Barcelona's beaches shrinking due to climate change
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Scouts return from 'life-changing' trip to Swiss Alps
A group of Scouts and Explorer Scouts from Salisbury and South Wilts have returned from an adventurous trip to the Swiss Alps. Almost 100 young people and volunteers spent seven days at the Kandersteg International Scout Centre (KISC), which is known as the 'Permanent Mini Jamboree'. They participated in a variety of challenging activities and interacted with Scouts from different parts of the world. Read more Volunteers honoured for decades of dedication to Scouting Scouts earn highest honour in their section and praise leaders for their support PICTURES: Scout groups go head-to-head in fiercely contested raft race Explorer Scouts hiking to Oeschinensee. (Image: Ian Porter) Marcus Shanley, programme lead for Salisbury and South Wilts Scouts, said: "There were 1,800 Scouts from across the world at Kandersteg - 36 different nationalities were represented, and camped together. "Our Scouts and Explorers have embraced every opportunity, from alpine hikes to white water rafting, mixed in with international campfires and cultural exchanges. "Top activities were rowing on the stunning Oeschinensee glacial lake, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and August 1st Celebrations - these marked both Swiss National Day and the anniversary of the first ever Scout Camp at Brownsea Island 118 years ago." Ian Porter, volunteer lead for the expedition, added: "This trip was definitely more than just a holiday—it was a life-changing experience for our Scouts and Explorer Scouts." He continued: "Our young people challenged themselves physically and emotionally, and came away with new friendships, greater confidence, and a stronger sense of belonging to the worldwide Scout Movement." Scouts from 23rd Salisbury Group with new Scout friends. (Image: Ian Porter) Ahead of the main group, 18 older Explorer Scouts and Scout Network members travelled to Geneva to complete the Explorer Belt Challenge. This involved travelling independently through the Swiss countryside for 10 days, tackling various challenges. Jess and Toby from the Stratford Swallows Explorer Scout Unit said: "Not only have we learned how to plan our journey, we've learned more and more about ourselves and each other along the way." Fraser and Isaac, also from the Stratford unit, added: "We've also had the chance to practice our French and German and we've been really lucky that the Swiss people we met were kind and generous too." Ian expressed his appreciation for the efforts of a team of 20 volunteers who worked to ensure the trip was a success. He said: "Providing experiences like this to young people is no mean feat, and a team of 20 volunteers have been working together to ensure this trip was a success - from planning activities, organising the scouts, sorting cooking and catering, to checking tents, transporting kit - the leaders involved have really done an awesome job."
%3Amax_bytes(150000)%3Astrip_icc()%2FTAL-mass-sagrada-familia-SAGRADAFAMMASS0825-72b683e290584a3699b03bc07637ba5e.jpg&w=3840&q=100)
Travel + Leisure
2 hours ago
- Travel + Leisure
I'm an Atheist—but Going to Mass at the Sagrada Família Changed My Life Forever
From its inception, the Barcelona trip I took in March 2025 felt antithetical to who I am as a person (that is, type A). My friends and I booked everything the week of, dropping a few hundred euros on an Airbnb and budget plane tickets from Paris, where we were living at the time. Other than those essentials, we planned nothing for our weekend, eschewing my usual detailed itineraries for some level of slightly uncomfortable spontaneity. At this point, it was much too late to book tickets to any of the top attractions; Parc Güell, the Picasso Museum, and Sagrada Família were all sold out. All the same, we decided to wing it. The Friday morning of our trip, I sacrificed six of my precious eight hours of sleep to take a 3 a.m. Uber to Paris Orly Airport. By 10 a.m., my two friends and I were in the heart of Barcelona, where we'd be for the next 50 hours. The first day was long, hot, and exhausting. Running on about two hours of sleep with our huge, mildly dorky backpacks in tow, we hiked up Montjuïc hill; spent a few hours in the Joan Miró Foundation; and took a long, winding journey back down (albeit with spectacular views). When it was finally time to check in to our Airbnb, we struggled deeply with the janky lock, but the fight was ameliorated by a delicious meal of black paella at Restaurant Palermo. Afterward, I was more than ready to turn in for the night. My friends, however, were determined to see the Basílica de la Sagrada Família—so, outvoted, along I went. Walking through the Jardins de Laribal in Barcelona. Angela Lian/Travel + Leisure Construction on Sagrada Família began almost a century and a half ago, in 1882. Catalan modernist architect Antoni Gaudí took over its design the next year, and from 1914 until he passed away, it was his only project. The church, easily distinguishable by Gaudí's signature nature-inspired style, is still under construction—a project that has taken over 140 years to complete—but it's set to be done in 2026, the centennial of his death. When I visited, Sagrada Família was missing its tallest central spire, the tower of Jesus Christ. And yet, it was still a formidable sight: a stone behemoth in ivory and beige, impossibly intricate, breathtakingly tall. Honestly, American churches had never interested me. But the Gothic, stately, exponentially older European church was a different beast—and Sagrada Família was in league of its own. That night, we spent an hour walking around the entirety of the church, breathing it in, letting the unanticipated cold seep past our inadequate layers. Despite our best efforts, pictures captured nothing. We began in front of the Passion façade, a skeletal, shadowy construction centered on the cross and, just under it, the crucifixion scene. Then, after walking around the unfinished Glory façade, we reached Nativity. The exterior of La Sagrada Familia and a pitcher of sangria. Angela Lian/Travel + Leisure This side of Sagrada Família was darker, rounder—as if stained and eroded with time. With rippling shapes and mosslike florals, it's ornate, organic, and acutely Gaudían. We spent most of that hour in front of the Nativity façade: three upward-tilted chins, six unblinking eyes. As a lifelong atheist, I was mostly ignorant of the stories behind the biblical imagery on each of the church's sides, yet their raw, historic power struck me all the same. The unfinished nature of Sagrada Família only added to its effect. After all, there I was, witnessing something great in the long process of being made. We knew we wanted to go inside. But the question was, how do we actually do that? Standard tickets were long gone and last-minute tours were far too pricey for our college student budgets. After a bit of digging, we found a possibility. Every Saturday at 8 p.m., Sagrada Família holds an international Mass. All are welcome, and it's free. (There's also Mass on Sunday mornings, but we had a plane to catch.) Frankly, I didn't care much about the Mass aspect of it all. I just thought the outside was stunning and wanted to see the much-talked-about interior before leaving Barcelona. So, the next day, the three of us made our way to Mass. The plan wasn't set in stone. That night after our exterior tour of the church, we had a sangria-fueled late night out, naturally. Then on the day of, we took ourselves on an extensive walk through the Parc de la Ciutadella to Somorrostro Beach, where we sat for probably too long (entirely inappropriately dressed for the beach—I, for one, was in a black leather jacket and jeans, and none of us had brought sunscreen). Ultimately, we agreed that it would be okay if we did not have time for the Mass that night. But at the last minute, we decided to hop on the metro and try. In the end, we made it just in time and were among the last to be let inside. Angela and friends at Somorrostro Beach. Angela Lian/Travel + Leisure Before studying abroad in Europe, I had been in a church maybe two or three times in my life. My childhood best friend went to the local Methodist church, a nondescript, one-story white building on the road adjacent to my suburban Pennsylvania neighborhood. I had attended with her a couple of times, for some event or the other, and it hadn't left much of an impression on me. Growing up, the closest I ever really got to spirituality was visiting temples and burning incense on trips to China, or perhaps sporadically trying to meditate at various points in high school. But when I walked into this church, for the first time, I began to feel like I understood what it meant, yet I wasn't quite able to place a finger on what 'it' was. The interior was somehow more impressive than the façades. It spiraled upwards, with deceptively simple, tree-like columns and dizzyingly high ceilings. It felt like an enchanted forest of white stone, all warm lights and arches and rainbow-dappled glass, not a right angle to be found. I had the sense that the basilica was growing, and I with it. As we took it in from our folding seats, heads raised, lips parted, a hush fell over the crowd, and Mass began. To be honest, half the time, I had little to no clue what was going on. Some parts were spoken in English and French, but many elements of the Mass were in other languages, too. Add on the fact that I didn't have much foundational knowledge of the story being told to begin with—which, as my friend later told me, was of the parable of the prodigal son. But it was enough to simply exist inside the church, in a space that extended so far above and around us and seemed to buzz with tangible energy. Fifteen, 30, 45 minutes in, several groups of tourists got up and left. They, like us, probably just wanted to get inside for free—but we stayed glued the whole way through. We strained to hear speaking and singing in languages we couldn't understand, turned to greet our stranger-neighbors from different countries, and stood to watch a Eucharist we couldn't take part in. It wasn't how I pictured spending my last night in Barcelona. It wasn't something I'd pictured ever doing at all. I've always sought completeness, definitive knowledge, rigid structure. But that night, surrounded by a collective longing for faith and connection, I let it take me—the beauty of something unfinished, unanswered; the ever-unfolding realization of a centuries-old design. An hour later, it was dark outside, but inside—where we'd spent our whole lives, it seemed—the shadows glowed amber. Under the canopy of living stone, Mass ended. And so we went forth.
Fox News
2 hours ago
- Fox News
Vegas tipping drops drastically as visitors say service doesn't match higher costs
Las Vegas servers say they're feeling the heat as high prices and declining tourism hammer their tip earnings across the Strip. Tipping in Sin City is reportedly down by as much as 50% among servers, as some of them blame the economy and policy while others point to high prices, a tipping backlash and poor service. On Reddit's r/VegasLocals forum, one cocktail waitress wrote, "I used to average about 80 cents a drink. Now I'm averaging about 10 cents." "We are working triple what we used to and making a quarter of what we did," another person added on the forum. Jacob Soto, 22, a supervisor at Pinkbox Doughnuts in downtown Las Vegas, told The Wall Street Journal that he used to make up to $200 a week in credit card tips, but now only earns between $100 and $150. While the city saw an 11.3% drop in overall visitation in June compared to the same time last year, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), international travel to Vegas is down approximately 10% year over year. Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer of the Culinary Workers Union, which represents 60,000 Vegas workers, said federal immigration and economic policies are keeping international travelers away. "The unions and the industry and the government need to get together and repair the damage and welcome tourism back," he told Fox News Digital. Pappageorge called the tipped income tax exemption proposed in President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill" a "welcome relief." He pointed out, however, that if workers aren't "making the tips, the credit doesn't help." "Guests are pushing back on $18 bottles of water in the minibar and $37 martinis." He said companies have already frozen hiring and made targeted staffing cuts, with part-time workers – who make up 25% of the union's membership – being the first to lose hours. "If it continues, it could bleed into the full-timers," he added. Some industry observers assert the problem is more local. "Many attribute this not only to a general dip in international travel demand to the U.S., but also to aggressive price-gouging by hospitality venues," Rob DelliBovi, a consultant and founder of the Miami-based RDB Hospitality Group, told Fox News Digital. "Guests are pushing back on $18 bottles of water in the minibar and $37 martinis." Many people in the r/VegasLocals thread agree. Said one Redditor, "Twenty-five-dollar drinks … $30 pancakes, $35 burgers … and on top of it you have to tip?" Added another person, "Nobody wants to give you 20% on top of the already exorbitantly overpriced s---." A beer recently cost nearly $15 at a casino, yet another person said. "I'm tired of tipping for everything." "What that translates to is me drinking less beer and tipping less," the person said. "I understand that casinos have costs, but this is absurd." "I'm tired of tipping for everything, as quality of service has consistently gone down," another person wrote. One Vegas waitress, who requested anonymity out of fear of losing her job, also said she thinks the quality of service has declined. "For the price, it should be impeccable," she told Fox News Digital. She said aggressive upselling tactics, repetitive restaurant concepts and a lack of genuine hospitality are turning off tourists and locals alike. As a result, she said she's also seen tip revenue decrease by half compared to last summer. The waitress said businesses on the Strip need to return to the basics of hospitality and focus on local clientele rather than only international customers. "The locals don't want to pay double for food that's not any better and for servers to be rude," she said. Despite the downturn, Vegas has not lost its hustle yet, DelliBovi said. "Sales teams in Las Vegas are already strategizing on how to reinvigorate the market and drive business back up for the fall," he said. Even as reports indicate Las Vegas tourism is down overall, Circa Resort & Casino CEO Derek Stevens recently told Fox News Digital the assessment may be "premature." "In specific pockets, like where we at Circa Las Vegas are located in downtown — I think people feel there's maybe a little better value. Things were really booming," Stevens said. He added, "If you really start unpeeling some layers of the onion in Las Vegas, I think you're going to find companies that have very specific areas that are a little less subject to the economy and that are doing OK." Ashley DiMella and Larry Fink, both of Fox News Digital, contributed reporting.
