BKLYN House Hotel

    There are works by Brooklyn artists in this hotel. The 116 rooms are of great value and Manhattan is only 20 minutes away by taxi or subway. The immediate surroundings feel urban—the hotel is by a high-rise public housing project while the nearest commercial street is under elevated（高的）subway tracks—but Bushwick's best bars and cafes/restaurants are near-by.

    Doubles from $99, room only. Tel: 718 3884433

    Archer Hotel

    Visitors eager to stay in the heart of Manhattan should try one of the bargain-priced rooms at this hotel. Some start from as low as $179 a night (if prepaying in full). Rooms are small but tasteful, with nice touches such as exposed brick. Some have close-up views of the Empire State Building.

    Doubles from $199, room only. Tel: 212 7194100

    Pod 39 Hotel

    In an elegant brick building in Manhattan's Murray Hill, this excellent budget（预算）option opened following the success of its sister hotel, The Pod. The rooms are called pods given for their small size and may not suit everyone. But with prices among the most competitive in Manhattan, budgeters will be happy.

    Doubles from $95, room only. Tel: 212 8655700

    CitizenM New York Times Square

    This is the first US location for a Netherlands-based concept hotel chain—CitizenM. The hotel features self check-in at its 230 little but comfortable rooms via touch screen “Mood-Pads”. There's a rooftop bar, a 24-hour grab-and-go cafeteria and an area with public iMac workspaces. Although New Yorkers avoid nearby Times Square, all the lights, cameras and action can make it a fun tourist experience.

    Doubles from $170, room only. Tel: 212 319 7000

    Most people have flown a kite or have seen one ride and dip in strong spring wind. Not so many people know that kites were first made in China thousands of years ago. The ancient Chinese were making and flying kites even before they were writing.

    A long time ago, the Chinese made kites to use in wars. They would fly these war kites in the dark. The kites were fixed so that they made strange sounds. Men who were at war with them would hear these sounds and run away. They thought those strange sounds were made by gods in the sky.

    The ancient Chinese also flew kites to bring good luck and to make their crops grow rich and tall. Sometimes they tied long strings and hooks to their kites. Then they would fly the kites over water, letting the hooks hang down to catch fish.

    The Chinese use sticks, strings and paper for their kites. Some of these kites look like animals or trees. Others look like birds or houses.

    Coming to the end of my assistantship in Barcelona, I start to think about what the future might hold.

    It's been seven months and a few days since I arrived here and things have changed so much in what some might call a short period of time. When I first arrived in Terrassa I was excited and nervous to start a new adventure in a country I love. The first few days seem so long ago now, trying to find a place to live, organizing my timetable with the schools, meeting new people.

    However, a fortnight later, the excitement started to fade and I began to spend more than a few nights thinking about family and friends back home, wondering if I should be there with them. Everything started to change after meeting some new friends and spending good time with them, eating together and seeing new places as a group. I suppose we should never forget how important it is to have good people in your life, because they can make a difference.

    Coming back to Terrassa after visiting home for Christmas felt like returning to a second home, to a place that was mine with people I cared about. Things got even busier and more people came into my life; new friends, romance and a whole lot of good food flowed by in what seems to have been weeks, not months.

    Now, looking forward, there are some decisions to make. Should I return home to Scotland and move on with life there or try to extend my time here, perhaps make it something permanent? Experiencing other cultures or learning about the world is such an important thing to do if you have the means.

    My advice from my experience so far is to travel and try new things whenever you get the opportunity. You may find somewhere you were always supposed to be.

    Central Park

    Explore Central Park, one of the largest city parks in the world and one of the most famous symbols of New York. Let's have a look at its main sights.

    Central Park is New York's largest city park and one of the biggest in the world, with an area of 843 acres (about 3.4km²). This park is home to man-made lakes, waterfalls, grass and wooded areas. You will also find the Central Park Zoo, among other attractions in this greenspace of New York.

    Besides being the city's primary green lungs, Central Park is also a favorite spot for many New Yorkers. It is perfect for sunbathing, going for walks, or doing any outdoor sports. Something that we found curious is seeing so many people running with their babies in prams (婴儿车).

    On Foot or by Bicycle

    To get to know some of the wildest parts of Central Park we suggest walking. However, to get a general feel for the whole park, the best thing to do is hire a bicycle and enjoy the scenery.

    If you decide to hire a bike, you will find lots of bike rental stores around Central Park that are not very expensive.

    Open Time

    From 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekends.

    From 6 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. on weekdays.

    Price

    Entry to the Park is free. But if you visit some parts like Central Park Zoo, you need to buy a ticket.

    Transport

    Subway: Line 5, 6, 7, A, B, C and D.

    Bus: Line M1, M2, M3, M4 and M10.

    Nearby places

    Metropolitan Museum of Art (447 m)

    Guggenheim Museum (564 m)

    American Museum of Natural History (688 m)

    Whitney Museum of American Art (1 km)

    The Frick Collection (1.3 km)

    I have a story about raising free-range (自由放养) kids. This past Columbus Day, my husband and I went fishing with some friends on their boat while our10 and 8-year-old kids were in school. We left the house all at the same time, about 7 a. m. My children walked to and from school every day and we knew they would be OK for a couple hours by themselves anyway. We told them to go home after school and we would be home around 4 p. m.

    We live on the Gulf Coast, and since it was a beautiful day, all of the adults decided to go fishing off-shore. At around 2 p. m. after a good harvest from the sea, we started back to the shore and unfortunately after some time, we ran out of gas. We were out of cellphone service, and what was even worse was that 911 wasn't working. We didn't have a radio either. Therefore, we were stuck waiting for someone to pass by. We were out there until 10 p. m. All the while my children were at home, expecting us to return shortly after they got home. At about 7 p. m. , when it was getting dark, my 10-year-old daughter thought something might be wrong so she walked to each house on the street until someone answered the door and asked the person what they should do. This was how we were finally found by the game warden (管理员) on the coast and "rescued".

    Talking with that neighbor the next day, I was never so proud of my children. This neighbour explained to me, "What calmness both of your children showed when explaining the situation and how impressed I was with your children seeking help, even though they didn't know me." I never doubted him for a minute, though next time we go fishing we'll monitor the gas more carefully.

What is the best part of a typical relaxing summer day? Nothing is better than sitting in an armchair with a beer and some chips in your hand, enjoying the great comfort.

The much-loved combination of beer and chips is being exploited for the first time to deal with climate change. Chips firm Walkers has adopted a technique it says will cut CO₂ emissions (排放) from its production process by 70%.

The technology will use CO₂ captured from beer processing in a brewery (啤酒厂), which is then mixed with potato waste and turned into fertilizer. It will then be spread on UK fields to feed the following year's potato crop. Creating fertilizer normally produces high CO₂ emissions, but the technology adopted by Walkers makes fertilizer without generating CO₂. So, the beer-and-chips combination performs a double function. It stops the emission of brewery CO₂ into the atmosphere — and it saves on the CO₂ normally generated by fertilizer production.

This Creative win-win solution was developed with an approval from the UK government by a 14-employee start-up called CCm. The fertilizer was experimented on potato seed beds this year, and next year Walkers will install CCm equipment at its Leicester factory to prepare for its 2022 crop.

A decision has not yet been made on which brewery Walkers will work with on this. The new technology adds to carbon-saving techniques already under way. The firm has installed an anaerobic digester (厌氧消化池), which feeds potato waste to bacteria to produce a useful gas. The gas is burned to make electricity for the chip-frying process — so this saves on burning gas or coal.

The new system will go a step further by taking away potato "cake" left after digestion — and mixing the brewery CO₂ into it to make an enriched fertilizer which will help put carbon back into the soil as well as encouraging plant growth.

It's an example of scientists finding ways to use CO₂ emissions which otherwise would increase the over-heating of the planet.