This post is in partnership with Worldcrunch, a new global-news site that translates stories of note in foreign languages into English. The article below was originally published in Die Welt. Stale dry air, narrow seats, jammed overhead compartments: today's air passenger has to be a real flying nut to think plane travel is any fun. But engineers at European manufacturer Airbus say they're working on ways to improve things. Implementing the changes will probably take up to four ...

The one thought I cannot purge, the one that keeps coming back and getting between me and my bliss, is this: What a waste of time. I am sitting cross-legged on a purple cushion with my eyes closed in a yoga studio with 40 people, most of them attractive women in workout outfits, and it is accomplishment enough that I am not thinking about them. Or giggling. I have concentrated on the sounds outside and then on my breath and ...

Jennifer Aniston will be singing and playing the guitar in an upcoming film, and she makes one guarantee about her big-screen musical debut: "I can carry a tune." Aniston is both starring in and producing "The Goree Girls" -- the story of a real-life 1940s-era country music group comprised of all-female prison inmates -- and is currently honing her singing skills as the production prepares to roll in January. "It won't be bad," Aniston says while promoting her latest film ...

Quentin Tarantino's movies are distinctive, thanks to several elements they typically share. They usually offer moviegoers a massively flawed protagonist. They feature hyper-stylized and often graphic violence. And, of course, there's a sudden twist of comedy when you least expect it. In fact, it's not uncommon for fans of Tarantino's work to suddenly find they are laughing at a moment that's usually devoid of humor. Fans of the acclaimed director will be happy to ...

Amritsar lives in many centuries at once. This holiest city of the Sikhs is home to their most revered shrine, the mystical and awe-inspiring Golden Temple, where nihangs — members of an armed Sikh order — live on in traditions dating back centuries, sporting distinctive electric blue tunics and a panoply of weapons, even speaking a unique martial dialect of the Punjabi language. Other parts of this prosperous merchant city wears Levi's, hanging out at cafes or following the ...

Indonesian police have taken in for questioning one of the wives of southeast Asia's most-wanted terrorist. But the woman didn't know she was married to the alleged terror mastermind Noordin M. Top, her lawyer said Thursday. "She doesn't know that her husband was Noordin M. Top. She only knows him as a teacher for various Islamic boarding schools known as Abdul Halim," said lawyer Achmad Michdan. Police investigating the July 17 deadly bombings at two luxury hotels in the capital, ...

Security forces dispersed a crowd gathering to protest the country's regime Tuesday at a square in Iran's capital. And with good reason. "The family members just don't want to do or risk doing anything to inflame the situation," said Blaine County Sheriff Walt Femling. "And you can see how easily that can happen ... We're going to respect that." Femling told CNN on Tuesday that it's comforting to know right now that he's all right. "But other than that, the ...

If Potions Professor Horace Slughorn had mixed a brew to conjure up torrential rain, the weather could not have been worse for the premiere of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince." Dedicated fans braved thunder, lightning and Biblical downpours in London's Leicester Square to catch a glimpse of the film's stars arriving at the opening of the sixth film in the wildly popular "Harry Potter" franchise. While dreadful weather has become an unfortunate tradition at Potter premieres (it rained during ...

Manchester United fans all around the world will be eagerly scouring for transfer news and gossip over the possible arrival of new players during the close season. But just as important to many supporters over the break will be being among the first to get their hands on the club's new kit. The English Premier League champions have just launched a new home kit for the forthcoming season which pays homage to their 100th year playing at their Old Trafford ...

The world's premier air show takes place in Paris next week, with the recent loss of Air France flight 447 over the Atlantic Ocean likely to cast a shadow over the event. The annual Paris Air Show at Le Bourget, which this year celebrates its 100th anniversary, gives the air transport industry the chance to promote the latest innovations in aerospace technology and attract buyers for both commercial and military aircraft. Manufacturing giants Boeing and Airbus are two of the ...