Archive for 2012


Owner of Asian Market in Columbia, Missouri Sees Future in New Immigrants

The African section of Chong's Oriental Market in downtown Columbia, Missouri. features ingredients to make staple foods like fufu, a starchy African dish that can include yam, rice or cassava and plantain flour. (Photo: Anna Boiko-Weyrauch)

With the influx of immigrants, some entrepreneurs in Columbia, Missouri are seeing an opportunity in the city’s changing food culture, including the owner of Chong’s, the city’s oldest Asian grocery store.

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Sampling the ‘Cubano’ Sandwich in Little Havana

A Cuban sandwich, or "Cubano" as it is served on Calle Ocho, in Miami, Florida. (Photo: Steve Dolinsky)

Reporter Steve Dolinsky samples the best Cuban sandwich in “Little Havana,” Florida and gives his recommendations.

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Judge Behind Ruling Linked to Russian Adoption Bill Speaks Out

Russian President Putin said on Thursday he saw no reason not to sign a bill into law that would ban Americans adopting Russian children (Photo: REUTERS/Natalia Kolesnikova)

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signaled he is likely to approve a bill which would ban adoption of Russian children by Americans.

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Costa Rica Bans Hunting

Owners of gun shops, such as this one in the province of San José, are worried that the new hunting ban will harm sales. (Photo: Ari Daniel Shapiro)

Costa Rica, a tropical country known for its national parks and ecotourism, has taken a further step to protect its environment. But even in this environmentally conscious nation, a new ban on hunting faces obstacles. Ari Daniel Shapiro of our partner program NOVA reports.

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Cuba’s British West Indian Enclave

Cricket is hugely popular with the British West Indians who call central Cuba home. (Photo: Sarah Rainsford)

There’s an enclave of British-ness in a large Caribbean nation where most people speak Spanish. The BBC’s Sarah Rainsford went to find out more.

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Remembering Thunderbirds Creator Gerry Anderson

Gerry Anderson, the creator of the cult 1960's television series Thunderbirds, poses with the original Lady Penelope puppet. (Photo: Reuters)

British TV-producer Gerry Anderson died recently. Anderson created a series of shows for kids in the 1960s, including Thunderbirds.

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‘Music Time in Africa’ Founder Leo Sarkisian Retires

Leo Sarkisian in the Voice of America studio. (Photo: Richard Harris)

The man who founded Voice of America’s “Music Time in Africa” program retired this past fall after 47 years on air at the age of 91.

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Music Heard on the Air, December 26, 2012

Tunes Spun On The World between our reports on Wednesday, December 26, 2012. Artists featured are Christine Kamau, Hollie Cook and The Peronists.

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Norwegian Kicker Havard Rugland Gets Look from NY Jets After YouTube Video Goes Viral

Havard Rugland (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Norwegian kicker Havard Rugland has drawn the attention of the NFL after a video he posted on YouTube went viral [...]

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PRI’s The World: 12/26/2012 (Nigeria, Poland, Norway)

Russia’s parliament votes to ban Americans from adopting Russian children. Also, why Western ministers, even fake ones, are in high demand for Japanese weddings. And a Polish duo performs music at the touch of their fingertips.

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Russian Parliament Passes Measure Banning Americans from Adopting Russian Children

Orphan children have a meal at an orphanage in southern Russia. (Photo: REUTERS/Vladimir Konstantinov)

The Russian Parliament Wednesday unanimously passed a measure that bans Americans from adopting Russian children. New York Times Moscow correspondent David Herszenhorn speaks with Host Lisa Mullins about the political motivations and implications.

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A Russian Orphan Fights to Stop Ban on Adoptions

Alex D'Jamoos at Mount Kilimanjaro. (Photo: Eric Michael Johnson)

Alexander D’Jamoos is one of the many Russian children who have been adopted in the United States in the past 20 years. D’Jamoos has written a letter to President Putin asking him not to sign the law banning Americans from adopting Russian children.

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German Couple Take Self-Portrait Every Christmas Eve Documenting Changes in Life and Country

Anna and Richard Wagner in 1900.

From 1900 until 1945 a married couple in Germany took a self-portrait on Christmas Eve. The series of photographs charts dramatic changes in their life, and in their country.

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Islamists in Africa Destroying Religious Mausoleums

A man stands near the Tomb of Askia in the northeastern Malian city of Gao. Islamists have threatened to destroy the tomb. At least eight Timbuktu mausoleums and several tombs have already be destroyed. (Photo: REUTERS/Adama Diarra)

Sunni Muslim extremists recently seized control of Timbuktu and the rest of northern Mali earlier this year. Now they’re destroying the religious relics, calling them idolatrous.

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Russia’s New Required Religion Class for 4th Graders

A class called the "Basis of Secular Ethics" is popular among the students. (Photo: Matthew Brunwasser)

This year Russia required fourth graders across the country to take a religion class. There are six choices: Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, secular ethics or world religions.

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