Cities This article is more than 8 years oldA new New Cairo: Egypt plans £30bn purpose-built capital in desertThis article is more than 8 years oldThe currently nameless city of five million would be home to 660 hospitals, 1,250 mosques and churches, and a theme park four times the size of Disneyland – all to be completed within seven years. Could it happen?
Egypt’s capital has moved two-dozen times in the country’s 5,000-year history, but its current seat of power has remained unchanged since AD 969. Read More...
Country diaryInsectsHayling Billy trail, Havant, Hampshire: These striking insects are clearly enjoying the heat – but there’s only so much of it they can stand
It’s hot and humid, and without even a whisper of a breeze to temper the heat, the short walk into town feels like an effort. I’m not the only one struggling with the extreme temperature. Bumblebees usually throng the feral buddleia bushes and clumps of red dead-nettle that grow along the path, but today they’re conspicuous by their absence – their furry bodies make them susceptible to heat exhaustion and unable to forage or fly. Read More...
Word of Mouth blogFrench food and drinkA glorious sticky sweet toffee-topped French treat and one of the things apples most want to be when they grow up. How caramelised do you like them, and on what sort of pastry?This French classic turns the Puritan plain apple pie on its head. Instead of soft clouds of sweetly sour fruit tucked beneath a comforting blanket of biscuity pastry, the tatin brazenly displays its wares, stickily caramelised and decadently buttery, on the outside – the humble base reduced to a mere vehicle for the apples in their sugary finery. Read More...