been placed under a temporary export bar to reduce the risk of the artwork leaving the United Kingdom. The anonymous painting, described in a statement by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) on Friday as “extremely

By Sana Noor Haq, CNN Mary, Queen of Scots used a “spiral locking” technique to seal the last letter she wrote before her execution, indicating that she wanted the contents to remain secret, according to research published in the Electronic British Library Journal. An example of letterlocking — where people doubled letters as envelopes to

Blane Bachelor, CNN After nearly a decade of delays and billions of euros over budget, Berlin’s long-awaited airport, Berlin-Brandenburg, finally opened on October 31, 2020. But turbulence has continued for BER during its first year of operation, with a long list of problems and passenger complaints: lengthy check-in and security lines; confusing layout and signage;

Jeevan Ravindran, CNN British graffiti artist Banksy has announced that he will be selling T-shirts to help those charged with pulling down the statue of slave trader Edward Colston during Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. Anti-racist protesters toppled the statue in the city of Bristol in southwest England on June 7, 2020, during a