Cityblog Live

CityBlog is back with all fresh local news, views, opinions, jobs, food and entertainment. Do send us your blog contributions to us for publishing at cityblogpuneonline@gmail.com

Saturday, June 27, 2020

EU holds off decision on borders, Americans set to be excluded

European Union countries failed to settle on Friday on a final "safe list" of countries whose residents could travel to the bloc from July, with the United States, Brazil and Russia set to be excluded.

Ambassadors from the 27 EU members convened from Friday afternoon to establish criteria for granting quarantine-free access from next Wednesday.

A redrawn text of 10-20 countries was put to them, but many said they needed to consult first with their governments, diplomats said. The list did not include the United States, Brazil or Russia, one diplomat said. The countries are expected to give informal replies by Saturday evening.

BCCI on Chinese Sponsorship


Lockdown Laugh


Best Places in the USA


Cannon Beach, Oregon

Driving Oregon's coast is a road trip that rivals even California's Highway 1, with beautiful state parks, rugged coastlines, and secluded hideaways. Cannon Beach is an essential pit stop off Highway 101, and seeing the 235-foot Haystack Rock protruding out of the water is well-worth the drive.


Best Bridges of the World


Pons Fabricius, Rome, Italy

The oldest Roman bridge in Rome, the Pons Fabricius (also known as Ponte dei Quattro Capi) was built in 62 BC to replace a wooden bridge destroyed in a fire. Its Italian name, Quattro Capi ("four heads") refers to the striking double-faced herms which were moved to the bridge in the 14th century. Discover more fascinating facts about the world's Roman ruins too

PJ of the Day

Apparently you can get the Corona virus if your eye touches someone else's eye.
I guess it's a good thing I refuse to make eye contact.

MPC News

National Network

Cityblog Science Club Link of the Day

Dr Kelkar on Covid

Churchill 's role in killing Indians

Friday, June 26, 2020

Mette Frederiksen: Danish PM postpones wedding to attend EU Council meeting on Covid-19

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has postponed her wedding to attend the European Council meeting next month, she said in an Instagram post on Thursday.
EU leaders are scheduled to meet face-to-face on July 17 for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic to discuss the European budget and the plans for recovery from the Covid-19 crisis.
"I'm so looking forward to marrying this man," wrote Frederiksen in a post that featured herself and her fiance Bo Tengberg. "The Council meeting in Brussels has been convened exactly on the Saturday in July when we had planned our wedding. Damn. But, I have to do my job and protect Denmark's interests.
"I'm looking forward to saying yes to Bo (who is fortunately very patient)," she added.
Denmark has recorded 12,836 coronavirus cases and 603 deaths, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
It was one of the first Western countries to begin easing lockdown restrictions in April after the number of cases in the country remained low.
The leader of Denmark's center-left Socialist Democratic party became the country's youngest prime minister last year at the age of 41.
Last August, US President Donald Trump accused Frederiksen of making "nasty" and "inappropriate" comments, after she called his reported wish to buy Greenland "absurd

Lockdown Laugh


Rangoli


Best Place in USA


Cades Cove, Tennessee

Cades Cove is an incredibly broad, verdant valley situated within the Tennessee portion of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It has some of the best wildlife viewing opportunities in the entire park (think black bears, white-tailed deer, and coyotes)—drive the 11-mile loop around the cove for some of the best views.

Best Bridges of the World

 The Helix, Singapore
Just one of the city's many striking feats of architecture, Singapore's Helix provides a walkway across the Singapore River, between the city’s central business district Marina Centre and Marina South in the Marina Bay area. Its name comes from its futuristic structure, which resembles a double helix.


PJ of the Day

Tom wondered what his parents did to fight boredom before the internet
He asked his 15 brothers and sisters and they didn’t know either.

Eat Like This


MPC News

National Network

Cityblog Science Club Link of the Day

Australia Under Cyber Attack

Cheen Ko jawab

Thursday, June 25, 2020

The Dalai Lama on COVID-19, Trump, and "old thinking" in America

Maintaining optimism and calm amidst a pandemic isn't easy. But the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet's Buddhists, says there are still reasons to be thankful. 

The Dalai Lama is staying safely isolated from the coronanvirus at his home high in the Himalayas, but technology helps keep him connected. We spoke via video link about compassion, racism in the United States and President Trump, among other issues.

Living in exile from Chinese rule, the Dalai Lama lives and prays at his residence in northern India, and his message of compassion and altruism remains unchanged on the eve of his 85th birthday. He says little has changed in his daily life too under coronavirus lockdown and, as a Buddhist, the "mind is more important than physical" aspects of life, anyway.

Isolation is nothing new for the Dalai Lama.

Lockdown Laugh


Made in China


Best Places in USA

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
Bryce Canyon's layered red and orange rock pillars, known as hoodoos, make it a can't-miss destination for campers and shutterbugs alike. For something truly spectacular, plan your visit around the park's annual Astronomy Festival (which takes place in June each year) for guided tours and next-level stargazing.


Best Bridges of the World


Ponte dei Sospiri, Venice, Italy

Often touted as one of the most beautiful bridges in the world, and certainly one of the most photographed, Venice’s Ponte dei Sospiri, or Bridge of Sighs, was constructed around 1600. It was built to connect the old prison and interrogation rooms in the Palazzo Ducale to the newer prison across the canal, and its name reportedly comes from the sighs of the prisoners who crossed its expanse. Legend has it that if a couple kisses under the bridge while on a gondola at sunset, they will enjoy eternal love.

PJ of the Day

Not to brag, but I have sychic powers.
For example, right now you’re thinking, “It’s psychic, you idiot.”

Japanese Puffer Fish


MPC News

National Network

Cityblog Science Club Link of the Day

Indian Mythological Puzles

Corona Virus Drug Breakthrough

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

EU May Ban Travel from US as it Reopens Borders, Citing Coronavirus Failures


European Union countries rushing to revive their economies and reopen their borders after months of coronavirus restrictions are prepared to block Americans from entering because the United States has failed to control the scourge, according to draft lists of acceptable travelers seen by The New York Times.



That prospect, which would lump American visitors in with Russians and Brazilians as unwelcome, is a stinging blow to American prestige in the world and a repudiation of President Trump’s handling of the virus in the United States, which has more than 2.3 million cases and upward of 120,000 deaths, more than any other country.



European nations are currently haggling over two potential lists of acceptable visitors based on how countries are faring with the coronavirus pandemic. Both include China, as well as developing nations like Uganda, Cuba and Vietnam.

Before Corona


Friends


Best Places in the USA

Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina
The 469-mile stretch of road known as the Blue Ridge Parkway, which winds from Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is regularly cited as one of America’s most picturesque drives. The entire roadway could be considered one big scenic overlook—drive during the fall months for some prime leaf peeping, or during the summer for the tail-end of wildflower season.

Best Bridges in the World

Konitsa Bridge, Konitsa, Greece
The picturesque Konitsa Bridge – sometimes nicknamed the Aoos Bridge after the river it crosses – is one of the highest of its kind in Greece, and a highlight of this little town. The structure was built in 1870, after earlier attempts at bridging the Aoos failed, and it rises to around 66 feet (20m).

PJ of the Day

How do you stop two blind men from fighting?
You yell, “look out, he's got a knife!"


Ramesh Deo at 94


MPC news

National Network

Cityblog Science Club Link of the Day

Vuhan Virus Experience

Education in Ancient India

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Cityblog Science Club Link of the Day

Coronavirus cases soar in big countries, especially Brazil, WHO says


Coronavirus cases are soaring in several major countries at the same time, with "worrying increases" in Latin America, especially Brazil, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday.



The world recorded more than 183,000 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, the most in a single day since the outbreak started in December, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

"Certainly the numbers are increasing because the epidemic is developing in a number of populous countries at the same time and across the whole world," WHO's top emergencies expert, Mike Ryan, told an online briefing.

2020


Cityblog Online Events


Best Place in USA

Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah
Sprawling more than 30,000 acres on the Utah-Nevada border, the Bonneville Salt Flats will make you see the world in a different way. The chalk-white landscape stretches so far out in all directions that you can actually spy the curvature of the earth, and aside from the dry heat, walking across the salty crust feels a bit like touching frost-covered grass first thing in the morning.


Best Bridges of the World


Kintai Bridge, Iwakuni, Japan

The picturesque Kintai Bridge is an architectural masterpiece in Japan's Yamaguchi Prefecture. It's made up of five graceful wooden arches stretching neatly over the Nishiki River and was originally built in 1673. Today's bridge is actually a 20th-century reconstruction, since the first structure was destroyed in a typhoon, but it's equally as beautiful as the original. Now take our quiz: can you guess these famous landmarks from their close-ups?


PJ of the Day

Tom: I'll have a Corona please.
Waiter: *Cough
Tom: Thank you.

Beete Hue Din


MPC News

National Network

India China Dispute

Commence speech for Class 2020

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Multiple People Stabbed at Site of U.K. Black Lives Matter Demonstration


Multiple people have been stabbed at the site of a recurring Black Lives Matter demonstration in Reading, Berkshire, England.

Thames Valley Police are investigating the incident and have not yet confirmed on any deaths at the scene, however, two people have been transported to the Royal Berkshire Hospital, according to the BBC. Police confirmed that the suspect was arrested at the scene of the crime, and is now in custody. Police have not yet released any information about the suspect's identity.

Two Decades gone


Cost Cutting at Accenture


Best Places in USA

Big Sur, California
If you want to plan an iconic American road trip, drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles along Highway 1. Along the Pacific Coast Highway, you’ll stop on the Monterey Peninsula before snaking along through the wilderness of Big Sur, complete with stunning cliff views over the bright blue ocean.


Best bridges of the World

The Torensluis, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
With over 1,200 bridges in Amsterdam, it’s hard to choose the most beautiful, but the Torensluis is certainly a strong contender. Once the site of the Jan Roodenpoortstoren tower, the structure gets extra points for being one of the city's oldest and widest bridges too. It stretches across Amsterdam's famed Singel canal.

PJ of the Day

How many Conservative economists does it take to change a light bulb?

None. The invisible hand does it.

RD Geniou: Satte pe Satta Tune


MPC News

National Network

Chatur on Pandemic

Mystery in Space