Man has 2kg testicles siezed at New Zealand airport

A cockerel

A man has had a cargo of cockerel testicles seized and destroyed by customs officers at Auckland airport. The man, who was attempting to bring in around 2kg of testicles from Vietnam, had placed the items in a chilled bin along with fish and other food for his family. Used as a food by many and known as 'chicken beans' in the US, the cockerel testicles apparently have a … [Read more...]

Placecrush: Head underground in Sarajevo

Sarajevo tunnel

To an outsider, the troubles in the Balkans are rapidly approaching that 20-year mark that makes serious historical events feel like they’re vanishing in the rear view window of history. Give yourself a reminder of what happened by visiting the Sarajevo Tunnel Museum, constructed in a house over the top of the tunnel. During the siege of Sarajevo in 1993, Bosnians who held … [Read more...]

Placecrush: Explore the wintry forests of Thuringia

Thuringia Forest

While Britain has spectacularly failed to shift up the season gear from autumn to winter, the massive forests of Thuringia in central eastern Germany provide a beautiful way to get into the wintry spirit (or toilet cleaner label spirit, depending on your disposition). The pine and beech trees are vast and dense, and the 1200-year-old Wartburg castle helps to complete the … [Read more...]

Travel is top of social media pile, says Facebook

An image of a map on Facebook

A new study of viewing habits on Facebook has revealed that we are indeed armchair travellers. The most-shared subject online (apart from kittens it seems) are pictures of faraway beaches, lofty mountains and exclusive resorts. Facebook studied the activity of over 3,000 users and found that 42 per cent of stories were tied to travel. The posts which were monitored … [Read more...]

Comet-chasing and Saturn spotting at the UK’s first dark-sky park

A picture of a lunar eclipse captured by Mike Alexander

Comet Ison may have hit the headlines with its close encounter with the sun but it isn't the only heavenly body you can spot this winter. With auroras, meteor showers, planets and galaxies whirring overhead, Tim Clark headed to the Galloway Astronomy Centre to delve into deep space... The knock on the door is so muted it seems almost embarrassed to break the silence. Being … [Read more...]

Is Iona the most video game-like place in Britain?

Iona cross

Packing lots of different ecosystems and landscapes into one small place has a magical effect of making a visit there feel like you’re getting so much more out of it. We were curious to see Jaunted touting Hawaii as a place to see loads of ecosystems in one day, so here’s an idea for you: is Britain’s answer the windswept island of Iona? The Hebrides island may not have the … [Read more...]

The world is starting to notice Glasgow. How is it looking?

Hydro stadium in Glasgow

It’s always odd looking at cities you know well through the eyes of others. But it perhaps shouldn’t be a surprise how the world is choosing to view Glasgow: industrial city rediscovers itself. It’s something we’re going to have to get used to over the next eight months, as Glasgow nears the start of the Commonwealth Games in July. This thought occurred to me when reading … [Read more...]