Vote for New Seven Wonders – Four Nominees from Nepal

The New 7 Wonders of the World, 2007, were announced during the Official Declaration ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday, July 7, 2007 by new7wonders.com. The wonders were chosen based on voters around the world.

The site has started voting for seven wonders for 2008 and you can vote on your choice by visiting this link. I just did my voting for 4 nominees from Nepal.

The Nepalese nominees are:

• Chitwan, National Park
• Kali Gandaki, River
• Mount Everest, Mountain
• Rara Lake, Lake

Voting for nominees will continue through 31.12.08. Then a new panel of experts will create a list of 21 candidates from which voters worldwide will elect the New 7 Wonders of Nature.
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well …

What a timing to take photo! Thanks to the original photographer.

(link)

Miss France survived photo controversy

Valerie Begue, 22, from Reunion, nearly lost her Miss France crown when magazine published a risque series of photographs in which she was seen lying in a crucifixion-like pose while wearing a bikini or licking condensed milk in a suggestive manner.

Valérie Bègue, or Valerie Begue in English, is Miss Reunion. She was born on September 26, 1985, in Saint Pierre, the third-largest commune in the French overseas département of Réunion in Indian Ocean. Miss Valerie Beuge was elected as Miss France on December 8, being the first Miss France from the Réunion island since Monique Uldaric, elected in 1976.

Miss France 2008 Valerie Begue (L) from the Ile de la Reunion region, surrounded by Miss France committee President Genevieve De Fontenay(R), reacts after winning the title in Dunkerque, northern France, December 8, 2007. Begue has kept her crown, contest organizers said on Friday, after a row over suggestive photographs that saw members of parliament, a bishop and the minister for overseas territories spring to her defense. (Reuters)

You can see the controversial photos from the magazine in this youtube video :
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13 persons killed and over 70 missing in bridge collapse in western Nepal

Update: Death toll reaches 20 (28 Dec. 07)

Update: Toll reaches 16 with 36 still missing (26 Dec. 07)

At least 13 persons were killed and over 70 missing after an overloaded suspension bridge over the Bheri River in Western Nepal collapsed Tuesday afternoon.

Nearly 300 people were crossing the ill-fated bridge connecting Daha-chaur and Medhapura VDCs in Surkhet when it collapsed at around 1:30 this afternoon, the district police office quoted eye-witnesses as saying.

The people were on their way to a big religious fair at nearby Subha-ghat area when the bridge built only a few months back collapsed.

At least 15 people, most of them women and girls, have been rescued and airlifted to the Bheri Regional hospital for treatment.

Security officials involved in aerial inspection of the incident site informed that scores of people could be seen swept by the river. Deputy Inspector General at the regional Armed Police Force Office, Krishna Bahadur Bista informed that most of them included women and girls.

The zonal police office informed that over 150 people were rescued from the river till the evening.

Among them, nearly 50 people were taken to Birendranagar for treatment, the police added.

Local heads of the administrative and security agencies in the region reached the accident site which lies around ten kilometers northeast of Chhinchu Bazaar.

Around two hundred people reportedly managed to swim to safety.

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Can't see your own baby without paying

“Pay Rs 500 to take a look at your newborn baby girl and pay double if it’s a boy.”

That is what you will be told at BBMP’s maternity hospital in Austin Town.

Such threats and complaints of money being demanded to receive medical services were registered by residents of Koramangala, Ejipura and Neelasandra wards at a grievance redressal mela organized by Civic Bangalore at Austin Town on Wednesday.

“I was asked to pay up an additional Rs 300 apart from official charges when my sister-in-law Nagaratna delivered at an Austin Town hospital. They claimed the money will be shared between the ayahs and nurses,” said Malar, a resident of LR Nagar. “When my daughter Vijaya was admitted for delivery at Austin Town Hospital recently, authorities did not treat her properly. They refused to provide hot water and we had to buy it from hotels.

Since we cannot afford to go to private hospitals we come to BBMP hospitals. But we are fleeced here too,” rued Muniyellamma. In reply, BBMP joint commissioner (health) Dr Govindaraju said demanding money from patients and caretakers is inhumane. Health officers will be directed to monitor such activities and punish the offenders, he added.

An awareness programme for lower-rung employees will be organized by health officers of respective hospitals to educate them about the socio-economic status of poor people, he added. (source)

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Rebel ?

source

Goats fined in sex scandal

The owner of two randy goats was fined after her pets were caught mating and reliving themselves in their own yard.

The law in Oklahoma says that it is illegal for any two animals to have sex in public within Dibble city limits – even if the animal is fenced in on private land.

But when the owner Carol Medenhall found out about the charges, she said: ‘I kind of thought if anyone was caught having sex in public, it could have been me.’

The woman fought the tickets and won partially because she didn’t know she lived within city limits.

Her land was recently annexed by the city, located south of Oklahoma City, but she claims no one told her. (source)

100 Sexiest Movie Stars Ever – Angelina Jolie topped the list

Angelina Jolie has topped a list of the 100 Sexiest Movie Stars Ever.

Angelina topped the poll, conducted by Empire magazine, to find the most beautiful star of the silver screen.

She claimed the prestigious title because of her “pneumatic figure, feline eyes and lips that could have been stung by several hives of bees.”

The top ten of Empire magazine’s 100 Sexiest Movie Stars Ever are:

1. Angelina Jolie
2. Natalie Portman
3. Daniel Craig
4. Jessica Alba
5. Johnny Depp
6. Eva Green
7. Brad Pitt
8. Scarlett Johansson
9. Keira Knightley
10. Gerard Butler

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Nepali Movie: Thuldai

Yaya Chamunda Mai Film’s Second presentation,
Ramkrishna Bajagai’s

Nepali Film - THULDAI
Starring – Shiva Shrestha, Jal Shah, Niruta Singh, Sunil Thapa, Narendra Thapa, Laxmi Girietc.
Director – Dayaram Dahal

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$500,000 to party!

There is rumor that heiress sisters Paris Hilton and Nicky Hilton will be getting $500,000 for ushering in the New Year at trendy Los Angeles nightclub LAX. It is also told that Lindsay Lohan was to host the party previously but thanks to her drugs, arrests and alcohol issues she was pulled.

Last year, paunchy pop-tart Britney Spears rang in the New Year while raking in a reported $350,000 for hosting at Las Vegas club Pure. Brit reportedly collapsed shortly after midnight from partying or exhaustion, foreshadowing the rest of her year. (OMG)

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White House Prank of a Teenager

A 16 year old guy managed to schedule a call with George W. Bush but was found out before he got to talk to the U.S. president. He could convince the White House that he was Iceland’s president Olafur Ragnar Grimsson. But was caught before he could actually talk with Bush.

“My call was transferred around a few times until I got hold of Bush’s secretary and managed to book a call meeting with Bush the following Monday evening,” Vifill Atlason, 16, told Reuters.

On the very day of the scheduled meeting, Icelandic police turned up at his door.

ABC quoted Atlason as telling “I just wanted to talk to him, have a chat, invite him to Iceland and see what he’d say”.

Vífill claims he was passed on to several people, each of them quizzing him on President Grímsson’s date of birth, where he grew up, who his parents were and the date he entered office.

“It was like passing through checkpoints,” he said. “But I had Wikipedia and a few other sites open, so it was not so difficult really.” (Fox news)

The number he dailed is told to be of the Secret Service Uniform Division, which handles security for the president.

“If the number were not top secret, why would the police have told me that I will be put on a no-fly list to America?” Vífill asked. “I don’t see how calling the White House is a crime,” he added. “But obviously, they took it very seriously.”

Supreme Court allows women to serve drinks in Delhi

The India’s Supreme Court allowed (wants?) women to serve drinks in bars saying it is unconstitutional to ban such a thing.

It was a decision to uphold a lower court’s decision that an earlier ban was unconstitutional. City authorities had wanted the ban reinstated, arguing that women needed to be protected from the bad behavior of drunken Delhi men. The Delhi High Court had scrapped the ban in 2006, saying it went against the constitution’s principles of equality, Reuters reported.

The Indian capital is considered unsafe for women and has the highest rate of crime against women in the country. The city is also notorious for drunken brawls and road accidents involving drivers under the influence.

Indian Railway has women-only cars and I posted about Korea which is going in the same direction to introduce women-only subway cars by 2008. Japan also have such cars (thanks to ampontour for this Fickr photo).

I hope somebody won’t appeal against these women-only provisions too!

Travel Ideas

Traveling in the winter might not be that attractive but this is an ideal time to plan for future vacations. When I get some free time and decide to go for a vacation, it is always a pain to get the best place to go. Then comes the travel arrangements like hotel, tickets, cars. In the last hour I always wish I had started earlier so that I could get better deals and savings. Seeking travel ideas and travel deals sure take time. Last time we went to Niagara Falls and it was a total mess regarding the arrangements but the place was simply great. I am posting a small clip of the journey below.

WWF Ads

I posted one WWF ad Save Paper – Save Planet and here are some more interesting ads to encourage people to make the world a better place.

Tag: “15 square kilometer of rain forest disappears every minute”

Agency: Uncle Grey, Denmark.
Found at: La Revolución Creativa.

Sign here to reduce Global Warming!

Agency: BBDO Guerrero Ortega, Makati City.
Creative Director: David Guerrero
Art Director: Joel Limchoc, Joni Caparas
Copywriter: Simon Welsh, David Guerrero
Photographer: Dindo Villaester

Save Paper – Save Planet

This sure is a very nice message!

I hope there are other versions to indicate other parts of the world.

“To make people realize that saving the planet starts with them saving paper, we took a standard paper dispenser and made a simple modification with green foil and the silhouette of South America. This allowed us to prove that the survival of the forest is directly connected to what people consume.”

Advertising Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Creative Director: Simon Wooller
Art Directors: Cliff Kagawa Holm, Silas Jansson
Copywriters: Cliff Kagawa Holm, Silas Jansson
(source)