Articles by Lena Vazifdar
Olympics 2012: Michael Phelps Breaks Larisa Latynina's Olympic Medal Record
Michael Phelps has beat Russian gymnast, Larisa Latynina as the Olympian with the most ever medals on Tuesday. The swimmer broke her record of 18 medals, by winning the gold with his team during the 4x200m relay. He now has 19 medals-15 gold, two silver and two bronze.
Hotels Give Guests Option to Buy Artwork
For a number of years hotels have been inviting local artists to adorn the walls of their lobbies and hallways to distinguish themselves from every other run of the mill hotel. Now, hotels are taking the artist-hotel partnership to new heights, allowing guests to interact in a gallery-like setting and purchase the work they see on the walls.
Sewing Needle On Plane 2012: Needle Found in Sandwich on Air Canada Flight
Not even a month after the Delta flight needle-sandwich situation that brought the nation up in arms occured, another needle has been found inside a sandwich on an Air Canada flight Monday. The flight from Victoria British Columbia to Toronto is in full investigation about the needle. The needle, similar to the ones on the Delta flights, appears to be a sewing needle.
India Blackout Continues: 600 million Without Power
Half of India's population at 1.2 billion were without power on Tuesday as grids broke down. More than 600 million people have been left without power in the second major blackout in days and the grids cover 19 states reaching from Assam to the Himalayas to Rajasthan. This has been the worst power outage in more than a decade.
Olympics 2012: U.S Gymnastics Team Wins Gold
For the first time since 1996, USA won Olympic gold in women's gymnastics. During the last two Olympics, the US team has left without a gold but this year was different. The team led the competition from start to finish. The famous Magnificent Seven won it in 1996 and now the U.S. team is the reigning world champ.
Spirit Airlines: Man Gets Kicked off Flight Because of Saggy Pants
A man was kicked off a Spirit Airlines plane after verbally abusing an attendant who asked him to pull his saggy pants up. The flight was to take off from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to Orlando, Florida. The man was boarding the plane with a female, when the flight attendant asked him to pull up his pants that were "excessively low."
Hillary Clinton Travels to 6 African Nations
Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Secretary of State is set to travel to Africa on July 31 for a 11-day trip around the continent. She will travel to at least six African nations including Uganda, Kenya, Malawi, South Africa and South Sudan.
Airline Offers Flying Gourmet Chefs for First Class
Bland pasta and rubbery chicken served alongside some wilted pieces of lettuce usually comes to mind with the phrase "Airplane food," at least in economy class. For those that can afford business and first class travel, the food, and the overall experience, is marginally improved. Now, a number of airlines are even going as far as to bring chefs on board serving up fine dining experiences in the air.
TSA Agents Rescue Kidnapped Woman at Miami Airport
A woman was rescued by TSA agents at Miami International Airport after they noticed something was wrong. The woman who was beaten and kidnapped, was brought to the airport by her assailants and was about the be forced to fly with them to New York when agents noticed something off.
Backpage.com Lawsuit: Two Teens Sue Over Sex Trafficking
Backpage.com is like craigslist or other sites promoting services, jobs and apartments, but with one major niche-escort services. Two teenage girls from Washington state have sued Backpage.com on alegeddly allowing them to be trafficked into sex from the site by pimps who captured them and took all the profits for themselves.
Muslim Travel is Booming, A New Study Shows
A new study covering travel for the Muslim population has revealed that Muslim tourists represent a major market for the travel industry, at an estimated worth of $126.1 billion last year.
Jay Z and Beyoncé Take a $400,000 Hampton's Vacation
Golden couple, Beyoncé and Jay-Z are taking a little family vacation next month to the Hamptons--baby Blue in tow.The summer abode that they will rent for one month will cost a whopping $400,000. The superstar couple's lavish 11 acre, 31,000 foot summer home is equipped with everything from a virtual golf course, a two-lane bowling alley and a rock climbing wall.
Lolo Jones' Gun Tweet Causes Olympic Controversy
Olympic hurdler, Lolo Jones, who gained fame last year for admitting to be a 29-year-old virgin, in sunder fire this week for a tweet she made.
Olympics 2012: UFO Spotting at Opening Ceremony [VIDEO]
The opening ceremony at the Olympics on Friday was a sight to see. As fireworks went off over Olympic Stadium, lighting up the London skyline, a disc-shaped object was caught on camera hovering above the stadium. Could it be a UFO? The video that has gone viral has extraterrestrial believers buzzing.
Snoop Dogg Banned From Norway After Marijuana Bust
"Doggy Style" rapper, Snoop Dogg has been banned from entering Norway for two. The famous rapper had a small amount of marijuana on him when trying to enter the country last month.
Botox in Bed: Hotels Offer Plastic Surgery to Guests
Botox has become a household name, with woman around the country willing to go under the needle in the name of less wrinkles. Upscale hotels are now capitalizing in on this quest for the perfect face, with in-house cosmetic surgeons.
2012 Olympics: How Twitter is Affecting the Olympics
The 2012 Olympics has surreptiously become a place for every spectator to become a critic covering the games in an instant. There were 9.66 million mentions on Twitter during the opening ceremony and according to CNET that is more tweets than were composed during the entire Beijing Olympics--A sign of the ever increasing importance, and reliance, the world has had on social media, especially, in the past few years.
Marlon Brando's Eco-Resort in Tahiti Opens in 2013
Marlon Brando's dream of opening an eco-resort in Tahiti is finally coming true, even after his death in 2004. Fans of the late Marlon Brando who starred in iconic movies such as A Streetcar Named Desire and The Godfather will be able to relax at The Brando, an eco-resort on the private islands he bought in Tahiti in the 1960s. The islands, Tetiaroa, 20 miles north of the main island of Tahiti is comprised of 12 small islands.
2012 Summer Olympics: Mitt Romney Attends the Opening Ceremony After Insulting London
Mitt Romney, U.S. Republican Presidential candidate attended the opening ceremony to the London Olympics alongside First Lady Michelle Obama and his wife Ann. Romney is on a European tour meeting with officials and other notable figures.
Opening Ceremony London 2012 Recap
Friday nights highly anticipated Olympics opening ceremony, kicked off the games spectacularly. In a nearly five hour epic show, Danny Boyle, director of films like Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionare put on an amazing show with rumors such as flying Mary Poppins and a giant Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter confirmed.
Opening Ceremony London 2012: David Beckham, Brad Pitt Attend with International Icons
At London's Olympic opening ceremony Friday, there are a host of celebrities and international icons in attendance to watch the spectacular show. Of the 60,000 viewers at the Olympic stadium Queen Elizabeth II will open the games along with her royal family-Prince William, his wife Kate Middleton and Prince Harry.
World's Largest Ferris Wheel to be Built in Vegas
The world's tallest observational ferris wheel, that will be located on the Vegas strip has almost come to fruition. The giant wheel will be constructed at the LINQ entertainment complex, which has yet to be built, on the famed Vegas Strip.
World's Best Hotels: From Udaipur to Instanbul
Travel + Leisure magazine has compiled the results of their annual reader's survey of the 50 World's Best Hotels. For the 17th year in a row, the magazine has asked readers to answer a questionnaire from editors and covers rooms, location, service, food and value.
Lioness Attacks Crocodile to Protect her Pride
Wildlife photographer, Pia Dierickx captured a series of amazing photos of a lioness in Botswana attacking a crocodile that was threatening her pride. A lion's pride is the social group they form and live their lives with including their cubs.
Olympics 2012: Hotel Prices Drop Just in Time
The Olympics start today with the opening ceremony, with many eager enthusiasts buying plane tickets and reserving hotels as much as a year in advance or more for the games. With just a few hours left before the games begin, most people would believe that it would be nearly impossible to get a sweet last-minute deal to London but according to Hotels.com room rates have fallen 25 percent from their highs about a month ago.
Mabel Pantaleon: The Missing Dexter Actress Found
Mabel Pantaleon, the New York based actress who has appeared in minor roles in shows like Dexter and Mystery ER, has been found after vanishing from her home Sunday. The 31 year-old actress who has manic-depressive disorder was picked up by police Thursday evening at JFK airport.
London Olympics Schedule: Musical Acts to Take the Stage [VIDEO]
People don't just watch the Olympics for the sport, though it's obviously a big reason, there is also a huge pop-culture draw surrounding the games, with a number of events throughout that just aren't related to swimming and gymnastics.
Window Washers Rescued from Vegas Hotel
At the 46 story Vdara Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, four window washers were rescued by firefighters Wednesday, after being stranded for several hours outside the hotel's 35th floor.
London Olympics 2012 Travel Packages: $97,500 of Luxury
Want a last minute trip to The Olympics? If you have $97,500 at your disposal, the ultimate Olympic's travel package could be at your fintgertips.
Las Vegas Wedding Wagon Offers up a Mobile Marriage
$99 can't get you much these days. A cute dress, dinner for two at a decent restaurant, maybe a cool pair of sneakers .... oh and a drive-by wedding. At the "wedding wagon" in Las Vegas, a legal officiant drives the couple to get married at the site of their choice, photos included for just $99.
