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How the world sees Greece
Thursday, April 24, 2014
Balkan train links to resume on May 10, with discounts
Trainose, the operating arm of the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE), is to resume services linking northern Greece to the country’s Balkan neighbors after a three-year hiatus in a bid to profits from rising tourism.
A daily service linking Thessalonik... ...
Red tape cut for EU law graduates
Holders of law degrees issued from universities in European Union member states henceforth have the right to practice law in Greece without getting their certificates recognized by Greek authorities as had been the case.
In a bid to align Greek legislatio... ...
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More than 20,000 protests since 2010 bailout
There have been more than 20,000 protests or rallies in Greece since the country agreed to the terms of its first bailout in 2010, Public Order Minister Nikos Dendias revealed on Thursday.
According to figures submitted to Parliament, there were a total o... ...
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Eurogroup Gives ‘Green Light’ on €6.3 Billion Installment
The members of the Eurogroup Working Group have given the ‘green light’ for a massive €6.3 billion installment of Greece’s bailout package
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US protests Iran's election to UN NGO committee, Iran rejects 'baseless accusations'
by
Associated Press
US protests Iran's election to UN NGO committee
Associated Press - 24 April 2014 13:50-04:00
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power has protested the election of repressive regimes including Iran to the U.N. Committee on Non-governmental Organizations which deals with civil society groups accredited to the United Nations.
Iran's U.N. Mission responded Thursday by rejecting "baseless accusations" raised by Power about its human rights record.
Iran was one of 19 members elected Wednesday by the U.N. Economic and Social Council to four-year terms starting Jan. 1. The others were Burundi, Guinea, Mauritania, South Africa, Sudan, China, India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Russia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Uruguay, Venezuela, Greece, Israel, Turkey and the United States.
Power accused Iran in a statement Wednesday of regularly detaining human rights defenders and "subjecting many to torture, abuse and violations of due process." She called its unopposed candidacy "a particularly troubling outcome" of the election.
News Topics: General news, Non-governmental organizations, Government and politicsPeople, Places and Companies: Iran, Middle East
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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A Deadly Virus Is Breaking Out In Saudi Arabia At The Worst Possible Time
A new spike in cases of a deadly respiratory virus, in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, is prompting new fears of an outbreak when the area's population spikes during the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
The syndrome, called Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), is caused by a relatively new-to-humans virus that's a close cousin of SARS, a virus that infected thousands of people worldwide in 2002-2004.
Millions of Muslims from around the world make pilgrimages to Mecca, and reports yesterday of the first confirmed case in the holy city raised concerns that MERS could spin out from the Middle East and spread more widely as people move into and out of the city.
Saudi Arabia has already sacked its health minister, a move that was widely interpreted as a response to his mismanagement of the growing outbreak.
Here's what you need to know about MERS, which currently has no vaccine and no cure.
1. The recent spike in cases is alarming.The first confirmed cases of MERS in humans — scientists believe it jumped from camels — were reported in 2012. In 2013, and it seems again this year, cases of the disease peaked in March/April. But this year's outbreak seems more severe.
"It took two years since those first cases for the global tally to hit the 200 mark. That happened in late March [2014]," Helen Branswell explains. "Now the combined total announced by the WHO and affected countries is over 360 cases." There have been 80 new cases in Saudi Arabia in the last week alone, Branswell reports.
2. We don't know exactly how many people are infected.Branswell came to the 360 number by adding up all officially reported cases, but the number of cases confirmed by the World Health Organization is still just 254, with 50 in the last week. There is some lag in the WHO's numbers given their process to confirm diagnoses that have been reported by individual countries. Saudi Arabia, for example, reports 297 cases in their country alone.
Furthermore, these are just the severe cases — some people may be asymptomatic, and some symptoms may be so mild that they are not reported. Still, even the most conservative estimates show a significant jump in the number of cases in the past month and the past week.
3. MERS is considered a more deadly but less contagious cousin of SARS.Like SARS, MERS is caused by a coronavirus — a class of viruses that cause respiratory illnesses of varying severity and, under a microscope, look like they have spiky crowns. SARS killed less than 10% of the estimated 8,000 people infected; MERS has killed about 30% of those with confirmed infections, although those whose health is already compromised seem more likely to be infected.
MERS starts out a bit like a cold, but can escalate into pneumonia, organ failure, and death. The onset of MERS is faster than SARS and generally requires closer contact to be transmitted. In the past, MERS has appeared to be easier than SARS to contain and fight off (for healthy people).
"While MERS is a bad actor, it is no SARS and most likely will not cause a pandemic," writes microbiologist Jason Tetro at Popular Science.
4. MERS might be more contagious now than in previous years.Scientists suspect (but don't yet know for sure) that MERS cases in humans tend to come from contact with camels. But the WHO reports that as many as 75% of the recent cases have been transmitted from human-to-human, generally in hospital settings.
"There's a major change occurring that cannot just be attributed to better case detection," Dr. Michael Osterholm, Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, told NPR. "Something's happening."
This could be because the virus has changed into something more contagious, or because methods of infection control have been inadequate.
Fortunately, it seems that while infected person A can spread MERS to person B, person B is highly unlikely to then be contagious enough to spread it further, say to person C. There have only been two such cases of this so-called "tertiary" transmission so far.
Still, because the virus seems to be spreading between humans more than it did in the past, the WHO is on alert: "Urgent investigations are required to better understand the transmission pattern of this virus."
5. MERS will continue to spread beyond the Middle East.The recent spike in cases is primarily in Saudi Arabia (especially in Jeddah) and the UAE, but — as with other recent outbreaks — it is expected to spread beyond those countries. "The spike in cases, especially among health care workers, could be a signal that the virus has reached a tipping point and could be ready to spread out of the region," NPR reports.
Since 2012, MERS has been confirmed in Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the United Kingdom, Tunisia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Cases that have been "exported" from the current outbreak centered in Saudi Arabia have not spread beyond the infected travelers, but MERS will probably crop up in more far-flung places soon.
"It is very likely that cases will continue to be exported to other countries," WHO predicts. "Whether these cases will [spread further] will depend of the capacity of the receiving country to rapidly detect, diagnose and implement appropriate infection prevention and control measures."
SEE ALSO: Here's What Happens When You Get MERS
Join the conversation about this story »
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The 10 Destinations Americans Dream About Visiting
With its quaint towns, incredible food, and gorgeous landscapes, Italy is justifiably one of the most popular travel destinations in the world.
And now a new study from TripAdvisor shows that the European country tops the bucket list for most American travelers.
TripAdvisor recently released the results of its TripBarometer study, which highlights global travel trends based on input from more than 60,000 travelers and hoteliers around the world.
The survey asked travelers about their dream destinations, among other questions, and it found that Italy is far and away the most dreamed-about destination for American travelers. Besides Italy, far-flung locales like Australia (#2) and New Zealand (#4) made the list.
10. Switzerland 9. Spain 8. Greece See the rest of the story at Business Insider |
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Greece postpones start of Little League season
Greece postpones start of Little League seasonRochester Democrat and ChronicleWet weather means a late start for the Little League season in Greece this year. Opening Day Ceremonies, which had been scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, will be postponed until May 3, said Greece Little League president Gene Noga in an email ...
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Top security for Greek Cup final
Heavy security measures were announced by Greek police Thursday for Saturday's Greek Cup final between Panathinaikos and PAOK at the Athens Olympic Stadium. Mass gatherings have been banned in central Athens and more than 4,000 police officers will be placed around the Greek capital and at the stadium in order to keep the peace between the rival supporters. The measures were taken with the ...
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U.S. Protests Iran's Election To United Nations Committee
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power protested the election of repressive regimes including Iran to the U.N. Committee on Non-governmental Organizations which deals with civil society groups accredited to the United Nations.
Iran's U.N. Mission responded Thursday by rejecting "baseless accusations" raised by Power on the status of human rights and civil liberties in the country. Iran was one of 19 members elected Wednesday by the U.N. Economic and Social Council to four-year terms starting Jan. 1, 2015. The others were Burundi, Guinea, Mauritania, South Africa, Sudan, China, India, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Russia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Uruguay, Venezuela, Greece, Israel, Turkey and the United States.
Power accused Iran in a statement Wednesday night of regularly detaining human rights defenders and "subjecting many to torture, abuse and violations of due process." She called its unopposed candidacy "a particularly troubling outcome" of the election.
The Iranian Mission said in a statement that the government finds "these assertions both unconstructive, obstructive and against the spirit of cooperation between sovereign member states and the principles of sovereign equality of states."
Power only singled out Iran, but said the election of repressive regimes to the committee "is yet another reminder of how much remains to be done to protect civil society's role as a critical driver of progress and liberty in countries around the world."
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Greek Products That Are Successful Abroad
Greek agricultural production has placed the country in one of the first places worldwide, in regards to product exports. According to the President of the Panhellenic Exporters Association, Christina Sakellaridis who spoke at an event of the Ministry of ...
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Eating Out: Lucinda O'Sullivan at El Greco in Bray
The welcome was warm and we ensconced ourselves on a comfortable banquette by the window. Greek restaurants in Ireland are few and far between, and the owner told us he was previously at the popular Corfu in Parliament Street. What I like best about Greek ...
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Greek doctors asked for clarifications over costly prescriptions
One hundred doctors who worked with the now defunct healthcare provider EOPYY have been asked to justify the number of prescriptions they issued, it emerged on Thursday.
The Health Ministry said it has sent letters to the doctors as they topped the lists ... ...
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Greek judges decided to extend GD leader’s detention
Nikos Michaloliakos, leader of the neofascist Golden Dawn party who has been in custody pending trial for setting up a criminal organization since late September, is to remain in Korydallos Prison for another six months, according to a decision by the Ath... ...
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Manolis Glezos to Run for Euro Parliament on SYRIZA ticket
Greece’s main opposition party, the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), announced on Thursday that the its candidates for May’s European parliamentary elections
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Zeus+Dione=Aphrodite, plus Class & Fun
NEW YORK – Greek myth and art retain their power to inspire creativity and fascinate young minds, and when the engines of the Greek spirit are hitting on all cylinders, good things happen on multiple scales, from the 2004 Golden Olympics to the exciting new companies created by the younger generation of Greece’s entrepreneurs. One […]
The post Zeus+Dione=Aphrodite, plus Class & Fun appeared first on The National Herald.
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The Found Poetry Of Fieri’s Vegas Kitchen & Bar Menu
The following poem is comprised of 10 of the exclamations from the Guy Fieri’s Vegas Kitchen & Bar menu. The sentences have been copied verbatim, except that their exclamation points have been replaced with other punctuation. I call it “Ode on a Gnarly Greek Salad.”
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Greek bank borrowing costs fall
Greek bank borrowing costs fallFinancial TimesA lossmaking Greek bank has borrowed €750m at a cheaper cost than its national government earlier this month as investors continue to pile into Europe's periphery in their hunt for yield. Following successful issues by Piraeus, Greece's largest bank by ...
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Greece Plans to Push for Promised Debt Relief in Talks
Greece planned to press its case for further debt relief in a meeting of senior euro-area finance officials today, pushing its creditors to make good on their promise to act after its debt mountain rose to a record, two European officials said before the gathering in Brussels.
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Strife-hit Egypt says safe for investors
by
Kostis Geropoulos
ATHENS - Plagued by violence and political instability, the Egyptian government is struggling to attract direct foreign investment, a former minister of the current Egyptian government told New Europe on 23 April.
Kamal Abu Fitta, who resigned from minister of labour a few weeks ago, was part of a political delegation to Greece and other European countries, including Germany and Switzerland, to seek support for his country.
He said that the main aim of implementing a transitional roadmap is to bring complete stability in Egypt.
“Attracting foreign direct investment is one of the top priorities not only of the Egyptian government but the whole society,” he said. He claimed that “the security situation is improving compared to a couple of months ago and as soon as we continue the implementation of the roadmaps we expect a more stable country and also we expect to have more political stability and also we would like to pave the way for attracting more foreign investments”.
Bombings and shootings targeting the police have become common since the overthrow of elected president Mohamed Morsi by the army but the former minister claimed that foreign oil and gas companies do not face any risk. “The security situation is improving – just some terrorist elements are targeting police officers in heavily crowded places in order to just commit their crime and escape, but the industrial zones and tourist destinations are completely safe,” Abu Fitta said.
Egypt is seeking to revive confidence in the economy after years of turmoil. The country has previously said it would repay a further $3 billion in monthly installments until 2017 as an incentive to encourage foreign oil companies to increase exploration and production.
Abu Fitta reminded that Egypt plans to repay money it owes to international firms as part of a repayment scheme seeking to revive confidence in the economy after years of turmoil. Egypt said this week it will pay about $1 billion of the money it owes to foreign oil companies within the next two months. Egypt says it owes some $6.3 billion to those companies.
“The government is keen to pay all its debts to the oil and gas companies in Egypt because this gives an indication to the willingness and resolve of the Egyptian government to attract more foreign companies, especially in oil and gas sector,” the former minister said.
“It is not only paying our arrears to the oil and gas companies but also the government has a plan to pay its debts to the contactors in Egypt, to the construction companies in order to boost the economic development and make sure that the economy is going start and achieve higher percentage growth in order to create more jobs and also to make sure the economy is moving forward,” Abu Fitta said, who was an activist in the revolution of 2011 and 2013 and says he is still playing his role as a political and labour activist in Egypt.
Egypt has been struggling to meet soaring energy bills caused by high subsidies on fuel products for its 85 million people, most of whom are poor and uneducated.
The popular uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak in February 2011 and Mursi in 2013 following widespread protests against him has increased political turmoil.
Turning to the Suez Canal, Abu Fitta said developing this national project is of outmost importance because of its geo-strategic location. “It could be an outlet to the Egyptian population and also it could add huge value to the Egyptian economy because we consider development and reducing unemployment and also creating more jobs as a key for the Egyptian stability, to combating poverty and also ignorance and any kind of radicalism,” he said.
Regarding relations with Russia, the former minister noted that Egyptian-Russian relations are very deep. “You have to take into account that many of the public sector companies and factories were built either with Russian technology or with Russian support and this is an issue for the government, the modernisation of these factories and institutions and we are looking for the Russians to modernise and assist in that field – in energy as well,” he said.
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UPDATE 1-Greece's Eurobank sets tight price range for $4 bln share issue
ATHENS, April 24 (Reuters) - Greece's third-largest lender Eurobank has set a tight price range for its 2.86 billion euro ($3.96 billion) share offering, aiming to fill the order book quickly as it seeks the funds to plug a capital shortfall. Eurobank ...
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Greek Statistics are Back: Primary Deficit Presented as Surplus
Greek Statistics are Back: Primary Deficit Presented as SurplusInternational Policy DigestEurostat has just approved the Greek statistical service's (ELSTAT) figures on the general government's primary surplus of around 0.8% of GDP. Were that true, it would have been of great significance. Not because Greek debt would have, magically ...
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Cannes: 'The Salvation' Finds Home In France, Greece and Estonia
Cannes: 'The Salvation' Finds Home In France, Greece and EstoniaVarietyPARIS– TrustNordisk has sold Kristian Levring's western “The Salvation” to France, Greece and Estonia, in the run-up to Cannes Film Festival, where the movie will world-premiere in the Midnight section. Pic was acquired by Jour2Fête and Chrysalis Films ...Salvation heads to France, Greece, EstoniaScreen Internationalall 2 news articles »
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4000 officers to police Greek Cup final
Kathimerini4000 officers to police Greek Cup finalSacramento BeeATHENS, Greece -- Police say they will ban mass gatherings in central Athens amid heavy security measures planned for Saturday's Greek Cup final between Panathinaikos and PAOK at the Olympic Stadium. More than 4,000 officers will be on duty for the ...Police on high alert for Greek Cup final in Athens on SaturdayKathimerini2014 Concerts and Music Festivals in Athens and ThessalonikiGreek Reporterall 3 news articles »
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Greek Health Minister Jeered at Thessaloniki
Greek Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis was jeered by locals and patients during his visit to several hospitals in Thessaloniki, northern Greece. Georgiadis
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How Greek Premier Got Back on the Bond Wagon With Dimon's Help
Shut out of international bond markets for four years, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras wasn’t going to take any chances with his country’s return. He began months ago lining up investors for the April 10 debt sale, which proved irresistible to the ...
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Wear a toga, score Greek froyo at a discount
Wear a toga, score Greek froyo at a discountTbo.com (blog)Yumz Gourmet Frozen Yogurt, located at 17693 North Dale Mabry Hwy, Lutz is celebrating the addition of Greek frozen yogurt to their product line. An in-store toga party will take place daily Friday, April 25 through Sunday April 27 and any customer who ...
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Super Gyros serving Greek food and more in Belleville
Super Gyros serving Greek food and more in BellevilleBelleville News DemocratAlthough the new East Belleville restaurant's name is Super Gyro's, metro-east consumers will be able to find more than Greek food on the menu. The eatery at 766 Carlyle Ave. also includes Italian beef, chicken and burgers. The new metro-east locale is ...
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PPC to sell 500 mln euros of 3- and 5-year bonds
Greece's state-controlled electricity firm PPC confirmed on Thursday it would sell bonds worth 500 million euros ($691 million).
The notes will be a combination of three- and five-year bonds and will be listed on the Global Exchange Market of the Irish St... ...
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Greeks are the EU's unhappiest workers, report finds
Greece is the only country among the European Union's 28 members states where fewer than half of its workers claim to be dissatisfied with working conditions, a poll published by Eurobarometer on Thursday has found.
Greece has the lowest rate of satisfact... ...
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5,000 Greeks Suffering from Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Data presented at the 9th European Conference for Lupus showed that more than 5,000 Greeks suffer from systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a chronic, non-transmittable
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80 year-old Runs For City Council on Mykonos
Despite being 80 years old, Catherine Ivy Hill has put herself forward as a candidate city councilor on the island of Mykonos, in Greece’s
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Immigrants Win Detention Damages
Two immigrants who were held in a Greek detention camp have been awarded 8,000 euros ($11,035) each by an EU court which found the conditions were "degrading."
The post Immigrants Win Detention Damages appeared first on The National Herald.
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Baladie Cafe
Baladie Café is a quaint mom and pop restaurant that features homemade Greek food made with pride. The owners are genuinely friendly, wonderful people who truly care that you love their food. They make the food from scratch and it would be difficult to ...
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Austerity and suicide: the case of Greece
Austerity and suicide: the case of GreeceForbesA paper claiming that austerity in Greece had caused male suicide rates to rise significantly created something of a stir this week. Some people used it to support their argument that the structural reforms imposed by the “Troika” (IMF IMF, European ...
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Points of View: Greek yogurt has been lying to you
I am a proud American. I love the innovative and individualist spirit of this great nation, but one thing about American culture really makes me cringe. In efforts to make healthy foods palatable, we cram all kinds of sweet tasting, unhealthy junk into them.
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European court awards damages for 'degrading' migrant detention conditions
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on Thursday awarded 8,000 euros in damages each to two plaintiffs who filed a suit against the Greek state over the "degrading" conditions of their incarceration after being arrested for failing to produce a valid... ...
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Health Insurance Greek Austerity Victim
Health Minister Adonis Georgiadis said somewhere between 1.9 million to 2.4 million Greek citizens don’t have health insurance because a crushing economic
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Eurostat Fudged Greek Primary Surplus Figures
The European Union’s statistics agency ELSTAT said it manipulated data to show that Greece has a primary surplus of 1.5 billion euros
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Wealthy Greeks Claiming Social Benefits
It appears that the avarice in Greece has exceeded every limit as many wealthy Greeks are applying for the social dividend benefit of
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EU Tweaked Greek Primary Surplus
The European Union's statistics agency ELSTAT said it manipulated data to show that Greece has a primary surplus of 1.5 billion euros when it has a deficit.
The post EU Tweaked Greek Primary Surplus appeared first on The National Herald.
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Samaras Secret New York Meeting With Dimon Greek Bond Sale Key
While his government denied it was readying a plan to return to bond markets, Greek Premier Antonis Samaras laid the strategy in a meeting in New York with Greek-American financier, Jamie Dimon, Chief Executive of JP Morgan Chase. The head-to-head meeting was the key for Greece to be able to successfully float a 3-billion euro five-year bond this month at 4.75 percent,high enough to bring a bonanza to speculators who weren't frightened off.
The post Samaras Secret New York Meeting With Dimon Greek Bond Sale Key appeared first on The National Herald.
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UPDATE 1-NBG senior bond to smash through Greece's sovereign floor
LONDON, April 24 (IFR) - National Bank of Greece, rated Caa1/CCC/CCC, is set to break through the traditional sovereign/bank pricing barrier on Thursday as it gears up to issue a 750m five-year senior bond at a lower yield than Greek government debt.
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Dimon Hosted Greek Charm Offensive on Way to Bond Sale Seven-Times Oversubscribed
Shut out of international bond markets for four years, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras wasn't going to take any chances with his country's return. He began months ago lining up investors for the April 10 debt sale, which proved irresistible to the likes of BlackRock Inc. and Invesco Ltd. The keystone for his pitch was a September meeting with investors at JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s headquarters ...
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Ashley Judd recalls Greek experience at Grand Chapter event
Ashley Judd recalls Greek experience at Grand Chapter eventGW Hatchet (subscription) (blog)In a conversation with Associate Dean of Students Tim Miller on the Lisner Auditorium stage, Judd shared memories of her time in college in front of about 100 students on Tuesday night. The event was part of the Greek community's annual Grand Chapter ...
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5 free things in Glasgow, Scotland from gardens to museums to a statue with a cone on its head
by
Associated Press
5 free things in Glasgow, from gardens to museums
by PAUL KELBIE, Associated Press - 24 April 2014 06:47-04:00
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — The image of Scotland's largest city as a hard and dirty industrial center is long gone. Instead, this former European Capital of Culture is now widely regarded as one of Britain's most lively and stylish urban destinations. It boasts the best shopping experience in the U.K. outside of London and is home to a variety of annual festivals celebrating everything from rock music and comedy to literature and the arts.
Once regarded as "The Second City of the British Empire," it remains a well-preserved example of Victorian excess and enlightenment, offering numerous museums and art galleries, of which more than 20 are free to visit.
The city is easy to get around. Many of the attractions are within walking distance of each other or can be reached by the city's unique subway system known fondly as the Clockwork Orange. Opened in 1896, it is the third oldest metro system in the world after London and Budapest, and has only one circle line serving 15 stations with a train every four minutes at peak times.
CITY CENTER
The streets of this 800-year-old city are paved with history built upon the profits of shipbuilding, Caribbean sugar and American tobacco and cotton.
Glasgow was designated U.K. City of Architecture and Design in 1999 and even a brief walk through its streets will reveal the legacy of renowned architects and designers, such as Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Alexander "Greek" Thomson among others.
There are numerous monuments and statues to leading scientists, inventors, poets, politicians and war heroes throughout the city. The most popular is that of the Duke of Wellington outside the Gallery of Modern Art but the statue is rarely seen without a traffic cone on its head. What started as a joke by students more than 40 years ago is now an almost permanent symbol of Glaswegian humor. When the city council tried to raise the statue higher to stop the prank, there was a public protest which attracted tens of thousands of supporters calling for the cone to stay.
RIVERSIDE MUSEUM
One of the most modern city attractions is the Riverside Museum on the banks of the Clyde.
Designed by Zaha Hadid, this iconic building, which was voted 2013 European Museum of the Year, has more than 3,000 exhibits showcasing a variety of "Clyde-built" trams, trains and cars — built when the waterfront was home to a major industrial center. The museum also includes three reconstructed streets showing Glasgow as it would have been between 1895 and 1930.
Visitors are encouraged to climb aboard many of the exhibits, including the U.K.'s only floating Clyde-built sailing ship, which is permanently moored outside the museum.
HUNTERIAN MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY
The Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery at the University of Glasgow is the oldest museum in Scotland, dating back more than 200 years.
Used extensively for academic research but also open to the public, the collection features a wide range of artifacts ranging from an entire section of the wall built by Romans in Scotland in the 2nd century to scientific instruments used by some of the world's greatest scientists and objects from Captain Cook's voyage across the Pacific Ocean.
The Art Gallery is home to one of the world's greatest collections of work by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, including the reassembled interior of his former Glasgow home. It also houses paintings by famous artists such as George Stubbs and James McNeill Whistler.
NECROPOLIS
If you don't mind something a little more macabre, the Necropolis is well worth a wander.
Regarded as one of the most significant cemeteries in Europe, the immense Victorian monument garden of 37 acres is overlooked by Glasgow Cathedral and provides a stunning elevated view of the city. As the final resting place of more than 50,000 people, many of them notable, it is full of amazing stories and gothic monuments. There are regular free walking tours from extremely well-informed volunteer guides but visitors may also explore on their own.
BOTANIC GARDENS
Founded initially in 1817, the internationally renowned Botanic Gardens in the heart of the West End of Glasgow provide an oasis of calm and respite.
There are more than 50 acres of formal gardens, woodland walks and architecturally impressive glasshouses filled with an extensive array of temperate and tropical plants from around the world to explore. Open from 7 a.m. to dusk every day, the gardens are within a short walking distance of Byers Road, one of the most vibrant and cosmopolitan areas of the city, filled with a range of cafes, bars and some of Glasgow's most popular restaurants.
News Topics: Travel, Lifestyle, Museums, Art galleries, Architecture, Sculpture, Visual arts, Travel destinations, Recreation and leisure, Leisure travel, Arts and entertainmentPeople, Places and Companies: Zaha Hadid, Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe, Western Europe
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Greek government insists end of austerity is in sight
2014 budget presented to parliament ahead of meeting between prime minister Antonis Samaras and Angela Merkel Amid growing political tensions at home – and increasing exasperation in Europe – the Greek government insisted today that it was finally exiting years of recession as it presented parliament with its 2014 budget. Ahead of a highly anticipated meeting between the Greek prime minister ...
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Cycle path fails around the world
Bike lanes work better without cars, signposts or scaffolding parked in the middle of them. Here are some of the worst examples submitted by Guardian readers from around the world
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14 March 2014, 20:21
Marseille is discovering bicycle paths, but it is a painful beginning.
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14 March 2014, 22:32
So this is what all this blue paint is for...
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By luckyluke77
4 March 2014, 11:39
Who cares if the bike path is useless? At least they can say that they have a whole 50m of bike bath! (Yes, what you can see is all there is to it.)
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By Dorcia
10 March 2014, 19:33
Crisis-stricken Greece. A 3 million euro cycle path coming from nowhere and going nowhere planned by someone in a far away office by drawing a random line on a map. Simply to take up certain EU funds. Work was halted three months ago because no-one has been paid.
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By siren45
16 March 2014, 19:48
In Alcalá de Henares (Madrid, Spain) our authorities have spent a lot of money "building" a non sense "cycling lane"
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6 March 2014, 8:47
Believe it or not, this is a route into Belfast which forms part of the National Cycle Network
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By nigreenways
24 March 2014, 21:26
Actually, it's more of a parking lot than a bike path.
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By CanadianInOz
15 March 2014, 6:05
Cyclo Guerilla is tired of waiting for safe bike paths in Brussels. So they do it themselves...
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4 March 2014, 14:19
Cyclo Guerilla is tired of waiting for safe bike paths in Brussels. So they do it themselves...
https://www.facebook.com/cyclo.guerilla.bxl
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4 March 2014, 14:20
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How to make the perfect chicken tikka masala
Is chicken tikka masala the ultimate spicy comfort food or a shameful British abomination and is it worth making at home?
Like many great dishes, the origins of chicken tikka masala (or CTM, as it's known to aficionados) is a subject of spicy debate. Ahmed Aslam Ali claims he invented the dish, which bears a strong resemblance to Punjabi butter chicken, in his Glasgow restaurant in the early 1970s after a customer complained that his chicken tikka was "a bit dry" a story repeated by innumerable others, often embellished with the detail that the original sauce was made from tinned tomato soup.
But as credit has also been given to everyone from the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah II, to Tony Blair's friend Sir Gulam Noon and Delhi street food vendors, it seems likely that we will never know who first came up with the idea of smothering tandoori chicken in a rich, tomatoey gravy. My suspicions are that chicken tikka masala is simply a British adaptation of the aforementioned murgh makhni Alfred Prasad of the Michelin-starred Tamarind restaurant in London reckons the only significant difference between the two is the onions in the CTM, while Indian-born food blogger Michelle Peters-Jones tells me it's the cream and fenugreek leaves in butter chicken that set it apart.
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Greece's NBG launches 5-year bond to raise up to 750 mln euros
Greece's largest bank National Bank (NBG) will issue a 5-year, fixed-rate bond to raise up to 750 million euros ($1.04 billion) and boost its liquidity, the bank said in a stock market filing on Thursday.
NBG aims to price the senior unsecured bond at a l... ...
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