I'm Gina Smith

American Airline pilot shoots a bird at Brazilians, arrested.

Reuters | Latest Financial News / Full News Coverage

How do you say "hot head" in Portuguese?

SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) - An American Airlines pilot was arrested at Sao Paulo International Airport after making an obscene gesture while being photographed by Brazilian immigration officers, police said.

The pilot, identified as Dale Robin Hirsch, raised his middle finger at police to protest new Brazilian security measures that require U.S. citizens to be fingerprinted and photographed upon entering the South American country.

Brazil implemented the policy on Jan. 1 in retaliation for a similar U.S. program that requires those foreign visitors who need visas to have their fingerprints and pictures taken on arrival in the United States.

"He made an internationally known obscene gesture when he was being photographed by the Federal Police," Federal Police agent Wagner Castilho told Reuters. He said the other crew members were denied entry after refusing to cooperate with security officials.

The incident came just one day after Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva personally appealed to President Bush to suspend visa requirements for each other's nationals and thus fingerprint checks.

Castilho said the pilot will be charged with disobeying authority. A judge will decide whether Hirsch, 52, will be deported or tried in Brazil.

Hijab is hip in Jakarta

Reuters | Latest Financial News / Full News Coverage

Islam's All-Enveloping Hijab Is Hip in Indonesia

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Forget the stereotype image of Muslim women draped from head to toe in all-enveloping robes, or girls shrouded in modest white veils.

In Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, the Islamic Hijab is hip, particularly among the rich and upwardly mobile.

A walk through upscale shopping malls like Plaza Senayan in the capital Jakarta is a real eye-opener.

Women are covering up, but with a dazzling array of chic, colorful and often body-hugging Islamic clothes, often complemented by the latest accessories.

Many smart department stores have opened separate sections for Islamic clothes and stores offer an assortment of magazines and books dedicated to design and Islamic dress for the modern woman.

"Islamic dress has gone upper class," says fashion designer Mira Aviva Zaki on the sidelines of her show at Jakarta's Hilton Hotel.

Although most Indonesians have long opted for a relatively liberal interpretation of the Muslim dress code, the basic rule of covering the body from head to toe still applies.

I was in Malaysia a year ago. Here is a photo I took:

What do Florida, New York and the Taj Mahal have in common?

Thanks to spanglemonkey, here is the list of the top 10 of the top 50 places the BBC says we all need to visit in our lifetimes.

BBC - Holiday - 50 Places

1 The Grand Canyon
2 Great Barrier Reef
3 Florida
4 South Island
5 Cape Town's Golden Temple
7 Las Vegas
8 Sydney
9 New York
10 Taj Mahal

It seems bizarre that the Taj Mahal and Florida are mentioned anywhere near each other in any list anywhere. But I am from Florida, which is how I know to suspect that probably the Sunshine State's powerhouse tourist board lobbied hard for this mention. (That explains the inclusion of Florida, and the absence of Paris and Bali from this list. Non?)

It's Iftutu in Zulu.

Back when I used to travel to NYC from San Francisco once a week -- this whole story is in an earlier post somewhere -- I kept a notebook with me. I'd get the cab driver to tell me a few things in his native language. How to count. Simple greetings. Songs and rhymes and prayers, whatever seemed relevant.

I still have this notebook. Yet another notebook on my messy desk that I won't throw away. (But if you ever notice that I can have a lengthy polite conversation in Urdu, this is why. Lots of Urdu-speaking cab drivers!)

In that spirit, in case you ever need to know how to say "turtle" in a bunch of different languages, carry the following list where ever you go. We're blogging now, baby.

Afrikaans - Skilpad
Muskogee Creek - Locv
Arabic - Fakroun
Polish - Zolw
Chinese - Gui, Wangba
Portugese - Tartaruga, Cagado
Czech - Zelva
Russian - Czerepakha
Dutch - Schildpad
Spanish - Galápago, Tortuga
English - Turtle, Tortoise
Swahili - Kobe, Kasa
French - Tortue
Swedish - Sköldpadda
German - Schildkröte
Thai - Tao
Hindi - Kacchua Tsalagi
Cherokee - Saligugi, Daksi
Indonesian - Kura-kura
Turkish - Kaplumbaga
Italian - Tartaruga
Vietmanese - Danh tõ
Japanese - Kame
Zulu - Ifutu