Monthly Archives: February 2011

spoon caviar

Russia resumes sturgeon caviar exports to Europe

russia caviar

Russia has resumed sturgeon caviar exports to the European Union after a nine-year ban, a fisheries watchdog said Monday.

Russia has decided to allow exports to Europe of up to 150 kg (330 lbs) of black caviar from farmed fish as “a symbolic volume,” said Alexander Savelyev, a spokesman for the Federal Fisheries Agency.

“The goal is to break the ice which has formed over the past nine years when not a single permit was issued for exports of the black caviar from Russia,” said Savelyev.
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Steve Jobs iPad

Second-generation iPad in production

Steve Jobs iPad

Apple has started production of a thinner, more powerful version of its popular iPad tablet computers, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The second-generation iPad will have more memory and a front-facing camera for capabilities such as a Face Time video-conferencing feature on Apple iPhone 4.

Cupertino, California-based Apple said that it sold nearly 15 million iPads in the eight months after the tablet computers were introduced in April of last year.
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beachfront hotel

The Beachfront Club – beachfront hotel finder

beachfront hotel

It’s every holidaymaker’s worst nightmare — arrive at the hotel late one night, rise early the next morning to head to the beach and discover that, in the light of day, your hotel isn’t so much “beachfront” as “beach-near.”

Some hotel operators get away with making outrageous claims regarding proximity to the beach, and although online tools such as TripAdvisor and Google Earth’s satellite imaging have made fact-checking easier, that five-minute walk to the sand is still a nasty sting for plenty of vacationers.

Enter The Beachfront Club, a new hotel resource which aims to end this uncertainty by obtaining verified data on how far hotels are from the nearest stretch of sand — and listing only those who are nearly right on top of it.
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JFK Airport TWA Flight Center

Boutique hotel proposed for JFK airport

JFK Airport TWA Flight Center

A top-end boutique hotel could soon be built in a vacant terminal at New York’s busy JFK airport, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The TWA Flight Center at JFK International, which has been closed since 2001, is being touted by its owners as the potential centrepiece for a “small, high-end hotel”.

The building, designed by Eero Saarinen, is built in a striking shape reminiscent of bird wings and is considered both a historic and architectural landmark.
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Virgin atlantic cabin crew

Which airline has the most attractive cabin crew?

Virgin atlantic cabin crew

Virgin Atlantic‘s cabin crew have been voted the world’s most attractive in a survey of British business travelers – traditionally the most frequent flyers.

The Virgin Atlantic crew, who traditionally dress in red, beat competition from Singapore Airlines and Etihad in the survey of 1000 business travelers.

Virgin’s stunning 53 percent of votes is credited to the airline’s sexually charged global advertising campaign, which featured Bond-style graphics and plenty of suggestive images.
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CTK 04

The Chinese Timekeeper CTK 03 & CTK 04

CTK 04

The Chinese Timekeeper, Small Second Automatic, CTK04 offers an unprecedented jaw dropping alliance of stainless steel and blue PVD.

Proud of its Chinese roots the small second dial has more than one unique characteristic. Indeed its 5 o’clock position offers a great twist but it is the numerals in Traditional Chinese that truly underline its rarity.

The Chinese Timekeeper logo visible on the dial, crown and back case is the representation of a Chinese sage, walking on the rotating gear of a watch movement.
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Mubarak: World’s Richest Man?

Mubarak worried

The New York Post picks up a Guardian report that embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak could be the richest man in the world.

Worth about $70 billion, the Post says most of his money is stashed in foreign bank accounts and “shadowy real-estate holdings.”

That sum makes Mubarak more wealthy than Mexico’s Carlos Slim and Bill Gates, whose fortunes clock in at $53.5 billion and $53 billion, respectively.
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armani hotel dubai lobby

Armani denies plans for luxury hotel in Russia

armani hotel dubai lobby

Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani categorically denies press reports that the luxury hotel brand is planning to develop a hotel in Russia’s Caucasus region.

“The Armani Group categorically states that reports of its intention to open an Armani Hotel in the Russian Caucasus are without foundation,” the Italian group said.

At the end of January, Russia’s Kommersant daily cited sources who claimed the Armani Hotels and Resorts brand was to open a hotel in the Stavropol region’s mineral springs resort area, together with other investors.
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rolls London

100 Rolls-Royces Drive Through London

rolls London

A parade of 100 modern and vintage Rolls-Royce cars made their way through central London on Sunday.

It is a significant milestone in the 107-year history of Rolls-Royce marking 100 years to the day since the Spirit of Ecstasy design was first registered as a trademark.

Since then the graceful flying lady has adorned the prow of every Rolls-Royce model throughout the generations.
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Manish Arora

Paco Rabanne label returns to ready-to-wear

Manish Arora

Paco Rabanne will be returning to the fashion world after a five-year hiatus, this time with Indian fashion designer Manish Arora at its helm as artistic director.

Arora will present Paco Rabanne’s first ready-to-wear collection since 2006 at Paris Fashion Week next October, the company said in a statement.

The New Delhi-based designer — known for his psychedelic colours and kitsch motifs — will take over a house made famous by its linked-metal women’s wear.
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Virgin Atlantic helicopter Japan

Virgin Atlantic offers helicopter transfers in Tokyo

Virgin Atlantic helicopter Japan

Virgin Atlantic has become the first airline to lay on a complimentary helicopter transfer for its Upper Class passengers between Tokyo’s Narita International Airport and the center of the city.

Around 75 km to the east of Tokyo, Narita is infamous for its remoteness and poor links to the heart of the metropolis.

New bus and train links have reduced the time required to make the transfer to under an hour, but Virgin has realized there would be solid demand for a faster and more efficient method of beating the traffic.
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Qantas A380 First Suite

Qantas praised for ‘best cellars in the sky’

Qantas A380 First Suite

Qantas has again been lauded for its on-board wine selection at the annual Cellars in the Sky Award ceremony, held February 3 in London.

The Australian flag-carrier, which took four awards last year, won a total of six at this year’s airline wine tasting event, including Best First Class White, First Class Red and First Class Sparkling, as well as Best Business Class Cellar, Best First Class Cellar and Consistency of Wines Across Business and First Class.

The competition has been running since 1985 to determine the highest quality fine wines available in Business and First Class on board the world’s flights. Continue reading

Hublot Masterpiece MP-01 Watch

Hublot Masterpiece MP-01 Watch

Hublot Masterpiece MP-01 Watch

Following on from the Big Bang, King Power and Classic Fusion collections, Hublot is now presenting the fourth new line of watches, entitled Masterpiece.

Imagined, developed and manufactured entirely by the Confrerie Horlogere Hublot, the Master Piece MP-01 is the first Hublot barrel-shaped watch.

Featuring tonneau-shaped design, the movement is built on 43 jewels and comprises 384 parts.
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scarlett johansson mango spring 2011

Scarlett Johansson for Mango Spring 2011

scarlett johansson mango spring 2011

For the warmest seasons of 2011 Mango has chosen to continue their collaboration with Scarlett Johansson who is the spokesmodel for the brand since 2009.

The ad campaign was shot at the Casa la Ricarda in Barcelona by Mario Sorrenti.

Jane How was styling director for the shoot, while hair and makeup were by Aaron de Mey and Oribe respectively.
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amble

Amble IPhone Travel App By Louis Vuitton

amble

The inventor of art du voyage, Louis Vuitton have released an iphone application to follow up their iconic City Guides.

This ground-breaking application, Amble, calls to all the elegant travellers out there to “see the world through the eyes of Louis Vuitton“.

Amble is a free app in which users document and share their travel adventures by creating an ‘Amble’ – a memory or journey recorded on the iPhone in photo, video, audio or notes.
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Jose Ignacio

Quiet Uruguay beach town booms with celebrities

Jose Ignacio

On Uruguay’s Atlantic coast, a beach town is booming with celebrities and high-rolling foreigners willing to pay millions of dollars for a piece of this bohemian but ultra-chic getaway.

In the past decade, Jose Ignacio — 180 kilometers (110 miles) east of Montevideo — has become a refuge for members of the jet set in the region who want to escape noisy Punta del Este, the old line resort 40 kilometers (25 miles) away.

Colombian singer Shakira, television producer Marcelo Tinelli, Argentine magnate Amalia Fortabat and French actress Dominique Sanda own properties in the area.
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Omega Hour Vision Blue

Omega Hour Vision Blue

Omega Hour Vision Blue

The Omega Hour Vision Blue wristwatch is a special edition of the Hour Vision watch, part of Omega’s De Ville collection.

The beauty of the movement is visible through the sapphire crystal case back as well as through sapphire glass apertures in the side of the watch case.

The Hour Vision Blue is also special because it is produced in support of ORBIS International’s fight against preventable blindness in developing countries.
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Hublot Sledge

Hublot Sledge

Hublot Sledge

Hublot and ECAL, the Lausanne University of Art and Design, have teamed up for this limited edition limited edition sledge that is perfect for hitting the slopes on.

Following on from the Hublot skis and the Hublot All Black Bike, the Hublot Sledge unites these “sporting heavyweights”, genuine jewels of technology and design, just like Hublot watches.

The Hublot Sledge features ash wood for the structure, hand-sewn leather for the seat, carbon fibre for the handles and steel for the runners.
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