Word: kingly
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Disney can pull strings that individual travelers can't, like obtaining backstage passes to The Lion King in London, after-hours use of the Vienna zoo and reserved entry to the gallery in Florence that houses Michelangelo's David. Anything but cheesy, the tours emphasize culture and environment, with activities like architectural tours of Paris' Notre Dame cathedral and expert-led hikes to track wolves in Alaska. The itineraries are an educational way to show kids the globe--beyond another lap on It's a Small World...
...anyone who enjoyed McAvoy in The Last King of Scotland, or Starter for 10 or even the absurd Wanted knows, he makes a charming tour guide of cinematic territories, whether it be the high court of Idi Amin, posh academics or sects of vengeful weavers. But enough is enough and Valentin ends up being the kind of guide who distracts more than he leads. He turns his metaphorical flashlight in our eyes, chatters on about himself and makes you long to slip away from the group, to steal some quiet time with the art - the Tolstoys - on your...
...fact that Thailand is today more deeply divided politically and socially than at any time since its communist insurgency ended in the early 1980s. In the past three years, the country has been rocked by demonstrations, a military coup, an airport takeover and riots. Since the early 1970s, King Bhumibol, a constitutional monarch, has served as a unifying figure and stabilizing force in Thai society, intervening on occasion to stop bloodshed between the military and democracy demonstrators and defusing political tensions.(See pictures of the 2008 protests in Bangkok...
...During the most recent bout of political warfare, however, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his followers accused the king's chief adviser, Privy Council Chairman Prem Tinsulanonda, of masterminding the military putsch that toppled him in September 2006. They have demanded that the powers of Prem, who has denied the charge. and other "palace elites" be reduced. Anti-Thaksin forces have in turn accused Thaksin of disloyalty to the monarchy. Thaksin has denied the accusations, and to show respect for the king on his birthday, called on his supporters to cancel massive anti-government street demonstrations they had planned...
...Meanwhile, thousands of well wishers turn up at Siriraj Hospital each day to pray for the king's health. Doctors have insisted that the king has improved and he is not in anything approaching a serious condition. But his long stay at the hospital and continued absence from public view has fueled unease, speculation and rumors. Recently, the government arrested four people for allegedly spreading rumors about the king's health on the internet, which, it claims, caused a stock market sell-off in October. Reporters Without Borders, an international media watchdog group, has said those arrested are scapegoats...