A new day means a fresh set of headlines from around the globe.
And to filter out the great and good, Time Out GCC has roped in its cross-continental cousins to bring you the zaniest and most entertaining stories from around the world.
Here are some of our favourite recent stories from the Time Out family.
Chicago
We call dibs
When snow falls in Chicago and residents have to dig out their cars, a controversial winter tradition comes into play. The unwritten rules of “dibs” are simple: If you take the time to shovel out a parking spot, you’re entitled to put some junk in it to prevent others from taking it while you’re driving your car to work or the grocery store. And if you decide to move the folding chairs or boxes marking a space that someone else shovelled to park your own car, you have to be prepared to face the consequences. It’s not the most neighbourly of practices and it’s definitely illegal, but you’ll see “dibs” on streets throughout Chicago whenever it snows.
Read the story by Zach Long here.
Germany
Bottoms up
A new study delves into the finances behind hops – namely, how much a bottle will cost you around the globe and which countries are drinking it all. Conducted by Expensivity, the World Hops Index 2021 is jam-packed with insight that nerds and world travellers will find fascinating. Of course, it’s no surprise that the study’s most startling stat was found in Germany, where residents spend an average of $1,907.78 per year on hops. The average local gulps 411 bottles annually.
Read the story by Morgan Olsen here.
London
Taking the high line
The last time London talked about the Camden High Line project it was September 2020. A different world, one in which the phrase ‘the most miserable winter of all time’ didn’t yet mean anything. At that point the project, a cockney riff on New York’s delicious and delightful High Line elevated park, was still looking for a designer. Well they’ve found their designer. And, as luck would have it, it is the same designer who built the original one in NYC. Take a bow, James Corner. Corner described the project as ‘feel good investment’ that would help the city shed ‘the negative vibes of the past couple of years’. Too right, mate.
Read the story by Joe Mackertich here.
New York
It’s bigger than hip-hop
With just two years to go until it opens in the South Bronx, the Universal Hip Hop Museum is launching its $100 million capital campaign to raise funds for its interiors.
Rappers Kurtis Blow, Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Melly Mel are the masterminds behind the museum, which aims to accurately preserve the history of local and global Hip Hop music and culture through stories, shows, film screenings, and leading-edge virtual and augmented reality technologies. Other rapper-producer-entrepreneurs have signed onto the project, including Nas, Ice-T and LL Cool J.
Read the story by Shaye Weaver here.
Paris
Eiffel gold
For more than 50 years, the Eiffel Tower has looked a little rusty. However, its distinctive brownish colour isn’t just what happens when you leave the world’s tallest iron structure out in the rain – it’s a very deliberate paint job that gets redone every seven years or so. But now, as Paris gears up to host the Olympic Games in 2024, the tower is undergoing the most extensive renovations in its 130-year history – and is being painted a dazzling new shade of gold.
Read the story by Huw Oliver here.
World
We’re in a glass case of emojis
We’ve all been feeling new emotions recently, and now at last there are new ways to express them via the international language of emoji.
Unicode’s latest emojis are being rolled out to Apple devices on the upcoming iOS 14.5, and we’ve got a sneak peek at the new emojis you’ll be able to use once it’s released. A bandaged heart, a dizzy face with spiral eyes, a face exhaling with exhaustion and a ‘brain fog’ emoji are among the latest emojis coming to Apple devices as part of Emoji 13.1. Which is a handy summary of how we’ve been feeling lately.
Read the story by James Manning here.
