swiss'otel

as well being world champions at glass recycling, switzerland is also the home of a few unusual hotels.

the null stern hotel ("zero star hotel") in Appenzeller-Ausserhoden is the brainchild of two conceptual artists.

In Scuol, you can find Europe's largest kosher hotel - whilst the village residents grumble about jews littering their valley.

and, on a side note, it turns out no one tortured witches quite like the Swiss

dining underground

new york city has seen the revival of the speakeasy . london is seeing the creation of underground dining . metaphorically speaking.

the urban guide to etiquette

life in new york is perhaps unlike life in any other city. so, to help ease the transition NYMag have helpfully compiled The Urban Guide to Etiquette.

bain de paquis, geneva

men in tights

it's nicknamed "mantyhose". men in tights... yay or nay?
the bbc says.... not so much

La Miss

Susan Travers would have been 100 this week. Who was she?
The only woman to ever be admitted to the French Foreign Legion.

Respect.

go go gossip girl

is this a good thing or a bad thing?

lord knows.

church of the who what why

if you're disenchanted with your current religion, why not trawl the internet in the hope of finding spiritual enlightenment?

try these for size:
The Church of the Banana
The Virtual Church of the Blind Chihuahua
The Church of Ed Wood (yes, the one who directed Plan 9 From Outer Space)

...and my personal favourite, meet Reverend Billy and the Church of Life After Shopping

Amen, sister.

pigeons...faster than the internet

well, in South Africa anyways. a man at a company said a pigeon would be faster than their broadband. so of course, the company gets a pigeon and tests it. it's true. apparently, winston the pigeon is 'over the moon'