Around the world
Seville, Spain Have a tranquil stay in a convent
A convent in Seville is renting out rooms through the website Airbnb. The Convent of Saint Mary of Jesus is home to 18 nuns (women who dedicate their lives to religion). The nuns already run a pastry business to help them look after the old building but rising costs led them to look into other ways of making money.
Pakistan Election results cause chaos
On 11 February, election results showed that 93 seats in the country’s National Assembly went to independent candidates who were backed by the PTI party. Seventyfive went to the PML-N party. Both declared victory but protests broke out after PTI supporters said that the results had been changed by the military.
Brasília, Brazil Children given dengue vaccinations
On 9 February, children between 10 and 14 years old started receiving vaccinations (a medicine that trains the body to fight off a specific infection) against dengue fever. Dengue is an infection spread by mosquitos. High temperatures and more rain than usual are thought to be causing an increase in mosquitos carrying the disease.
Brabant Island, Antarctica Returning to remove rubbish
A Royal Navy research ship called HMS Protector took sailors to a remote island to remove equipment that was left there by another Royal Navy ship 40 years ago. It was HMS Protector’s second time visiting the island. In 2017, sailors weren’t able to get everything off the island because it had frozen. This time they managed to take away three tonnes of rubbish.
Halberstadt, Germany Long song carries on
An organ that has been playing the same piece of music since 2001 has just played a new chord for the first time since February 2022. The piece, called As Slow as Possible, isn’t due to end until the year 2640. It was created by John Cage and is thought to be the longest and slowest piece of music in the world. The organ should now play the same note until the next one is played on 5 August 2026.
Kyiv, Ukraine New army chief
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has chosen a new head of Ukraine’s armed forces: Oleksandr Syrskyi. General Valerii Zaluzhnyi had been army chief since before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. However, he and Zelensky had different opinions about how best to fight the war. Zelensky said that changes in Ukraine’s army were needed in order to win the war against Russia.
Uttarakhand, India Unmarried couples law
On 6 February, a law was passed in the state of Uttarakhand that means unmarried couples living together must tell the authorities. If they don’t they could have to pay money as a punishment or even end up in prison. Some people in India think unmarried couples shouldn’t live together. However legal experts said that authorities shouldn’t be involved in people’s personal relationships.
Azerbaijan Aliyev wins another election
President Ilham Aliyev was named the winner of elections held on 7 February. The authorities say Aliyev, who first came to power in 2003, won more than 90% of the votes. Critics have said the election was not carried out in an honest way. Several of the president’s rivals refused to take part in the election, claiming it was not run fairly.
Hokkaido, Japan Orcas swim to safety
On 7 February, officials said that a pod (group) of killer whales who had got trapped by ice off the coast of
Japan had escaped. The animals, which are also known as orcas, were spotted bobbing up and down in a small patch of water surrounded by ice. Officials think that gaps appeared in the ice, allowing the whales to swim to safety.
Mount Everest, Nepal Poo rules for climbers
New rules mean Mount Everest climbers now have to bring their poo back down to base camp (campsites at the foot of the mountain). Mountain climbers normally either dig a hole to go to the toilet in or poo out in the open. Low temperatures mean the poo is preserved and there’s so much that it has started to smell.