Dying art? A recipe to save Hong Kong's handmade dim sum
For the past 60 years, Chui Hoi has risen in the early hours of the morning to prepare bite-size steamed morsels for his small but popular dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong.
Rail life: history of trains brought to life in Brussels
Nearly two centuries ago, Belgium launched continental Europe's first commuter train line connecting Brussels to Mechelen, a small city halfway to the port of Antwerp.
Australian winemakers court Asian tastebuds
Wrapped tightly in sleeping bags to keep them from freezing in frigid conditions, Australian winemaker Sirromet's bottles slowly make their way across the vast Mongolian landscape on the back of a yak.
Expensive espresso: Thailand's elephant dung coffee
In the lush, green hills of northern Thailand, a woman painstakingly picks coffee beans out of a pile of elephant dung, an essential part of making one the world's most expensive beverages.
Sea of candles marks 'magical' rally that shook Berlin Wall
Some 200,000 people joined a candlelight procession marking a watershed mass protest 25 years ago that helped bring down the Berlin Wall a month later.
The Eiffel Tower in numbers
The Eiffel Tower is the most visited monument in the world that charges for entrance. Here is a factfile on France's iconic building.
Berlin passion for 1940s fashion untempered by WWII hue
With her blotted red lipstick, perky coiffed curls and fitted 1940s skirt suit, Constanze Pelzer looks like she's stepped off a World War II film set. From head to toe, the 49-year-old German is the picture of 1940s elegance -- from the little glasses and striking jewellery to her red sling-backs, her entire outfit is authentic.
'Miracle' of the Marne: the WWI battle that changed history
At the start of September 1914, after just one month of war in Europe, the German army were at the gates of Paris. The word on the street was that Emperor Wilhelm II had already booked a dinner table on the Champs-Elysees.
Madagascar unleashes poisoned rain to break locust plague
The choppers swoop in, dumping insecticide over a plague-stricken village in Madagascar's stunning central highlands.
A day at the Met: opera for New Yorkers and the world
In a cramped backstage area at New York's Metropolitan Opera House, French mezzo-soprano Sophie Koch adjusts her 19th century dress.
Nazi past overshadows genius of Porsche
The name Porsche has long made sports car enthusiasts swoon but the Nazi past of the famous brand's founder has left his Czech hometown sorely divided over his legacy.
Paraguay group turns garbage into sweet melodies
Parents all over the world often complain about their children's music being garbage.
Former slave trade town seeks to become African art hub
Until last year, the few tourists who visited the small west African town of Ouidah were likely headed to the Gateway of No Return, a massive monument to the area's bleak history as a slave trading hub.
Oscar-nominated 'Act of Killing' confronts Indonesia's dark past
Anwar Congo makes no secret of the fact that he killed about 1,000 people with his bare hands, boasting about the methods he used to murder alleged communists in 1960s Indonesia.
Japan's Love Hotels see business booming
From rooms kitted out like medical clinics where couples can play "doctors and nurses" to grottos where it is permanently Christmas, Japan's "Love Hotels" cater to almost every taste, offering a few hours of reasonably-priced privacy in a crowded country.
Olympics: Fat boys slim as curlers shape up for gold
Bad raps are hard to reverse, but Brad Jacobs is doing his part to change the stereotype of the chain-smoking, beer-swilling curler who spends more time in the bar than fine-tuning his craft.
Saddle up for a bumpy Year of the Horse, warn H.K. astrologers
Conflicts, disasters, record high temperatures, an economic chill in Asia and more trouble for Justin Bieber -- the upcoming Year of the Horse is set to be a dramatic one, say Hong Kong feng shui masters.
Europe's 'greenest city' tests limits of sustainable living
Pine cones, moss and rotten food are fuelling a Swedish city's quest to be sustainable, but people's attachment to their cars may put the brakes on its carbon-neutral ambition.
Indian couple defy taboo in inter-caste love story
When Tilakam, from one of India's high social castes, married the love of her life in a simple ceremony 12 years ago, she feared outrage from relatives and ostracism.
African Queen returns to Nile waters 60 years on
Sixty years after Humphrey Bogart steered her through crocodile infested waters, the African Queen is back plying the Nile.