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Link only: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/travel/travel-news/worlds-most-expensive-cruise-15-million-for-28-countries-20120227-1tyax.html

Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, who served as Speaker of the House and is now head of the House minority, is once again spending her Christmas at the exotic Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka'upulehu in Kona on the island of Hawaii. Pelosi reportedly plans to spend her Christmas Eve at midnight mass in St. Michael's Catholic Church in Kailua-Kona. Pelosi spent the last two Christmas holidays in Kona at the same hotel in an elaborate suite that rents for $10,000 a night.

December 12, 2011, 9:02 PM HKT Latest China Knock-Off Craze: Luxury (Shopping) Bags The ability to flaunt Gucci and Chanel shopping bags has long drawn Chinese shoppers to luxury labels. But now China’s high-end show-offs are figuring out that there’s no need to spend thousands of yuan for a bag that’s available online for a mere fraction of the price. According to a report in the state-run China Daily, shopping bags emblazoned with names like Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Prada and Burberry have become the latest must-have among Chinese online shoppers – and in true China fashion, most of them...

Airline lobby passing out 'barf bags' at DC airport to protest flight tax By Keith Laing - 10/31/11 04:09 PM ET Hoping to convince passengers to be "sick" about President Obama's proposal to increase taxes on flights, the airline lobbying group is distributing "barf bags" that are normally provided on flights at a Washington airport. As part of its Stop Air Tax Now campaign, the Washington, D.C.-based Air Transport Association said it would pass out motion sickness bags with information about the president's proposal to increase the take-off fee for flights at Washington's Reagan Washington National Airport. Obama has suggested...

Chinese Spend More Money On Luxury Goods Than Europe And The U.S. Combined Gus Lubin Oct. 27, 2011, 5:06 PM The size of China's luxury boom is absolutely incredible. Here are some facts based on a UBS report: * Last year emerging Asia accounted for around 50% of global luxury sales, most of which came from China. The Chinese probably spent more on luxury than the Americans and Europeans combined. * Emerging Asia accounted for 60% of luxury growth. * Tourists from emerging Asia account for half of luxury sales in Europe and 15% of sales in the U.S. Most...

North Korea's luxury goods imports surge North Korea's imports of luxury goods for its ruling elite have surged in recent years despite chronic food shortages and international sanctions, a South Korean politician has said. 3:04PM BST 19 Sep 2011 North Korea spent $272.1 million (£173 million) in 2008, $322.5 million (£205.2 million) in 2009 and $446.1 million (£283.8 million) last year on importing luxury items, Yoon Sang-Hyun of the ruling Grand National Party said in a report disclosed during a parliamentary meeting. "Despite international sanctions and persistent food shortages, North Korea has increased imports of luxury goods," he said, citing...

The man allegedly behind Norway's devastating terror attacks, Anders Behring Breivik, is now under arrest. And he should count himself lucky for—if entirely undeserving of—a penal system in that country that is among the cushiest in the world. There's no capital punishment, and the longest jail term allowed is 21 years (a caveat: if a prisoner is deemed to still be a threat, his sentence can be extended in five-year blocks indefinitely, though it's highly unlikely, according to Norwegian officials). In Norway, rehabilitation is the guiding principle, not punishment—a somewhat difficult notion to swallow given the gravity and callousness of...

It seems improbable to some that Hyundai, the company that once sold a car so inexpensive you could charge it on a credit card, would unleash a car that costs $58,000 and competes with the finest luxury cars in the world. Those who sniff with disdain may do well to remember that some esteemed luxury automakers had humble origins. Consider, for example, Jaguar, which started as a manufacturer of motorcycle sidecars. Given that every automaker has access to the same auto- industry suppliers, and thus the same technology, it comes down to this: Which brand do you like, and how...

TAMPA - Luis Mercado was on his way from Tampa International Airport to Miami International Airport last week. Instead of heading to an American or Continental Airlines flight, he rode an elevator downstairs to board a RedCoach luxury bus. The half-million dollar coach is equipped with 27 individual leather seats in a bus designed to accommodate twice as many seats, a spacious arrangement with WiFi connections, LCD movie screens and a GPS tracking system. The amenities primarily target business travelers on intrastate trips to compete with air service bedeviled by baggage fees, security line waits and crowded airliners. "I have...

Say hello to the Wally-Hermès 'Villa Yacht'... French fashion house Hermès teamed with Monoco's Wally Yachts in 2009 to develop the 'WHY' mega-yacht (= Wally-Hermès Yachts)... the first example of which is now nearing completion in an Italian shipyard... this thing is wild.More pics/info/company video at Reaganite Republican

HOUSTON - From the exterior of Kennedy Place, it looks like any other upscale apartment complex. Inside you'll find faux granite top counters, a matching refrigerator, stove, dishwasher and an alarm system. Move over to the amenities room and there are flat screens in the lounge area, computer and workout rooms. The only thing different about this apartment complex: it’s public housing . Sheila Johnson has lived at Kennedy Place for that last seven years. She remembers when it used to be a 30-year-old building with lots of crime. But after $11 million in renovations, there are three-story units with...

NEW DELHI: The First Lady loves Indian food, especially the mutton and daal she sampled at the Prime Minister's banquet on Sunday night. Her younger daughter, Sasha, wants to become a dancer and when this wife has a tiff with her husband, he has to make up first. In an interaction with 17 school girls from rural areas of the country at the National Handicrafts and Handlooms Museum, Michelle Obama spilled the beans on who calls the shots at home. Awed by her presence at first, the girls stammered and stuttered but by the time the one-hour session was over,...

NEW DELHI: When US President Barack Obama reached ITC Maurya on Sunday evening, it was not just the traditional Indian welcome complete with the tilak awaiting him there. Two Indian brides did the honours — part of Maurya's ''Brides of India'' welcome reserved for visiting heads of state. According to sources, two women — one dressed in a Rajasthani bridal lehanga and the other in the traditional Banarasi sari of a Bengali bride — welcomed Barack and Michelle to what will be their home during their stay in the city. ITC chairman Y C Deveshwar too was present when the...

Kim Jong-il's Label Addiction Revealed From top, Perrier bottled water, Martell Cognac, Moreschi shoes and Scabal fabrics From top, Perrier bottled water, Martell Cognac, Moreschi shoes and Scabal fabrics Kim Jong-il's Mao suit is anything but affordable and utilitarian, according to a defector who used to supply luxury goods to the North Korean leader. "It should be called a luxury suit instead," said the defector, who requested anonymity. While working for the regime, his job was to tour the country's embassies and consulates overseas and buy goods for Kim. "In the early 1990s, I was ordered to buy fabric for...

When Prince Andrew was pictured on a yacht getting touchy-feely with a woman half his age, the denials came thick and fast. They're just friends, said a source, and anyway, she's married. But now it turns out 25-year-old Alexandra Escat is in fact single - and the pair have since been seen jetting off together. The Duke of York, 50, was seen engrossed in a playful conversation with the Filipino model on a luxury yacht last week.

Someone who bought a rare Bugatti, Jaguar or Ferrari in top condition would have done better during the downturn than an investor in almost any other asset, industry observers say, including stocks, fine art or even gold. “There has been a flight into real assets,” says Historic Automobile Group founder Dietrich Hatlapa, a former Baring Securities and ING banker and collector who designed the HAGI Top, a new index that tracks the prices of a cross-section of historic cars. “People want something they can look at and touch in the evening, rather than a piece of paper in the...

Advertising often results in overspending and over-consumption by creating artificially induced needs. The usual catch phrases are "New", "An exclusive offer", "Everyone has one of these", and/or "You deserve the best." Other fallacious "Protect your children with ..." not to mention lastly "Want to know what women really like?" manipulate the minds of targeted groups and raise/lower self esteem to encourage people to purchase their products.

China Becomes World`s No. 2 Buyer of Luxury Goods MARCH 05, 2010 09:29 China ranked second in the world last year in purchases of high-priced luxury goods, the English-language newspaper China Daily said yesterday. The state-run newspaper said only some 100 super-rich people with assets of at least a billion yuan (143 million U.S. dollars) in mainland China can afford a private jet. In the article headlined, “The super-rich have a craze for luxuries,” the daily said they are among the world`s top buyers of luxury goods, lavishing their money on all kinds of expensive goods ranging from pricey handbags...

North Korean who shopped for dictators goes public By VERONIKA OLEKSYN, Associated Press Writer 14 mins ago VIENNA – A North Korean colonel who spent two decades going on European shopping sprees for his country's rulers said Thursday the late dictator Kim Il Sung lived in luxury while many people struggled to survive in his impoverished communist nation. Kim Jong Ryul, who spent 16 years under cover in Austria, also described how the "great leader" and his son and successor Kim Jong Il spent millions pampering and protecting themselves with Western goods — everything from luxury cars, carpets and exotic...