Former slave trade town seeks to become African art hubUntil 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.
Japan's Love Hotels see business boomingFrom 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.
13 February 2014 12:08
Olympics: Fat boys slim as curlers shape up for goldBad 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.
10 February 2014 13:15
Saddle up for a bumpy Year of the Horse, warn H.K. astrologersConflicts, 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.
Indian couple defy taboo in inter-caste love storyWhen 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.
Indonesia builds sanctuary to save world's rarest rhinoOn a leaf-covered dirt path overlooking lush paddy fields in western Indonesia, the world's rarest rhino had left a trail of hoofprints in the soft mud and bite marks on foliage.
27 December 2013 14:13
The kindest cut: Malaysian charity styles the homelessHomeless Kuala Lumpur resident Indera Abha struggles to eke out a meagre existence by selling salvaged recyclables, so personal-appearance concerns understandably take a back seat.
19 December 2013 14:31
World bows in respect to MandelaThe death of South Africa's liberation leader Nelson Mandela has unleashed a heartfelt chorus of awed respect from across the worlds of politics, religion, sport and culture.
06 December 2013 13:31
In Paris, umbrellas built to outlast their ownersEasily broken and frequently lost, the humble umbrella is not usually seen as a luxury item. But for Frenchman Michel Heurtault, whose creations can sell for thousands of euros, that is just what they are.
Afghan schoolgirl scarred in acid attack now a teacherWhen attackers threw acid in Shamsia Husseini's face outside her school in Afghanistan, she defied them by returning to class -- and now she has scored another victory for female education by becoming a teacher herself.
05 November 2013 10:43
Skyline of tents, towers shows Mongolia inequalitySat in a tent on the outskirts of Mongolia's capital, Norihil Gendenpil lives on the physical -- and economic -- margins of a booming city filling up with skyscrapers.
03 October 2013 12:45
Japan's ageing 'ama' divers defy tide of timeMieko Kitai takes a huge gulp of air as she surfaces from the clear, blue waters of Japan's Pacific coast with a large abalone in her hand.
India's poor drain 'impure' blood to cure illsMother-of-three Lilavati Devi stands perfectly still in the hot sun in Old Delhi as a practitioner and his assistants check the veins in her
01 August 2013 13:42
Memories vivid at Iraq torture centre turned museumKamiran Aziz Ali grimaces and leans forward, his hands behind his back, re-enacting the moment in January 1990 when Saddam Hussein's henchmen flung him into a jail cell in the "Red House".
