A volcano located in Russia is currently wreaking havoc on all trans-Pacific flights to and from East Asia. According to The Canadian Press, the Sarychev Peak first started shooting ash and smoke on June 12 and now airlines are trying to avoid flying through the 50-km diameter residue. Anyone planning to fly to the western coast of North America should double-check their flight status before leaving to the airport. Shanghaiist especially feels for anyone who has just been released from a week in quarantine, just to have their flight delayed and be placed right back in a hotel. more ›

The Chinese junk ship Princess Taiping, which was on a trip across teh Pacific to show how Asian sailors might have been able to reach North America before Columbus, has come to a tragic end. Just 30 miles off the coast of Taiwan, it's final destination point, the junk was run down and sunk by a 560-foot-long Liberian tanker. The tanker did not stop to help. "In the dark of night, I could see that dark hull. ... I could hear our people screaming, 'No! No!' I just couldn't believe it," The captain of the junk, Nelson Liu, told SF Gate. Luckily, Princess Taiping was equipped with an emergency beacon, and the coast guard swooped in to rescue all 11 crew members. They were shaken, but happy to be alive. No investigation into the matter is currently planned. Source: SF Gate more ›

Beijing will play host to an NFL preseason game next year, the professional American football league announced today (it had been rumored for a while). The New England Patriots will take on the Seattle Seahawks at 8:30 pm on August 8, 2007 in Workers Stadium. The game will be televised live in both the United States (NBC) and China (CCTV). (The Associated Press story, linked to above, said the game "will be shown live on NBC at 8:30 a.m. ET on Aug. 9. The dateline was "FOXBORO, Mass." -- forgive them if they don't quite understand how the time difference works up in New England.) more ›