German holidaymakers no longer need to stampede to the pool at dawn to infuriate British tourists by claiming all the sunloungers — they can now do it from home.
Threatening to fuel a long-standing joke in Britain, travel agency Thomas Cook said that German tourists could pay in advance to bag a poolside lounger when they book their package holidays. The offer is only available in Germany.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper said three euros (US$4.25) a day was all it cost to wind up British holidaymakers by reserving a sunlounger and an umbrella — without the need for a pre-dawn raid to cover them all with towels.
Thomas Cook’s German branch is offering the service, with nine hotels having signed up so far.
The Daily Telegraph said the new front in the “beach towel wars” — the origin of which is unclear, but which is a hardy perennial of British media — had opened up in Egypt, Turkey and Spain’s Canary Islands.
Thomas Cook was founded in 1841 by a British cabinet-maker, but is now German owned.
“As part of a promotion to holidaymakers in Germany, pre-bookable sun chairs are being offered as part of an upgrade package following positive feedback to a successful initiative by a small number of hotels,” a Thomas Cook spokesman told AFP.(AFP)
德國度假客天一亮就衝到游泳池畔佔日光浴躺椅，令英國遊客反感不已，現在他們再也不必如此──他們可以「在家搶」。
揚言要讓這個英國老笑話更精彩的湯馬士庫克旅行社說，德國旅客訂購套裝行程時，可以事先付款預留一個游泳池畔的躺椅。這項服務僅針對德國遊客。
英國《每日電訊報》報導，每天只要三歐元（四點二五美元），就可以預留一個日光浴躺椅和一把遮陽傘，不用天還沒亮就跑去放浴巾佔位子，這可氣炸英國遊客了。
湯馬士庫克旅行社的德國分公司目前已和九間飯店簽約，提供這項服務。
《每日電訊報》指出，這場「海灘浴巾戰」的新戰線早已在埃及、土耳其和西班牙的加那利群島開打，這場爭奪戰的起源不明，但卻是英國媒體長年來的熱門話題。
湯馬士庫克旅行社創立於一八四一年，創辦人是一位英國傢俱木工師父，但現在的老闆是位德國人。
湯馬士庫克的發言人對法新社表示：「預訂日光浴躺椅是我們針對德國度假客主打的促銷活動之一，和幾家飯店成功合作得到正面迴響後，我們便把這項服務納入升級版的套裝旅遊中。」
（法新社�翻譯：袁星塵）
Photographer Franziska Stuenkel likes to take spontaneous urban shots, so she needs a nimble camera that is ready to go when inspiration strikes: her German-made Leica M11. “I have to be very quick and discreet,” said the Berlin-based artist who captures reflections of people walking past windows, their contours merging with the shapes behind the glass. Stuenkel’s compact Leica is the perfect camera for the job, the 51-year-old told AFP. Famous for its pocket-sized and retro-style devices, the Leica brand is celebrating a milestone as it marks 100 years since its first commercial camera was presented to the public. The
Picture a 45-foot-long animal with a 5-foot-long skull and 3-foot-long arms. It may not seem strange until you realize that a human with those proportions would be 6 feet tall with 5-inch arms. Although the Tyrannosaurus rex went extinct 65 million years ago, the mystery of its unusual body __1__ has fascinated scientists for over a century. Barnum Brown, the paleontologist who first discovered T. rex fossils, initially found it hard to believe that the tiny arms belonged to such a __2__ creature. One of his colleagues speculated that the short forelimbs might have been used to hold the
A: Actually, Brazilian jiu-jitsu is particularly good for small people like you. B: Really? How so? A: According to Diana Wang, a US doctor of physical therapy, the BJJ’s purpose is to help smaller, weaker people defend themselves by using various techniques, such as leverage. B: That sounds interesting. What time does Dr Wang’s BJJ seminar begin tonight? A: The event is scheduled for 7:30pm at PMA Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Taipei. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. A: 其實你的個子比較小，很適合練巴西柔術呢。 B: 真的嗎？為什麼？ A: 據美國理療醫師王幼瑞博士說，巴西柔術的概念是讓弱小的人，也能利用槓桿作用等技巧防身。 B: 真有趣，王醫師的巴柔研討會幾點開始？ A: 今晚7點半在「台北巴柔運動館」，免費入場自由樂捐唷！ （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪）
Dogs’ noses are incredibly keen. They can even detect changes in cortisol levels in human sweat and breath. Known as the “stress hormone,” cortisol increases when humans are under pressure. Recent research indicates that the smell of human stress can influence a dog’s behavior and emotions. In the study, human volunteers were exposed to the stressful tasks of preparing and delivering a speech on the spot and then solving math problems. __1__ Researchers collected sweat and breath samples from the volunteers on pieces of cloth during both their stressful and restful states. Meanwhile, other researchers worked with 18
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