The world’s largest «Ice and Snow World» theme park has opened in China’s northern province of Heilongjiang. This year, it surprised visitors by erecting a 23.8-meter-high snowman. Approximately 5,000 cubic meters of snow were used to create «Mister Snowman,» whose height matches that of an eight-story building. The sculpture took…
Social media is again abuzz with discussion of Olivier salad, one of the most recognizable dishes across the former Soviet Union. The renewed interest was sparked by a food blogger who posted a video recreating what is believed to be the original 1860s version of the dish served at the…
Askar Zhanasbayev, an athlete from the city of Semey, continues to strengthen his reputation as one of Kazakhstan’s top bodybuilders. After winning the prestigious Arnold Classic Europe Championship last year — named after Arnold Schwarzenegger — he followed up with a strong second-place finish at the Binous Classic in Dubai.…
Kazakh singer Dimash Qudaibergen has been awarded a new title — not on stage this time, but in the assembly hall of a medical university. The performer met with students, faculty members and staff of Asfendiyarov Kazakh National Medical University, where he spoke about his personal and professional journey. In…
Sunqar, a restaurant perched at the highest point in Almaty, has introduced an unconventional new dining format: guests now eat with their eyes covered, completely deprived of visual cues. Located within the city’s international ski jump complex at an elevation of 1,057 meters (3,468 feet) above sea level, Sunqar has…
The song «Seven Nation Army,» often associated by boxing fans with Gennadiy Golovkin, who famously entered the ring to its iconic riff during championship bouts, will be performed live in Almaty. Its author, rock performer Jack White, will headline the first day of the Park Live Almaty 2026 international music…
In northeastern Brazil, Lençóis Maranhenses National Park stuns visitors with an otherworldly landscape: endless white dunes carved by wind and dotted with hundreds of vivid, seasonal freshwater lagoons, the BBC reported. Driven by strong coastal winds, towering dunes rising up to 30 meters are pushed inland from the Atlantic. During…
Airports in Thailand have tightened border checks against the backdrop of escalating tensions with Cambodia, the Bangkok Post reported. Foreigners who could potentially serve as mercenaries are under special scrutiny. The Thai Immigration Bureau warned tourists of possible line extensions of up to 45 minutes, compared with the usual 20…
The Rothschild family’s long-standing tradition of privacy has been disrupted by a legal dispute over a valuable art collection housed at the Chateau de Pregny, a lakeside property near Geneva owned by the wealthy family, The Guardian reported. The dispute follows legal action initiated by Nadine de Rothschild, 93, widow…
The guitar Nirvana’s frontman Kurt Cobain played in his last public performance has been presented to London’s Royal College of Music, Artnet reported. The guitar in question is a rare 1959 Martin D-18E, specifically modified for left-handed Cobain. The artist played his songs with this instrument in 1993 during an…
Eurovision 2024 winner Nemo, the first non-binary artist to win the contest, has said they will return their trophy in protest against Israel’s continued participation, according to the BBC. The 26-year-old Swiss artist said the decision reflects what they see as a contradiction between Eurovision’s stated values of unity and…
McDonald’s has removed an AI-generated Christmas advertisement in the Netherlands after it drew criticism online. The ad, titled «The Most Terrible Time of the Year,» showed stressful holiday scenes such as Santa stuck in traffic and a cyclist slipping on snow and suggested people escape the festive season by hiding…
Renowned American actor Johnny Depp is set to join the cast of the first English-language movie adaptation of the Russian literary classic «The Master and Margarita» by Mikhail Bulgakov. According to Variety, the Hollywood star might take one of the key roles, though it is unknown whether it will be…
Beijing-based tour agency Koryo Tours, which operates trips to North Korea, announced that tickets for the country’s 2026 Pyongyang International Marathon, scheduled for April 5, have sold out, Yonhap reported. The company wrote on social media that all 500 slots were filled in under five hours. It added that it…
Eight works by Henri Matisse and at least five by Cândido Portinari were stolen from the Biblioteca Mário de Andrade in São Paulo on Sunday, the BBC reported, citing local authorities. On Sunday, two armed men restrained a security guard and an elderly couple visiting the library. The men then…
Under the instruction of Kazakhstan’s president, the awarding ceremony for figures active in various spheres and making significant contributions to the country’s public and economic life, originally arranged for Republic Day (Oct. 25), took place at the Ministry of Culture for awardees who could not receive their awards on time.…
The Men’s Choir of the Song and Dance Ensemble of Kazakhstan’s National Guard of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has performed an unusual cover of Linkin Park’s legendary hit «Numb,» which is now going viral on social media. The song was accompanied by the dombra — a two-stringed plucked musical…
The popular gaming platform Steam is preparing to offer users a new simulator in which players control a sperm cell. The game, titled «Become,» is being developed by indie creator Valentin Wirth. It is a short, third-person adventure in which players follow the journey of a single sperm cell through…
The Pokémon Company announced the establishment of the first permanent Pokémon franchise-themed outdoor entertainment park in Tokyo, scheduled for Feb. 5, 2026, The Asahi Shimbun reported. The attraction, named PokePark Kanto, is set to be located inside the Yomiuriland amusement park in the western part of the city and will…
A water leak at the Louvre last month damaged several hundred books in the museum’s Egyptian antiquities department. The incident highlights ongoing infrastructure problems at the world’s most visited museum, Reuters reported. According to art news site La Tribune de l’Art, aging pipes damaged between 300 and 400 specialized research…
According to Romania Journal, Romania plans to build a new amusement park dedicated to Dracula. The project, named DraculaLand, is set to rise near the capital, Bucharest, and close to its main airport, covering 160 hectares. The estimated cost of the development is €1 billion. A team of international architects…
Shymkent, Kazakhstan, has been recognized for its achievements in sanitation, while Astana may host the World Toilet Summit, according to Kazakhstani journalist Askhat Niyazov, who shared a letter from the World Toilet Organization (WTO) on Instagram. The letter also notes that Miras University Rector Nurken Khalykbergen has been included in…
This December, visitors to Art Basel in Miami could see robotic quadrupeds fitted with silicone faces of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Andy Warhol, Mark Zuckerberg, Pablo Picasso and Mike Winkelmann, the artist who came up with the idea, as reported by CNN. According to Winkelmann, also known as Beeple, his…
New Zealand Police have recovered a valuable Fabergé locket after a man allegedly swallowed it during a theft at an Auckland jewelry store. Officers retrieved the limited-edition piece nearly a week later, after it passed through the suspect’s body naturally, according to the Associated Press. The locket, inspired by the…
