Paper bag for the women on go

This is the latest in the category of environmental chic. Called Papier, this paper bag is smart as well as functional. The PE (polyethylene coated) paper bag is extremely tear proof, lightweight, waterproof and recyclable. A little wear and tear makes it look even better. With the label made out of sterling silver, the bag looks stylishly upscale. Expected to debut in April 2009 in selected stores and Germany based Saskia Diez’s online store shop.saskia-diez.de, the bag is very spacious and makes for a sexy shopping tote.

Survey: Young Germans prefer Web to spouses

A survey shows that German twenty-somethings can't bear life without Web when asked to choose among choices of living without their spouses, or Internet access or mobile phones, according to media reports Tuesday.

In a survey by German broadband association Bitkom, 98 percent people said they found useful information online, and around 84 percent of respondents aged 19-29 said they would rather do without their current partner or an automobile than for ego their connection to the Web. People under 30 would rather do without their cars or their current partners than the Internet or their mobiles, according to the reports.

One in two people taking part in the survey admitted they had made new friends thanks to chat forums and Internet communities. Around 8 percent said they had found a new partner thanks to online relations.

Nearly a third of respondents said social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace and their German equivalents had helped them expand their circle of friends. The study shows that the Web is not an anonymous medium that leads to coldness in society.

Sleep better than sex, say exhausted Brits

Almost 80% of Britons prefer a good night's sleep to sex, a survey has revealed.

Researchers also found seven out of 10 have trouble sleeping and almost a quarter claimed they suffered from insomnia.

The study of more than 8,500 people revealed 79.2% admitted they preferred the thought of extra sleep to sex.

Only 12% of those surveyed admitted to getting eight hours sleep although almost 40% believed that was how much they needed.

Dr Chris Idzikowski, director of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre, said: "Disrupted sleep not only impacts on quality of life, but there's an increased risk of higher blood pressure and its consequences - heart attacks and strokes.

"Many people have jobs that demand a lot of attention - and attention is the first mental ability to deteriorate after a poor night's sleep.

"Some people think they can manage on less - but really they aren't performing or feeling as well as they might. The average for adults is around 7.5 hours, so those 40% are right - they understand that they're not functioning properly."

The survey of 8,511 people was carried out this month on the GMTV website.

Guys prefer girls to wear football kit over lingerie

Men would prefer to see their partners wearing their favourite football team's shirt in the bedroom than sexy lingerie, a survey has revealed. More than 1900 men were quizzed by, leading women’s celebrity fashion website, MyCelebrityFashion.co.uk on their favourite female fashion turn-on in the bedroom.

And rather than kinky knickers or a Princess Leia costume, the most popular answer given was for their wife or girlfriend to sport their team's colours.

34 percent of men asked said they would prefer their partner to wear their favourite team’s football or rugby top in bed, with 23 percent opting for lingerie.

While 21 percent of the no-nonsense males asked replied 'nothing' with 16 percent saying they would plump for a fantasy role-play outfit.

“I think women everywhere always had a sneaking suspicion that blokes like their football or rugby team more than they should but to find out that they find women more attractive in bed when they are wearing a football or rugby top is maybe taking it a little too far,” said Jilly Tovey, Managing Director of MyCelebrityFashion.

“Not only do the results strike a blow for women’s wardrobes it also causes us at MyCelebrityFashion a huge headache as we don’t stock any football related sporting wear and have no plans to do so in the immediate future.”

Londoners finished behind their male counterparts from the North West in the wanting-to-see-their-missus-in-their-favourite-strip stakes.

However, the thought of their other-half sporting a football strip was not an idea that appealed north of the border.

Just 17 percent of men quizzed in Scotland were keen on the idea, with Scottish chaps far more in favour of their women being in the buff.

Fourfourtwo.com

Sea Gypsies live nomadic, sea-based life of Sabah

A community of 30 families of the indigenous ethnic group of sea gypsies are still maintaining a nomadic and sea-based life without fresh water supply, TV nor electricity, and only go to land to bury the dead.

Young sea gypsies play in the water in the centre of their neighbourhood in the Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah on the Borneo island.

A family of sea gypsies laugh as they sit in their hut in the Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah on the Borneo island.

Young sea gypsies play in the water in their neighbourhood in Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah.

A sea gypsy boy peddles his boat through his neighbourhood in Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah.


A sea gypsy smiles before she leaves to fish in her neighbourhood in Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah on the Borneo island.

Sea gypsy boys peddle their boat through their neighbourhood in Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah.

Young sea gypsies laugh as they gather outside of their hut in their neighbourhood in the Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah.

A neighbourhood of a sea gypsy community is seen in the Sulawesi Sea in the Malaysia's state of Sabah on the Borneo island

Young sea gypsies laugh as they gather outside of their hut in their neighbourhood in the Sulawesi Sea in Malaysia's state of Sabah on the Borneo island.


Bazuki Muhammad

Top 10 romantic ideas

Some couples are getting married today, some are going on their first date,and others are looking for unusual ways to mark the day. Here are 10 ideas to spice up your love life.

1. Play a love song for your beloved. Make a CD of music that both like.

2. Learn cool magic tricks and show off.

3. Walk around park hand-in-hand.

4. Flowers, flowers, flowers

A nice bunch of roses says so much.

5. Chocolates. A traditional gift that never goes out of style.

6. Home alone. Fill your home with romantic music and enjoy a quiet evening.

7. Romantic movies. Pack some popcorn, and sit down to watch a movie together. Set the mood with Hollywood flicks such as Solomon and Gaenor, Casablanca, Besieged, Lady and the Tramp, The Notebook, Sideways, Moulin Rouge!, WALL-E or Once.

8. Write a poem. Take time to express how you really feel and present the poem inside a card, or make a list of the reasons why he or she is the chosen one.

9. Go dancing. Take your beloved out dining and salsa dancing.

10. Good night V-day. What could be more romantic than cuddling up next to your sweetie and watching the sunset?

10 Billionaire Weddings

Valentine's Day inspires a flurry of wedding planning. These billionaires show what can be done when wedding budgets have no limit.

On Valentine's Day, a tiny box from Tiffany, Cartier or DeBeers often can force frenzied brides-to-be-and their mothers-into a deluge of wedding planning. If it's a billionaire who is down on one knee asking his lucky girl to join him on a lifelong journey of happiness, those plans tend to go a bit beyond which flavor of cake to serve.

"When money is no object, the gown and the jewels tend to separate the billionaires from the millionaires," says Cheryl Clisby, a wedding planner who focuses on the ultra-rich. "Millionaires tend to borrow the jewels; billionaires tend to buy them."

Billionaire: Terry Gou
Terry Gou and Tseng Hsin-ying
Grand Hyatt Taipei; July 2008

Taiwanese billionaire Terry Gou married his tango instructor Tseng Hsin-ying on what by most accounts was not the typical billionaire extravaganza. Witnesses included Taiwan's Vice President Vincent Seow. According to one report, Gou did 30 push-ups to applause to prove he was "strong and capable."

Billionaire: Donald Trump
Ivana Trump and Rossano Rubicondi
Mar-A-Lago; April 2008

Ivana sported two distinct pastel gowns--a silk Swarovski crystal-embroidered gown by Zuhair Murad to the ceremony and a fitted cocktail dress by Mark Zunino to the reception. German bakery Lambertz flew in six chefs from Germany to bake a 12-foot-high cake on-site. They also created cocoa music boxes as mementos for the 400 wedding guests. The music boxes played the couple's song, "Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets," by Sarah Vaughan--with the lyrics altered to "Whatever Ivana Wants, Ivana Gets."

Billionaire: Phil Ruffin
Phil Ruffin and Aleksandra Nikolaenko
Mar-A-Lago; January 2008
Bride Aleksandra Nikolaenko, a former Miss Ukraine, wore a Michael Kors gown to her black-tie wedding to casino mogul Phil Ruffin (who has won both Forbes 400 poker championships ). Donald Trump served as best man. Among the witnesses to the wedding in the Palm Beach, Fla., mansion were Celine Dion and Justin Timberlake.

Billionaire: Larry Page
Larry Page and Lucy Southworth
Necker Island; December 2007

The couple wed at Richard Branson's private 74-acre Necker Island in the Virgin British Islands. Also rented neighbor island Virgin Gorde to accommodate all 600 guests. Guests reportedly included Leonardo DiCaprio and U2's Bono. Branson was Page's best man.

Billionaire: Tamir Sapir
Zina Sapir and Rotem Rosen
Mar-A-Lago; December 2007

More than 600 guests celebrated the wedding of Sapir's daughter at Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach. The feast was catered by Cipriani. Lionel Richie and the Pussycat Dolls performed. Guests included billionaires Donald Trump and Steve Schwarzman.

Billionaire: James Packer
James Packer and Erica Baxter
French Riviera; June 2007

Australia's second richest man, Packer awaited his model bride overlooking the Mediterranean as she reportedly glided on a white carpet in a $100,000 Christian Dior gown. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes were among the stars who attended the wedding.

Billionaire: Sergey Brin
Sergey Brin and Anne Wojcicki
Location "undisclosed"; May 2007

Google's Sergey Brin and Anne Wojcicki had guests board Brin's private jets and take off to an "undisclosed location." The location was such a closely guarded secret that wedding guests were invited to hop on the jet owned by the Google pair, Brin and Larry Page, and discovered their destination only when they arrived on a private island in the Bahamas.

Billionaire: Andrei Melnichenko
Andrei Melnichenko and Aleksandra Kokotovic
Côte d'Azur, France in September 2005

Ceremony featured performances by Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera, who was flown to Cannes on a private jet and was reportedly paid $3.6 million for her performance. Melnichenko, the son of a respected Soviet physicist, founded MDM Bank, which later handled the accounts of oil tycoon and fellow billionaire Roman Abramovich. His wife is a former Miss Yugoslavia.

Billionaire: Donald Trump
Donald Trump and Melania Knauss
Mar-a-Lago; January 2005

The Donald's third wedding featured 10,000 flowers, 45 chefs and a 200-pound Grand Marnier wedding cake. Billy Joel and Tony Bennett performed for the couple and their guests, which included Hillary Clinton and Rudolph Giuliani. Knauss' satin gown had a 13-foot train, 1,500 rhinestones and pearls and weighed 60 pounds. She later modeled it on the cover of Vogue magazine.

Billionaire: Lakshmi Mittal
Vanisha Mittal and Amit Bhatia
Paris, France; June 2004

The wedding of Mittal's only daughter, Vanisha, cost $60 million and lasted five days. The family sent out 20-page invitations in silver boxes. Mittal put up his 1,000 guests in a five-star Paris hotel and held one party at Versailles and another reportedly at a temporary wooden castle at Parc de Saint-Cloud. Five thousand bottles of Mouton Rothschild were purchased for the occasion.

The planet's most bizarre places to stay.

The Dog Bark Park Inn, Idaho, USA

Sleeping in the doghouse is no bad thing at this bed & breakfast, imaginatively set inside a 12ft beagle. Created by a pair of "chainsaw artists", the lodgings benefit from a cozy alcove in the dog's muzzle.

Das Park Hotel, Linz, Austria

Who would have thought concrete could be comfy? These renovated sewage pipes are, thankfully, clean and functional and sit on the banks of the Danube, making them a perfect post-industrial bolt hole.

The Old Jail, Mount Gambier, South Australia, Australia

Independently minded travellers who yawn in the face of "bright, airy and spacious" should check out this budget hostel.

Two Lions - Propeller Island City Lodge, Berlin

The hotel offers themed abodes ranging from the tame to the extreme. The Two Lions room, complete with cages, has a two-way mirror into the next room for real exhibitionists.

Upside Down - Propeller Island City Lodge, Berlin

The rooms are created by German artist Lars Stroschen with the aim of altering guests' perceptions, something this "upside-down" room certainly achieves.

The Hobbit Motel, Woodlyn Park, Waitomo, New Zealand

Put aside your preconceptions of the soulless motel – these Lord of The Rings-inspired rooms invoke homely charms suitable for the most discerning of hobbits.

Magic Mountain Hotel, Panguipulli, Region X, Chile

Or how about a stay underneath a cascading waterfall on a fairytale mountain that, legend has it, can grant you wishes? An aerial ropeway takes you between tree-tops in the surrounding forest canopy.

The Poseidon Resort, Bahamas

Rooms at the Poseidon Resort lie 40 feet underwater, encased in a 4-inch acrylic outer casing, giving guests a glimpse of life under the sea

Ariau Amazon Towers Hotel, Brazil

35 miles from Manuas, this rainforest resort is built entirely at the level of the rainforest canopy.The hotel features four miles of walkways and a honeymoon suite, 110 feet up a mahogany tree.

Crane Hotel, Harlingen, Netherlands

But with a swish interior, rotating sea views and splendid sense of isolation, you can forgive this hotel's less-than-glamourous dockside location.

Capsule Hotel, The Hague, Netherlands

Unusual but indestructible, these orange "survival pods" were previously used on oil rig platforms and can be floated in different locations. A James Bond version boasts a DVD player and a Martini-making set.