Warning to hikers: alien big cat spotted in Scotland

by Sean McLachlan on

If you thought the only monster in Scotland was the one in Loch Ness, you thought wrong. Mysterious giant cats are stalking the land, and while many people consider them as big a hoax as Nessie, one has recently been sighted and filmed. The video, taken by an off-duty Ministry of Defense dog handler, shows what appears to be a black feline measuring, if you judge by some nearby railway tracks, to be about four feet long. It’s certainly way too big to be a normal cat and doesn’t look at all like a dog. In fact it looks for all the world like a jaguar, although jaguars don’t exist in the wild in Scotland or anywhere else in the British Isles.

Sightings of wild cats are fairly common in the British Isles and have been dubbed by the easy to remember moniker Alien Big Cat (that’s ABC). Many look like pumas or jaguars. The Big Cat Research group has gathered data on more than 5,000 sightings and has lots of photos on their website, some laughable, some downright eerie.

You might just fob this off as a bit of harmless mystery, or some pussy on steroids, but one Scottish woman was attacked by an alien big cat and required numerous stitches. After that incident local police warned people not to approach or feed any giant cats they come across. So if you’re planning a hike in Scotland, be careful. Oh wait, I’M planning a hike in Scotland. Uh oh.

GPS typo sends Swedish couple 400 miles off course

by Scott Carmichael on

A Swedish couple screwed up their vacation when a simple typo sent them 400 miles away from their desired destination.

When entering the Italian island of Capri into their GPS, they accidentally entered Carpi. The two destinations couldn’t be more different – Capri is a lovely island off the coast of Naples, Carpi is an industrial village in the middle of nowhere,

It isn’t uncommon for someone to make a spelling mistake on their GPS, but you’d expect that most people be able to notice they are not on an island, and that the drive was about 6 hours shorter than expected.

Sadly, this couple had no idea, and when they couldn’t find the famous blue caves of Capri, they asked the local tourist office.

It was then (most likely after the laughter stopped) that they were told they were in the wrong town. The couple then popped the correct destination into their GPS and headed towards the correct Capri.

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Austrian village installs cameras to nab prankster sex tourists

by Scott Carmichael on

The poor villagers of Fucking are fed up. They have finally found a technical solution to prevent thieves from stealing their village signs, but now they are confronted with an entirely different problem.

Couples are making the trek to Fucking, just so they can have sex in front of the sign, and record it. Other pranksters are mooning the sign, or exposing themselves, while their friends record it. Of course, some of these video clips make their way online, which probably doesn’t promote the kind of tourism the village is looking for.

The village solution involved placing video cameras above the signs, in the hope that it will make would-be sex tourists think twice about their plans.

I’m sure this is a never ending battle for the village, and before you know it, they’ll be back in the news when people have sex, then steal both the sign and the security camera

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Cheap eats in London

by Sean McLachlan on

English food is no longer mushy peas and baked beans on toast. Cities like London have become culinary capitals thanks to large numbers of immigrants saving the English from themselves. Indian, Chinese, Thai, Moroccan, Ethiopian, and many other types of restaurants offer every kind of dish imaginable. There’s only one problem–eating out in England is bloody expensive!

Now there may be a solution, for London at least. A service called EPok offers two-for-one meal deals at selected London restaurants. EPok, which rather tortuously stands for “Eating Places OK”, offers a special London Pack waiting for you at your hotel with vouchers for twenty or more restaurants offering two-for-one deals, plus another two-for-one deal for theatre tickets. At only 27 pounds, this could add up to some serious savings.

There are a few limitations, though. Drinks and service aren’t included, and they pick the show and restaurants.

Despite these limitations this sounds like it could be a pretty good deal, but if you haven’t been around London much here’s a word of warning. The city is filled with people who have more money than taste and who will fork over piles of cash for any old tripe given an exotic name and presented well. Check out your restaurant with a good website like TimeOut London before going. EPok has started its own review page too.

I’d love to hear from anyone who has used this service. It could be good if you don’t know the city well and are just passing through.

Amsterdam becoming the car tipping capital of the world?

by Scott Carmichael on

Ever seen one of those little Smart cars? They may be pretty rare in the US, but in Europe you’ll have a hard time not being able to find the little buggers. Especially in the major cities of Europe, the small cars are extremely popular, as they are a breeze to park. In fact, they are so easy to park, that many owners can fit two of them in a single parking spot.

Smart car owners in Amsterdam may be starting to have second thoughts about their little cars, because of an alarming new trend.

“Smart Smijten” is the Dutch name for it, and it translates to “Smart Tipping” – the “sport” of tipping the vehicle into a canal. If there is one thing Amsterdam has no shortage of, it is canals. And since many owners park their car with the rear facing the water, it is easy for a couple of drunk hooligans to pick the car up from the front, and dump it into the canal.

Of course, the cars are a total loss when they have been in the filthy water, and the crane required to lift them out probably doesn’t do them much good either.

Apparently, the Dutch police have known about he phenomenon for some time, but tried to keep it quiet, to prevent copy-cat criminals. It is probably only a matter of time till other cities try to compete. So, if you own or rent a Smart (or other small vehicle), keep it away from any canals when you park!