No takers for fashion house Christian Lacroix: administrator
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 08:05 AM
PARIS (AFP) - The outlook for lavish French couture house Christian Lacroix looked increasingly bleak Tuesday as a French tribunal adjourned bankruptcy hearings with no fresh news of a buyer.

Hong Kong's 'spiders' stick to bamboo scaffolding
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:30 AM
HONG KONG (AFP) - Nicknamed "spiders" for their gravity-defying skills in web-like constructions, Hong Kong's bamboo scaffolders have risen above predictions that their trade would disappear.

Yemen's prided jambia hits tough times
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:30 AM
SANAA (AFP) - With rhinoceros horns under a world preservation order, increased use of plastic from China and lack of interest from young men, Yemen's prided "jambia" curved dagger is under threat.

S.African inmates compete in 'Prison Pop Idol'
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:21 AM
JOHANNESBURG (AFP) - Dressed in identical orange uniforms, inmates at South Africa's maximum-security Pollsmoor prison sing and act for the cameras in a new reality series where they vie to be crowned "Jail Star".

"Raise the Red Lantern" author wins Asian book prize
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:21 AM
HONG KONG (AFP) - The Chinese author behind Oscar-nominated film "Raise the Red Lantern" has won a major Asian literary prize with his latest novel, set during the Cultural Revolution, organisers said Tuesday.

Angola hopes 2010 Nations Cup will kick start tourism
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:18 AM
LUANDA (AFP) - With a good climate, expansive deserted beaches, striking Portuguese architecture and excellent bird watching, fishing and surfing, Angola has plenty to offer tourists.

Austria to allow civil partnerships for gays
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:18 AM
VIENNA (AFP) - Austria's government agreed a new law Tuesday allowing civil partnerships for homosexual couples, although ceremonies at the civil registry's office will still be banned.

For Haiti's children, school dinners are the only meal on offer
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:12 AM
BALAN, Haiti (AFP) - More than 250 students have gathered in the two rooms of a small public school here, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the country's capital Port-au-Prince, waiting for a meal prepared by the World Food Program.

Winemakers face climate change with dread
AFP - Wednesday November 18, 06:12 AM
LOGRONO, Spain (AFP) - With the Copenhagen climate change summit looming, the world of wine convened on Spain's Rioja region for a conference in which global warming emerged as the industry's top concern.

One-fourth of teen drivers text behind the wheel
AFP - Tuesday November 17, 11:43 AM
WASHINGTON (AFP) - One-fourth of US teenagers aged 16 and 17 have sent text messages while driving and over 40 percent have had a cellphone conversation while behind the wheel, according to a study published on Monday.