Kim jong un

Pattaya, Thailand- The Bistro, a well-known restaurant on Soi Yamato 13/1 in Pattaya that recently got many votes during our own reader talkback around people’s favorite places to eat in Pattaya , has been supporting the needy, homeless, and those who simply need a meal during the current Covid-19 crisis in the Pattaya area. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, many businesses, especially the large entertainment industry, are currently closed in Pattaya. As a result, many other businesses that depend on the traffic from these venues for their own business, like hotels, are also closed or have laid off many staff.  This has led to an increase in the homeless and those on a very limited income in Pattaya, a city that depends on tourism, both domestic and foreign, for about 80% of its GDP. With borders still closed to foreign tourists without quarantine and domestic tourists either nervous about Covid-19 or unwilling to visit Pattaya with the entertainment sector shut, the area has been ... » Learn More about The Bistro in Pattaya continues to support the needy during Covid-19 crisis with the help of sponsors

(Reuters) -Apple Inc is fighting to retain control of the fast-growing podcasting market it popularized years ago but did not monetize, analysts and industry experts told Reuters. Nearly 16 years after Apple added the ability to find podcasts -- a portmanteau of "iPod" and "broadcasting" coined by a Guardian journalist -- to its iTunes software, the iPhone maker now seeks to court podcast creators with new subscription and creator tools, and fend off competition from streaming audio company Spotify. Apple announced on Tuesday it will launch Apple Podcast subscriptions, which will let users pay to unlock new content and additional benefits like ad-free listening, said Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook during the presentation. Pricing for each subscription will be set by the creator and billed monthly, Apple noted in a press release. It also introduced a new Apple Podcasters Program that will cost $19.99 per month, and will provide creators the tools they need to offer podcast ... » Learn More about Apple goes to battle with Spotify in premium podcast push

Philippine women’s volleyball team at the SEA Games in Singapore. Photo by Raffy Lerma The glamorous Philippine women’s volleyball team may look like it has never looked like before: A squad without its stars. It may be a shock to fans of the game that has enjoyed a rejuvenation in the country, but for the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), it is a chance to change the volleyball landscape here. With the stars failing to show up on Wednesday’s tryouts in Subic, PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara said he won’t give another chance to players who didn’t bother to come, this despite the 130 invitations the sport’s body had issued for the men’s, women’s and beach volley teams. The tryouts will run until Friday. “Why? Don’t tell me the national team can’t be formed without Alyssa (Valdez) and other [star] players,” Suzara told the Inquirer. “We have to effect change in Philippine volleyball.” Other no-shows Suzara said the PNVF is looking at the prospects of ... » Learn More about Suzara willing to scratch off tryout-absent stars like Valdez, Fajardo from PH women’s team

Philippine women’s volleyball team at the SEA Games in Singapore. Photo by Raffy Lerma MANILA, Philippines—Players who skipped out on the women’s national team tryouts will still be given a chance to enter the pool. Ramon “Tats” Suzara, Philippine National Volleyball Federation President, said it will be up to head coach Odjie Mamon and his staff to decipher and dissect the players’ performances in past games and in the coming Premier Volleyball League season. That means the likes of Alyssa Valdez, Mika Reyes, Jia Morado, Dawn Macandili, and Kim Fajardo will still be able to crack the national team pool. This development was announced after Suzara and the PNVF decided that those who skipped the tryouts won’t be included in the national team pool. Another round of tryouts, however, will be out of the picture. “There will be no more tryouts. They will be selected during the start of the PVL and (video clips from) previous competitions,” said Suzara in a virtual press ... » Learn More about Tryout-absent volleyball stars can still make national team pool