Latest news with #Santa
USA Today
6 hours ago
- General
- USA Today
No baby Santa? These 10 baby names are banned in the US
No baby Santa? These 10 baby names are banned in the US Show Caption Hide Caption See sweet moment baby is named after grandpa battling illness When Lindsey and Andrew Pelzl found out they were having a little boy in Redwood City, California, they surprised Andrew's dad with his namesake. Humankind Looking for a unique name to give your baby that would help them stand out in a crowd? While the sky is (nearly) the limit, it's best to avoid these 10 offensive or confusing names that are banned in the U.S. Japan has recently banned what is known as "shiny" or "glittery" names, which are names with unusual pronunciations, according to The Guardian. These names could include anything from Pikachu to Nike, according to CNN. But Japan isn't the only country to have banned baby names. The U.S. is more relaxed on naming protocol than other countries, but there are still some rules. Some states have stricter naming laws, and other states don't have any, but there are still some names that have been ruled by courts in the U.S. as illegal. While your child might seem like royalty to you, it's best to avoid naming them King or Queen, as those names have been banned in the U.S., according to Here's what to know about banned baby names. Are any baby names banned in the US? The following names are have been ruled to be illegal by courts in the U.S., according to King Queen Jesus Christ III Santa Claus Majesty Adolf Hitler Messiah @ 1069 40 baby names banned in New Zealand In May, New Zealand's Department of Internal Affairs published a full list of names (40, to be exact) that were requested and rejected in 2024. The majority resemble a title or rank, such as King, which was requested and denied 11 times. Prince and Princess were also requested, in addition to alternative spellings like Pryncess and Prynce. Names with ties to marijuana were also requested and rejected − Sativa and Indica, which are two popular marijuana strains. Both were only requested and rejected once. "We continue to urge parents to think carefully about names. Names are a gift. Generally, the name registered will be with the individual for the rest of their lives," according to a document published by New Zealand's Department of Internal Affairs. Names banned in other countries While Japan recently banned "shiny" names, other countries have banned a long list of other names. In New Zealand, "Sex Fruit" is also a banned name, while in Mexico, "Robocop" is banned, according to Other names banned in different countries, according to are: Sarah (Morocco) Osama bin Laden (Germany) Metallica (Sweden) Cyanide (United Kingdom) 007 (Malaysia) BRFXXCCXXMNPCCCCLLLMMNPRXVCLMNCKSSQLBB11116 (Sweden) Prince William (France) Quran (China) Judas (Switzerland) Devil (Japan) Blue (Italy) Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. Connect with her on LinkedIn, X, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@
Miami Herald
6 days ago
- Miami Herald
61-year-old overseeing woman during training sexually touched her, CA cops say
A 61-year-old instructional assistant was arrested after being accused of sexually touching a 20-year-old woman, California police said. In April, administrators with Santa Rosa City Schools reported a complaint accusing Apolinario Araki 'Junior' Santos of inappropriately touching a woman during her workday at a business involved in the 'Transition Program,' which helps adults ages 18 to 22 with developmental disabilities gain job experience with local employers, according to a Facebook post by the police department. Further investigation revealed 'Santos' touching of the victim was sexually motivated,' Santa Rosa police said. He was accused of touching the woman 'against her will,' and 'the victim was unable to consent to the acts due to her developmental disability,' police said. On May 27, Santos was arrested at his home and booked into the Sonoma County Jail on charges of lewd acts against a dependent adult by a caretaker, police said. Officers said the victim's identity and her place of work will not be released. Anyone with information is asked to call 707-543-3595. Santa Rosa is about a 50-mile drive northwest of San Francisco.
The Age
6 days ago
- The Age
Twenty things that will surprise first-time visitors to Bangkok
The west bank of the river was home to the first European settlers in Siam (as Thailand was then known), 16th-century Portuguese traders, missionaries and mercenaries. Kudichin, also known as Kudijeen, consists of narrow lanes (or soi) and old teak houses, including the ancestral Baan Kudichin Museum. The domed 1770 Santa Cruz Church and nearby Wat Prayurawongsawat ('Turtle Mountain Temple') with its hollow, 60-metre stupa are open to visitors. And look for the small family bakeries that sell the European-inspired tart called khanom farang ('foreigner cake'). See There are cannabis shops everywhere In 2022 Thailand surprised the world, and itself, by radically loosening its previously strict marijuana laws. Cannabis-based products, supposedly for 'medical use only', were soon on sale across the kingdom in glitzy shops, kerbside vans and street stalls. A new conservative government now hopes, belatedly, to legislate the billion-dollar genie back into its bottle. Whatever the outcome and your herbal inclinations, don't even think about exporting anything. It's home to the world's largest outdoor shopping mall Chatuchak Weekend Market is the world's largest, busiest, noisiest and allegedly best-bargain marketplace of all. Catch the SkyTrain north to Mo Chit to find this Mecca for impulse purchasers. With more than 15,000 stalls covering 14 hectares and selling everything from jewels, curios and pets to amulets and electronics, you'll need extra bags to lug home the loot. It's always a long weekend at Chatuchak, which trades full-tilt from Wednesday to Sunday. See History lives in the side streets The dowager Atlanta Hotel sits amid its considerable memories down Soi 2 Sukhumvit Road. The classic Bauhaus-deco lobby is unchanged from the 1950s, when this was the place to dine in Bangkok. A 1962 photograph shows the young King Rama IX playing saxophone there with Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman. The menu in the hotel's original LA-style diner declares: 'Typically, the Atlanta is not moving with the times.' See Hotel California isn't played here Forget the chrome pole clubs or beer bars still playing The Eagles, Bangkok has plenty of cool musical watering holes. The Saxophone Jazz and Blues Pub at the Victory Monument has delivered live Thai-Latino-whatever jazz, good drinks and great atmosphere with no cover charge or go-go dancers since 1987 ( Meanwhile, upmarket and down by the river, the Mandarin Oriental's elegant Bamboo Bar stirs smoky jazz into your late-night cocktail musings ( Something similar happens high above the river at the Millennium Hilton's ThreeSixty Bar. See A street corner named devotion Erawan Shrine in front of the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel is renowned as Bangkok's most wish-fulfilling shrine. Day and night, Thais from all walks of life make offerings before its centrepiece, a four-faced golden Brahma statue. They pray for wealth, health, education or business success, or give thanks for prayers answered. Traditional dancers often perform here. Visitors welcome, respectful photography appreciated. See The world's most beautiful boatshed The National Museum of Royal Barges, the most beautiful boatshed in the world, houses the Crown's fleet of gilded, ceremonial vessels. These works of art with swan-necked prows and mythological figureheads glide out on rare occasions for the extraordinary Royal Barge Procession, when they parade, rowed by chanting sailors, past the Grand Palace and its dreaming spires. The barge museum, on the west bank in Bangkok Noi, displays these intricate vessels. Watch as artisans maintain them. See It's still a backpacker mecca Khao San Road, unofficial world backpacker HQ, gained fame last century with Alex Garland's novel (and subsequent Hollywood movie) The Beach. 'The main function for the street was as a decompression chamber … a halfway house between East and West,' he wrote. It still is. KSR endures, with the dreads-and-tatts crew sharing space with flashpackers and selfie-obsessives. By night the street is closed to traffic and becomes a free-range party zone. Explore it for music in clubs like Brick Bar. Above all, decompress. See The nicknames are delightful Don't be surprise to meet, for instance, a woman called Pla (meaning Fish) or another named Porn. Because formal Thai names can seem as long as a stretch limo, many Thais adopt a short, convenient nickname. Foreigners will be surprised to meet someone called Poo (Crab), Meaw (Cat), Moo (Pig) or Gai (Chicken). As for Porn, forget any preconceptions; it's an auspicious name, meaning blessing or grace. Thais sometimes translate their nicknames into English and you might find yourself chatting with Glass (Kaew), Smile (Yim) or Snack (Khanom), or perhaps plain Pop (as in music). It's easy to get high, literally The Great City of Angels lets you brush wings with its namesake celestial spirits via its rooftop bars. From up there you can muse, cocktail in hand, on the glittering street circuitry below or the looping calligraphy of the river as it signs off on its long run to the sea. In this city without hills, vertigo is a rare sensation, except at the MahaNakhon skyscraper. As Thailand's tallest building it trumps the skybars with its 78th-floor skywalk, the city's highest public point. Defy your survival instincts by stepping out onto its glass deck and then looking 310 vertiginous metres down to the toy town cars below. See Tuk-tuks are for tourists (and more expensive than taxis) Probably, yes. The iconic tuk-tuk (proper name samlor, 'three-wheel') functions today mostly as a tourist rattle-trap. They're unmetered, wind-in-your-hair fun, for sure. A first-time hoot. Until the end of the trip when, if you didn't first agree on the fare, the driver is charging you whatever he likes. For farang (foreigners), they're usually more expensive than a metered taxi. Go local, live like a Thai, catch the SkyTrain, Metro or ferry – all faster and cheaper than a tuk-tuk, even if less Insta fun. Thailand didn't invent massage, but perfected it Skip the fluffy rub-downs and five-orchid spa sessions. Try the real thing, where many Thai therapists learn their basics, at Wat Pho temple's 70-year-old Thai Traditional Massage School. Massage as developed here is included on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. For $20, a skilled trainee will turn your shoulder knots to noodles during an hour of pummelling, prodding and stretching. While you're at Wat Pho, visit its famous, 46-metre long, gold-plated Reclining Buddha. It has the world's wettest new year celebration Songkran, the world's wettest new year. Thailand's traditional new year falls in mid-April. Once the first jet of water hits your neck, things can descend into days of being drenched anytime you set foot outside. As a farang, you are an affectionate 'mark', so don't hit the streets wearing or carrying anything you can't afford to have soaked. You've stepped into the middle of the world's biggest water fight. Should you become a target, don't bother to plead: you're painting an even bigger bull's eye on yourself. Often the most indiscriminate water-bombers are inebriated, newbie tourists trying to 'go local'. The river commute is a fast and furious ride Khlong Saen Saep, built between 1837 and 1840, snakes its way through the city. Hop aboard a rocket and see how some Bangkokians get to the office. The skinny, 15-metre-long, 50-seat canal ferries rip along the muddy waters, making Formula One-speed pit stops at the khlong's 18 wharves. Leap – almost literally – on and off whenever you dare. A conductor collects fares as the projectile travels the 18-kilometre route. Blasting past temples and shacks, mansions and malls, it's your cheap-as-chips tour of the real Bangkok's backdoors. See The Risky Market is called 'risky' for good reason Talat Rhom Hoop – literally 'Closing Umbrella Market' – sounds curious enough, but its English name is more ominous – The Risky Market. You look up to see why: a locomotive is bearing down on you amid the market stalls. Their trackside awnings suddenly retract. You press yourself against a wall, flat as a Peking duck, with the train rumbling by, inches away. The fishing port of Samut Songkhram, also known as Mae Khlong, 80 kilometres south-west of Bangkok, is home to this death-defying shopping excursion and its 33-kilometre Mae Khlong-Mahachai railway, the shortest line in Thailand. See One of the world's longest roads runs through it Loading Hail a taxi on Sukhumvit and say: 'To the end of the road, please.' Four hundred and ninety kilometres later you'll be at Cambodia. Thanon Sukhumvit, Bangkok's boulevard of dreams and schemes, is not only the country's longest thoroughfare but one of the world's longest main roads. Until the mid-1960s, rice paddies and aristocratic estates bordered it. Novelist and composer S.P. Somtow recalled his family enclave there as 'our remote little island kingdom on Sukhumvit Road'. The rip-roaring progress monster that ate old Bangkok soon consumed the agriculture and enchantment alike. It's home to the world's narrowest Chinatown alley Bangkok is said to be home to the largest diaspora Chinatown in the world. Which might make Soi Itsara Nuphap, between Yaowarat and Charoen Krung roads, the skinniest Chinatown alley of almost anywhere. Inch your way along as it pinches down to a two-metre-wide crush of food stalls, handcarts, shoppers, monks, motorbike delivery drivers, grandmothers, schoolkids and bargain hunters. Ten minutes later you pop out at the other end, having sampled a parallel Thai-Chinese universe at very close quarters. Celebrate with a pickled egg. Watch your wallet. See
Sydney Morning Herald
6 days ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Twenty things that will surprise first-time visitors to Bangkok
The west bank of the river was home to the first European settlers in Siam (as Thailand was then known), 16th-century Portuguese traders, missionaries and mercenaries. Kudichin, also known as Kudijeen, consists of narrow lanes (or soi) and old teak houses, including the ancestral Baan Kudichin Museum. The domed 1770 Santa Cruz Church and nearby Wat Prayurawongsawat ('Turtle Mountain Temple') with its hollow, 60-metre stupa are open to visitors. And look for the small family bakeries that sell the European-inspired tart called khanom farang ('foreigner cake'). See There are cannabis shops everywhere In 2022 Thailand surprised the world, and itself, by radically loosening its previously strict marijuana laws. Cannabis-based products, supposedly for 'medical use only', were soon on sale across the kingdom in glitzy shops, kerbside vans and street stalls. A new conservative government now hopes, belatedly, to legislate the billion-dollar genie back into its bottle. Whatever the outcome and your herbal inclinations, don't even think about exporting anything. It's home to the world's largest outdoor shopping mall Chatuchak Weekend Market is the world's largest, busiest, noisiest and allegedly best-bargain marketplace of all. Catch the SkyTrain north to Mo Chit to find this Mecca for impulse purchasers. With more than 15,000 stalls covering 14 hectares and selling everything from jewels, curios and pets to amulets and electronics, you'll need extra bags to lug home the loot. It's always a long weekend at Chatuchak, which trades full-tilt from Wednesday to Sunday. See History lives in the side streets The dowager Atlanta Hotel sits amid its considerable memories down Soi 2 Sukhumvit Road. The classic Bauhaus-deco lobby is unchanged from the 1950s, when this was the place to dine in Bangkok. A 1962 photograph shows the young King Rama IX playing saxophone there with Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman. The menu in the hotel's original LA-style diner declares: 'Typically, the Atlanta is not moving with the times.' See Hotel California isn't played here Forget the chrome pole clubs or beer bars still playing The Eagles, Bangkok has plenty of cool musical watering holes. The Saxophone Jazz and Blues Pub at the Victory Monument has delivered live Thai-Latino-whatever jazz, good drinks and great atmosphere with no cover charge or go-go dancers since 1987 ( Meanwhile, upmarket and down by the river, the Mandarin Oriental's elegant Bamboo Bar stirs smoky jazz into your late-night cocktail musings ( Something similar happens high above the river at the Millennium Hilton's ThreeSixty Bar. See A street corner named devotion Erawan Shrine in front of the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel is renowned as Bangkok's most wish-fulfilling shrine. Day and night, Thais from all walks of life make offerings before its centrepiece, a four-faced golden Brahma statue. They pray for wealth, health, education or business success, or give thanks for prayers answered. Traditional dancers often perform here. Visitors welcome, respectful photography appreciated. See The world's most beautiful boatshed The National Museum of Royal Barges, the most beautiful boatshed in the world, houses the Crown's fleet of gilded, ceremonial vessels. These works of art with swan-necked prows and mythological figureheads glide out on rare occasions for the extraordinary Royal Barge Procession, when they parade, rowed by chanting sailors, past the Grand Palace and its dreaming spires. The barge museum, on the west bank in Bangkok Noi, displays these intricate vessels. Watch as artisans maintain them. See It's still a backpacker mecca Khao San Road, unofficial world backpacker HQ, gained fame last century with Alex Garland's novel (and subsequent Hollywood movie) The Beach. 'The main function for the street was as a decompression chamber … a halfway house between East and West,' he wrote. It still is. KSR endures, with the dreads-and-tatts crew sharing space with flashpackers and selfie-obsessives. By night the street is closed to traffic and becomes a free-range party zone. Explore it for music in clubs like Brick Bar. Above all, decompress. See The nicknames are delightful Don't be surprise to meet, for instance, a woman called Pla (meaning Fish) or another named Porn. Because formal Thai names can seem as long as a stretch limo, many Thais adopt a short, convenient nickname. Foreigners will be surprised to meet someone called Poo (Crab), Meaw (Cat), Moo (Pig) or Gai (Chicken). As for Porn, forget any preconceptions; it's an auspicious name, meaning blessing or grace. Thais sometimes translate their nicknames into English and you might find yourself chatting with Glass (Kaew), Smile (Yim) or Snack (Khanom), or perhaps plain Pop (as in music). It's easy to get high, literally The Great City of Angels lets you brush wings with its namesake celestial spirits via its rooftop bars. From up there you can muse, cocktail in hand, on the glittering street circuitry below or the looping calligraphy of the river as it signs off on its long run to the sea. In this city without hills, vertigo is a rare sensation, except at the MahaNakhon skyscraper. As Thailand's tallest building it trumps the skybars with its 78th-floor skywalk, the city's highest public point. Defy your survival instincts by stepping out onto its glass deck and then looking 310 vertiginous metres down to the toy town cars below. See Tuk-tuks are for tourists (and more expensive than taxis) Probably, yes. The iconic tuk-tuk (proper name samlor, 'three-wheel') functions today mostly as a tourist rattle-trap. They're unmetered, wind-in-your-hair fun, for sure. A first-time hoot. Until the end of the trip when, if you didn't first agree on the fare, the driver is charging you whatever he likes. For farang (foreigners), they're usually more expensive than a metered taxi. Go local, live like a Thai, catch the SkyTrain, Metro or ferry – all faster and cheaper than a tuk-tuk, even if less Insta fun. Thailand didn't invent massage, but perfected it Skip the fluffy rub-downs and five-orchid spa sessions. Try the real thing, where many Thai therapists learn their basics, at Wat Pho temple's 70-year-old Thai Traditional Massage School. Massage as developed here is included on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. For $20, a skilled trainee will turn your shoulder knots to noodles during an hour of pummelling, prodding and stretching. While you're at Wat Pho, visit its famous, 46-metre long, gold-plated Reclining Buddha. It has the world's wettest new year celebration Songkran, the world's wettest new year. Thailand's traditional new year falls in mid-April. Once the first jet of water hits your neck, things can descend into days of being drenched anytime you set foot outside. As a farang, you are an affectionate 'mark', so don't hit the streets wearing or carrying anything you can't afford to have soaked. You've stepped into the middle of the world's biggest water fight. Should you become a target, don't bother to plead: you're painting an even bigger bull's eye on yourself. Often the most indiscriminate water-bombers are inebriated, newbie tourists trying to 'go local'. The river commute is a fast and furious ride Khlong Saen Saep, built between 1837 and 1840, snakes its way through the city. Hop aboard a rocket and see how some Bangkokians get to the office. The skinny, 15-metre-long, 50-seat canal ferries rip along the muddy waters, making Formula One-speed pit stops at the khlong's 18 wharves. Leap – almost literally – on and off whenever you dare. A conductor collects fares as the projectile travels the 18-kilometre route. Blasting past temples and shacks, mansions and malls, it's your cheap-as-chips tour of the real Bangkok's backdoors. See The Risky Market is called 'risky' for good reason Talat Rhom Hoop – literally 'Closing Umbrella Market' – sounds curious enough, but its English name is more ominous – The Risky Market. You look up to see why: a locomotive is bearing down on you amid the market stalls. Their trackside awnings suddenly retract. You press yourself against a wall, flat as a Peking duck, with the train rumbling by, inches away. The fishing port of Samut Songkhram, also known as Mae Khlong, 80 kilometres south-west of Bangkok, is home to this death-defying shopping excursion and its 33-kilometre Mae Khlong-Mahachai railway, the shortest line in Thailand. See One of the world's longest roads runs through it Loading Hail a taxi on Sukhumvit and say: 'To the end of the road, please.' Four hundred and ninety kilometres later you'll be at Cambodia. Thanon Sukhumvit, Bangkok's boulevard of dreams and schemes, is not only the country's longest thoroughfare but one of the world's longest main roads. Until the mid-1960s, rice paddies and aristocratic estates bordered it. Novelist and composer S.P. Somtow recalled his family enclave there as 'our remote little island kingdom on Sukhumvit Road'. The rip-roaring progress monster that ate old Bangkok soon consumed the agriculture and enchantment alike. It's home to the world's narrowest Chinatown alley Bangkok is said to be home to the largest diaspora Chinatown in the world. Which might make Soi Itsara Nuphap, between Yaowarat and Charoen Krung roads, the skinniest Chinatown alley of almost anywhere. Inch your way along as it pinches down to a two-metre-wide crush of food stalls, handcarts, shoppers, monks, motorbike delivery drivers, grandmothers, schoolkids and bargain hunters. Ten minutes later you pop out at the other end, having sampled a parallel Thai-Chinese universe at very close quarters. Celebrate with a pickled egg. Watch your wallet. See
Irish Examiner
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Lap the Lough: Fundraiser aiming to line popular Cork amenity with coins to help sick children
A unique charity fundraiser is set to take place at the Lough in Cork city this June Bank Holiday weekend. People are invited to 'Lap the Lough' with coins in aid of Cork City Hospitals' Children's Club from 11am to 2pm on June 2, creating a full circle of euro coins in a ring of hope that will help bring sick children to Disneyland Paris. The event aims to raise funds for the chosen charity, Cork City Hospitals' Children's Club, which works tirelessly to make dreams come true for young patients, organising once-in-a-lifetime adventures, sending sick children on trips to Disneyland Paris and organising Santa visits for sick children at Christmas. 'Lap the Lough' is being organised by former lord mayor Mick Finn, entrepreneur Ernest Cantillon, singer-songwriter Pat Fitzgibbon, chairperson of Cork City Hospitals' Children's Club John Looney, as well as Eimear McCarthy and Emer O'Mahony, who are on a mission to bring businesses and the wider Cork community together to support on the day. People are being asked to break into their piggy banks and bring €1 or €2 coins to the fundraiser on Monday, June 2 in an attempt to line the whole Lough with coins. Speaking ahead of the event, organiser Ernest Cantillon, said: 'Break into your change jar or piggy bank to bring €2 or €1 coins to this novel fundraiser, or you can exchange your notes or cards for coins onsite to create a ring right around the inside path of the Lough. 'We are hoping to literally surround The Lough with kindness. Whether you give €2 or €200, you're part of something magical.' Chairperson of Cork City Hospitals' Children's Club, John Looney, thanked the Cork community for getting behind the event which he described as 'the craziest we have ever done'. 'There's something very special about this event. It's about showing up, giving what you can, and doing something simple, but powerful, for kids who really need a lift,' he said. People are being asked to break into their piggy banks and bring €1 or €2 coins to the fundraiser on Monday, June 2 in an attempt to line the whole Lough with coins. Picture: Dan Linehan Volunteers, including those from The Lough Scouts and The Lough Credit Union, will be on hand on the day to direct people to their own station around The Lough, where they'll get to place the coins themselves, metre by metre, in a powerful symbol of unity, compassion, and community spirit. Those who cannot join on the day but would like to support the cause can make advance donations. Businesses, local clubs or schools can sponsor a metre of coins for €20. Businesses and organisation who would like to make a donation can email lapthelough@ or visit the dedicated Go Fund Me Page.
