around-the-world

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Extra, extra

A la Slate's "Today's Papers," I glean the best stuff from the country's top three newspapers so you don't have to: "Forging Ahead in Moscow," from the LA Times Persey Tours was barely keeping the bill collectors at bay before it started offering fake vacations last year. Now it's selling 15 a month — providing ersatz ticket stubs, hotel receipts, photos with clients' images superimposed on famous landmarks, a few souvenirs for living room shelves. ... Of course, it's not the real thing. But in... READ ON

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You can't keep a good man down

Minggu Mang anak Madang recently described himself to Malaysian newspapers as being "the living dead," but don't worry, he's not about to terrorize y'all's neighborhood: Official records show that Minggu Mang anak Madang passed away from head injuries in the town of Bintulu in the eastern state of Sarawak on January 18, 2002, and was buried. But Minggu Mang, 40, says that he is alive and rallying for years to show to authorities he was not dead. ... He said he found out that he was proclaimed dead when he... READ ON

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Czech Please!

Two of my favorite historical events have occurred in Prague. I love reading about the Velvet Revolution, just because I think it's amazing that Vaclav Havel and his playwright cronies managed to sweep away communism in a completely bloodless coup. I also love the Defenestration of Prague, not only because defenestration is a GREAT word (to defenestrate means specifically to throw out of a window), but also because according to Britannica, when Czech Protestants threw three officials out of a... READ ON

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Junetwentyseventh

Okay, it doesn't have the same ring as "Juneteenth," but today is also a little-known holiday commemorating the freedom of black people historically oppressed by white people, the independence day of my very favorite former French colony, liberated in 1977: Djibouti. How can you not love a country with a name that evokes Lil Jon? Alas, all most people know about Djibouti is its amusing moniker. Let's remedy that: * Djibouti's motto is "Djibouti by Choice."  * Djibouti's capital is called...... READ ON
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