/lifestyle/rss 九一星空无限 Read the latest lifestyle news at 九一星空无限talk ZB. We have the latest in reviews, competitions, events, home & garden, motoring and more.     Sat, 23 Aug 2025 08:33:36 Z en /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-savouring-the-tastes-of-the-sunshine-coast/ /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-savouring-the-tastes-of-the-sunshine-coast/ The Sunshine Coast’s sparkling reputation as a powerhouse of premium local produce continues to raise the bar. Brimming with over 900 food and drink producers, grazing from this constantly replenished larder of goodness helps underpin the region’s bragging rights as holiday heaven. I’m just back from a fresh dip with the Sunshine Coast, after indulgently noshing and sipping my way around her beachfront and hinterland hotspots.   My visit coincided with one of the region’s signature annual celebrations, The Curated Plate. Held every year between late July and early August, the region’s premier 10-day food and drink festival is an unabashed epicurean’s dream, stringing together a distinctive, inventive array of bespoke culinary experiences in gorgeous settings, showcasing dishes loaded with local flavour and helmed by the region’s decorated chefs. It’s a very convivial and embracing festival and a great opportunity to strike up a chat with friendly locals. Alongside savouring the unrivalled splendour of the culinary delights, it also reaffirmed to me just how exceptional the region’s dining and drinking offerings are.   Cocktails in the sun at The Curated Plate. Photo / Supplied I attended the festival’s opening event at Yandina Station, Farm to Fork, which was an unbelievable gorge-fest. Renowned chef Peter Kuruvita was cooking Maleny Buffalo on a wild fire pit, which were then bundled into pita bread topped with zingy herbs and tzatziki sauce to create buffalo kofta. They were a smash hit and you can buy them year-round in Maleny. I also noshed my way through roasted reef fish fillet from Rockliff Seafood Mooloolaba with ginger and chilli shallot sauce; Tanglewood organic sourdough with coconut sambal butter; and a divine pannacotta made with Maleny Buffalo Milk, paired with Green Valley finger limes and macadamia praline from Nutworks Yandina.   Buffalo Kofta at The Curated Plate. Photo / Supplied Definitely pop into Yandina when tripping the Sunny Coast because Nutworks Yandina is a journey into the world of premium Australian nut and confectionery products. Hello sampling heaven! These guys process over 5000 tonnes of Australia’s macadamia nuts every year and many of them are crafted into very moreish snacks with lip-smacking coatings. The Lamington Chocolate Macadamias, the Maple Pancake Macadamias and the Crunchy Hickory Macadamias are my favourite three.  Right across the road, the Buderim Ginger Factory. Nearly 85 years old, they remain the world’s biggest producer of confectionary ginger. The chocolate ginger balls are irresistible. And don’t miss the Ice Creamery scoop or two of Ginger biscuit and Ginger cinnamon! The Ginger Factory is also swooned over by families for its boutique theme park-style assortment of attractions, with some Disneyesque touches, including a ride aboard “Moreton”, the factory’s beloved 120-year-old ginger train which tootles through the property’s lush, leafy and impeccably maintained tropical gardens. Another head-turning feature is the extraordinary art installation, Rainbrella, comprising nearly a thousand brightly coloured umbrellas suspended over the rainforest walk.   Lush and leafy Buderim Ginger Factory. Photo / Mike Yardley  Tripping the Blackall Range tourist route, a highlight is the bustling ‘food village” of Maleny. The surrounding undulating landscape is speckled with cows, interspersed with pockets of remnant rainforest, and offset by breathtaking bird’s-eye views of the Glass House Mountains, creating an exceptionally bucolic scene. It’s home to some of Australia’s most acclaimed dairy producers including Maleny Dairies and Maleny Cheese. A winning way to distil Maleny’s abundance of artisan produce is to pop into Maleny Food Co on Maple Street. A destination in its own right, the café and deli began life 25 years ago, which is now also synonymous for its gelato and sorbet, made daily on site in traditional artisan style. With over 100 gelato flavours, you’ll just drool over the possibilities, from Coconut & Ginger and Fig & Almond to Blueberry & lavender gelato.   The formidable array of fromage is equally alluring, with Maleny Food Co sourcing the finest Australian and international cheeses made by artisan cheese makers and maturing them in their fromagerie. Spilling out the doors, an orderly queue of cheerful shoppers were lined up like kids at a candy store, waiting for facetime in the fromagerie, studded with over 250 cheeses. I highly recommend the Kenilworth Vintage Cheddar and Woombye’s decadently gooey Triple Cream Brie. You can also dine instore from the deli-style menu, or simply whistle up a picnic box, generously laden with locally produced goodies like cured meats, breads, glace fruits and olives, pastes.   Fromagerie at Maleny Food Co. Photo / Mike Yardley  Across the road, I had a Curated Plate lunch appointment at Spill Wine, which is a stirring little wine shop and sophisticated neighbourhood bar. A 270-strong line-up of wine is housed on the backwall of this chic bar, with the accent on smaller and independent producers, leaning more towards natural, organic and biodynamic vino from Australia and around the world. Founded by Jamie Fleming and Clare Hutton, it's built on a simple idea of good wine, good people and no fuss. As Jamie remarked as we started our tasting session, “we are all about enjoying wine without the wank factor.” Adelaide-born, and a finalist on Season 6 of Masterchef Australia, Jamie actually spent several years working in Methven at The Blue Pub. He adores snowboarding.   Artfully paired with local dishes, like silky ricotta from Maleny Dairies and slivers of Walker’s Albacore Tuna in coconut milk and chilli kumquats, we breezed through some really interesting wines and lesser-known varietals. My favourite was Spill’s very own pet-nat wine, Brillo. Produced from the verdelho grape, there’s something to be said about the tropical notes in Queensland wine. Brillo contains the unmistakable flavour of burnt pineapple. Pet-nat is a lovely light and summery sparkling wine, not dissimilar to Rosé, but with lower sugar and alcohol content. Arguably more popular in Australia than in New Zealand – I’m converted! Definitely add Spill Wine to your checklist.  Mike enjoys a tasting at Spill Wine. Photo / Mike Yardley Another great dining destination that I encountered was the recently opened Alsahwa Estate, in Palmwoods.  I jaunted there for a Curated Plate long lunch, tucking into Mooloolaba Prawns, ginger-braised short ribs and whole-roasted pumpkin which was filled with a central pocket of smoked yoghurt and chilli jam. It was topped off with a giant Eton Mess, consisting of layers of crushed meringue folded through delicately whipped cream, topped with citrus, passionfruit and earl grey vinaigrette. Bellissimo! But whatever is on the menu, Alsahwa is a botanical revelation, with its enchanted garden vibes, tranquil water features, swaying palms and native birdlife. But beyond its splendid good looks and retreat-like ambience, the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant is underpinned with a farm-to-plate philosophy, that promotes biodynamic and regenerative practices. The estate produces its own honey, and boasts are sprawling vegetable garden. It’s a gorgeous spot for noshing and lingering.   My indelible experience at Alsahwa began with a welcoming botanical cocktail from local craft distillers, Sunshine & Sons. I’m a huge fan of these guys, who are based next to the iconic Big Pineapple. Their magnificent rum, Nil Desperandum, (which takes its name from the 19th century Cobb and Co coaching pub that used to operate nearby) has scooped so many global awards, since its first release three years ago. As has their vodka, which is distilled from surplus grapes and grape waste from the Barossa and filtered through millennia-old volcanic rock which is a Nordic technique in vodka-making. Paying homage to their legendary neighbour, my favourite drop is their Pineapple Parfait Gin. This tropical fruit salad gin is like a sun-drenched holiday in a glass.  Sunshine & Sons cocktail stand. Photo / Mike Yardley Finally, when in Mooloolaba, take to the water with Saltwater Eco Tours. Led by Simon Thornalley and his partner Jenna, this indigenous owned and operated cruise is a sparkling experience, blending an enlightening, languid ride on the Mooloolaba waterways, aboard a beautifully restored 117-year-old timber sailing vessel “Spray of the Coral Coast.” Simon imparts a rich commentary with indigenous insights, while the signature Bushtucker cruise serves up a delicious seafood menu infused with locally foraged, seasonal, and sustainably sourced native ingredients. Tuck your way through a procession of tasty treats like fresh fish tacos with pineapple, mango and Davidson plum; grilled squid with wattleseed mayo; smoked barramundi with charcoal cracker, pigface and satin ash lillyipilly; plus, I loved the bunya nut pastries and burnt macadamia biscuits with hand-picked lemon myrtle! It’s an immersive experience with native ingredients and the ocean bounty.  Fly direct to the Sunshine Coast with the low-fares leader, Jetstar, who operate year-round services from Auckland to Maroochydore, three times a week. It’s the fastest way to paradise. You can be enjoying Mooloolaba prawns on the beach by lunchtime! jetstar.com   Grab your golden fill of sunshine moments during a flavourful escape on the Sunshine Coast. World-beating beaches, lush hinterland villages, ancient peaks, wild encounters, sublime local produce and succulent seafood are all part of the package. visitsunshinecoast.com   Mike Yardley is 九一星空无限talk ZB’s resident traveller and can be heard every week at 11.20am on Saturday Mornings with Jack Tame.  Sat, 23 Aug 2025 01:16:04 Z /lifestyle/bedroom-suite-made-for-queen-elizabeth-and-prince-phillip-up-for-auction/ /lifestyle/bedroom-suite-made-for-queen-elizabeth-and-prince-phillip-up-for-auction/ A kauri bedroom suite made for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip when the pair visited Hamilton is going up for auction. The suite, made in the Louis XV style, was constructed by Hamilton joiners Smith and Clarke (then Clarke Industries) for the royal couple during Queen Elizabeth’s coronation visit in 1953. The handmade kauri suite is made up of two single beds, a cheval mirror, two upholstered bedroom chairs, a rectangular coffee table with eight legs, a bedside table, a square side table and a writing table with three drawers. The auction goes live tonight at Cordy’s auction house with a $10 start and closes on the night of August 25. In 1980, it was purchased from the receivership auction of the Hamilton Hotel for $2000 and then sold to other owners. The auction for the suite closes on August 25. Photo / Supplied Cordy’s director Andrew Grigg told the Herald the suite has an amazing history. “I can just imagine the pageantry of the day, I believe some 25,000 lined Victoria St, Hamilton’s main st, when the royal couple arrived. “After all the fanfare, the royal couple retired to their room, where this suite was waiting for them.” The suite is in great condition and reports, including a North Shore Times article from April 6, 1989, show it was restored professionally by a previous owner, he said. A 1989 North Shore Times article detailing the history of the suite. Photo / Supplied Although the design, made of the best kauri, is not what is popular today, it will be “the find of a lifetime” for some discerning buyer, said Grigg. “Queen Elizabeth II was the most popular monarch in recent history and probably even more so back in 1953. “To have a chance to own this suite for probably not a lot of money is special.” In celebration of her coronation earlier that year, Queen Elizabeth visited 46 cities and towns across the country in the summer of 1953-54. The royal visit was a big occasion, as crowds of thousands turned up hours before the Queen was due, to catch sight of her for a split second as she drove past. Queen Elizabeth II's last official portrait. A bedroom suite made for her 1953 visit to Hamilton is going up for auction. Photo / Royal Family Queen Elizabeth died, as Britain and New Zealand’s longest-serving monarch, on September 8 2022, aged 96. She made 10 visits to New Zealand. Her husband, Prince Philip, whom she described as “my strength and stay all these years”, died in April 2021, aged 99. A large image of the former Queen is also in the same auction. Thu, 21 Aug 2025 02:31:03 Z /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-apologises-for-refusing-to-reimburse-family-for-us-tipping-costs/ /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-apologises-for-refusing-to-reimburse-family-for-us-tipping-costs/ Air New Zealand has apologised after wrongly refusing to reimburse a family for tipping costs while they were stranded in New York City - one of the world’s most expensive cities - after their flight was grounded. A woman travelling with her partner and two young children were among passengers booked on Air NZ’s flagship NZ1 service from John F. Kennedy Airport to Auckland on July 19, which was cancelled after engineers discovered a fuel leak. The passenger, who did not want to be identified, told the Herald her family endured three days of disruption after the original flight and its replacement on July 20 were cancelled. “We got our luggage and were told to line up back at the check-in counter,” she recalled. “It was chaos ... My kids fell asleep on the floor.” While Air NZ handed out hotel vouchers to travellers, the family had relatives they could stay with, saving the airline money and them time. The family spent two extra nights in New York City after their Auckland-bound flight was cancelled. Photo / 123rf “It didn’t seem like anyone was there to help us and we felt so grateful to have somewhere to go.” Air NZ promised to pay for accommodation, transport and food but passengers still faced unavoidable costs in the form of gratuities – a near-mandatory part of daily life in the United States. “One of us is a New Yorker. It’s against nature not to tip ... Servers and drivers do not take kindly to people who don’t tip,” she said. “We also wanted to show our kids how to respect the customs of other nations.” The family spent about US$150 ($253.34) on tips for food and transport before finally departing the US on July 21. While Air NZ reimbursed the base costs, it initially rejected their claim for tips, citing a policy against covering any gratuities. Air New Zealand initially refused to cover gratuity costs for the family. Photo / Getty Images The passenger described the refusal as frustrating. “The financial hit is decent. [US$150], especially after a holiday, is a good amount of groceries,” she said. “But it’s more the principle. We saved Air NZ US$1000 ($1695) by staying with family, and then they short-change us on the gratuity – an expense that is mandatory?” Following questions from the Herald, Air NZ admitted the passenger had been given incorrect advice and confirmed it would reimburse the tipping costs. “Unfortunately, in this case, a member of our team supplied the incorrect information,” Air NZ’s general manager (customer) Alisha Armstrong said. “When there is a disruption to travel that is within the airline’s control our policy is to refund any reasonable expenses incurred, and we agree that while in the US tipping is a reasonable expense. Air New Zealand has since apologised to the affected family. Photo / Michael Craig “Our team have contacted the customer to apologise for the initial incorrect information and are reimbursing for gratuity. “This example will be used as a valuable learning opportunity for our customer service team to prevent similar occurrences in future.” Air NZ’s New York route faced several disruptions last month. In July storms and air traffic constraints forced passengers on flight NZ2 to spend the night in Washington DC with travel cancelled in both directions. Tom Rose is an Auckland-based journalist who covers breaking news, specialising in lifestyle, entertainment and travel. He joined the Herald in 2023. Wed, 20 Aug 2025 04:11:00 Z /lifestyle/technology/thermomix-tm7-a-smarter-way-to-cook/ /lifestyle/technology/thermomix-tm7-a-smarter-way-to-cook/ I hate, hate, HATE cooking. Which is unfortunate, because I'm in charge of making dinner weeknights. To be honest, the actual cooking part doesn't bother me too much - other than fiddly, time-consuming things like grating and standing there stirring - no, the worst part of being in charge of the evening meal is having to decide what that evening meal will be. As popular as they are, I can't make my famous fresh fish tacos every night, especially at this time of year when my barbecue is essentially underwater. So I call on you now, great technology gods! Please provide me with a week's worth of dinner inspiration! And if possible, could you prepare it and cook it for me as well? Turns out, all I needed was the TM7 (the latest Thermomix) and a subscription to Cookidoo. Now don't be embarrassed if you've never heard of Thermomix and have no idea what it is - I didn't either, until I was invited to celebrate the launch of the TM7 in New Zealand. Not only did I get to eat some Thermomixed creations for dinner, with zero training I was also able to create my own gourmet strawberry dessert in about five minutes flat. To break it down, the TM7 essentially looks like a big, black blender, sitting on base with a 10-inch touch screen on the front. It also comes with a Varoma - which looks a bit like a plastic roasting dish - a simmering basket, a butterfly whisk and the coolest spatula I've ever used. But first things first. Vorwerk, the German company that makes Thermomix, has been coming up with clever ways to cook for over 140 years. In 1971 it decided to try mixing, chopping and cooking in the same device and Thermomix was born. Today's TM7 is the ultimate refinement of that concept. If you want perfect mushroom risotto every time, this is the device that takes the guesswork out of the equation. When you first enquire about the TM7, you'll be matched with a personal consultant to talk you through the details. My consultant, Lauren, turned up with the TM7 and a recipe for that very risotto - but it wasn't in a book. You see, not only is Thermomix a shining example of German precision engineering, it's also teamed up with a guided cooking app called Cookidoo. I suppose Cookidoo is a kind of digital cookbook - one with over 100,000 recipes inside. The great thing about a digital cookbook is you can access it anywhere, anytime on your phone, tablet or PC. Cookidoo lets you search for recipes by ingredients, styles or courses and when you find something you like the look of, you can add it to your own collection of recipes for easy reference. Then you can plan your week's meals, even creating a shopping list of all ingredients required. All of this is mirrored on the screen of the TM7 of course - when you turn it on (once you've registered and logged in) you'll be met with today's recipe all cued up and ready to begin. From there you'll be guided through every step of the recipe - and I mean every step. Because not only does the TM7 mix, grate, chop, knead, stir, cook, boil and steam - it also acts as a set of scales, weighing every ingredient as you add it, be it solid or liquid. Now although I'm a fan of risotto, I've never even considered making it myself. Too many variables. Too many steps that have to be done "just right." Lauren the consultant soon showed me there's really no way to get it wrong with the TM7. Precisely measured ingredients mixed and cooked for exactly the right durations means success is virtually guaranteed every time. If you're anything like me, you really don't like potentially messy (and smelly) tasks like grating parmesan and chopping onions. The TM7 takes care of all this, once you've weighed in the exact amount - all of which is represented on screen with a "digital twin" showing you the current state of where you're at in the recipe. This makes every step so foolproof - right down to basic instructions like putting the lid on the mixing bowl or resting the Veroma (steaming dish) on top of that. The interactive recipe won't let you carry on until you complete each step - unless you manually decide to skip something, of course. Cooking times are equally precise - and the mixing bowl will light up red when the contents are hot, although you won't feel that from the outside; it's very well insulated. I then proceeded to impress my family with Stuffed Jacket Potatoes (two ways) and a delicious prawn curry. Although I expected every recipe to be a cook-in-the-TM7 only scenario, I was surprised to discover many Cookidoo creations utilise other cooking methods as well. Sometimes the TM7 is only used for the sauce or the dressing for something that can only really be cooked with the barbecue or on the stove. Or in the case of my Classic Meatloaf (another first for me and another hit with the fam) everything was chopped and mixed in the TM7 but obviously the loaf needed to be cooked in a tin in the oven. As I've become more confident with how the TM7 works, I've been able to customise recipes - perhaps adjusting the number of servings or swapping out certain ingredients. I've also learned to use the TM7 as an add-on sometimes, not always the main event. For example, last night I wanted to combine some steamed broccolini with my bowl of roast veggies and grilled haloumi. Much easier to steam using the TM7 than faff about boiling a pot of water and getting another steamer pot dirty too. Of course, there's a pre-clean function once you're finished with the TM7 mixing bowl and almost everything is dishwasher-safe, so cleanup is pretty straightforward. Let's focus on the Thermomix spatula for a moment, because like the TM7 itself, it's a miracle of ingenious design and is a joy to use. You're not that likely to stir what's in the mixing bowl with the spatula, there'll be specific speed setting for the precision steel blades to take care of that. Instead, the soft but durable edges of the spatula are ideal for scraping off the sides of the bowl and it also has a special hook on the back edge for lifting out the simmering basket. So clever. Even more clever; you can stand the spatula on its back or on its end to avoid getting a sticky mess all over your bench top. As idiot-proof as the TM7 appears, some idiots are capable of extreme uselessness and I have had the odd failure. My Chicken and Avocado Risoni salad was supposed to be my Thermomix masterpiece, utilising almost every aspect of the TM7's abilities to serve up a real crowdpleaser. I thought this recipe was particularly clever, creating a tasty broth in the mixing bowl to steam seasoned chicken pieces in the Varoma, then adding the risoni to the broth to cook at the same time. I was firing on all cylinders. I mean, just check out the result... Looks amazing, right? Unfortunately, I hadn't taken something very important into account - I'd added extra chicken... but hadn't extended the cooking time accordingly. Alas, this error wasn't discovered until Domestic Manager found an almost raw piece on the end of her fork. Whoops. I'm happy (and relieved) to report, no family members were harmed in the consumption of this meal. Luckily, I redeemed myself a few days later with the pumpkin and rosemary bread you can watch me make in the video below. And I'm quietly confident about tonight's Beef Rendang. Oh by the way, Cookidoo features plenty of desserts and cocktails as well. Who doesn't want the perfect frozen margarita every time? So that's my Thermomix-led culinary journey to date, more or less. It really is ingenious how it takes care of every step of your meal-prep, from cutting, grating, mixing or kneading through to cooking, steaming and boiling. But perhaps the most helpful aspect is the thousands of recipes at my fingertips courtesy of Cookidoo. It's now rare I get to the end of the day without some inspiration on what to cook. Admittedly, there are plenty of cooking apps out there and I could probably use the other appliances and cookware I already own to achieve similar results but the Thermomix method is so much more streamlined and integrated, from recipe selection to shopping list to cooking up the final product. It's a luxury though; the TM7 will set you back NZ$2,849.00 and the Cookidoo subscription is only free for the first three months. On the other hand, as I've explained, you are getting a hell of a lot of German precision technology and a Lauren of your own. She just texted me some more meal suggestions last night. I love Lauren. Everybody should have one.      Click here for more information and pricing on the Thermomix TM7. Wed, 20 Aug 2025 00:16:52 Z /lifestyle/tokoroa-teen-author-rutendo-shadaya-makes-time-magazine-s-girls-of-the-year-list/ /lifestyle/tokoroa-teen-author-rutendo-shadaya-makes-time-magazine-s-girls-of-the-year-list/ A Tokoroa teenager has been included on Time’s first-ever “Girls of the Year” list, five years after she began self-publishing her own book series. Rutendo Shadaya, 17, was the only New Zealander among 10 girls named by the magazine as being “part of a generation that’s reshaping what leadership looks like today”. Rutendo told Herald NOW’s Ryan Bridge it’s been “really amazing to see this progress” since her first novel, Rachel and the Enchanted Forest, was published in 2020. “I’ve faced ageism in my journey and I feel like seeing this starting from a small girl from a small town and going into ... hitting international stages is such an amazing achievement. “I feel like it inspires many young people to go into writing or achieve their dreams because they see someone doing this. “They see 10 young girls representing them all over the world, and I feel like this is a good change ... because it encourages me and it empowers me to keep doing it.” Rutendo began her literary career at 9 by creating a book for her best friend Sophie’s birthday, although she admitted she first “hated writing because any subject I wasn’t good at I instantly just didn’t like”. “At the same time, my friend’s birthday was coming up and I knew she loved writing. She had a book club with her friends and they would read stories and stuff,” Rutendo said. “I didn’t know what to write, but I wrote based on what I watched on TV, the books I read ... through that, it took me two months to write this first draft and I completed it two days after my [10th] birthday.” Having been so young, Rutendo faced barriers to realising her book in its final published form and had to convince her parents just how serious she was. “But after getting them on board, this journey took two years and I managed to give my friend her birthday present two years late in November. “Since then, I decided writing isn’t that bad after all. And then I self-published two books later on.” Author Rutendo Shadaya, 17, from Tokoroa, has been named on Time's first "Girls of the Year" list. Photo / @rutendos_books Rutendo’s fantasy series follows the magical protagonist Rachel as she navigates her newfound powers and learns how to use them in the enchanted city for good. The Waikato teen draws inspiration for the series from her friendships, her Zimbabwe-New Zealand heritage, and things that pique her interest in her daily life. “Sometimes I’ll be watching something or reading something, like maybe an article, [and] I’ll make it based on a fantasy type of idea,” she said. “Sometimes I base it on interactions and I’m like, ‘Oh, I could add ... that characteristic into one of my book characters’.” Despite having three titles already under her belt, Rutendo plans to treat writing as a side hustle after finishing school. “I’m planning to do something in sciences ... I don’t want to make writing my full-time because ... I want to have it as a passion still.” Other people who secured a spot on Time’s list include 16-year-old pilot Defne Özcan, who is the youngest Turkish person ever to fly solo, and 15-year-old Japanese Olympic gold medallist Coco Yoshizawa. Time senior editor Dayan Sarkisova said she sought to find 10 girls from around the world “who challenged stereotypes, tackled problems head-on, and sought to build solutions from the ground up”. “Women now make up over half of all students enrolled in tertiary education worldwide, and these young women are pursuing careers in engineering, technology, and innovation at record rates,” Sarkisova wrote. “Their generation understands that change doesn’t require waiting for adulthood - it starts with seeing problems and refusing to accept them as permanent.” Mon, 18 Aug 2025 02:57:11 Z /lifestyle/technology/samsung-galaxy-watch-ultra-2025-minor-upgrade-great-watch/ /lifestyle/technology/samsung-galaxy-watch-ultra-2025-minor-upgrade-great-watch/ Despite the pressure for tech manufacturers to update their products at least once a year, it's not compulsory. In fact, when you think about it, it's not even realistic. Imagine coming up with something so ground-breaking, so innovative and so desirable it becomes one of the most coveted devices of 2024. Now imagine being told you need to do it again 12 months later. Why? Has the competition suddenly replicated every design element? Every feature? Every function of the software? Of course not. I assume that's what Samsung was thinking when it unveiled the 2025 Galaxy Watch Ultra. That's right. This year's Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra looks exactly the same as the 2024 version. Its the same size and weight. It has the same processor and even the same battery.  Bearing in mind it's a very powerful processor for a watch and that battery will last more than two days, even if you're using all the features - up to 100 hours in power saving mode. For once, Samsung has literally said, "If it ain't broke..." and you'd be hard-pushed to break this device of course. Titanium casing. Sapphire Crystal glass. Components cushioned against impact. This is the watch that meets so many military standards, it's not just water and dust-proof but also height, depth, heat, cold and pressure-proof.  I don't ever want to be anywhere where it's minus 20° - or positive 55° for that matter. I doubt that I'll ever find myself 9000 metres up or 100 metres underwater - but it's good to know if I ever do, I'll still be able to tell the time and measure my stress levels. I imagine they'll be pretty high. This is the watch that can track everything; your skin temperature, your blood pressure - even your heart-rate variation while you sleep. Not to mention dozens of sports and exercises, including full dual-frequency GPS for accurate navigation and the ability to retrace your steps. None of that is new. Doesn't mean it's not still pretty awesome. And it's not like there are no differences at all. The 2025 Galaxy Watch Ultra now comes in Titanium Blue, in addition to last year's choices of Titanium White, Titanium Grey and Titanium Silver. And the new model has twice the built-in storage - 64GB rather than 32GB. And that seems to literally be it. Not that it isn't great to have another colour to choose from and if you're going to have phone-sized storage on a smartwatch, this is the one to have it on. That's because the Galaxy Watch Ultra is probably the most suited of any watch to be worn out and about without its paired phone. The durability and good battery life are part of the reason but also the fact its large display makes tasks like replying to messages more practical. Most importantly, you can activate an eSIM on the Galaxy Watch Ultra so you can use it to its full functionality, even when you leave your phone at home. That means you can load your favourite playlist or podcasts onto that 64GB, pair directly with earbuds or headphones and take your phone out of the equation while you're out and about heli ski-ing, base jumping or setting land speed records in the desert. All that sort of thing. Obviously, all the sport and exercise tracking I've covered off numerous times before just keeps getting better and better - with significant improvements to the running coach options. But it's the enhancements and additions Samsung has made to health tracking that have really captured my attention. By calibrating with a third-party blood pressure cuff, the Galaxy Watch Ultra can then keep an eye on things for you. Combine that with skin temperature readings, Heart Rate Variability during sleep and now the ability to measure vascular load - you'll receive plenty of warning if there's an uncharacteristic change you might want to consult a doctor about. You can now even measure your antioxidant index based on the level of carotenoids in your skin. This is a somewhat cumbersome process though, as you have to take the watch off and press your thumb against the BioActive sensor, while following instructions from the Health app on your phone. 九一星空无限flash; I'm not eating enough fruit and veggies. Perhaps the most depressing thing about reviewing a new Galaxy Watch is the results that appear in the Samsung Health app from my sleep tracking. The fast charging and good battery life of the Ultra make it a practical sleep tracker, although being such a large watch, some users may find it too bulky to wear comfortably all night. I've also had some negative feedback from the other person in the bed due to bright light leaking from the BioActive Sensor pressed against my wrist. Combine that with my horrendous snoring and it's a miracle she puts up with me. I can't argue about the snoring either - between the Galaxy Watch Ultra and the S24 Ultra phone I have it paired with, the evidence is there for everyone to see - and hear. Not only do I know I snored for 1h 22m last night, I can select from any of the ten recordings that were made to hear exactly how earsplitting it was. I also know I'm spending too much time awake during the night (probably because of someone snoring) and that I'm not getting enough deep sleep. On the bright side, my Sleep Latency is excellent. That's the length of time it takes me to fall asleep. I mean, I'm really tired. So I've been assigned a sleep animal. I'm a shark, apparently. Sounds pretty cool but it turns out sharks never stop moving and as a "Shark Sleeper" I'm not getting enough total sleep time, I tend to wake up at night and I have inconsistent sleep times from day to day. The frustrating thing about sleep tracking with the Galaxy Watch Ultra is I can take all the coaching advice it has to offer - the fact is, I do a job that requires me to get up at 2:50AM and I can't seem to get the Samsung Health app to take that into account. Essentially, Samsung keeps finding new ways to tell my how unhealthy my lifestyle choices are. It sums all this up in an Energy Score at the start of each day, with some advice on what I can do to improve the next day's score. For example, during the week when I get less sleep, my Energy Score tends to be fairly low and my watch tends to suggest I reduce my activity and up my rest. If only. No wonder my AGE index is so high. Not my age - my level of Advanced Glycation End products. I think this means my body is older than it should be. Unfortunately, I can't just press a button on the Galaxy Watch Ultra and magically fix all these worrying measurements - not even the "Quick" shortcut button can do that, although I do have it set to instantly commence my Outdoor Walk workout which happens to coincide with when the dog requires his daily constitutional. However, forewarned is forearmed and now it's my challenge to see if I can influence some of the stats my watch has presented me with - more useful information than any other smartwatch I've worn to date. Maybe one day I'll no longer be a shark and I'll have morphed into a hedgehog, or perhaps even a walrus instead.      Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy Watch (2025). Mon, 18 Aug 2025 00:29:59 Z /lifestyle/world-of-wearable-art-designer-s-2025-entry-a-tribute-to-endometriosis-health-battle/ /lifestyle/world-of-wearable-art-designer-s-2025-entry-a-tribute-to-endometriosis-health-battle/ Fashion designer and four-time World of Wearable Art (WOW) finalist Emma Highfield is returning to the international design competition after 15 years. Her entry this year was inspired by a gruelling health journey that took her to “breaking point”. Emma Highfield, 41, first found her love for wearable art as a teenager studying at Elam School of Fine Arts at Auckland University. “I heard about WOW around that same time and I was like, this is so something I would love to do,” she tells the Herald. She first entered the competition and became a finalist in 2007, following suit for the next three years. “Then I think I just kind of got sucked into my career and everything else I was doing, and then obviously motherhood - and 15 years slipped by.” Now based in Tauranga with her husband and two children, Highfield says a turning point came when she celebrated her 40th birthday last year. “I did a big speech about how in the next decade of my life, I really wanted to dedicate that to reawakening my creative pursuits,” she recalls. “So I’m really proud of myself for keeping a promise to myself to enter again, and becoming a finalist is very, very exciting after a big gap of focusing on motherhood and career versus my creative interests.” While she may have taken a break from WOW, during that gap she made her mark with several other ventures, from bespoke lingerie for burlesque dancers to an online baby clothing store. Most recently, she founded intimates and loungewear brand Dear Dylan, which she runs with two friends. “That’s our little brand trying to carve out a bit of space in the fashion industry in New Zealand.”  The Avant-garde section at World of Wearable Art 2024. Photo / World of Wearable Art However, making something for WOW is a whole other outlet for her creativity. “I like working through trial and error, I like manipulating everyday materials to see how far I can take them and what I can create for them, so that process hasn’t changed,” she says. “It was just sitting dormant, waiting for me to come back to it. Kind of like riding a bike, I think.” Fifteen years since she last entered, Highfield says it’s clear the competition has grown and evolved. “There’s a lot more international exposure... the process of entering and how you submit your garment and ship it and everything has become much more streamlined in that time,” Highfield says. “But even the shows that I was in 15-plus years ago were just so incredible, and the creative team behind them just seem to outdo themselves every year.” One difference for Highfield is that creating a WOW entry, which typically takes months of work, now requires even more of a juggle as a mum-of-two. “It was definitely a different process this time around because when I entered 15 years ago, I was married but [had] no dependents. “I had all the time in the world. This time, it was much different in terms of, obviously I couldn’t just tap out and go to my creative space and just do a twelve-hour stint working on it.” This time, she fit it in amid school pickup and her kids’ dinner and bedtime routines. The Avant-garde section at WOW 2024. Photo / World of Wearable Art “Once I had the idea and I was in the flow, it came together relatively quickly for me... the actual construction, once I can see it coming together, gets very exciting and just kind of flows.” While the details of her 2025 entry are tightly under wraps for now, the inspiration behind it is deeply personal, reflecting her years-long battle with endometriosis. “It got to breaking point when I was in my late 30s,” Highfield says. She recalls experiencing “horrific pain”, 40-day periods, and days when she couldn’t face leaving the house. “It wasn’t just something I was living with, it was really taking over my whole life and everything became about ‘When’s my period coming, how much pain am I going to be in?’” Soon before turning 40, she underwent a hysterectomy. Although not a cure for endometriosis, it’s “helped tremendously” in relieving her symptoms. Some complications meant it wasn’t all “smooth sailing”, Highfield adds. “But since everything has healed and we’ve realised what medications and everything I was reacting to, I can honestly say it has been life-changing - definitely the best decision I’ve ever made.” It showed she also had adenomyosis, a condition where endometrial tissue grows inside the muscle wall of the uterus itself. “My gynaecologist said it’s basically endo’s evil twin, which is even more severe than the endo. [It’s] a horrific thing for anybody to go through and to live with for so long. “I’m so glad that has all been resolved, and that part of my life was a huge inspiration in the design of my garment, which is probably a reflection of the end of that chapter. “I really wanted to take something that has taken over so much of my life and make it beautiful and give it a finishing point. This is a representation of what I’ve been through.” A self-confessed “crier”, Highfield is prepared to feel a wave of emotion when she sees her costume on display. “I’ll be so proud of myself when I see the garment on stage. It’s going to be overwhelming, but I’m also like, all these incredible people have done all this amazing work. “What a wonderful moment, and how wonderful that people can watch and experience that sort of thing and we’re able to witness it all come together - how exciting. So I probably will cry and be very emotional when I see it on stage.” This year, her children, aged 11 and 7, will be among her supporters in the audience on the awards night. “Obviously they’ve been through the whole process of me making it and packing it up, and they’ve got very interesting opinions on it, particularly my 7-year-old boy. He’s like, ‘Mum, that’s weird’ - which I love. I love the honesty,” Highfield laughs. “They’ve never been to a show like that on that scale, so it’ll be interesting to see what their reaction is. I think they will be immensely proud, though.” This year’s World of Wearable Art runs from September 18 to October 5 at TSB Arena in Wellington. Sat, 16 Aug 2025 23:12:55 Z /lifestyle/travel/why-a-record-number-of-kiwis-are-visiting-asian-countries/ /lifestyle/travel/why-a-record-number-of-kiwis-are-visiting-asian-countries/ An increase in direct flights to Asia is drawing more Kiwis than ever before to visit the continent, according to new data from Stats NZ. On Friday, Stats NZ announced a record 730,000 trips were made by New Zealand residents to Asia during the year ending June 2025. Of those, 316,100 New Zealand returning residents went to Asia specifically for a holiday, accounting for 24% of all short-term overseas trips made by returning locals in the year. “Short-term trips to Asia by New Zealand residents were up 20% in the June 2025 year, compared with the year before,” international travel statistics spokesperson Bryan Downes said. “This increase was mainly driven by more trips to Indonesia, China, Japan, and India.” Zhengyang Bridge at the entrance of Qianmen Avenue, a traditional commercial street outside Qianmen Gate in Beijing, China. Photo / 123rf China was the most popular Asia destination overall for returning New Zealand residents, with 162,396 heading over there for short-term travel, while Indonesia was the top choice for holidays. “Among destinations worldwide, Indonesia and Japan saw the largest growth in holiday travel by New Zealanders in the June 2025 year, up 27,700 and 16,900 respectively, compared with the year before,” Downes said. “A holiday was the most reported reason for travelling to Asia by New Zealanders in the June 2025 year, followed by visiting friends and relatives.” Stats NZ said the increase in trips coincided with the 6% increase in direct flights from New Zealand to the continent. Lempuyang Luhur temple in Bali. Photo / Getty Images Air New Zealand, Korean Air, Air China, Singapore Airlines, and Malaysia Airlines offer direct flights to popular destinations such as Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore and Bali, for example. In March, Air New Zealand signalled a stronger focus on the Asian market and signed with Air India a Memorandum of Understanding to boost their mutual connectivity. “India represents a key growth market for Air New Zealand, and we are excited about the opportunity to enhance connectivity for travellers between our two countries. This codeshare agreement is an important first step, offering more options for customers while we work to understand what a direct service could look like,” outgoing Air NZ chief executive Greg Foran said at the time. Foran had also announced plans for a direct service between the two nations. “We are committed to working collaboratively to grow the travel market over the coming years, ensuring a strong foundation for a successful direct service by 2028,” he said. Japan has surged in popularity as an international travel destination. According to the Japan National Tourism Organisation, a record 36.8 million people visited the nation in 2024, a significant increase from 32 million visitors in 2019, before the Covid pandemic. Australia remains the most popular destination for Kiwis overall, with 1.2 million New Zealand travellers returning from short-term holidays there in the year ending June 2024. Sat, 16 Aug 2025 22:05:32 Z /lifestyle/mecca-founder-jo-horgan-her-new-zealand-obsession-billion-dollar-empire-and-what-s-next-for-us/ /lifestyle/mecca-founder-jo-horgan-her-new-zealand-obsession-billion-dollar-empire-and-what-s-next-for-us/ Jo Horgan is meticulous. Every single detail in Mecca’s new 4000sq m Bourke St Melbourne store has been signed off by the brand’s founder and co-CEO’s impeccable eye. Every vintage light fixture, reclaimed tile repair job, service, touch point and brand that make up the beauty retailer’s new store have been approved by her and tested by her team. She will never admit it herself - she’s quick to credit that powerhouse team - but her loyal staff confide just how much Horgan still does, 28 years on from launching the retail beauty store chain. So with the new Melbourne flagship store signifying a bold era in the brand’s history, it seems only right that Horgan reflects on where she and Mecca, now a billion-dollar brand, began. “I used to sit there watching my mother when I was growing up, taking off the makeup at night or putting it on to go out,” Horgan tells the Herald, recalling her early years at the family home in London. Horgan says the closeness and experience of chatting to her mum as this daily task took place helped her realise the powerful link between beauty rituals and bonding. “It’s so deeply rooted in me, the sense of intimacy, of human connection,” Horgan says, sharing this early feeling was later a catalyst for Mecca. The family moved to Australia when Horgan was 14, and she eventually settled in Melbourne as an adult, later selling her home to raise funds for her first store. That original Mecca, located in South Yarra, sold makeup brands like Urban Decay, Stila, and cult-favourite NARS. The brands were taking a bet on the young founder. Horgan came in with a bold vision, wanting customers to experience multiple brands in one store - not single counters run by single brands. At the time, the concept was a risk and largely untapped in Australia. Ten years later, she took the concept to New Zealand customers, opening the first Mecca in Ponsonby in 2007. The bet paid off, and 28 years later, those brands and customers remain loyal to her. “Nobody gave two hoots what was going on here because it was so far away,” Horgan says with a laugh. “There was no internet. And it was a long way away on the plane. Getting the brands was hard because they’re like, ‘Who are you and why?’” But once they signed on, Horgan says they never looked back, trusting her on the “tangents,” she wanted Mecca to go on, even when brands changed hands. “I feel like we’ve had the luckiest time with the brands that we’ve had for a long time as well. A long-term marriage,” says Horgan, referencing her “28-year marriage to NARS”. French founder François Nars was so taken by the Mecca experience and Australia, Horgan says, he wanted to stay in the country and buy a home. The 56-year-old calls that in-store experience, which she and the now 200+ stable of brands have created, a “happy place” that transcends generations. Mecca founder Jo Horgan. Photo / Jo Duck “Twenty-eight years ago, I started making this for me and my mum. Fast forward, and it’s for me and my mum and my daughter. “You go into Mecca and you’re standing side by side and you’re trying products, and you’re having a really fantastic time. [It’s a] bonding experience,” says Horgan. Horgan’s happy place can now be found in more than 100 Mecca stores, 13 of which are in New Zealand; eight in Auckland, one in Hamilton, one in Tauranga, one in Wellington, one in Christchurch, one in Queenstown and a pop-up in Dunedin. Then there’s the brand’s online offering and Mecca Beauty Loop loyalty programme, a favourite among the beauty community. But in a world that’s going more and more online, Horgan says she’s still betting on the brick-and-mortar stores. Now more than ever. “In a world that’s becoming increasingly transactional, I think people are craving community, connection, experiencing theatre, a reason to go out, to do things in real life.” She credits New Zealand customers as being a special part of helping her test that experience and the loyal community she has on our shores. The Mecca Bourke St gifting suite. Photo / Hugh Davies “We are enormously grateful to New Zealand for showing us that it’s possible,” says Horgan, revealing that the New Zealand market has allowed Mecca to test scale and see how big they can go with store size, based on population. “We opened a 900 square metre store in Christchurch, a city which I don’t think even has a million people living it. It was such a big bet at the time, and it actually means that this store isn’t big enough,” laughs Horgan, pointing to the massive 3000 sq m store around her, which will cater to Melbourne’s population of more than five million. But what’s next in her favourite testing ground? While Horgan won’t be drawn on the details, she admits there’s “an enormous amount” in the works for New Zealand. Apothecary, a wellness concept based on a holistic, natural approach to beauty, and Aesthetica skin services such as facials and injectables, are currently offered at Mecca Bourke St, and look likely to soon be on the menu for Kiwis. But the founder says they want to let the customers decide. “I look at apothecary and I think New Zealand would just absolutely wrap their arms around it - you are already global leaders in health and wellness, so how can we meet you where you are?” Wherever we are, Horgan says she’s grateful for New Zealand’s pioneering spirit and embracing Mecca from the outset. “I’m obsessed with New Zealand. I think that it’s the most incredible country with its natural beauty, its dedication to the environment and its individual approach. I love it. “We started out and we had no idea what we were doing, and New Zealand wasvery forgiving; we’re very grateful.” It’s clear now that Horgan and her team know exactly what they are doing, to the point that they need a three-storey building to house their customers’ insatiable thirst for the brand. Mecca's Bourke St storefront. Photo / Hugh Davies And that impressive store, nearly five times the size of Mecca’s experiential Christchurch store, is the beauty lover’s equivalent of Ikea. The new store houses more than 200 brands, some exclusive to Mecca, as well as 80-plus services, all pulled together by a team of more than 300 staff. It’s all for the estimated 50,000 people who will walk through its doors each week. “The significance of this space lies not in its scale but in what it represents: 27 years of evolving alongside the people who make Mecca what it is – our team, our customers and our brand partners,” says the CEO. So with a single store the size of most department stores now on offer, what could possibly be next? A Mecca museum? School? Hotel? It’s all possible, and all being considered. “Genuinely, every time there’s an inflection point in this business, the fun starts with how our customers will interact with it. What will we learn? Where will that allow us to go next?” “Now that we’ve done this, I think genuinely we are slightly beside ourselves with excitement,” Horgan adds. Mecca Christchurch. Photo / Supplied But no matter what happens next, no matter the odds, Horgan says Mecca’s team will well and truly make it fly. “I still think about Mecca like the bumblebee. It shouldn’t be able to fly, but nobody told it. So it just gets on and does it.” Jenni Mortimer is the New Zealand Herald‘s chief lifestyle and entertainment reporter. Jenni started at the Herald in 2017 and has previously worked as lifestyle, entertainment and travel editor. Sat, 16 Aug 2025 20:54:55 Z /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-hinterland-adventures-on-the-sunshine-coast/ /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-hinterland-adventures-on-the-sunshine-coast/ Beyond the seductive necklace of balmy beaches studding the Sunshine Coast, elevate your playground to the host of treats and treasures tucked away in the hinterland. I launched my latest hinterland dip in Eumundi, home to one of the largest artisan markets in the Southern Hemisphere. “Make it, bake it, sew it, grow it” is the market mantra. Bursting with over 600 stalls and held every Wednesday and Saturday, it's the personal interactions with the producers which underpins its magnetic pull. You’ll meet the talented hands behind handcrafted furniture, homewares, artworks, ceramics, cutting-edge fashion and jewellery.   Have a chat to the farmers and bakers who sell fresh produce and gourmet delights by the truckload. Chill out under the beautiful heritage-listed fig trees as you indulge in a massage, have your palm or tarot cards read, listen to live local music and watch the street performers. Eumundi Markets reach deep into the ‘try before you buy’ philosophy, so I happily nibbled my way through a veritable platter of delectable delights. A sure-fire hit is the Langos caravan, offering a variety of flavours. Langos is a traditional Hungarian street food, made from a simple yeast dough, deep fried in oil. If highly recommend a Langos slathered in garlic, sour cream and cheese. Scrumptious snacks!  Eumundi Markets. Photo / Visit Sunshine Coast My hinterland base was the leafy township of Yandina, staying at the namesake hotel which has been serving up yarns and coldies since 1889. Built by Australian pioneers as a staging depot on the route between Brisbane and the Gympie goldfields, this venerable wooden pile, with wrapround balcony, is one of the Sunshine Coast's oldest watering holes. Renovated last year, it’s a cracking spot for some hearty hinterland hospitality, while comfortable accommodation awaits upstairs. Just down the street, join the locals at Meadow Bake Shop for great coffee and breakfast bites. This gorgeous artisan bakery opened 12 months ago in a gracefully restored historical corner store.  Yandina Hotel. Photo / Visit Sunshine Coast Suitably fuelled up, I tracked south from Yandina to strike out on a signature Sunshine Coast experience: self-driving the Blackall Range tourist route. The brown Highway 23 signs waymark the official route – much of which skirts the razorback ridgeline of the escarpment, with several stupendous lookouts affording jaw-dropping views down to the ocean. The route also stitches together a swag of highland villages, national parks and scenic reserves and lofty lookouts. Tailor the touring circuit to your preferences. I started by first venturing to Mapleton Falls National Park. The short and sweet Wompoo circuit walk is a fragrant jaunt through verdant rainforest, heavily scented with eucalypts, to Peregrine Lookout where the gushing curtain of Mapleton Falls and expansive views across the Obi Obi Valley unfurl for your viewing pleasure.    Close by, stake out take a rainforest hike to the even more impressive Kondalilla Falls, complete with swimming hole for a revitalising dip. Needless to say, these falls gush like fire hydrants during the rainy season. Many hinterland communities along the Blackall Range first developed as farming bases, evolved into hippie strongholds in the 1960s, before morphing into solid creative hubs in the 1970s. Montville is a star specimen, richly textured by an incredibly creative class of people, bursting with colour, character and vitality. Beginning life under the bold name of Razorback, that becomes very self-explanatory when you reach the 500-metre-high ridge-top location of the town. It’s a storybook town that fast infatuates, complete with watermill, chintzy cafes, cosy craft cottages and leafy serenity.   Kondalilla National Park. Photo / Supplied Tenaciously clinging to the eastern escarpment, this picture-postcard village offers dress circle views across the softly folded valleys and lush green pastures, tumbling towards the coast. The main street stores brim with curios, treasures and confections, like the Clock Shop Montville, housed in a German chalet that looks like its shuffled out of a Brothers Grimm fairytale, ticking and tocking with several thousand timepieces.  Check out Illume Creations, home to Tina Cooper’s vibrant hand-blown glass art, particularly sculptures and vases. For a riveting display of local works all for sale, a visual feast is the Montville Art Gallery, housed in a characterful 1890’s Queenslander on the main street. There are over 40 artists on permanent display. The gallery owner, Wayne Malkin, is an acclaimed seascape, landscape and portrait artist who specialises in oils. His ocean and hinterland landscape works are drool-worthy, strongly representing his passion for the playful effect of light.   My favourite spot for coffee and cake is the legendary Poet’s Café, strikingly constructed like a Victorian conservatory-style tearoom, festooned with stained glass windows and renaissance-style portraits. They’re very proud that their coffee is made from fresh spring water bubbling up from the natural spring below the premises.   Poets Cafe, Montville. Photo / Poets Cafe After soaking up Montville’s allure, I moseyed on to Maleny, which enjoys an even loftier perch than Montville, bracketed by lush and rolling green hills. Maleny is like a microcosm of the hinterland’s finest features, a blend of creative types, aging hippies, a pumping artisan food production scene and magnificently bucolic beauty spots. Maleny is renowned as bountiful food bowl, which I will showcase in an upcoming article on Sunshine Coast’s sublime produce.   But a great starting point is to take a stroll along Maple Street, popping with colour and personality, and dotted with organic cafes, brilliant bookstores, eclectic boutiques and quirky independent stores. It’s remarkable what a tractor-beam Maleny is for alternative healing and therapy practitioners. I perused a head-spinning variety of kooky main street offerings from cosmic dieting, aerial hammock healing and soul breathing to harmonica healing and plant-based cancer treatments.   Sprawling out from Maleny, a stunningly green, undulating countryside, dotted with cows, interspersed with pockets of remnant rainforest, and offset by compelling bird’s-eye views of the Glass House Mountains. A must-do is Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve, a spectacular rainforest with boardwalks threading through this fabulous reserve, abuzz with raucous tropical birdlife. The magnificent elevated viewing deck offers a dreamy panoramic outlook across the eleven thrusting vertical rocky columns of the Glasshouse Mountains.   Glasshouse Mountains. Photo / Supplied Another radiant encounter with nature is to tootle your way to Maleny Botanic Gardens and Bird World, one of Australia’s biggest private gardens. This botanical tour de force is like a green-fingered Disneyland, is constantly expanding, including an Oriental Garden, Rose Garden, Fairy Garden, a Rainforest Walk and a fascinating grotto of ancient basalt rocks that were thrust up at the same time as the Glasshouse Mountains were volcanically formed. But as much as the gardens are divine, it’s the feathered friends who really steal the show. This is the mother of all menageries.  There’s four walk-through, free-flight aviaries to admire, aflutter with over 700 birds. It’s the parrots that are the runaway favourites, many who were abandoned by previous owners. You’ll encounter macaws, black cockatoos, Amazons, Green-cheeked conures and Alexandrines, who happily landed on my head, arms and shoulders. A crowd-favourite is Coco, the 85-year-old Amazon Parrot, who still sings opera and can belt out the first verse of “Old Macdonald had a Farm”, without dropping a note. Maleny Botanic Gardens & Bird World has just been voted Queensland’s No.1 attraction by Tripadvisor. Get amongst it!   Bird World fun. Photo / Visit Sunshine Coast Fly direct to the Sunshine Coast with the low-fares leader, Jetstar, who operate year-round services from Auckland to Maroochydore, three times a week. It’s the fastest way to paradise. You can be enjoying Mooloolaba prawns on the beach by lunchtime! jetstar.com  From glorious beaches and warm seas to nature, outdoors adventure, wellness, hyper-local food and artisan distilleries, pick your vibe and grab your fill of golden sunshine moments in the Sunshine Coast. For the latest destination inspiration and visitor tips, head to visitsunshinecoast.com  Mike Yardley is 九一星空无限talk ZB’s resident traveller and can be heard every week at 11.20am on Saturday Mornings with Jack Tame.  Sat, 16 Aug 2025 00:34:46 Z /lifestyle/technology/hp-elitebook-ultra-g1i-ticking-all-the-boxes/ /lifestyle/technology/hp-elitebook-ultra-g1i-ticking-all-the-boxes/ I don't really know why it is but some devices just wow you from the moment you take them out of the box. In fact, in the case of the HP EliteBook Ultra G1i, I wasn't even sure it was IN the box to start with. It's actually not the lightest laptop in town - although at just 1.19kg, it's pretty light - especially for a device with a full 14-inch display. But when I picked up the box in the mail room, I wondered if they'd left something out. Like the 65W power adapter. Or the computer. However, once I got it home and pulled it out I saw what I had here was a very classy - yet quite understated - piece of tech. The HP EliteBook Ultra G1i has been manufactured in an "Atmospheric Blue" metal chassis and because of its spacious 14-inch, 16:10 display, there's plenty of room on the opposite half for a full-sized keyboard, including a complete set of function keys, and a touchpad that's about the size of a basketball court. Okay, slight exaggeration there - but it's pretty big, which means you can be very accurate with your cursor placement on screen. Given the fact that it's a touch screen too, you might not even feel the need to pair a mouse with this device. While we're talking accessories, I was most impressed to discover three USB-C Thunderbolt 4 ports at my disposal, all capable of 40Gbps transfer speeds, all DisplayPort 2.1 for connecting external displays and all able to be used for USB power delivery. The best thing about that is there are two on the right side and one on the left, which makes things far more convenient when it comes to plugging into different setups - be they at work, at home or on the road. There's also a USB-A slot - one of those sneaky pull-down ones that keeps the design as slim as possible. That's a lot. And I hadn't even turned it on yet. After setting the HP EliteBook Ultra G1i up, the first thing I was pleased to see is the 9MP camera set into the slim top bezel is Windows Hello enabled - so not only can you log in using the fingerprint sensor under the power key but you can do it very quickly and reliably via facial recognition too. This is a Copilot+ PC of course, so you can access all the AI options Microsoft has to offer but there's a lot of HP-specific software pre-installed too. Whether you consider this to be "bloatware" comes down to how useful you find utilities like HP Assistant and Wolf Security Suite. Some users are irritated by how many of these apps double-up on certain tasks Windows was already taking care of but I've always considered the HP tools to be the best way to keep your drivers up to date - relying solely on Microsoft to keep an eye on 3rd-party updates can be somewhat time-delayed. You'll certainly want to check out the pre-installed Poly Camera Pro to access enhanced video settings for the camera - there are a few extra tweaks available here on top of what Windows Studio Effects has to offer. You can virtually adjust lighting and skin tone and even take a screen grab of your usual office background to use if you're joining an online meeting from somewhere else but you don't want to let on where. Video quality is top rate as is mic quality - although you may want to tweak the settings here too to get the best out of the dual mic array. The 2.8K OLED display is simply sublime. Sure, this kind of panel is slightly more reflective than other IPS options might be but I'll take that in order to enjoy more vivid colours and popping contrast. This is also an HDR-capable display - just like a flash telly - and you can calibrate the HDR settings to your preference. The HP EliteBook Ultra G1i is one of the best laptops I've used for just plain old streaming - be it Netflix or Apple TV+, everything looks bright, clear and has genuine depth to it, enhanced even further by the quad stereo speaker system, tuned by Poly Audio Battery life is one area where I was somewhat underwhelmed. Until quite recently I'd grown to expect the worst from Windows laptops when it comes to battery life but that all started to change with the introduction of more efficient chips, especially from AMD and even more recently, Qualcomm. Suddenly, you could literally leave your charging brick at home, with enough charge to see you through a whole working day. The HP EliteBook Ultra G1i will probably get you through too - but only just. And it depends greatly on what you're doing. For instance, while playing the new release of Grounded 2, I watched the battery percentage gurgle down the plughole pretty quickly. But HP never suggested this was a gaming rig. It's a business rig and the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V chip was born to deliver where it matters; multiple windows running different apps simultaneously - including documents, presentations and browser windows. And because it's an Intel chip, I haven't experienced any of the compatibility issues that seem to pop up with other systems, especially Qualcomm-based ones. What we've got here is not a beast; it's a thoroughbred. 32GB of RAM and 1TB of SSD storage might seem like overkill but with a machine like this, it's more like future-proofing. And it means you can access all the AI tools you need (be they pre-installed or otherwise) without missing a beat. Physically, the HP EliteBook Ultra G1i looks exactly like the high-end business tool it's proven to be. Using the well-spaced and responsive keyboard and touchpad is a joy and the mic and camera setup brings an instant professional edge to your online meetings and videos. And as for the 14-inch touch display, I couldn't really ask for more. This laptop really does mean business.      Click here for more information and pricing on the HP EliteBook Ultra G1i. Tue, 12 Aug 2025 01:11:32 Z /lifestyle/dan-carter-s-life-changing-visit-to-remote-kiribati-with-unicef/ /lifestyle/dan-carter-s-life-changing-visit-to-remote-kiribati-with-unicef/ Most of us take showering, drinking and washing our hands in clean water for granted - but in many countries in the Pacific, it’s not the norm. For retired rugby superstar and Unicef ambassador Dan Carter, that reality hit home during a recent visit to Kiribati, where just a small fraction of schools have access to clean drinking water. The country, made up of 33 islands, is famously hard to access - a fact to which Carter can attest. After landing in the capital Tarawa, he and the Unicef team travelled to one of the outer islands by boat. “It took us four hours by boat in rough sea conditions,” he recalls, adding with a laugh: “It was long. It was tough. I got seasick.” For Carter, it confirmed just how hard it is to reach Pacific communities with essential resources like clean water. Dan Carter with pupils at Taiti Primary School in Marakei, Kiribati. Photo / Unicef “One of the challenges with supporting a country like Kiribati is just how remote it is. It’s right on the equator, it’s almost as wide as America but just filled with a whole lot of islands. “It was really important for me to get to Kiribati and see the incredible work that Unicef are doing on the ground there, providing clean and safe water and sanitation, hygiene facilities to schools, medical centres, villages.” Despite the seasickness, the warm welcome he received made it all worth it. “Believe it or not, I got off that boat and danced, and if anyone knows me, I’m not a big dancer or a good dancer,” Carter jokes. “If the people of Kiribati can get us up dancing, then you know that’s just how warm and welcoming they are.” Dan Carter and pupils at Aoneta Junior Secondary School try clean drinking water. Photo / Unicef Carter has been a Unicef ambassador since retiring from rugby in 2021 - though his involvement goes back to a 2016 visit to a Syrian refugee camp in Jordan. He launched his DC10 Fund in partnership with Unicef to improve access to clean water in the Pacific. “There was a really clear purpose in trying to enable the most vulnerable children to get more opportunities to live a life of freedom and fun,” the father of four says. “[That’s] something that I did when I was young, and I look at my children and they just live with such freedom, but I know that’s not often the case.” The Pacific Islands aren’t just neighbours to Aotearoa - “they’re part of our extended whānau”, he says. “That’s exactly the case from my rugby background, we had so many Pacific Islanders in all the teams that I played for, so I wanted to support a project that was really close to me.” Dan Carter has been a Unicef ambassador since 2021. Photo / Michael Craig The impact of a lack of clean water can be devastating in this region, particularly for children. “They’re prone to a lot more disease, so all of a sudden they’re at school less, so they’re not learning as much in terms of their education,” Carter notes. He spent his time in Kiribati visiting schools where Unicef has installed WASH [water, sanitation, and hygiene] projects, including toilet blocks and handwashing facilities. The WASH projects are now in five schools and 14 medical centres in Kiribati, and are being built in 10 more schools. “To see it firsthand and the impact that it’s having on these children, these communities, these villages, it really is sort of life-changing,” the rugby star says. “It kind of puts your life into perspective at times, and often I’m walking away from these field trips feeling inspired from the children. “It really is a special thing to be a part of.” Unicef ambassador Dan Carter and Unicef's Sarah Fraser. Photo / Michael Craig About Unicef Aotearoa  Unicef Aotearoa’s head of government and Pacific relations Sarah Fraser says the region is one of the most “logistically challenging” for the agency. “We both experienced firsthand how hard it is to get to every child,” she says of visiting Kiribati with Carter. “I think that it really hit home and realised just how hard it is in our Pacific, and how important it is. “The water and sanitation work that we support, and that Dan supports, goes right through from health, from early childhood to schools - because it’s really about community engagement and buy-in. “We’ve trained over 700 teachers now in Kiribati to really teach about handwashing and how it’s important and how it stops disease.” Building facilities like toilet blocks helps protect children’s right to privacy, as well as health and hygiene, she says. “We are really working on those basic needs that improve healthcare, but I think also it’s about dignity and also about giving children a childhood. “When you’re healthy and well, you can attend school, you can learn, and you can really fulfill your potential. So that’s a real focus for us.” You can learn more or take part in Unicef’s fundraising appeal Become a Pacific Champion here. Sat, 09 Aug 2025 20:37:56 Z /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-treats-and-treasures-in-edinburgh-with-trafalgar/ /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-treats-and-treasures-in-edinburgh-with-trafalgar/ Brooding, imposing, ruggedly beautiful and spilling with forth with a storied history, Edinburgh stirs the senses of even the most jaded traveller. I’ve just reacquainted myself with the striking Scottish capital, as part of a riveting romp around the UK on Trafalgar’s Real Britain tour. Impossible to miss, with its lofty perch on a craggy volcanic hill, Edinburgh Castle is always irresistible. The admission lines can test your patience —we mercifully got here early— but a wander through this treasured symbol of Scottish heritage is compulsive.   My delightful Trafalgar local specialist guide Katrina, unpacked a trove of anecdotes about the castle’s history with compelling ease, as we trawled through its gritty collection of buildings and feasted our eyes on the Scottish crown jewels (not quite as blingy as the English). First built 800 years ago, the Scottish Royal Family used the castle as a royal residence until 1603. Fittingly, the statues of William Wallace and Robert the Bruce guard the main entrance to the castle, which holds the record as Britain’s most attacked castle, besieged on 26 occasions.   Exploring Edinburgh Castle. Photo / Mike Yardley  One of the biggest stains in Edinburgh’s backstory would have to be its passion and hysteria for witch-hunting. Edinburgh Castle’s forecourt, Castle Esplanade is where the Royal Military Tattoo is held every August. It occupies the same ground where many accused witches were killed.  Just before the castle entrance check out the Witches' Well, a cast-iron fountain and plaque, in memory of the thousands of women who were burned at the stake or hanged, between the 15th and 18th centuries. Most women who were killed were generally herbalists or mentally ill. Suspected witches were first thrown into a lake to determine their innocence. Those who drowned were cleared, and those who had the audacity to survive were adjudged a witch and sent to the stake.  One of Britain’s great throughfares would have to be the Royal Mile, carving a path from the castle to the Palace of Holyrood House. Jutting off the Royal Mile, a fascinating cobweb of narrow, cobbled alleys and staircases. I love strolling this atmospheric street, studded with a procession of signature sights like John Knox House and St Giles’ Cathedral, established during the reign of King David, 900 years ago.  Edinburgh Royal Mile. Photo / Supplied Dark streets and dark history are recurring themes in the city’s narrative.  Dive into the depths of subterranean Edinburgh, because the Old Town is stacked like a pancake, throwing up glimpses of city life over the centuries. One of the most absorbing such encounters is to venture down into Mary King’s Close. These 17th century streets were once a breeding ground for the black death, over-run with flea-carrying rats, which ended up killing a quarter of Scotland’s population. But the fatality count was much higher in these tight quarters. Many of the residents who survived were treated by the plague doctor, George Rae. He would slice off the top of the victim's sore and jam a red-hot poker into the wound to cauterise it.   The technique, while agonising, did indeed save lives. It’s one of the many anecdotes I gleaned while touring the close, which was emptied and sealed up over a century ago. The Royal Exchange was built on top of it and the close was forgotten about, until workers digging on the street above accidentally punched down into the winding lanes. Rediscovered, the close became a handy bomb shelter during WWII and has since become a tourist site. One of the most famous ghosts supposed to live here is a 10-year-old girl named Annie, killed by the plague. Believers report temperature changes and feeling a certain presence in her room. Toys, dolls, and sweets are continuously left for her, in the close.  Mary King's Close Tour. Photo / Visit Scotland Another absorbing underground encounter is to take a tour through the Blair Street vaults. This labyrinthine network of chambers, located within the 19 arches of South Bridge, previously housed thousands of people in the most squalid of conditions, later repurposed as a hotbed for brothels, gambling dens and associated vice. Body snatchers also used the cool, dark vaults to store corpses. Rumoured to be among the city’s most haunted spaces, traipsing through this underground world by candlelight is not for the faint-hearted!  See Edinburgh like a local and head up to the view of views via Jacob’s Ladder. Carved out of volcanic rock, this stirring pathway us unknown to many visitors, serving as a short-cut between Waverley Railway Station’s parking bay and the sublime perch of Calton Hill. Over 300 years old, this passage originally served as a key way for locals to get in and out of the city, from the Old Town to the New Town. It’s the best way to zip up monument-studded Calton Hill for unparalleled views of the castle and the city, backdropped by the ancient volcano, Arthur’s Seat. Edinburgh loves its follies and another dramatic specimen is the Scott Monument that towers above Princes Street Gardens. Illustrating Edinburgh’s reverence for its literature heritage, the Scott Monument is a ridiculously-sized Gothic tower dedicated to Sir Walter Scott - the largest monument to any writer in the world. Trek up the 287 steps for more sumptuous city views.    Scott Memorial in Princes Gardens. Photo / Mike Yardley If the weather is grizzly, there’s every chance you might opt to stay dry inside the National Museum of Scotland, a tub-thumping temple to Scottish pride, stacked with some great exhibits including Dolly the Sheep - the first cloned mammal from an adult cell. But if you share my obsession with panoramic city vistas, here’s an insider’s tip. Take the lift to the 7th floor and exit onto the rooftop terrace. Slap bang in the middle of the Old Town, it’s s tunning vantage point, gazing across Auld Reekie’s rooftops and the bustle below.   As you may know, New Town Edinburgh is defined by the Georgian architecture of the 18th century that provided far more comfort and space for the well to do, fed-up with the overcrowding and squalor of the Old Town. It’s a masterpiece of historic urban planning, resolutely Georgian in design, with its wide streets and elegant architecture. If there’s one spot to check out, do not miss Charlotte Square. This fast became home to Scotland’s brightest thinkers, surgeons, and aristocrats. Alexander Bell lived at No.14,  No. 9 was home to the pioneer of antiseptic medicine, Lord Lister of Listerine fame. JM Barrie lived here for a while, and No.6 is the No.10 Downing Street of Scotland, home to the country's First Minister. Though the horse-drawn carriages and sedan chairs have long gone, Charlotte Square is living, breathing history.  Georgian finery in Charlotte's Square. Photo / Supplied A sure-bet way to get a flavour for the city’s soul is to enjoy a pint or a dram or two from the plethora of historic pubs. One of my favourites is Deacon Brodie’s Tavern on the Royal Mile. The pub is a tribute of sorts to the local character who inspired Robert Louis Stevenson to write Jekyll and Hyde. Brodie was head of the guild of carpenters, widely respected for his craftsmanship. With access to some of the richest houses in town, he ended up making copies of house keys, which he would burgle at night, after working in them during the day. Finally caught in 1788, his hanging drew one of Edinburgh’s largest crowds for an execution.   Also in the Old Town, on Candlemaker’s Row, Greyfriars Bobby's bar is adorned with a Skye Terrier dog statue on its awning - a homage to Edinburgh’s most famous pooch. The story goes that Bobby stood vigil and slept at his owner's grave, guarding his master for 14 years after his death. His dedication became legendary, and when he finally died in 1872, he was laid to rest in Greyfriars churchyard, close to his owner's grave. A public statue was erected the following year, close to the namesake pub. Disney even made a film about Bobby.   Greyfriars Bobby Pub. Photo / Mike Yardley  Finally, take a jaunt to Edinburgh’s historic port of Leith. It’s where the hip young things love to hang-out sipping creative cocktails, but it’s also home to Royal Yacht Britannia - an experiential must for royal junkies. Permanently berthed at Ocean Terminal, the on-board tours are astoundingly comprehensive – it’s access all areas, allowing you to see where the royals ate, slept and played. Left in situ after the yacht was decommissioned in 1997, the state reception rooms and even the Queen’s Bedroom have been left exactly as they were. You can even see Princess Margaret’s numerous cigarette marks. The ship brims with royal memorabilia, artefacts and a trove of official gifts.   Get the insider’s view on Edinburgh, with authentic, in-the-know and immersive encounters. That’s what I loved about touring Edinburgh with Trafalgar. Trafalgar’s Real Britain tour serves up a dazzling array of headline attractions, experiences and insights, all seamlessly stitched together over 6 days. Optional add-ons include local theatre shows, walking tours and even seasonal events like the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. 2026 pricing for the tour is from $3,056pp. For full details head to trafalgar.com/en-nz/tours/real-britain   Mike Yardley is 九一星空无限talk ZB’s resident traveller and can be heard every week at 11.20am on Saturday Mornings with Jack Tame.  Sat, 09 Aug 2025 00:52:28 Z /lifestyle/technology/bissell-powerclean-furfinder-200w-the-stick-that-stands-up-for-itself/ /lifestyle/technology/bissell-powerclean-furfinder-200w-the-stick-that-stands-up-for-itself/ I never thought I'd end up being an expert on vacuum cleaners. Who knew when I started reviewing gadgets, vacuums would often be at the cutting edge of new technology? But just as I've found with so many tech devices, not all new features are worth having and sometimes, the less complicated a gadget is, the easier it is to use and the better it actually works. Which is why I've gone from never having heard of Bissell to being a Bissell fan, in just a matter of weeks. The PowerClean FurFinder 200W might be one of Bissell's latest floor cleaning devices but that doesn't mean Bissell is new at this - far from it. The company started in 1876 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and when Anna Bissell took over the reins in 1889, she became America's first female CEO. Although I'm late to the Bissell party, Queen Victoria certainly wasn't - in fact she insisted her staff use Bissells to keep the palace clean. Talk about pedigree. On the other hand, I've definitely reviewed my share of stick vacuums over the years and I've come to appreciate what makes a good one. A lot of it is about balance - and I don't just mean how balanced the vacuum feels when you're using it - although that's important too. I'm talking about the balance between suction power and battery life. Dustbin capacity versus sheer size. Technical features against ease of use. The PowerClean FurFinder 200W gets a lot of those equations exactly right. Compared to some stick vacuums I've trialled, the main body of the PowerClean FurFinder 200W seems quite long and I was worried that might make things a bit clumsy, especially when using it in close quarters - when cleaning my car, for example. That wasn't the case though and using the combination crevice tool I was able to get into most nooks and crannies easily - on both hard and soft surfaces. Although, that's not really what this particular vacuum was designed for. As the name suggests, this is supposed to be the go-to cleaner for pet owners and as such, it boasts a "tangle-free" main brush roll. While this is a claim I've seen from many others in the past, often the reality of cleaning up after my shaggy dog and hairy housemates results in a brush head disappointingly snarled up, even on the first clean. Not this time. I don't know how Bissell has done it - the brush roll doesn't look wildly different from any other I've come across but I can't argue with the results; it truly is tangle-free.  For anyone who's ever had to hack and pull away at a mess of hair and fur clogging up your vacuum, knowing that won't happen with this one might be a compelling reason to upgrade. However, that's not the only thing the main brush head has going for it. Despite the PowerClean FurFinder 200W's considerable suctionpower, there are two sturdy wheels to keep it rolling easily over any surface, and there's also the the built-in combination of warm and cool LED headlights so you won't miss a speck of dust or a single strand of hair - even in the darkest corners. But it's the self-standing abilities of this main brush head that have really won me over. Simply click the PowerClean FurFinder 200W into its vertical position and you can leave it standing there - no need to lean against a wall. What's more, there's also a convenient foot release so you can remove the head without bending over. Lazy? Maybe. Helpful? Definitely. Unfortunately, a lot of the convenience and ease-of-use presented by the no-bending-down design of the main brush head is somewhat undone by how difficult the other accessories are to swap out. In some ways, this is actually a positive. It means when you attach the combination crevice tool or the smaller FurFinder head, there's a satisfying "ker-chunk" when it clicks into place. This solidity is evident over every inch of the PowerClean FurFinder 200W and its tools - there's no snapping, bending or denting these. But that super-secure connection definitely comes at the cost of being able to easily slide the attachments on and off. There's a small locking rocker at each connection point that needs quite a bit of brute force to click in and out. Perhaps I just have a weak grip? Maybe things will loosen up a bit in time? Either way, let's turn our attention to the secondary brush head, the smaller FurFinder Upholstery Tool. This is a powered roller - just like the main one - but the brush cylinder is quite different, rows of longer, strong bristles alternating with solid silicon "de-furring" strips, rotating in a spiral. This means no particle of fur, dander or anything else is safe on your couches, armchairs or even your duvet cover. What impressed me even more was I could run this tool over my duvet without sucking up the fabric itself, thereby clogging up the works. Even better; The upholstery tool also has FurFinding headlights - just like the main brush head - making this so useful for darker areas like stairwells and car floors. As you would expect from any decent vacuum these days, there's a HEPA filtration system so you're not just recycling dust and other allergens back into the air around you. It's also worth noting the dust bin is very easy to remove for fuss-free emptying and like everything else on this vacuum, it snaps back into place with another one of those satisfying "ker-chunks." I just wish that dirt tank was a little more capacious. At just 400ml, I often find myself having to empty the PowerClean FurFinder 200W before I'm finished cleaning the whole house - a bit frustrating given the 40-minute battery life (in Eco Mode) is enough to get me through. (Even if it wasn't, you can buy a spare battery and leave it charging while you vacuum) At the end of the day, that small tank is only an issue because the PowerClean FurFinder 200W does such a great job of sucking everything up in the fist place. The powerful lighting on both powered heads means you won't miss a thing and there's no trigger so you won't end up with a tired index finger. Instead, just switch it on and choose Eco, Medium or Turbo. It's simple but strong and most importantly for me, it never tangles. It's a real stand-up kind of vacuum.      Click here for more information and pricing on the Bissell PowerClean FurFinder 200W. Thu, 07 Aug 2025 00:30:47 Z /lifestyle/labelling-rules-ease-for-genetically-modified-food-made-without-adding-new-dna/ /lifestyle/labelling-rules-ease-for-genetically-modified-food-made-without-adding-new-dna/ By Monique Steele of RNZ The appetite for food made with the use of gene technologies will be tested in New Zealand amid ongoing regulatory reform and an easing of food labelling requirements. After public consultation, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) approved updated definitions for genetically-modified (GM) food in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code in June. In late July, Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard and his Australian counterparts decided to adopt them. Food produced using new breeding techniques, including gene editing, will not need to be labelled as “GM” on the food label if novel or new DNA was not introduced in the process. Simultaneously, the Government was considering a new regulatory regime for gene technologies used outside the laboratory, after it attracted 15,000 submissions during a select committee earlier this year. GM food or GM-free: a consumer’s choice? Hoggard told RNZ last week there was some opposition to FSANZ’s P1055 proposal during public consultation from those who “don’t believe in [genetic engineering]”. “There was still some vocal opposition, so that was taken on board,” he said. “Obviously, there was support from a lot of industry and scientific groups.” Hoggard said that in removing the requirement, producers could still choose to disclose gene technologies used throughout production on the label. “There’s nothing stopping anyone who is producing food that doesn’t have any new breeding technologies to label it as such. “We’re not outlawing that people don’t have to put these labels on.” He said it came down to the consumer’s choice. “So if the organic sector, for example, doesn’t want to allow these new breeding techniques in their production, then people who also think they don’t want to consume food that’s had new breeding techniques used in them, then they can just buy organic and know that ‘okay, that hasn’t been used’. “If this is something you’re not worried about, then just go ahead shopping as normal. “If it is something you are concerned about, producers who will be using the old methodologies will still be able to highlight on the packaging that, ‘hey, we don’t use the X, Y and Z’ or ‘we don’t do this or that’. And you just need to go and look for that food.” Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard says producers can still choose to disclose gene technologies and label items as such. Photo / RNZ, Angus Dreaver Hoggard said to the best of his knowledge, no health issues had been raised from the consumption of GMO products, such as soya bean, for example. Meanwhile, GE-Free New Zealand spokesman Jon Carapiet said the eased labelling requirements took informed choices away from the consumer. “It’s really fundamentally unethical to take away the ordinary consumer’s choice in the supermarkets,” Carapiet said. “It’s all about trust, and to say ‘we’re not gonna even trust you to make your own decisions anymore’... is really wrong.” He said the assertion that shoppers concerned about GM food would simply buy organic food instead was “disingenuous”. “The average consumer certainly can’t afford to go and buy organics on an everyday basis. I wish they could, but they can’t,” he said. “So to say all the ordinary people of New Zealand don’t deserve the right to choose, I think that’s very wrong.” Carapiet said supermarkets could ask their suppliers to disclose the use of gene technologies throughout production to ensure transparency and to inform shoppers about the product they were buying. “I think that in the coming months, if this does go ahead, companies will have to go above and beyond the food authority standards. “If the food authority FSANZ says ‘no, you can have GM crops and GE foods unlabelled in the supermarket’, then it’s going to be for the supermarkets to voluntarily label it.” Supermarkets commit to compliance In a written statement, a Foodstuffs spokesperson said it took food safety “very seriously” and complied fully with the Australia and New Zealand Food Standards Code, including all labelling requirements. “Customers have the right to know what’s in the food they’re buying,” they said. “As part of our supplier agreements, we require partners to disclose country of origin information, and any environmental or social claims must be accurate and substantiated.” They said the same approach applied to food made using gene technologies, including GM ingredients. “Any changes to regulation in this space will be carefully reviewed, and we’ll continue to ensure our labelling provides customers with accurate and transparent information, so they can make informed choices.” A Woolworths New Zealand spokesperson said it will make sure its retail items comply with labelling rules. “If the labelling rules in New Zealand change, then we would ensure all products comply with labelling requirements,” they said. – RNZ Wed, 06 Aug 2025 03:54:16 Z /lifestyle/navigating-sick-leave-how-to-get-a-medical-certificate-in-nz/ /lifestyle/navigating-sick-leave-how-to-get-a-medical-certificate-in-nz/ By Ke-Xin Li of RNZ Employers can legally ask you for a medical certificate if you need to take sick leave – even for one day. It can be a long wait to see a GP but there are other ways to get a sick note. Winter coughs and flu are still doing the rounds – and Covid hasn’t gone away – so if you need to call in sick there are a few things to know. When do you need a medical certificate? Part-time and fulltime employees are entitled to 10 days’ sick leave for themselves or to look after someone who’s sick, but in some circumstances, employers may ask for proof. Who can issue you a medical certificate if you need one? Photo / Getty Images The Holidays Act states an employer may require an employee to produce proof of sickness or injury for sick leave if the sickness or injury that gave rise to the leave is for a period of three or more consecutive calendar days, and a proof of sickness or injury may include a certificate from a health practitioner. The employer could ask for proof within three consecutive calendar days, but they would have to pay the employee’s expenses in obtaining the proof. E tū union national secretary Rachel Mackintosh said while it was legal for employers to ask for a sick note, they urged employers to waive the requirement. “This is the employers’ right but it causes hardship to workers who either can’t get a GP appointment or have to pay high consultation fees to GPs, including online doctor practices. “Employers don’t have to ask for medical certificates and we would encourage them to drop the requirement unless there is some doubt in their minds about the genuineness of the illness.” Paul Jarvie, manager of employment relations and safety at the Employers and Manufacturers Association, said there could be an imbalance in the medical certificate process. “One is the employment system, and the second one would be the medical system. Ideally they should work in tandem, but sometimes they appear to be working at odds with each other. The doctor can only hear the employees version of what’s going on and there’s no real ability for the doctor or whoever it is to contact the employer to find out their story of can the person come back to work, are there alternative duties that kind of stuff. So there’s always been a bit of a disconnect.” Where do you get a certificate? General practitioners The most common way to obtain a sick note is to go through a general practitioner. For enrolled patients, depending on the GP, the cost for an appointment can range from $18 to $90. However, with a GP shortage, it can take weeks to get a GP appointment. An RNZ-Reid Research poll found about 60% of respondents were able to get a GP appointment within a week, 30% were waiting for more than two weeks with 17% waiting three or more. Telehealth services Virtual healthcare businesses and some GP services offer online medical certificates. Patients can often get an on-the-day video call or phone call and receive a medical certificate for three to five days. An appointment generally costs around $40 to $65. However, buyer beware: a quick search by RNZ found overseas companies marketing sick notes for New Zealanders and asking for personal information including IDs in its application process. The Ministry of Health said only health practitioners registered with a New Zealand authority can issue valid sick notes. Pharmacies Pharmacists are legally allowed to write sick notes. However, not all do. For pharmacists who confirm they are able to provide a medical certificate, an in-person consultation is required and costs between $30 to $40. It is best to call the pharmacy before your visit to confirm that they can write sick notes. Who else can issue sick notes? Ministry of Health says a health practitioner is defined under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 as a person who is, or is deemed to be, registered with a New Zealand authority as a practitioner of a particular health profession. A list of professions regulated under the Act and their responsible authorities can be found on the Ministry of Health website. The list contains 18 professions with a range that includes from Chinese medicine services to dietetics, nursing, osteopathy to psychotherapy. It is important to differentiate medical certificate and proof of sickness, while only medical practitioners, doctors, can write medical certificates, all health practitioners can certify proof of sickness. Can Healthline provide sick notes? Healthline is a free over-the-phone health service available 24/7 and connects the caller to nurses and paramedics. But the service does not issue sick certificates. In an email, a spokesperson said: “That’s because the Healthline service involved nurses and paramedics providing triage (assessing symptoms, providing health and treatment advice, developing a plan for next steps for care), not diagnosis. “And to be able to issue a medical certificate would mean being able to verify that someone was unable to work for at least 3 days, which most of the time would require some form of medical diagnosis, which is not part of the service we offer.” - RNZ Mon, 04 Aug 2025 04:40:40 Z /lifestyle/travel/kiwis-travel-to-europe-alters-over-climate-change-insurers-25-000-flood-payout-as-claims-rise/ /lifestyle/travel/kiwis-travel-to-europe-alters-over-climate-change-insurers-25-000-flood-payout-as-claims-rise/ A global travel company with operations in New Zealand says it will move some Europe tours out of peak season, as Kiwis try to avoid increasingly dangerous and disruptive weather in the continent. Data from Southern Cross Travel Insurance (SCTI) shows nearly three in four New Zealanders think travel insurance has grown more important because of climate change. And the insurer said one family claimed more than $25,000 in accommodation and airfare costs after their flights from Tokyo were cancelled when the 2023 Auckland Anniversary floods closed Auckland Airport. As a result of the increased concern, Intrepid Travel, which sees more New Zealanders join its tours per capita than any other country, has made a significant operational shift in response to travellers’ concerns. Popular destinations like Italy, Spain and Portugal are no longer summer hotspots, with tourists increasingly opting to travel to those locations in spring instead. David, a Kiwi currently travelling through Southern Europe, said being outside during Greece’s most recent heatwave “felt like being in an oven”. In Athens, his group managed to visit the Acropolis the day before the ruins were partially shut over extreme temperatures. When the heat was at its worst, people would stay indoors or “stick to the shade as much as possible” throughout the day – although after 6pm, the streets filled back up again. Intrepid Travel, which sees more New Zealanders join its tours per capita than any other country, has made a significant operational shift in response to travellers’ concerns. David (right), a Kiwi currently travelling through Europe, said the extreme heat has "felt like being in an oven". Photo / Supplied Intrepid’s Australia and New Zealand managing director Brett Mitchell said it’s now “evolving how and when we run” Europe tours, moving some to the Iberian Peninsula out of peak season (June to August) and into April, May and September. The company has also made itinerary tweaks, like visiting attractions earlier or later ”when it’s cooler and less crowded”. “For the first time, over half (55%) of our travellers to Southern Europe are booking in the shoulder seasons,“ Mitchell said. “Destinations like Italy, Spain and Portugal are still incredibly popular, but we’re seeing demand shift to spring and autumn when it’s cooler and less crowded.” June 2025 was Western Europe’s hottest on record, with temperatures exceeding 40C in some cities. Fires have ravaged Greece, North Macedonia and other parts of the Balkans this month as extreme heat continued to roast the region. Intrepid Travel is shifting some European tours to spring and autumn due to extreme heat and overtourism concerns. Photo / AFP David, who is now in Albania, said they could “see the wildfires on the hills” and “firefighters tending to [the flames]” during a coastal drive. Temperatures have since dropped to about 30C, and with the ability to swim at the beach, the heat wasn’t as unbearable as it was in Athens. “Everyone goes for ‘Euro summer’, you expect it’ll be hot ... you still have fun.” Insurers are also witnessing the consequences of climate-related disruption play out through rising claims. “We’re definitely seeing increases,” said Allianz New Zealand managing director Kevin Blyth. “Those one-in-100-year floods are becoming far more prominent and far more prevalent than once in 100 years.” Smoke and flames rise from a wildfire near Athens on July 26. Photo / Getty Images Jess Strange, SCTI’s chief customer officer, said it “certainly feels like” travellers are making more climate-related claims. The company paid out over $593,000 across 425 claims related to cyclones, fires, floods, heatwaves, storms and turbulence between July 2024 and July 2025. One family claimed over $25,000 in accommodation and airfare costs after their flights from Tokyo were cancelled when the 2023 Auckland Anniversary floods closed Auckland Airport. Strange said the earliest flights available for the family were two weeks later via Kuala Lumpur. “Then, bad luck struck again with that flight cancelled due to Cyclone Gabrielle.” They managed to return to Auckland on February 17 – three weeks later than originally planned. Bookings to Italy during shoulder seasons are up 16% in one year. Photo / Intrepid Travel The increasing frequency of such events is making travellers more cautious, and engaging them more with their insurance policies, Strange said. “There’s significant media coverage – traditional and social – and our customers are experiencing extreme weather events firsthand.” House of Travel chief executive David Coombes said how Kiwis book Europe travel is changing fast. “Our early September bookings are 141% higher than mid-July and the first week of September will be our busiest week for customer departures to Europe this year.” Cooler and less crowded destinations are also seeing a surge in bookings, and Intrepid has opened its first Northern Europe office in Copenhagen to manage the influx. “Between June and August, we’ve seen strong growth in Norway, Estonia, Lithuania and Iceland,” Mitchell said. Intrepid’s Australia and New Zealand managing director Brett Mitchell said it’s important we don’t stop travelling to European destinations. Photo / Supplied “For travellers from ANZ alone, Iceland bookings are up 46% year-on-year for those months, with Serbia (+27%), Estonia (+20%) and Bosnia & Herzegovina (+18%) also climbing.” Mitchell said bookings to Italy in the shoulder seasons alone have risen 16% in the past year. “This shift spreads tourism more evenly across the year, which is better for our travellers and better for local communities.” With weather-related disruptions affecting everything from flight paths to cruise itineraries, insurance providers are encouraging customers to think ahead. “Every insurance policy is different,” Coombes said. “Many policies won’t cover you if you choose not to travel due to adverse weather, or if there were warnings or advisories in place before you left New Zealand.” But rather than cancelling tours or discouraging travel to affected destinations, Intrepid wants to build a tourism model that works with a changing climate. “We believe the most important thing we can do is not stop travelling to these places, rather adjust the way that we travel to ensure the best possible traveller experience. “For us, this means small group, locally-led visitation that works in concert with the people and places that we visit.” As extreme weather becomes more prevalent worldwide, Mitchell said they expect climate-related questions will inevitably “play a greater role in travel planning going forward”. Tom Rose is an Auckland-based journalist who covers breaking news, specialising in lifestyle, entertainment and travel. He joined the Herald in 2023. Sun, 03 Aug 2025 02:30:12 Z /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-headline-experiences-in-liverpool-with-trafalgar/ /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-headline-experiences-in-liverpool-with-trafalgar/ Tucked between North Wales and the serene good looks of the Lake District, gritty, vital Liverpool provides an indelible and grounded dose of "real" urban England. It proved to be one of my favourite destinations on my whistle-stop romp with Trafalgar’s Real Britain tour. Yes, Beatles fans flock to Liverpool to learn about the Fab Four's early days, but the city’s appeal extends far beyond those towering music legends. There’s a wealth of excellent free museums and a fast-evolving skyline, where storied old red-brick maritime warehouses dramatically mingle with glassy new skyscrapers and architectural flourishes on the recently gentrified Royal Albert Dock harbourfront, as ferries chug across the Mersey. Overlay all of that with the distinctively earthy, assertive charm of the Liverpudlians.   History-hounds are richly blessed in Liverpool, but first things first, I felt duty bound to tick off the headline sights on the Beatles’ parade. John and Paul's boyhood homes are now both restored, circa 1950s, and open for visits. It's a worthwhile pilgrimage for the faithful. For a wider overview with all things Beatlemania, I took a "Magical Mystery" bus tour, which hits the lads' homes (from the outside and a variety of pilgrimage sites. The Eleanor Rigby grave site is located in St. Peter's Churchyard. It’s also where McCartney and Lennon first met at a church fete.   Magical Mystery Tour turning into Penny Lane. Photo / Cavern Club Once part of McCartney and Lennon's teenage routine, Penny Lane is quiet suburban street in Liverpool, worth a photo-stop (the street signs have to be regularly replaced). And the Strawberry Field site is particularly evocative. It was donated to the Salvation Army in 1936 – a large Victorian house which became a home for the city’s most vulnerable children. The gardens at Strawberry Field were a place of peace and refuge. It was in these gardens that Lennon as a child could play with friends, climb trees and reflect, serving as the inspiration for another Beatles anthem. In the heart of town, beckoning like Beale Street in Memphis, the narrow, bar-lined Mathew Street is ground zero for Beatles fans and its swag of themed bars.   This of course is where the Fab Four made their name in the original Cavern Club, deep in a cellar along this street. While that's long gone, a mock-up of the historic nightspot (built with many of the original bricks) lives on a few doors down. Still billed as "the Cavern Club," this noisy bar is worth a visit to see the reconstructed cellar, pumping with a roster of Beatles tribute bands. On the other side of the lane, the Wall of Fame. Created by Gerry Marsden to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Cavern Club, every brick represents an artist or band who played at the original Cavern Club, and in the rebuilt club. It’s a who’s who of music royalty, from Adele and Suzi Quatro to Oasis and Jim Morrison.  Cavern Club entrance. Photo / Mike Yardley Back at Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool's most popular museum is unquestionably The Beatles Story, stacked with plenty of genuine memorabilia to keep the fans happy. The museum houses a full-size replica Cavern Club (which was actually tiny) and the Abbey Rd studio where the lads recorded their first single. I also spotted George Harrison's crappy first guitar – which is now valued half a million quid! The museum’s audio guide is narrated by John Lennon's sister, Julia Baird. Further down the waterfront, don’t miss a fantastic life-size bronze sculpture of the world’s most famous foursome. It’s a de rigueur selfie-spot!  In the mid-19th century, Liverpool was known as 'the New York of Europe' because it was such a commercial powerhouse. Not only was the port a mecca for international freight, but Liverpool was the major gateway for emigrants heading off into the big blue to begin new lives in North America and Australasia. I actually spotted an unloved old stone building emblazoned with New Zealand House on its exterior. Back in the day, its core business was migration and meat. Today, Hooters has taken up residence on the ground floor.   Hooters at New Zealand House. Photo / Mike Yardley See Liverpool the way seafarers of old once did: from the water. Mersey Ferries has been eulogised by generations of Scousers, but it remains very much a fleet of working boats. There are sightseeing cruises throughout the day or alternatively, join commuters during the morning or evening rush hour for the 10-minute hop from Pier Head to Woodside. Look out for the Dazzle Ferry, the exuberant livery designed by Sir Peter Blake, the artist behind The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band sleeve.  Royal Albert Dock, where tourists now gravitate, was a trailblazing piece of construction when it opened in 1846. What were once mighty redbrick warehouses now house museums, galleries, shops and restaurants. It’s a great spot to watch the boats putter by. Amid the dazzling array of museums, the Merseyside Maritime Museum at the Royal Albert Dock is a cracker. It charts the story of the city’s seafaring past from the 13th century onwards. Inside are exhibitions on the sinking of the Titanic, the loss of the Lusitania during the First World War, plus happier episodes from modern nautical history, as well as a staggering fleet of model ships. Nearby, the International Slavery Museum which doesn’t flinch from fronting up to the city's role in the African slave trade.  The Maritime Museum at Royal Albert Dock. Photo / Visit Liverpool Soaking up the sunshine, I strolled along the harbourfront to Pier Head, home to a creamy cluster of showpiece Edwardian buildings known as the Three Graces. The middle of the trio is the ornate Cunard Building, styled like Italian palazzo, which was once HQ to the Cunard Steamship Line. The old first-class passenger lounge on the ground floor is now home to the British Music Experience.  If you have a head for heights, Liverpool’s Anglican cathedral is a structure of superlatives: the UK’s biggest religious building, it’s home to the country’s largest pipe organ and with the highest and heaviest ringing peal of bells in the world. And its tower has one of the best views in Liverpool; take two lifts to the top and, on a clear day, all of Merseyside extends before you, from traffic on the Mersey to the faraway silhouette of the Blackpool Tower, 80km away. It was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott who also created the iconic red telephone box. His grandfather, Sir George, was the prolific Gothic Revival architect who designed Christ Church Cathedral.   At the other extreme, head to St Luke’s Bombed Out Church, which was damaged during the 1941 Liverpool blitz and has stood roofless ever since. After lying derelict for more than 60 years, it has been reborn as an open-air cultural space for theatre, dance, cinema, visual art and regularly staged craft markets.  St Lukes Bombed Out Church. Photo / Supplied There are some sobering reminders to Liverpool’s darker days. A sullen Victorian building whose facade bears the title ‘Sheltering Home for Destitute Children’ might not be the place you’d instinctively look to for fine dining. Nonetheless, if some posh local nosh whets your appetite, this building is home to Art School restaurant: one of Liverpool’s shining culinary stars, with linen-clad tables under a glass atrium. Lancashire-grown produce dominates the menu, plus seafood from over the border in North Wales. Served in the Lantern dining room, the tasting menu is particularly good, spanning Cumbrian salt-aged roast duck, Liverpool Bay seabass and Loch Fyne scallops.  The stately streets of the Georgian Quarter are prime territory for a pub crawl, beyond the Beatles bling of Matthew St. the pub to end all pubs, however, is the staggeringly ornate Philharmonic Dining Rooms, adorned with copper panels and mosaic floors. In the men’s loos, you’ll find palatial urinals made of pink marble. With the biggest Irish population in England, Liverpool enjoys a similar vibe to the Temple Bar district in Dublin, where the locals are very chatty and outgoing over a few pints.    George St Quarter. Photo / Mike Yardley I also noticed that female Scousers love getting dressed up. Jeans and a nice top won’t normally cut it when it comes to a night out in Liverpool. They seem to treat a night out, as if they’re off to the Met Gala. Don’t be surprised if you spot quite a few ladies going about their business in the daytime with curlers in their hair. My Trafalgar travel director Selene also pointed out to us the current trend among young women – the Scouse brow. You won’t miss these extreme facial statements – cartoonishly oversized eyebrows! They are everywhere.   From iconic sites and hidden gems to authentic cultural encounters, Trafalgar’s Real Britain tour serves up a dazzling array of headline attractions, experiences and insights, all seamlessly stitched together over 6 days.  In addition to guided sightseeing, there’s ample free time for personal discovery. Optional add-ons include local theatre shows, walking tours and even seasonal events like the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. 2026 pricing for the tour is from $3,056pp. For full details head to trafalgar.com/en-nz/tours/real-britain  Mike Yardley is 九一星空无限talk ZB’s resident traveller and can be heard every week at 11.20am on Saturday Mornings with Jack Tame.  Sat, 02 Aug 2025 01:24:21 Z /lifestyle/scientists-create-a-new-online-calculator-that-reveals-your-heart-s-age-and-your-risk-of-heart-disease/ /lifestyle/scientists-create-a-new-online-calculator-that-reveals-your-heart-s-age-and-your-risk-of-heart-disease/ Is your heart older than you are? A free, newly developed online calculator may be able to tell you, according to a large-scale study of heart health published Wednesday in JAMA Cardiology. Based on the most current equations about risks for cardiovascular disease, the calculator uses answers to a few simple questions about blood pressure, cholesterol status and other common measures of health, to determine your heart’s biological age, which can be different from your body’s chronological or calendar age. Your heart could turn out to be biologically older, younger, or the same as your actual age, with differing consequences for your risks of developing heart disease. “With the growing awareness of biological age being a different concept than chronological age, or how many times you’ve been around the sun, we wanted to find a way to apply that idea and help people better understand their particular risks” for developing cardiovascular disease, said Sadiya Khan, a professor of cardiovascular epidemiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and senior author of the new study. The calculator is at the vanguard of “organ ageing” tests, which use a variety of advanced techniques and algorithms to determine whether certain parts of our bodies are ageing faster or slower than others. Most of these tests are still in early development. The heart-age calculator is one of the first to be widely available and free. New ways of assessing heart health The idea of using health data to assess your risk of developing heart disease is hardly new, of course. The Framingham Risk Score, which uses various health metrics to predict your 10-year likelihood of developing heart disease, has been around for decades. More recently, the American Heart Association developed the Predicting Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Events (Prevent) equations, which use new data about the health of tens of thousands of American adults, beginning at age 30, to predict heart disease risk. Khan was the lead author of the 2023 study that laid out the Prevent equations. But she’s also a clinician and knew from talking to patients that “it’s really hard to understand what a 10% risk” of developing heart disease in the near future “means for you”. And she’s a researcher who’s studied longevity among the Amish and was interested in the differences between biological and chronological age, and why people born in the same year can seem to age quite differently. Those interests converged when she began wondering if she could reinterpret the Prevent equations into a framework that would be more intuitive for most people, telling them, in effect, if their hearts are ageing too fast. The study found most Americans have hearts older than their chronological age, with men averaging seven years older. Photo / 123rf Most Americans’ hearts are older than they are So, she and her colleagues used the Prevent data to figure out benchmarks for optimal heart health markers, such as blood pressure and blood sugar, among men and women at every age from 30 to 79. These would set the underpinnings of the heart-age test. (Most of the metrics used in the calculator are standard, but some are more specialised, such as an eGFR, which tests kidney function.) Then, since they were interested in the state of heart health in America, they checked the heart ages of more than 14,000 men and women enrolled in the Government’s huge and ongoing National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Most of them turned out to have hearts older than their biological age. Men, on average, had heart ages about seven years older than their chronological age, while women’s hearts were about four years older than their birth years. The gulfs between actual and biological heart ages were largest among people, especially men, with a high school education or less and those who identified as black or Hispanic. But even many people in their 30s had relatively old hearts. What to do about an ageing heart What does it mean if the calculator says your heart is older than you? “First, it’s important to have context,” Khan said. “A year’s difference from your chronological age is probably not meaningful. But if people’s hearts are more than five years or 10 years away from their chronological age, it’s worth paying attention to what’s going on and what might be driving that.” Talk to your doctor if your heart age is at least five years older than your calendar age, she said. The calculator might be indicating you’d benefit from more vigilance. “We know that half of people with high blood pressure aren’t being treated,” she said, “and most people who qualify for statin therapy aren’t on it.” The interventions needn’t all be medical. “Lifestyle changes, especially exercise and diet, are also important,” she said. Even people whose heart ages equal or prove younger than their actual age can benefit from that knowledge, she said. “One of the most challenging things is to maintain healthy ageing.” So, as the years pass or you enter health transitions, such as menopause, the calculator might be able to help you track how well your heart continues to age. The study suggests that if your heart age is over five years older, consult a doctor and consider lifestyle changes. What the calculator leaves out The heart-age calculator has limits, though. “It’s a way to communicate risk that will resonate with some people,” said Martha Gulati, the director of preventive cardiology and associate director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Centre at Cedars-Sinai Health Sciences University in Los Angeles. But its equations don’t include certain cardiovascular risk factors specific to women, she said, such as menopausal changes and pregnancy complications. They also don’t include estimations of aerobic fitness or exercise habits, which can be key to heart health, said Ulrik Wisloff, the head of the cardiac exercise research group at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway, who’s studied exercise and longevity for decades. “I still find it puzzling why physical activity and peak oxygen uptake have yet to be incorporated into the original Framingham risk model, despite strong evidence” for their predictive power, he said. His group has developed its own free, online calculator, based on exercise and endurance, that estimates your fitness age in comparison with your chronological age. The key point about all of these biological-age calculators, whether they focus on fitness or organs, such as hearts, is that they can serve as a wake-up call, Gulati said. If the numbers indicate your heart might be ageing too rapidly, that’s a message that you probably need to be paying some more attention to your health. “I do think” the heart-age calculator “is a bit gimmicky,” Gulati said. “But if it helps to motivate a patient to make changes, I’m here for it.” Thu, 31 Jul 2025 01:12:48 Z /lifestyle/technology/eero-pro-7-next-generation-wi-fi-in-minutes/ /lifestyle/technology/eero-pro-7-next-generation-wi-fi-in-minutes/ Although it's tempting to resist it, technology is always changing, constantly evolving. A cynical consumer might suspect built-in or planned obsolescence - manufacturers deliberately designing their devices to work worse and worse over time to create demand for a new, updated version of the same product. The truth is, as human beings, we're never satisfied. We got the internet. But we wanted it to be wireless. We got Wi-Fi. But we wanted it to be powerful enough to stream music and movies. We got high-speed fibre connectivity. But then everyone in the house was using multiple devices to do all sorts of things all at once. Gaming. Streaming. Working. Chatting. Browsing. Running all manner of IoT devices. More. More. MORE. So in 2025, it's entirely possible your existing router just isn't cutting it. The eero Pro 7 tri-band mesh Wi-Fi system should sort it all out for you - and as home networks go, it's one of the easiest to set up I've ever trialled. Simply use your Amazon login details to sign into the eero app and you'll literally be up and running in under five minutes. Unlike so many other routers I've set up in the past, the eero Pro 7 devices take very little time to boot up and they appear on the app straight away. Assigning an SSID (Network Name) and a name for each router couldn't be easier. There's even an option during setup to simply replace an existing, older eero unit. Adding a second and third device to create your mesh network is just as straight-forward; turn it on, add it with the app, all done. And yes, each compact and subtle eero Pro 7 device has my favourite feature; the ability to deactivate its status LED once it's all up and running. Have I mentioned how much I hate silly lights? Only about a million times? Okay then, moving on... eero Wi-Fi products come under Amazon's gargantuan umbrella and that means some serious compatibility advantages. Not only are these latest mesh routers backwards compatible with earlier generations of eero products, Amazon has even started building Wi-Fi extending abilities into its latest Echo smart speakers. So even if the whopping 560 square-metres of coverage from the 3-pack of eero Pro 7s I'm reviewing here isn't quite enough for you, just placing an Echo Pop in a dark spot can extend your coverage even further. I was keen to try this out and although I do own a few compatible Echo speakers, because the coverage from this three unit system is so comprehensive, although the app recognised these units under the list of connected devices, it deemed most of them unnecessary to use as extenders because they wouldn't add any useful extra capacity. Smart. As you'll see from my testing in the video below, the available download speeds are impressive, everywhere around my house. Of course, to make full use of these speeds, it helps to have a Wi-Fi 7 capable device, like my trusty Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra. Although that phone is now 18-months old, its Wi-Fi 7 chops have future-proofed it and made it more useful than many other Wi-Fi products still being released today. But it's not just faster speed on offer here, sheer capacity is perhaps an even more important factor. Because these are tri-band routers, transmitting and receiving on the 2.4, 5 and 6GHz bands, there's plenty of room for everyone - up to 600 devices in fact. eero uses something Amazon calls TrueMesh to route data through the fastest path available, while something else known as TrueChannel eliminates congestion, interference and dropouts. On top of all that, each eero Pro 7 unit (like most things Amazon makes) is also its own smart-home hub, supporting all Matter, Thread and Zigbee devices. Try as I might, I've struggled to find anything that under-performs with the eero Pro 7 system, which makes me wonder why you'd need to extend your budget up to the current top-of-the-line, eero Max 7 router, which purports to be even faster and more powerful. One reason might be the number of built-in LAN ports. While each eero Pro 7 router has two 5 GbE ports, on the primary router, one of those will be taken up by the very nice, braided ethernet cable (supplied in the box) running from your modem. That leaves you with just a single LAN line at your fastest access point. I've found running an external switch from this connection works perfectly well but it'd still be nice to have another couple of ports to connect to directly - which is exactly what you get on the bigger eero Max 7. My only other grizzle is nothing to do with the eero Pro 7 specifically; it's the same issue I had years ago when upgrading from Wi-Fi 5 to Wi-Fi 6... Not all of your existing devices will work with the new Wi-Fi 7 network just because you give it the same name and password - be warned. The tablet I run my Plex server on proved particularly touchy, connecting then disconnecting randomly - not really what you want when you're trying to stream Gladiator II. Luckily, this was easily fixed with a network reset on the tablet (essentially wiping its Wi-Fi memory and starting again). Weirdly, only a few of the roughly 90 different devices that connect to my home network have acted up this way - most figured things out without a hitch. Conversely, when I went from Wi-Fi 5 to 6 I had to reset pretty much every single device. I never want to go through that again. That's probably the real beauty of this eero Pro 7 system - not just how fast and powerful it is, or how easy it is to set up - but its glorious backwards compatibility. After all, not all technology is suddenly useless just because it came out last year.           Click here for more information and pricing on the eero Pro 7 3-pack. Wed, 30 Jul 2025 02:36:51 Z /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-backs-regional-events-with-new-sponsorship-programme/ /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-backs-regional-events-with-new-sponsorship-programme/ Air New Zealand has launched a new programme in partnership with regional tourism organisations across the country to showcase 20 emerging events in locations the airline flies to. The Air New Zealand Regional Event Sponsorship programme aims to support and promote domestic travel and the collective effort in building New Zealand’s event calendar, especially during shoulder and off-peak seasons. Air New Zealand’s chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer, Kiri Hannifin, said the airline’s goal was to back local events that deserved the spotlight. “These events not only celebrate the spirit of their regions, but they also give people another reason to visit, explore, and stay a little longer. Events like the Hokitika Wild Foods Festival are a perfect example – authentically local, proudly unique, and unforgettable,” Hannifin said. “We want to help create more of these all over the country. The kind of events that bring communities together and showcase the best of Aotearoa.” Kiri Hannifin, Air NZ chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer. Photo / Dean Purcell The first-of-its-kind sponsorship programme for Air New Zealand will support events across a range of categories, including sport, arts and culture, food and wine, music, heritage or nature. Each event will also receive a three-year commitment to support the regions they are in, whether that’s flights, marketing and promotional activity, or investment. Air New Zealand said there was not a specific amount allocated to the programme as its funding would be assessed case by case. Two very different events have been picked to launch the programme, Nelson’s The Spectacle and the Hamilton Arts Festival. The Spectacle brings runners of all levels and backgrounds together to race through the streets of Nelson, with events ranging from one mile to a 100-mile race. The Hamilton Arts Festival has been the Waikato’s premier arts event for 25 years, showcasing performing arts and a curated selection of national and international touring shows at the city’s award-winning Hamilton Gardens. Hamilton & Waikato Tourism general manager Nicola Greenwell said she was pleased to hear of the airline’s plans. “This festival is iconic for our region and is identified in our regional major event strategy as an emerging anchor event,” Greenwell said. “We look forward to working with both the arts festival team and Air New Zealand to encourage visitation to the Hamilton Arts Festival and to our mighty region.” Minister for Tourism and Hospitality Louise Upston was thrilled with the initiative to encourage more visitors to the regions. “We’ve been laser-focused on growing tourism in New Zealand and one way to do this is to encourage people to explore beyond the main tourist centres,” Upston said. “It means more visitors spending money in local cafes, businesses and accommodation providers, driving economic activity in our regions.” Air New Zealand will be prioritising applicants to the sponsorship for new or emerging events that help stimulate visitation outside peak periods and align with the principles of sustainable tourism. “This is just the beginning. Air New Zealand will continue to roll out support across Aotearoa, with more regions set to benefit from the programme in the coming months,” Hannifin added. Air New Zealand has previously faced flak for high fares, especially to the regions where it is often the only airline operating. But earlier this year the Commerce Commission decided not to initiate a market study into regional airfares. After looking into the domestic market in February and March, the commission decided a market study was unlikely to result in cheaper prices for consumers. It said major factors driving current concerns were structural and due to economic factors much broader than competition issues. “Many costs occur on landing, take-off or from having a plane on the ground.” Costs included airport landing charges, air traffic management and passenger security levies. Airlines had faced big fee increases, the commission said, and these had to be recouped from passengers through fares. Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for the Herald, covering small business, retail and tourism. Tue, 29 Jul 2025 03:20:48 Z /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-ally-singapore-airlines-takes-a-hit-from-air-india-s-financial-disaster/ /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-ally-singapore-airlines-takes-a-hit-from-air-india-s-financial-disaster/ Air India’s part-owner Singapore Airlines took a hit in its latest financial results, with profit well down from a year ago. Singapore Airlines’ first quarter results released today showed net profit down almost 60% year-on-year to SG$186 million ($242m). Singapore’s flag carrier is a close ally of Air New Zealand and also owns 25.1% of Air India. Air India registered a major financial loss, even for the period preceding the fatal June 12 plane crash in Ahmedabad. The Singapore Airlines Group’s total revenue was up 1.5% on a year earlier. It said the flag carrier and its budget carrier Scoot both achieved record passenger numbers in the first quarter of 2025/26. The group said it carried 10.3 million passengers, up 6.9% from the same quarter last year. “Despite economic and geopolitical uncertainties across the network, demand for air travel and cargo remained strong,” the group said. It said the fall in net profit was largely attributable to a lower interest income and losses at associated companies, especially from Air India. The Indian airline’s financial results were not part of the Singapore group’s results for the same quarter last year. Indian conglomerate Tata Group owns 74.9% of Air India. Earlier this month, Tata Group said Air India registered an annual loss of Rs108.59 billion ($2.09b) in the year to the end of March 2025. According to CNBC, Tata Group’s annual report represented Air India’s first financial statement as a unified entity. That followed the merger of Air India, Air India Express, Vistara and AirAsia India. Air India’s chief executive is New Zealander Campbell Wilson. Singapore Airlines in June told the Herald it would bring the giant Airbus A380 to Auckland next summer. The A380 is the world’s biggest commercial passenger aircraft and the only full-length, double-deck jetliner. Singapore Airlines and Air New Zealand currently operate 21 weekly services between Auckland and Singapore. One-third of those are in Singapore’s Airbus A350-900 twinjet and the rest are on Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777-300ER twinjets. Singapore Airlines also operates seven weekly services from Christchurch to Singapore, on A350s. John Weekes is a business journalist mostly covering aviation and court. He has previously covered consumer affairs, crime, scammers, politics and court. Tue, 29 Jul 2025 01:13:37 Z /lifestyle/technology/wiz-hdmi-sync-box-with-tv-backlight-gradient-light-bars-and-gradient-floor-light-at-last-theres-a-cheaper-way/ /lifestyle/technology/wiz-hdmi-sync-box-with-tv-backlight-gradient-light-bars-and-gradient-floor-light-at-last-theres-a-cheaper-way/ TV backlighting is perhaps one of the more unnecessary bits of tech you can invest in. As much as I personally love it, it's certainly not something you need, especially given how much it can cost to set up. Philips Hue has led the way in this department and I recently reviewed its updated 8K Sync Box - a crucial bit of kit you need before you can even start adding actual lights to your system. Oh... and if you go with Philips Hue, you'll also need something called a Hue Bridge - this is essentially the wireless hub any Philips Hue lights connect through instead of pairing directly with your Wi-Fi router. But why am I talking about Philips Hue when this review is about three different WiZ products? I wouldn't usually focus on competitor products in a review but in this case I'm making an exception because both Philips Hue and WiZ are owned by the same company; Signify. This is a phenomenon that pops up in the tech industry from time to time - two established brands competing with each other even though somewhere along the way they were brought (or bought) under the same umbrella. On the surface, one would assume the master plan is to appeal to different slices of the market - Philips Hue using its heritage heft to corner the more premium end of things while WiZ keeps it a bit more cheap and cheerful. What I've learned while reviewing the HDMI Sync Box with TV Backlight, Gradient Light Bars and Gradient Floor Light - all from WiZ - is the Venn diagram displaying every product from WiZ and Philips Hue shows quite a bit of crossover. It's easy to be confused by this so if you'd like to add some synced backlighting to your home theatre experience, I'll do my best to help. The first big difference between Hue and WiZ is you don't need the extra Bridge to connect and control your WiZ devices - just fire them up, open the WiZ app on your phone and they'll appear pretty much automatically. Using the app, you can create a whole WiZ home, naming the rooms and devices as you wish. That part's easy. However, it took me a while to find the section of the app that lets you configure your lights to sync with the picture on your TV. My impression is the WiZ app was designed to control all kinds of smart lighting and the TV sync box didn't turn up until fairly recently, so was just added to the app as a bit of an afterthought. That's not to say it doesn't work once you DO find out where the settings are - look it up under the "Library" tab, if you're wondering. There, at the top of the options, you can choose to sync your lights with video or with music. Music uses your phone's microphone to listen for the beat, tone and changes in volume to create a wireless light show to match. Meanwhile, once you choose the video option, you can then customise the sync mode - Cinematic, Vibrant, Relaxation or Rhythmic - and alter the brightness, saturation and intensity. You can set the lights to come on automatically when the HDMI Sync Box starts receiving a signal and you can even balance the brightness of whatever WiZ lights you've paired up. For example, in the video below I've plugged a Chromecast with Google TV into the WiZ HDMI Sync Box but the two Gradient Light Bars at the bottom of the screen seem to be a bit brighter than the TV Backlight strip running around the top and the sides - this can be equalised using the app. You'll also need to indicate exactly where you've placed the lights in the room - this part looks pretty much exactly like the same experience in the Philips Hue app. You simply slide each light around the room with your finger, adjusting the height and position so it can mimic the action on screen exactly. I like the way the WiZ HDMI Sync Box comes packaged with the TV Backlight strip, complete with its own sticky backing or the option of some little sticky clips to hook the Backlight up with. Unfortunately, the TV I was sticking it to had a textured surface that the little hook things refused to stick to, so I had to go with the more permanent sticky backing on the light strip itself. While I chose to use the WiZ Gradient Light Bars to fill out the effect along the bottom of my TV, if the base of your telly is obscured by a giant soundbar or something similar, you may feel you only need the effect of the Backlight strip on its own. The Gradient Light Bars also come with two kinds of mounting stands. You can set them up horizontally, as I have in the video, or you you might want to stand them up vertically and move them further out to extend the backlighting effect on either side of your screen. A pair of WiZ Gradient Floor lights can take this either further to each side or, as I have in my case, you can use one or two to project synced lighting effects on the wall behind you - working in much the same way as surround-sound speakers do. As you'll see in my video, this works brilliantly and the immersive way the rear-projected effect brings you into any scene with fire or explosions is particularly convincing. Another reason I've made the comparison to the Philips Hue range is you can't argue with the value for money. Right now, to buy the WiZ HDMI Sync Box with TV Backlight, the Gradient Light Bars and Gradient Floor Light altogether costs more than TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS LESS than the Philips Hue Play HDMI 8K Sync Box on its own. From what I can tell, there's not a huge difference between the WiZ Gradient Light Bars, the WiZ Gradient Floor Light and their Philips Hue Play counterparts. Build quality seems great, with nice brightness and colour, although I will say the base of the Floor Light is fairly narrow and it's not super stable on uneven surfaces like thick carpet and plush rugs. And when it comes to the WiZ TV Backlight, my impression is it's just not as bright as the Philips Hue version - although not everybody has the privilege of testing them together like I do and you might not notice in isolation. I certainly appreciate how much thinner, lighter and more flexible the WiZ strip is - it makes installation a breeze. But... to keep it real, there is a certain amount of "You get what you pay for" going on here. The first major consideration is how many video sources you have plugged into your TV. If it's just one Sky TV box, or perhaps an Apple TV or the like, that's fine. However, because the WiZ HDMI Sync Box only has one input, if you want fancy lighting effects for your gaming console or any other devices as well, that's going to be tricky. I assume you could (in theory) run everything through a 3rd-party HDMI switcher of some kind, and then plug THAT into the WiZ box but in my experience, picture and sound quality start to degrade pretty quickly the more devices that get in the way. Meanwhile, the Philips Hue Play 8K Sync Box has four inputs and yes, as you will have spotted, it's also capable of 8K transmission, when using the right source device and cables. Back on the WiZ box, the single input is only HDMI 2.0, not 2.1 - so 4K at 60Hz is the absolute best quality picture you can expect. Which for most people is plenty - so for most people, the WiZ option is definitely worth checking out. Click here for more information on the WiZ HDMI Sync Box with TV Backlight, Gradient Light Bars and Gradient Floor Light. Mon, 28 Jul 2025 00:14:26 Z /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-sights-bites-and-stories-in-york/ /lifestyle/travel/mike-yardley-sights-bites-and-stories-in-york/ Few British cities can match eye-catching York and its wondrous layers of history. Northern England’s walled city was founded by the ancient Romans, was conquered by the Vikings and also boasts a trove of medieval riches. The city’s storied history is woven into virtually every brick and beam. All these ingredients underpin York’s star-power, serving up a stirring sense of Ye Olde England, when tripping the UK. But it’s so much more than just a living museum.   York continues to evolve, on-trend with the hip and chic, with a wave of hipster hangouts and a foodie hot-spot too, touting a slew of Michelin restaurants, anchored by Yorkshire produce. I’ve just enjoyed a fresh fling with York as part of Trafalgar’s Real Britain Tour. This superbly guided tour is like a tasting plate of Britain’s finest, blending the best of England, Scotland and Wales into a seamless experience.  I loved striking out along York’s City Walls, known as the “Bar Walls.” They’re a sublime piece of history that the ancient Romans built to fortify the city.  There’s over 3km of surviving masonry, and the elevated perch delivers great vistas of the city from all the best angles. The whole route takes around two hours to complete. My effervescent Trafalgar travel director Selene led our convivial group on a thrilling introductory walking tour through the medieval streets of York’s centre, while regaling us with stories about some of the city’s most legendary inhabitants.   Walking the York City walls. Photo / Supplied The who’s who roll call included Dick Turpin. The notorious highwayman is buried here. He jumped off the gallows and killed himself, before they could hang him. My grandmother once told me that one of Turpin’s fellow riders is in our family tree! Then there’s Guy Fawkes, who was born here, just behind York Minster. Even further back in history, Constantine the Great is perhaps the city's most famous past resident. He was acclaimed as the Roman Emperor in York in 306AD, credited as being the Roman ruler to embrace Christianity after centuries of resistance. Towering above the tangle of the slinky old streets, a visit to York’s crowning glory, the colossal York Minster is a do-not-miss. Northern Europe’s largest medieval Gothic cathedral is a showstopper. Taking 250 years to construct, and completed in 1470, the honey-hued architectural masterpiece is majestic from the outside, aglow in the sunlight. But the seduction intensifies once you’re inside, with all its compelling features like the intricate and ornate ceiling in the Chapter House, the hallowed corridors, the nose-picking gargoyles, and the spectacularly crafted 128 stained-glass windows – headlined by the Rose Window. If you have a head for heights, climb the Minster's 275 steps for the most eye-popping panorama in excelsis.   York Minster. Photo / Mike Yardley  Nearly as iconic is the Shambles, a perfectly imperfect, medieval, cobblestone street that used to be the home to York’s butchers. The shadiness of the street was deliberately designed to protect the shelves of meat. Half-timbered crooked buildings lean at implausible angles in this atmospheric lane which brims with a stack of artisan stores like Shambles Kitchen, Monk Bar Chocolatiers and The Shop That Must Not Be Named. The latter is an independent gift shop that specialises in officially licensed Harry Potter merchandise. Wands, anyone?   The Shambles was the inspiration for Diagon Valley in the Harry Potter universe. I also loved the Shambles Sausage and Pie Company, although you’ll need to get here before midday to bag the best pies. In the adjoining open-air Shambles Market, there are fishmongers, butchers, bakers, food, flower and craft markets, and street eats. Definitely browse the daily market buzz. You’ll notice the word "Gate" all over York, which is an old Danish word for street or area. My favourite named street is Whip-ma-whop-ma gate. It is York's tiniest street and means "neither one thing or another."  Ambling through the Shambles. Photo / Mike Yardley  A new wave of bakeries has added to York’s appeal with the cool kids in town. Haxby Bakehouse is one of the new local heroes, swooned over for its French-style sourdough. You can’t go wrong with a slow-cooked beef cheek and chilli jam sourdough sandwich! Add to your check list, Bluebird Bakery, tucked away in the Shambles, for their divine curry puffs.   A more traditional mainstay is Bettys, a beloved York landmark, where you’ll probably have to queue to get a prime table. This resolutely old-school café and tearooms is where monochrome-dressed staff serve up delicious food and confectionery, cakes and pastries. Menu highlights include the signature Swiss Rosti and the homemade schnitzel. If the queues look too formidable opt for the takeaway patisserie. The vanilla slices are fluffy and crisp - custard-cream pieces of pure patisserie bliss.  Sweet treats at Bettys Cafe and Tea Rooms. Photo / Supplied Seek out some of York’s atmospheric old pubs. The city is not short of imbibing establishments, with more than 365 at last count. My favourite old boozers include the Guy Fawkes Inn, with its marvellously wonky wooden floors and a history lesson on Yorkshire’s notorious plotter. And drink in the history at The Blue Bell, York’s smallest pub. It’s a pint-sized wood-panelled Edwardian beauty, dating back to 1798, with Irish snug vibes.  Billed as the “Most haunted city in Europe” York groans with ghost stories and sightings, like the Grey Lady at York Theatre Royal, or the Golden Fleece pub which apparently is inhabited by 15 ghosts. If haunted happenings is your bag, there are tours galore. But for a walking tour with a difference, stake out the York Cat Hunt, a quirky walking trail around the city. A century ago, Sir Stephen Aitcheson put two cat sculptures on his building in Low Ousegate to scare away rats. The idea caught on with many locals installing cat figures as lucky charms. Local architects have since designed buildings with little black cats planted on top to further the tradition. The York Cat Trail takes in all the fabulous feline installations around York. The trail ends at York’s only cat cafe, The Cat’s Whiskers. Have a cuppa with the kitties or just tag along for the purr-fest.  York has an impressive assortment of museums, like the Jorvik Centre, where I took a liking to the Vikings legacy. Jorvik is the Viking name for York, and the centre is built on the site of the original Viking settlement, brilliantly reconstructing how life was in the 10th century. Alongside the excavation digs, ride a "time-machine car" which recreates the sights, smells and sounds of Jorvik life, studded with life-like animatronics. York Castle Museum, housed in two old prisons, is where Dick Turpin spent his final days. You can see his cell and even lie in his bed. Jorvik Viking Centre animatronics. Photo / Supplied But something to really toot your horn about is the free-to-enter National Railway Museum, celebrating its 50th anniversary. Boasting 100 locomotives, it’s a trainspotter’s fantasy, a giant trainset made real, as you trawl the staggering collection in the world’s largest railway museum. It enjoys enormous appeal beyond just the rain-jacket brigade. You’ll discover what made Stephenson's "Rocket" so successful. You’ll see the world’s fastest steam train, the Mallard, and Shinkansen, the Japanese bullet train is on display too. Plus, it’s home for the Flying Scotsman. Get amongst it!  Trafalgar’s 6-day Real Britain tour is a cracking romp covering iconic destinations like London, Bath, Cardiff, Liverpool, the Lake District, Edinburgh and York. In addition to guided sightseeing, there’s ample free time for personal discovery. In York, we also enjoyed a Be My Guest experience, heartily treated to a home-cooked roast in the stately residence of Whitwell House. It’s these sorts of authentic cultural encounters, along with local specialist guides in Edinburgh and Cardiff that enrich the entire trip with personal, meaningful connections. 2026 pricing for the tour is from $3,056pp. For full details head to trafalgar.com/en-nz/tours/real-britain   Mike Yardley is 九一星空无限talk ZB’s resident traveller and can be heard every week at 11.20am on Saturday Mornings with Jack Tame.  Sat, 26 Jul 2025 00:45:43 Z /lifestyle/travel/tourism-nz-s-everyone-must-go-campaign-boosts-australian-visitor-numbers-exceeding-targets/ /lifestyle/travel/tourism-nz-s-everyone-must-go-campaign-boosts-australian-visitor-numbers-exceeding-targets/ The Tourism and Hospitality Minister says the “Everyone Must Go!” campaign exceeded its target of bringing 6750 additional Australians to New Zealand over autumn. Louise Upston, who announced the campaign in February alongside Christopher Luxon, called it a “winner” as she claimed its controversial slogan had stirred up interest in New Zealand across the Tasman, contributing to a rise in visitor numbers. The campaign raised eyebrows at home and overseas, with some outlets reporting it to be tone-deaf as the country dealt with record emigration numbers. But it appears to have worked, with Upston revealing nearly 8000 extra Australian visitors had pumped an estimated $22 million into the economy – $5m more than was initially targeted. “Tourism NZ stats released to me show it delivering an additional 7981 visitors to smash its initial forecasts,” Upston said. “It also attracted significant attention on both sides of the Tasman, and got Kiwis and Aussies talking about New Zealand as a destination.” Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Tourism Minister Louise Upston. Photo / Dean Purcell Upston said tourism was essential to the Government’s plan “to grow the economy, create jobs, lift wages and help Kiwis get ahead”. “We knew Aussies would recognise it as a great opportunity. Just like they grabbed Phar Lap and pavlova, it’s proved the same story with ‘Everyone Must Go!’” Upston said more than 450 tourism operators had offered hundreds of deals on accommodation, transport and experiences throughout the campaign, driving up visitor spending. And because there was a “solid return” on the initial $500,000 investment in the campaign, the Government boosted the campaign with an additional $300,000. Tourism Industry Aotearoa applauded the campaign’s success, saying it’s “a great outcome for this activity out of Tourism NZ to drive measurable results”. Several regional tourism organisations (RTOs) also stood by the campaign results, with Love Taupō saying that “increasing our ability to engage consumers and trade globally is essential to stay competitive”. The campaign's slogan sparked international interest and discussion. Image / Tourism NZ “The opportunities to get into the international marketplaces with our national tourism agency [Tourism NZ] and the campaigns associated with Minister Upston’s regional booster are essential to capture the hearts and minds of international visitors – particularly Australians, who are likely to visit New Zealand at least four times in their lifetime.” With Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment data only available up until May this year, Hamilton & Waikato Tourism Ltd (HWT) said there’d been a small increase in visitor spending in the Waikato region in May compared to the year before. “During this same timeframe we have welcomed the return of international connectivity directly to our region – with Jetstar daily flights arriving directly to Hamilton Airport from Sydney and Gold Coast." HWT said the “Everyone Must Go!” campaign had generated much discussion abroad. However, there were other marketing campaigns also aimed at attracting Australians to Aotearoa “as a result of the Tourism Boost Fund distributed to collaborative groups of [RTOs]“. Thu, 24 Jul 2025 03:34:37 Z /lifestyle/why-you-should-buy-your-berries-in-the-freezer-aisle/ /lifestyle/why-you-should-buy-your-berries-in-the-freezer-aisle/ Is it true that fresh berries are more nutritious than frozen ones? The science: Summer is berry season in the United States – the best time to find many fresh berries, including blueberries, blackberries and strawberries. Many people prefer fresh berries for their yoghurt or cereal, certain recipes or healthy snacks. But when you can’t eat them fast enough – since they spoil, often within days – or they are out of season, frozen berries are the way to go, experts said. Commercially frozen berries can be just as nutritious – if not more so, in some cases – as fresh berries, experts said. Plus, frozen berries can be eaten all year, reduce food waste and save money by being more affordable, they said. “The best way to eat fruits and vegetables for their full nutrient content is to go out and pick them yourself and eat them or get them from your farmers market. But if you can’t do that, the frozen process locks all of the goodness in,” said Mary Ann Lila, a professor in the food, bioprocessing and nutrition sciences department at North Carolina State University. Berries contain vital vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants as well as anthocyanins, which are pigments that are “cardioprotective, neuroprotective, anti-hypertension and antidiabetic,” Lila said. Berries are at their best at harvest. During the individually quick-frozen process in which foods are passed through a freezing chamber, berries are picked at peak freshness, washed and frozen, sealing in the nutrients, experts said. These berries can be kept in a freezer for eight to 12 months without losing their nutritional content, said Laura Strawn, a professor in the food science and technology department at Virginia Tech. The vitamin content of frozen produce is comparable to and sometimes higher than fresh produce, according to findings from a study of eight fruits and vegetables, including blueberries and strawberries. “Frozen produce outperformed ‘fresh-stored’ more frequently than ‘fresh-stored’ outperformed frozen,” authors of another study noted. “It’s best to buy berries locally when in season and buy frozen when out of season,” though it depends on other factors, including personal preference and budget, said Basheerah Enahora, an assistant professor and nutrition education and behaviour extension specialist at North Carolina State University. What else you should know: Here are some tips from experts for getting the best nutritional value from berries – fresh or frozen. Various fresh berries in plastic trays in a food market stall. Photo / 123rf For fresh berries: – Buy them from farmers’ markets early in the day or from grocery stores that keep them refrigerated, then get them home as quickly as possible and store them in the refrigerator, said Wendy Dahl, a professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Florida. Dahl said she puts a cooler with ice packs in the trunk of her car to keep groceries cold during the trip home. Wash them right before you plan to eat them. Do not wash them in advance and store them, as water can encourage microbial growth that can lead to premature spoilage, experts said. Frozen mixed berries - red currant, white currant, blackberry, gooseberry, and black currant. Photo / 123rf For frozen berries: – Ensure that they do not contain added sugars, syrups and sauces, which should be listed on the nutritional label, said Virginia Stage, an associate professor and nutrition education and behaviour specialist at North Carolina State University. – Store them near the back of the freezer. When they are kept near the front, they may slightly thaw and refreeze when the freezer door is open, which is harmful to the berries, Lila said. Try not to wash them, as they are cleaned during the freezing process, experts said. Use them frozen in smoothies or thaw them to eat for a healthy snack or to use in recipes. Thaw them in the refrigerator rather than at room temperature, or if you need to thaw them quickly, put them in the microwave for a short time, Dahl said. The bottom line: both fresh and frozen berries have the same nutritional value, though fresh berries will lose nutrients much faster than frozen berries. Thu, 24 Jul 2025 01:16:21 Z /lifestyle/a-team-of-researchers-sifted-through-57-previous-studies-that-covered-160-000-people/ /lifestyle/a-team-of-researchers-sifted-through-57-previous-studies-that-covered-160-000-people/ People who walk 7000 steps a day have a dramatically lower risk of a broad range of serious health problems, the largest review of the evidence yet said today. The most widely promoted target for people tracking their number of steps is 10,000 - but that figure reportedly originally came from a 1960s marketing campaign for a Japanese pedometer. To find a more scientific target, an international team of researchers sifted through 57 previous studies that covered 160,000 people. The results published in the Lancet Public Health journal found that walking 7000 steps a day nearly halved people’s risk of early death from all causes, compared to 2000 steps. The study also looked into health problems not previously covered by research into step counts. Walking 7000 steps a day was linked to people’s risk of dementia falling by 38%, depression dropping 22% and diabetes decreasing 14%. It was also associated with lower rates of cancer and falls, though the researchers warned this was based on less evidence. “You don’t need to hit 10,000 steps a day to get major health benefits,” Paddy Dempsey, a study co-author and medical researcher at Cambridge University, told AFP. “The biggest gains happen before 7000 steps, and then benefits tend to level off,” he said. While people’s speeds vary widely, 7000 steps adds up to roughly an hour of walking throughout the day. Dempsey emphasised that people already managing 10,000 or more steps should keep it up. But he had a message for people who might find 7000 steps daunting: “don’t be discouraged”. “If you’re only getting 2000–3000 steps a day, aim to add an extra 1000 steps. That’s just 10–15 minutes of light walking spread across the day,” he said. Andrew Scott, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth not involved in the study, said that “it demonstrates that overall more is always better”. “People should not focus too much on the numbers, particularly on days where activity is limited,” he added. The World Health Organisation recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity a week. Nearly a third of people worldwide do not reach this target, according to the WHO. -Agence France-Presse Thu, 24 Jul 2025 01:12:35 Z /lifestyle/travel/qantas-drops-prices-of-transtasman-tickets-offering-219-flights-to-australia/ /lifestyle/travel/qantas-drops-prices-of-transtasman-tickets-offering-219-flights-to-australia/ Qantas has cut its transtasman prices in a flash sale for Australia-bound Kiwis with seats as low as $219. Starting today, Australia’s flag carrier will offer discounted fares to the five largest cities across the Tasman for 72 hours. Flights leaving Auckland to destinations that Qantas has recently connected – Adelaide, South Australia, and Perth, Western Australia – have been included in the airline’s price slash. However, flyers will have to pay full fare for the return leg, which is not included in the sale. The cheapest fares start from $219 one-way for tickets from Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Melbourne. Travellers can book flights from the same three New Zealand cities to Brisbane for a flat rate of $249, Sydney for $259 and Adelaide for $329. Flights departing from Queenstown to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane are also included in the sale, but at a higher price. Qantas has launched discounted fares on one-way flights out of New Zealand for 72 hours. Photo / Getty Images By stretching the wallet a bit more, travellers can book Premium Economy tickets during the three-day sale from Auckland to Brisbane and Sydney for $459 and $469 respectively. One-way Business Class tickets to various destinations are also being sold for no more than $559. Return tickets are not included in the sale. In May, Qantas began stirring up competition in the Tasman by introducing two new routes to rival Air New Zealand. A direct Auckland-Perth service was the first announced, with Qantas’ non-stop flights between the two cities restarting on December 8. A second new international route out of New Zealand, announced less than two weeks later, will connect Auckland to Adelaide from late October. Qantas is launching direct flights between Auckland-Adelaide (pictured) and Auckland-Perth. Qantas was recently hit by a cyber attack in which more than 5.7 million people’s unique customer data was stolen by cyber criminals, generating concerns the leaked data could be used to commit financial fraud and identity theft. However, a June on-time performance report by Aviation analytics company Cirium brought better news for the company. Data showed Qantas ranked eighth out of the airlines surveyed for its timeliness – beating Singapore Airlines and our own national carrier in the process. Qantas’ 72-hour sale fares: Economy Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Melbourne - $219 Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Brisbane - $249 Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Sydney - $259 Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Adelaide - $329 Queenstown to Melbourne - $269 Queenstown to Sydney - $319 Queenstown to Brisbane - $369 Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Perth (direct from Auckland) - $509 Premium Economy: Auckland to Brisbane - $459 Auckland to Sydney - $469 Business: Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington to Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne - $559 Queenstown to Melbourne - $559 Wed, 23 Jul 2025 01:28:22 Z /lifestyle/technology/samsung-galaxy-z-fold7-a-coming-of-age/ /lifestyle/technology/samsung-galaxy-z-fold7-a-coming-of-age/ If ever there was an example of the tech industry presenting us with a product nobody asked for, it's the folding phone. A flip phone? Sure. That made sense. Having the ability to essentially bundle your phone up to make it half its size was great. Much more pocketable. And you could protect the screen inside. And it made you look a bit like Captain Kirk using his communicator. But a phone that folded out to be twice as big? I'm a pretty big sci-fi fan and I can't think of any portrayal of the future where our phones were bigger, not smaller. And yet... Because they could, they did. They told us this was the phone that doubles as a tablet and amazingly, some people actually bought them and some of those people even used them that way. Despite the massive crease in the middle. Despite the terrible battery life. Despite the mediocre (and sometimes even plain bad) cameras. And despite the fact when you folded it up it was like having two phones in your pocket instead of one. This was what I like to call an Emperor's New Clothes moment; the folding phone was silly but everyone was too afraid to admit it. Well I'm here to tell you, things have changed. Now the only silly thing about it is the price. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 is available in four colours; Blue Shadow, Silver Shadow, Jetblack and Mint. It comes in 256GB, 512GB and 1TB options and has an RRP ranging from NZ$3,249.00 to NZ$4,099.00 - although whether anyone will ever end up paying over $4k for a phone is unclear as pre-orders of the 1TB variant are currently being discounted by $300 on the SamsungNZ site and there are some incredible bonus bundles out there too. Still, a lot of money - as the Galaxy Fold always has been. However, this year, finally, you might almost be getting what you pay for. Let's start with the size; The Z Fold7 is both bigger and considerably smaller - in all the right ways. The main display (unfolded) is now a full 8-inches - last year's was only 7.6. Because of that, the cover display has also expanded out to 6.5-inches but more importantly, it has a more familiar aspect ratio, no longer unnaturally tall and skinny in the hand. The even bigger headline is how slim Samsung has managed to make this thing; just 4.2mm when unfolded. It's lighter too; only 215 grams which means it amazingly now weighs slightly less than its S25 Ultra stablemate - and not much thicker, even when closed. Despite this incredible new slimness, there's a new feel of durability about the device - not only are the displays protected by some of the latest developments from Corning Gorilla Glass, Samsung has made the Armor Aluminium frame even tougher and has completely redesigned the all-important hinge mechanism, now rebranded as the Armor FlexHinge. This, in turn, has led to the least-visible crease on a Samsung folding display yet. In fact, the folding technology is now so good, I honestly don't even notice it. If I want a bigger screen, I just open the phone. It seems much more natural than ever before. Another significant, tangible upgrade is the camera configuration, both inside and out. I've been highly critical of the cameras on Samsung's folding phones from the very beginning. I just couldn't understand why you'd hamstring your most expensive phone with average photo performance. Then, to add insult to injury, they made the camera on the Fold3's main (internal) screen even worse. The under-display sensor was covered up (sort of) by larger pixels, rendering it (sort of) invisible - but at the cost of terrible quality photos and videos. Thankfully, at last Samsung has seen the error of its ways and reverted back to a decent 10MP punch-hole sensor, just like we're used to on any other handset. Now, if they could just move it to somewhere more practical, like the centre of one of the edges so we can actually look people in the eye when we're on a video chat. To be honest, I seldom use that internal camera for anything other than unlocking via facial recognition, not when now, finally, the primary camera array outside is so good. It's only taken seven generations but now we have a 200MP wide camera, a 12MP ultra-wide and a 10MP telephoto module that really stands out - both figuratively and literally. This is a classic illustration of the reality check Samsung has given itself; Yes, you can have one of the thinnest phones ever - but if you want great photos and videos, you'll have to put up with a big camera module. That's just physics. And I'm pretty sure Fold fans will be fine with that compromise. The 200MP main camera doesn't just mean incredible detail, it also does some cool stuff with light - as demonstrated by this twilight shadow shot... Meanwhile, the ultra-wide also performs like a flagship camera should... While the ability to zoom in on these crazy cloud formations above Mauao worked a treat. As an Android device, Gemini AI is pretty baked in. Sporting the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor, the Z Fold7 is more than capable of supporting AI functions like Google Gemini, not to mention all its native Galaxy AI tricks too. Do I know the difference between Galaxy AI and Gemini AI? Nope. Does it matter? Nope. Do things like multi-screen translation, Circle-to-Search and Object Eraser work better than ever? Of course. So who cares what it's called? Rest assured, there's plenty of NPU power to turn my dog into a 3D cartoon and more than enough graphics ability to play the latest and greatest mobile games on either the cover screen or primary display. A bit like how I said I no longer really notice the crease, the Galaxy Z Fold7's OneUI operating system has now evolved to a point where the transition from using an app like Outlook on the cover screen to the much more user-friendly wider version inside happens so smoothly and instantaneously, I don't even think about it. And that's the ultimate test of great tech; when things work so well, you don't notice them. I was shooting a video yesterday for a forthcoming review of a cooking appliance. I had an expert explaining how to use it and part of that was through the associated app. At which point, quite organically, I simply opened the Z Fold7 to see the recipe suggestions in their full, wide-screen glory. It wasn't until my guest commented on how cool that was I was reminded that yes, indeed, that really is pretty cool. Which it would have to be - remember, this phone is more expensive than most people's computers. Hell, it's more expensive than a lot of people's cars. In saying that, with the latest and greatest mobile chip, up to 1TB of storage and up to 16GB of RAM, this device could put a lot of other computers to shame. If you've been an early-adopting Fold fan from the start, it's probably more because you saw the potential of the device rather than being super satisfied with the reality of those first few iterations. Now all of that potential has been realised, so it might be time to upgrade and start living the dream.           Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7. Wed, 23 Jul 2025 00:27:56 Z /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-s-new-york-to-auckland-service-grounded-by-fuel-leak/ /lifestyle/travel/air-nz-s-new-york-to-auckland-service-grounded-by-fuel-leak/ Auckland-bound travellers heading out of New York with Air New Zealand have been stranded in the Big Apple after the aircraft being used was grounded with a fuel leak. It’s the latest disruption to the airline’s route, after the cancellation of services both ways earlier this month because of bad weather. Air New Zealand flight NZ1, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner that flies from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport to Auckland, was meant to depart at 9.55pm (local time) on July 19. However, the flight was cancelled after the discovery of a “minor, intermittent fuel leak” during routine pre-departure checks and crew duty limitations, Air New Zealand’s chief safety and risk officer Nathan McGraw said. “Our team on the ground in New York are working to fix the issue as quickly as possible. “We have scheduled a replacement flight for July 21, which all affected customers are being rebooked on. Air New Zealand's July 19 flight from New York City to Auckland was cancelled because of a fuel leak. Photo / 123rf “We sincerely apologise to our customers for the disruption to their plans and thank them for their understanding.” One affected person told the Herald that passengers who were booked on the July 19 flight were frustrated about how long it took for them to discover the fate of their flight. A scramble then ensued to book hotel rooms for those hit by the delays. At the start of July passengers leaving Auckland on flight NZ2 spent a night in Washington DC after thunderstorms and air traffic constraints in New York forced their plane to divert. Flights on the Auckland-New York route were also cancelled earlier this month after bad weather disrupted the plane's flight schedule. Photo / Brett Phibbs The weather disruption led to some scheduled NZ1 and NZ2 flights being cancelled in the days after. Mon, 21 Jul 2025 03:56:35 Z