Brit's lost wallet found in Switzerland 18 years later

An Englishman was traveling from Zurich to Geneva in Switzerland by train when he lost his wallet, containing his passport, ID documents, money and various credit cards.  Police in Switzerland have finally managed to find the wallet and return it to its happy owner, 18 years down the line.

 

Photo: Chur city police

Chur city police said on Monday that the wallet had been found in a shopping center there last month.  The wallet was sent to the lost and found office at the police station, where the officers finally tracked down its owner, who is now living in the United States.

Whether the wallet still contained cash is unknown, but it looks like all his cards were there, no doubt expired, together with his long-expired passport.  No one knows how the wallet ended up in the Chur shopping center.

SDA news agency says the unidentified owner is surprised and happy that his wallet has been found, even if it is so many years later.

Travel Vibes: Quinta da Regaleira & the Initiation Well (Video & Photos)

Sintra in Portugal is a fascinating city in itself, but it is also home to the most amazing place, Quinta da Regaleira.  A place of wonder, incredulity and sheer amazement.  The site has been classified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site as part of the “Cultural Landscape of Sintra,” and it is easy to see why.

 Photo: From the bottom of the "Initiation Well" CC-by-SA Stijndon 

Also known as “The Palace of Monteiro the Millionaire,” Quinta da Regaleira is not actually just a palace.  Surrounding the main building (pictured below ) there is an amazing range of unusual architecture set in stunning park-like grounds with a lake, several grottos, fountains and wells. 

Palace at Quinta da Regaleira CC-by-SA Lusitana

Quinta da Regaleira got its nickname from the rather splendid former owner of the property, António Augusto Carvalho Monteiro. The four-hectare estate was previously owned by the Barons of Regaleira, a rich family from Porto.  In 1892, Monteiro bought the property from them for 25,000 réis. He then got an Italian architect involved, Luigi Manini, and together they went to work on creating an absolute wonderland of buildings, gardens, tunnels and wells, reflecting his own interests and ideologies, with enigmatic smaller constructions dotted around the property.

The style of the architecture lends itself to symbols of the Knights Templar, Masonry and Rosicrucians, with a touch of alchemy to boot.  There is a mixture of styles, incorporating the Gothic, Renaissance, a touch of the Romans with a little Manueline.

The gardens vary from well-kept areas, right through to lush and messy forests, as Monteiro believed in primitivism, and everywhere within the park-like area there can be found decorative and symbolic structures.

 

Garden at Quinta da Regaleira CC-by-SA Lacobrigo  

In the garden several entry points are available to an extensive network of fascinating tunnels and grottos.  These tunnels lead to the chapel, Waterfall Lake and the very interesting "Leda's Cave."

The Labyrinthic Grotto seen from the lake CC-by-SA Lusitana

Possibly one of the most fascinating aspects of the whole property is, however, the two wells on the property. While having nothing to do with water, as such, both wells are fascinating to visit.  A better description of the wells is probably that they are "reversed towers" or "underground towers."

Initiation Well CC-by-SA Stijndon

The largest, known as the "Initiation Well" (pictured above) is connected to the network of tunnels on the property and has a 27-meter spiral staircase going around and down inside the well, connecting to several landings along the way.  The spacing of the landings and number of steps involved is apparently calculated and related to Tarot mysticism.  The “Initiation Well” was said to be used for many and various ceremonial purposes.

The smaller well has straight stairs which connect to a series of ring-shaped floors and is more commonly known as the "Unfinished Well."

The video below takes you on a tour in the tunnels, through to the "Initiation Well," and further on to various grottos and the Waterfall Lake, giving a feel of some of the mystery of this fascinating destination, and ending with some shots of the palace itself and its surroundings.  Quinta da Regaleira is definitely a must-see on your visit to Sintra in Portugal.

Spoof video: 'Who wants to be a Volunteer?' ... in Africa

The Norwegian student organization, SAIH, has released a funny parody video about young people, volunteering to help in Africa.  

This is a spoof take on the stereotypical associations people make with Africa, up to and even including charity and aid organizations.

How many people do you know think Africa is one big country with a lot of separate states?  This is one of the stereotypes the African continent suffers on a regular basis.

There are definitely some South African accents in there, so, while the description didn't mention it, the video was probably made in South Africa. For everyone that remembers "Who wants to be a Millionaire," you can now enjoy "Who wants to be a Volunteer," below...

SAIH leader, Jørn Wichne Pedersen, said: “We wish to combat stereotypical and negative communication as used by other aid organizations' videos.”

The video is a nominee for Norway's Rusty Radiator Awards, where winners are due to be announced on December 2nd, in Oslo.

Pedersen said: “The goal of the award is to promote more creativity and innovation within aid assistance communication.”

The Student volunteer organization SAIH was set up in 1961 and has member groups across Norway.  The organization is funded by voluntary donations from approximately 130,000 students each year.  Seventy percent of the funds raised are used overseas with partners in Africa and South America.

Speed of light? Solar-powered vehicles showcased in Chile (Video)

Ahead of the Atacama Solar Race, hopeful teams from all over the world displayed their self-built solar-powered vehicles in the streets of Santiago in Chile on Wednesday.

This is to encourage people all over the world to innovate and research photovoltaic technologies and to become more aware of the need for renewable energy.

Man confesses to murdering his sister in Fuengirola, Spain

A 22-year-old man is now in custody after he confessed to killing his sister following an argument.

 

Photo by and copyright © Spanish News in English

Police discovered the body of the 25-year-old woman, known only as Erika, at 9:15 a.m. on Monday in the family's beachfront apartment on the Paseo Maritimo in Los Boliches, close to the Confortel Hotel in Fuengirola.  Police had been alerted by calls from concerned neighbours who had overheard the argument.

At 9:39 a.m., the dead woman's brother phoned the police and confessed to the killing. Shortly afterwards police arrested the man and he is currently in custody.

A forensic team from the National Police inspected the property and removed the body at 11:45 a.m. 

Police found the body of Erika in a bedroom, although they believe the woman was killed in the bathroom of the apartment and some of the blood had been cleaned up by the brother.

According to police sources, the woman had suffered a violent death. Diario Sur reports her throat had been deeply cut.  Other media sources quote the murder as a beheading..  Spanish media outlets have noted that the family is of Ecuadorian origins and that the young man apparently had a restraining order against him for mistreating their mother.

Problems with PayPal's website redesign? Can't withdraw? Here's how!

PayPal has redesigned their website.  It seems that they did this, and made it live, before ensuring that the darn thing works properly.

Last Friday, I received a PayPal payment and logged into my account as per normal to withdraw the money to my bank account.  Lo and behold, on logging in, there was a brand-new and very confusing look to the website.

I finally found a link to withdraw the money, but when clicking on it, I was told I would need to confirm and link a bank account before I can actually get my money.  Despite the fact that PayPal has had my bank account details for the last 11 years, I sighed loudly, then proceeded to put in the details yet again. As per usual, I had to wait a few days until two small deposits (14c and 20c) appeared on my bank statement, then went back to the PayPal website to confirm and link my bank account.

OK fine, now I find that I have two versions of the same banking details in my PayPal account, but anyway I head to the withdrawal link, yet again.  Guess what?  Same story, I needed to link a bank account to be able to withdraw.

I have since then had a email exchange about a mile long with their "support" department, you know one of those "Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:" to infinity subject lines - backwards and forwards, talking about the "technical issues" they are having, with several suggestions on how to withdraw my funds.  For e.g., apparently if I had a fancier mobile phone, I could download PayPay's app and would then be able to withdraw using that.  I'm not sure that I actually believe that, and anyway it's out of the question with my old-school Nokia.

I was also told to click on the "Classic Website" link and that would give me access to withdraw the funds.  Except that it didn't.  The screen that came up listed the transactions in the old style, but sans a withdrawal link of any kind.  You still had to click on "Wallet", then "withdraw," and then the whole rigmarole started yet again until you screamed (PayPal) blue murder.

This is what the screen looked like after I clicked on "Classic Website:"

Anyhow, it's month end, more payments have come in and I need my money.  I also have this sneaking suspicion that while they are having all these problems, they are also making a huge amount of money out of the bucks we can't withdraw... I mentioned that to support a few times, but they ignored that... hmmm.

Anyhow, I remembered that when it told me I needed to link a bank, it also mentioned that I could request a check by mail for a fee - see the screen grab below:

I thought, what the hell, let me go and find out what the fee would be, so I clicked on "request a check by mail" and it told me ... wait for it ... long-drawn-out drum roll ...  that the service does not yet exist. LOL

BUT, and its a great big but, it then came up with another withdrawal link... and, wonder of all wonders, that link actually WORKED!

So, if you are having problems withdrawing from your PayPal account, don't bother to contact their support department because they really don't have a clue.  Here, step-by-step, is what you have to do until they manage to sort out their "technical issue":

1. Click on "Wallet" on the far right of the buttons at the top of the screen.
2. Underneath where it shows the money that is available, click on "Withdraw funds."
3. When it tells you that you need to link a bank account, as per the picture above, click on the link to "request a check by mail."
4. When it tells you the service doesn't exist, first chuckle, then click on the actual working withdrawal link they have finally managed to provide you with.
5. Voila!

You can thank me in the comments section, or buy me a glass of wine via PayPal.  LOL.

Keep your eyes on the truck ... (Video)

You have to love all these dash cams they have in Russia.  They catch the darndest things. These guys are just driving along behind a cement truck and a car, chatting away, when suddenly, the truck seems to almost disappear.