Who is Joan Vassos? 'The Golden Bachelor' contestant gives a shot at love after losing husband of 32 years to cancer
'The Golden Bachelor' contestant Joan Vassos is all set to impress Gerry Turner, who also lost his wife after 43 years of marriage
2023-09-29 06:30
Resident Evil 4 Remake Demo Mad Chainsaw Difficulty: How to Unlock
Looking for the Mad Chainsaw difficulty in the Resident Evil 4 remake demo? Here's how to unlock it.
1970-01-01 08:00
McIlroy's grit gives him PGA hope when game doesn't
Rory McIlroy grinded through a rain-soaked third round at the PGA Championship on Saturday, gaining no ground on the lead but using grit to sustain...
2023-05-21 09:20
Should you stay in a hostel or hotel?
A bunk bed for £10, or a double bed for £100? If you’re planning to travel again soon, you might be wondering where your money is best spent – on the most comfortable accommodation or out and about at your destination. Here are the pros and cons on each side of travel’s most hotly-contested dichotomy: should you stay in a hostel or a hotel? The argument for a hostel It goes without saying that if you can afford to stay in a 200th floor penthouse suite in Monaco with on-tap Bollinger, an infinity pool and an antique four poster that once belonged to Grace Kelly, the average backpacker’s hostel will probably struggle to meet your expectations. But assuming Jeff Bezos isn’t a distant cousin, the average two or three star hotel is not only much pricier than most hostels, it often also serves up a far less satisfying experience. Hotels will inflate their costs for things that don’t directly affect your stay: an extra tenner for having lots of lifts, an extra £20 for the ornate-looking columns in the lobby, and who knows how much for the nice-but-superfluous chocolate on the pillow. Hostels, by comparison, sell themselves on things that overtly impact your trip. Even high-end outlets rarely stray into hotel price ranges, and your minimal buck gets direct bang with bed, board and sometimes breakfast. A holiday is only as good as who you go with, and most hostels will happily play matchmaker with central social areas, affordable alcohol on demand, and organised activities like pub crawls and sightseeing. Hostels expect you to spend your days out and about, so location and transport are often a big part of the branding, while proprietors often pride themselves on local tips that go beyond the guidebook. Hostels know their purpose is to help you enjoy the place that you’re in – not try and compete with it. You could spend your day standing around awkwardly while room service changes your one-night-old bedsheets, or you could get to know the couple from your dorm over a game of ping-pong, before heading off to a local bar. The pros of a hotel There is a reason hostels are predominantly the preserve of the young, and it isn’t just to do with money. A lot of gap year travellers don’t need to escape from the laundry, an overflowing office inbox, and doing their tax returns, because for one reason or another they simply aren’t at that stage of life. At hotels, meanwhile, menial tasks are done for you – the bed is made, the floor is cleared, the toiletries are provided – and for a break from your daily reality, taking care of the domestics is pretty much essential. Hotels also offer up that rare quality: privacy. Room service means you needn’t even brave the restaurant, and you can exist with your people, on your terms. Just try going for a romantic break in 10 person dorm; your trip will have limits. As for those 10 people, if even one of them listens to loud music with no headphones, leaves their foul-smelling sandals by your bed, or is “not a racist but…”, they can single-handedly ruin your trip. Foreign fraternising can go one of two ways, and the more people you’re cooped up with, the more likely you are to find a wrong ‘un. (Also, we hope you like being tired if you’re staying in a hostel; a lot of guests keep ungodly hours). And if you do want to step it up a gear and go all-inclusive, all power to you. You don’t have to fly all the way to Mexico to languish by a swimming pool, but it sure does help with the weather. Hotels make things easier and that’s what holidays are supposed to be all about. Read More Best UK hotels 2022 Best luxury hotels in Scotland for 2022 Family-friendly hotels in the UK for style, location and value 8 of the best dog-friendly hotels in Scotland for countryside walks 8 of the best dog-friendly hotels in Wales for walking adventures 7 of the best hotels on the Amalfi Coast for views and luxury
2023-06-02 23:28
Matriarch is charged with arranging her ex-son-in-law's death, 1 week after son convicted of murder
The matriarch of a wealthy South Florida family has been arrested on charges that she arranged her ex-son-in-law's murder
2023-11-15 04:14
Mauricio Garcia: Everything we know about the Texas mall gunman who killed eight
A gunman clad in black body armour and armed with an AR-15-style assault rifle opened fire at a Texas mall on Saturday, killing eight people and injuring seven others. The suspect was identified by the Texas Department of Public Safety as 33-year-old Mauricio Garcia, a security guard and former US Army trainee. Dashcam video circulating on social media appeared to show the gunman getting out of a grey sedan just outside the entrance of the Allen Premium Outlets, a sprawling centre on the outskirts of Dallas, and immediately opening fire on passersby in the carpark. An Allen Police Department officer attending an unrelated call at the mall heard the gunfire and “neutralised” the suspect, police said. What we know about the suspect Mauricio Garcia, 33, was identified on Sunday as the gunman who killed eight innocent shoppers and mall staff members in Saturday’s horror attack. Garcia drove to the mall with several weapons and opened fire as soon as he stepped out of his vehicle. An AR-15 rifle and a handgun were reportedly found on him and in his car. Police have not released a possible motive, but investigators are looking into Garcia’s possible neo-Nazi and white supremacist beliefs. Garcia was wearing black body armour and a patch on his chest that suggested he may have harboured extremist ideologies, law enforcement sources told The Washington Post. The patch read RWDS, which stands for Right Wing Death Squad, a popular phrase among far-right extremists. Police sources told NBC News that Garcia had posted and engaged with neo-Nazi and white supremacist content online. His accounts appear to have since been taken down. Garcia also trained with the US Army but was terminated in June 2008, three months into his training without completing entry training, US Army Public Affairs Spokeswoman Heather J Hagan told The Independent. After that, he became a security guard, most recently working for an aluminum supply company. Through his work as a security guard, Garcia underwent firearms proficiency training as recently as 2018, according to the Texas Online Private Security database. The online records show that he began training in 2015 before becoming a commissioned security officer in April 2016. His licence expired in April 2020. During that time, he is listed as working for three security companies: Ruiz Protective Service, Statewide Patrol and Verified Response Security & Investigations. It is unclear why his security guard licence was suspended. It is unclear if he had any connection to the mall where he carried out Saturday’s rampage. Private security guards are vetted and are barred from gaining a license if they have convictions for crimes such as assault or sexual offenses, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. According to CBS News reporter JD Miles, Garcia was a security guard with no serious criminal record. At the time of the shooting, Garcia had reportedly been living in a motel. FBI agents raided a Dallas home where Garcia had been living with his parents for years, according to Fox News. Officers were stationed outside the address on Sunday. The suspect’s family requested a translator to speak with authorities. How the shooting unfolded The gunman arrived at the mall just after 3.30pm local time on Saturday. Video showed him exiting a grey sedan vehicle, dressed in black tactical gear and armed with an AR-15-style weapon before opening fire. Hundreds of shoppers could be seen trying to flee the scene on aerial footage after the gunman opened fire with an AR-15-style gun. Bodies of the victims, including several young children, were covered by sheets. Seven people — including the suspect — were killed at the scene, Allen Fire Chief Jonathan Boyd said at a press conference on Saturday. Nine people were transported to hospital, where two more succumbed to their injuries. Three survivors were undergoing surgery and remained in a critical condition on Saturday night, Mr Boyd said. Four others were in a stable condition. The injured included children as young as five, a Dallas area hospital told CNN. The victims As details continue to emerge about the gunman, the victims are starting to be identified. Christian LaCour, a 20-year-old security guard at the mall, was identified by family members as one of the victims of Sunday’s massacre. LaCour’s grandmother posted a tribute to her grandson on social media. “He was such a beautiful soul,” she wrote. “I was so proud of him and so glad I got to see him 2 weeks ago.” Aishwarya Thatikonda, an engineer who moved to the US from India, was also killed in the attack. Thatikonda was shopping with a friend at the mall when she was shot and killed by the gunman, a family representative told WFAA. Her friend was also shot and injured in the shooting and is currently in stable condition in hospital. Thatikonda’s family is planning to fly her body to India where she has family. Texas’ dark weekend The mall shooting marked the start of a dark weekend for Texas. In Brownsville, eight people were killed when an SUV slammed into a crowd of people outside a migrant shelter in the border city on Sunday afternoon. Horrifying footage, taken from a security camera and shared by Texas Rep Henry Cuellar, shows a group of people waiting for a bus outside the city’s Ozanam Center. The SUV then rams into the victims. Seven people died before an eighth victim succumbed to their injuries in hospital later that day. At least nine others were hospitalised. Most of the victims were Venezuelan men who had spent the night at the shelter and were boarding a bus to return to downtown Brownsville. Officials initially said that the incident appeared to be intentional and described the driver – whose identity remains unknown – as “very uncooperative”. Also on Sunday, one person was killed and two others were injured in a shooting on a DART train in Dallas, Texas, on Sunday – just a 30-minute drive from the mall massacre. Gunfire broke out on board a Green Line train near Hatcher Station when two people got into an argument on Sunday afternoon, accoding to authorities. DART police said that officers were called to reports of a shooting on the northbound train at around 4.30pm. Officers arrived on the scene to find two people – one of them a bystander – suffering from gunshot wounds. They were both transported to local hospitals where one of the victims was pronounced dead. The condition of the second victim – the bystander – is unknown. A third individual was also wounded in the shooting after being struck by shrapnel and was treated at the scene, police said. Now, DART police are searching for the suspected shooter, whose identity is unknown. Read More Texas shooting – live: Nine dead including ‘monster’ shooter in massacre at Allen mall Audio reveals moment officer made frantic request for backup moments before taking down Texas mall shooter Marjorie Taylor Greene sidesteps gun issue, blames Texas mall shooting on ‘evil forces’
1970-01-01 08:00
‘Oppenheimer’ star Cillian Murphy moved back to Dublin from London in 2015 as his children developed ‘posh accent’
Cillian Murphy said, 'They were pre-teens, they had very posh English accents, and I wasn’t appreciating that too much'
2023-06-03 16:52
All Caldera Map Updates in Warzone Season 4: POIs, Features
Here's a breakdown of all of the Caldera map updates dropping in Call of Duty: Warzone Season 4: Mercenaries of Fortune.
1970-01-01 08:00
AC Milan target Champions League spot as season's salvation
AC Milan bid to bounce back from exiting the Champions League at the hands of city rivals Inter by beating relegated Sampdoria on Saturday and keep alive hopes...
2023-05-19 23:26
Muted celebrations in Colombia as team advances at Women's World Cup
Colombian fans kept their celebrations in check despite their team making some history at the Women’s World Cup
2023-08-04 04:51
Five European countries will extend ban on Ukraine's grain but let it head to other places
Five European Union countries will extend their ban on Ukrainian grain to protect their farmers’ interests
2023-07-19 22:11
PGA Tour 2K23 Pro Roster Revealed
Here's a breakdown of the launch-day PGA Tour 2K23 pro roster.
1970-01-01 08:00
You Might Like...
Is BattleBit Remastered Coming to Console?
The second of two men who escaped a Philadelphia jail last week has been captured, police say
Redditors are using John Oliver to give away their coins
Abercrombie and ex-CEO sued over sex trafficking accusations
Alaska fishermen will be allowed to harvest lucrative red king crab in the Bering Sea
Why Kevin De Bruyne was subbed off in Champions League final
State judge temporarily blocks South Carolina's 6-week abortion ban
Why did Logan Paul fire George Janko from 'Impaulsive'? 'It kind of sucks'