TORONTO – A new study suggests a barrier erected on a Toronto overpass that was once the second-most frequented bridge for suicides in North America is serving its purpose.The study from Sunnybrook Hospital, published in the journal BMJ Open on Tuesday, compares the 11-year periods before and after the barrier went up on the city’s Bloor Street Viaduct.Researchers say an average of nine people a year had been dying by jumping from the bridge before 2003, placing it behind only San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge for suicides-by-jumping.Since the barrier was put in place, however, the study found only one person has died by suicide at the site, a 485-metre overpass that spans a multi-lane highway, ravine and another major roadway.A previous report that examined data up to 2007 suggested suicide traffic had relocated to other nearby bridges, but the latest research suggests suicide rates across the city dropped over the long term after the barrier went up.One of the study’s authors says the latest data is in line with other international research suggesting that barriers in key locations are effective.“The barrier did have its intended effect,” study co-author Dr. Mark Sinyor of Sunnybrook said in a telephone interview. “There was a decrease in deaths by jumping from bridges in Toronto by roughly the same number as the number that had previously been dying at the Bloor Viaduct, without an increase by other methods or locations.”Sinyor said similar research has found the number of suicides-by-jumping at dozens of other sites with barriers in place have decreased noticeably.At Edmonton’s High Level Bridge, for example, city statistics indicate the number of both suicides and general mental health calls was cut in half a year after barriers were installed in 2015.Sinyor said the Bloor Viaduct was previously viewed as an outlier in the mental health community because of the results of the previous study. That report documented a sharp decline in the number of deaths at the bridge itself, but also tracked a spike in suicides at other locations.Researchers now attribute that finding to heavy media coverage in local print news outlets of deaths at the Bloor Viaduct and the debate as to whether or not the barrier was worthwhile. Sinyor said the connection was implied due to a slight increase in the number of general suicides within days or months of such coverage.Over time, though, he said that effect has diminished. Suicide rates across the city have fallen due to a number of factors including the barrier, he said, crediting increased mental health supports, more open discussion surrounding stigma and heightened media sensitivity to such issues for a sharp decrease in recent years.Average annual suicides in Toronto fell from 257 in the 11 years before 2003, to 234 in the 11 years after, according to the study.Sinyor said those numbers highlight the need for a wide complement of suicide prevention measures, a view shared by Mark Henick of the Canadian Mental Health Association.He called for a national suicide prevention strategy as well as ongoing support for mental-health care.He said the effectiveness of bridge barriers can even be enhanced by posting signs directing vulnerable people toward key resources and messages emphasizing that help is available.“Suicide is preventable,” Henick said. “When people get the help that they need, recovery is not only possible from mental health problems, it’s likely.”
NEW DELHI — In a season of big Indian weddings, the Wednesday marriage of two billionaire scions is set to be the biggest of them all.The bride, Isha Ambani, is the Ivy League-educated daughter of industrialist Mukesh Ambani, thought to be India’s richest man. Forbes estimates his net worth at over $43 billion.The groom, Anand Piramal, is the relative pauper. His father, industrialist Ajay Piramal, is thought to be worth $10 billion.The wedding is being held in Mumbai on Wednesday but festivities began weeks ago, starting in September with an engagement party at a lakeside Italian palace. Over the weekend, thousands attended pre-wedding parties at a 16th century palace in the Indian desert city of Udaipur, where videos shot by partiers showed Hillary Clinton dancing with Shah Rukh Khan, one of India’s biggest movie stars, as former Secretary of State John Kerry danced just a few feet away.The highlight, though, was a performance by Beyonce, who sang “Crazy In Love,” among other hits, with a band backing her up and a series of costume changes that included at least one India-inspired outfit.“Beyonce Lights Up Udaipur,” the Times of India shouted in a Tuesday headline.Indian weddings are famously elaborate, driving many families into debt with expectations that they invite hundreds or thousands of people, and arranging professional song-and-dance shows.Among India’s rich, weddings are displays of almost unimaginable wealth, with guests flown in on chartered jets from around the world and celebrities paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for brief appearances. In 2004, a daughter of Indian steel baron Lakshmi Mittal held her engagement party at Versailles.The Indian media noted that the Mumbai wedding was expected to be a relatively small affair, with just 600 or so people in attendance.Antilla, the Ambanis’ 27-story Mumbai home, has been strung with lights for the wedding, looking like a small skyscraper at night. The family is said to have reserved hundreds of hotel rooms for their guests.The competitiveness of India’s wintertime wedding season is growing more extreme, according to Archana Dalmia, a social activist in New Delhi.“A farmer might commit suicide because he can’t save enough money to get his daughter married,” she said.The extravagant wedding of Indian actress Priyanka Chopra and American singer Nick Jonas earlier this month — attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — was straight out of a Bollywood film.So-called dowry deaths — brides killed when their families fail to meet in-laws’ dowry demands — constitute a substantial share of all female homicides in India, a 2018 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime report found.While opulence has always been a feature of Indian weddings, families used to hand down bridal saris as heirlooms. No more, Dalmia said.“This generation is very different. Priyanka Chopra will never be able to wear it again and she won’t be able to pass it down,” Dalmia said.Emily Schmall, The Associated Press
Patna: Union Minister Giriraj Singh’s “reluctance” to contest Lok Sabha polls from Begusarai was comparable to a kid refusal to attend school in the event of failing to complete his homework, the CPI candidate from the seat Kanhaiya Kumar has said.”Watched the news on TV and learnt that the BJP minister known for sending off people to Pakistan on free of cost tours is not ready to come to Begusarai for contesting the polls”, Kumar said in a Facebook post late Monday night wherein he did not mention Singh by name. Also Read – An income drop can harm brainA firebrand BJP leader, Giriraj Singh had caused a stir ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha polls when he said “those opposed to Narendra Modi should go to Pakistan.” He has continued with similar outbursts since then, the latest instance being his threat that those not coming out in support of the Prime Ministers Patna rally on March 3 would be deemed “anti-national” even though he himself ended up remaining absent on account of ill-health. “I have a nephew who, similarly, refuses to go to school whenever he fails to do his homework. But even he never thinks of sending the teacher to Pakistan. Neither does he hate anybody nor he wants to get anybody expelled Also Read – Shallu Jindal honoured with Mahatma Awardfrom the school”, Kanhaiya Kumar added sarcastically in the post. “This is the real India, vastly different from the shrill debates one watches on news channels”, the former JNU students union president, who first came into limelight upon being booked for sedition in connection with alleged raising of anti-national slogans at a function held inside the varsity premises. Kumars remarks came in the backdrop of Singh expressing unhappiness over his Nawada seat going to ally LJP this time. On Monday, he camped in New Delhi where he is believed to have tried to apprise the BJPs top leadership of his sentiments.
Stephen Mooney, defending Griffin – a religious studies teacher and housemaster at Sedbergh for 17 years – told the jury the boy was “confused” after suffering an illness earlier in the day.The barrister suggested the first boy may have learned of the text and went on to use it to his advantage to invent a pack of lies about Griffin.Mr Mooney said the first complainant – described widely as “a difficult pupil” – seized on the moment to get himself out of his own problems at the school by fabricating the allegations against Griffin.”What he has done is an evil thing. He may not appreciate how evil it was,” he said.A jury took less than a hour to find the “highly regarded” housemaster not guilty of five counts of sexual assault.Griffin, of New Road, Ingleton, North Yorkshire, had earlier been cleared of a sixth count of attempted sexual assault on the directions of Judge Tony Lancaster because of “insufficient evidence”.Speaking later alongside Sally, his wife of 35 years, Mr Griffin said: “It has been a harrowing 13 months. I am delighted it is over.”Andrew Fleck, headmaster of Sedbergh School, said the school was “pleased” with the outcome and “committed to the highest standards of safeguarding for pupils”. 
Christopher Griffin who has been cleared of sexually touching the feet of two pupils in their bedrooms late at nightCredit:Scott Heppell/PA Carlisle Crown Court heard the second complainant had texted a friend over his concerns about Griffin shortly after the housemaster left his room.Griffin, 58, denied he had a foot fetish and said the contact had been innocent as he checked on students during nightly rounds at Sedbergh School in Cumbria – founded in 1525, with term fees of £10,590.The father of the second boy even provided a statement of support for Griffin to the court in which he said he had “nothing but praise for Chris Griffin’s pastoral care of my son”.
A private school housemaster has been cleared of abusing boys after one of the alleged victim’s fathers wrote to the court to defend him.Christopher Griffin, a housemaster at the prestigious £10,000-a-term boarding school, was accused of “sexually touching” pupils’ feet in their bedrooms late at night.Two teenage complainants said they were pretending to be asleep when they claimed the married teacher came in and placed his hand under their bed covers.An investigation was launched in March 2016 after a pupil told authorities that Griffin would regularly place his hand under his duvet after midnight and stroke his feet and massage his lower legs for up five minutes.A second boy then alleged that the year before he had both his feet stroked and “lightly squeezed” one night by the defendant with his door closed. He also described how he could feel the defendant’s breath on his feet as he lay in his cabin bed. Want the best of The Telegraph direct to your email and WhatsApp? Sign up to our free twice-daily Front Page newsletter and new audio briefings.
The new case design protects the phone during regular use, but also allows easy tripod mounting thanks to a sliding rail mount. This new mounting clip can be attached in either landscape or portrait orientations. An included camera adapter clip allows the tripod to be used with traditional photo and video cameras weighing up to 12 ounces.In addition to providing an adjustable tripod for shooting photos and video, the GorillaMobile for iPhone4 also serves as a hands free stand for the phone itself. The adjustable arms of the tripod let users make FaceTime calls and watch movies unencumbered. Like previous versions of the GorillaPod and GorillaMobile stands, the iPhone 4 model has three legs made up of several articulated joints, providing a wide range of motion. Each segment has thermoplastic rubber rings for grip, and the three legs have feet of the same substance to provide traction.The GorillaMobile for iPhone 4 is available for $39.95 through Joby.com. Joby, the makers of the instantly recognizable GorillaPod, have announced their most recent product, the GorillaMobile for iPhone 4. The new product brings the versatility of the GorillaPod tripod to the iPhone 4, allowing users to do more with their phones.Where previous GorillaMobile iPhone accessories made use of a full case and an integrated mounting clip on the back of the case, the iPhone 4 model uses a snap-on bumper case. The hard plastic bumper case allows unimpeded use of both front and back facing cameras and the camera flash. 
I’m sure more than a few gamers now check to see if a game is published by EA before deciding to buy. The reason: Project Ten Dollar, officially known as EA Online Pass.OP was introduced to try and offset the impact of used game sales on publishers by charging an extra $10 to anyone who wants to access online features in a title. You can buy and play a used game as normal, but some or all online features may be blocked until you pay for a pass. That may work for EA, but for gamers it means an extra $10 on the price of buying a used game for the full experience the developer intended you to have.AdChoices广告Crysis 2 is being published by EA, and the FPS is certainly going to have a memorable multiplayer experience. A perfect game for EA to impose OP for, right? Wrong. According to Crytek the game will not use it.EA can only impose OP on the games it has direct involvement with developing and publishing. Crytek is part of the EA Partners program which is slightly different. More control stays with the developer because they aren’t owned (or funded I believe) by EA and therefore they retain an option to use OP or not.Crytek decided against OP because they see it as a blocker for gamers trying the multiplayer experience on console. Also, at the time they had to decide whether to use it or not the OP project was still being established so it was unclear exactly how well it would work or be received by the public.So anyone picking up Crysis 2 later this month can trade it for a decent price to a willing retailer, and then those buying it used can do so safe in the knowledge there is no multiplayer gaming charge imposed by EA.Read more at Gamertag Radio
When a soldier is out in the field he or she has to carry everything with them on their person. Extra weight needs to be removed whenever possible to allow the soldier to be more mobile and able to travel longer distances without becoming tired, or move quickly in a hostile situation.Modern equipment consists of a number of electronic gadgets that all require power, and therefore multiple batteries. But a new e-textile is set to revolutionize soldier uniforms and in the process lighten their load by a few kilograms.Intelligent Textiles has developed an electrically conducting yarn that can be woven directly into a garment. It allows power to be fed around the body without any cables being required. This offers two big advantages: the soldier no longer needs to carry any cables and several batteries can be replaced with just one larger unit.As the fabric has the conducting yarn throughout, ripping it does not stop the flow of juice. And with only one battery being required it can be located in a position that makes it easier to carry while at the same time rendering the devices that rely on it much lighter. It also means there’s only one battery to charge, or one battery to quickly swap out for another.The new yarn has been developed with funding from the Centre of Defence Enterprise (CDE) and has already been field tested working in the shirt, helmet, gloves, and backpack a soldier wears. It should open up the possibility for complete computer systems to be integrated directly into uniforms and a fabric keyboard is currently in development to aid that. The yarn may be targeted at carrying power, but where power can flow so can data, making it even more useful.The first to benefit from the new uniforms will be British soldiers. Intelligent Textiles is working with global defense company BAE Systems to enhance uniforms further. We should expect to see them being worn by soldiers no later than 2015.Read more at BBC News
MIRAMAR, FLA. (WSVN) – Surveillance video footage captured the armed robbery of a Miramar Publix, Monday morning.Cameras captured the suspect approaching a Publix employee before the store opened and forced the worker to take him to the store’s safe.The thief was able to get away with cash from the Publix supermarket near Pembroke Road and Hiatus Road.The employee wasn’t hurt.If you have any information on this robbery, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
– / 3 Many of Houston’s traffic problems stem from having a road that was built for another day and time, when there weren’t so many cars and people. One example of this is Northpark Drive in Kingwood, a busy road that runs east to west and carries traffic to I-69. “The roadway is very inadequate for, I think, just one way in and one way out on two lanes,” said Michal Wagner, a manager at Warren’s Gardens, a landscaping and garden supply company that sits along Northpark. “It bogs all the way down to the light at Russell Palmer so you can have several hundred cars in a row. And as we add more businesses, more traffic.”In front of Warren’s Gardens, there are two lanes in each direction along with a canal in the middle and intermittent spots to make a U-turn. Along with limited lane capacity, Wagner said the stoplight at Northpark and Loop 494 also slows things down. Added to that is an active railroad track.“And when people are trying to turn left they completely block one lane all the way back,” said Wagner. “So if we have an accident or any kind of thing it really stacks up.”Kingwood is represented by Houston City Councilman Dave Martin, who says the Northpark improvement project should have been done a long time ago. And it’s not just the heavy volume of traffic that causes problems. Martin pointed out that after Harvey, Kingwood residents were basically stranded because the road flooded.“As the mayor says, you have to build for success,” said Martin. “You have to elevate the highway so in the event of the next Harvey or the event of the next Ike, we’ll have the ability to use Northpark as an evacuation route because it won’t flood.”A two-pronged approachSo what do you do to fix it? Right now there are two projects being planned along Northpark. That includes elevating the road above the 500-year floodplain. The canal would be covered up, so two lanes could be added in each direction. They also want to build an overpass that would carry traffic over Loop 494 and the railroad tracks.The two projects are expected to cost over $80 million. Some of that money will come from the city, but much of it will come from the Kingwood TIRZ, formally known as the Lake Houston Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone.But the term of the TIRZ is set to expire in less than a decade. “We’re working with city council to extend the life of the TIRZ,” said TIRZ Chairman Stan Sarman. “We hope to have that approved through city council, if not here in December hopefully in January.”Sarman said that a 20-year extension is crucial so the TIRZ can get funding for the work.“It would give us 30 more years to sell some bonds and then pay them off,” he said. “The TIRZ out here pays off bonds or loans with the increment it obtains from the areas that were developed within the TIRZ boundary.”Meanwhile back at Warren’s Gardens on Northpark, Michal Wagner says as the amount of traffic continues to grow, that work can’t come soon enough.“Well I’m not an engineer or a traffic analysis-type person, but I think if we just had more lanes that we could carry the traffic a little quicker, especially the intersection at 494 and Northpark,” said Wagner.Council Member Martin is hoping they can get funding in place to actually start construction on Northpark late next year. 00:00 /03:46 To embed this piece of audio in your site, please use this code: X
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House Rating: 4 out of 5 SLAUGHTER SINEMA I say, if you’re going to make a horror film; have fun with it. That’s why I have always been so drawn to Grindhouse type cinema. Well this house immerses you in just that! This is our next original IP house of the year and it’s full of horrifying made up films such as Pumpkin Guts, Amazon Cannibals from Planet Hell and Cult of the Beast Baby. This house can be a laugh riot, that is until a random werewolf biker or insane barber pop out and try to attack you. The smell of popcorn is pumped through the house giving off that feeling of being stuck in an old and sticky 42nd street theater. This was easily one of my favorite houses of the event and the only original IP to get a perfect score. The best scare-zone of last year’s event gets the full fledged house TREATment this year. Michael Dougherty’s Trick r’ Treat is a Halloween classic among many horror fans and this house is simply a gift. Walking through Mr. Kreeg’s home as the holiday entity Sam stalks his prey was beyond delightful. Weaving past homes and through streets during the downtown Halloween party felt a tad desolate compared to the zone last year. But it was the school bus and the abandoned quarry that brought me back grinning from ear to ear. The masks and costumes in this house are breathtaking and the final scene where the wolves have their way with Mr. Wilkin’s is basically what this house was made for. Fans of this season, this one is a must!House Rating: 4 out of 5DEAD EXPOSURE: PATIENT ZERO Every fall a new darkness descends on Orlando, Florida. One that is constantly changing and evolving around the Universal Orlando property. Last year it brought out the horrors of Stephen King’s The Shining, Jigsaw, vampires, scarecrows and a chainsaw armed king to save us from all the devious tricks and treats.This year, Halloween Horror Nights 28 called back to 80’s nostalgia and brought us some really horrifying delights. Not only is the event going for a record breaking 36 nights that are happening now until November 3rd, but there are 10 amazingly themed houses, five scare zones and one intense live show. A lot of these are themed after some of the most iconic horror properties that will have fans turning into gluttons for punishment and returning night after night. This year Jason Blum’s house of horrors returns. Only this time Sinister and Insidious (two of the companies best films) take a backseat, while Happy Death Day takes their place and The Purge stays around for another year. I think by this point, it’s safe to say most of us are kind of tired of seeing The Purge at this event. Though I will say it was nice seeing only two films being represented in the house this year as opposed to three, which made you feel more immersed in each film. The Happy Death Day part of HoH did a fantastic job by throwing us into the slasher version of Groundhog’s Day as we re-lived each kill over and over again in the same setting. Sadly that is really the one part of this house that stuck out with most. I think it’s safe to say Sinister is ready for its own house!House Rating: 2STRANGER THINGS Here is another classic IP that was revamped and brought back. Dead Exposure: Patient Zero is pretty damn terrifying. This house is all about scaring you in complete darkness and the things you do see, you’re not sure if you really saw them or not. This one reminded me a lot of the film As Above, So Below. It takes place in the city of Paris, only you are not below it; you are stuck in the middle of the streets during a blackout in 198 as chaos reigns and death is surely nigh. Those who are not infected suffer from blindness, and the hordes of undead are coming. The outside of this house looks like the containment center set up outside Elliott’s home in E.T. Before walking in you are sprayed clean, making sure you do not contaminate the area. That’s over real fast once you enter a lab full of ravenous monkeys breaking out of their cages and ready to claw your eyes out. Through the streets you will encounter some of the most fun gags in any of the houses this year. I promise you that the terror is ramped up to eleven in this one! There you have it fiends! 10 houses of frights and terror based off some of the scariest properties of the 1980’s, along with originally conceived ones to boot. Hopefully this guide will help you pick which houses you should wait in line for. Especially if you are not purchasing a fastpass type deal this year. As I stated earlier, there are also five amazing scare zones, some based on some spooky fun properties as well. But I will be bringing you an inside look at those soon. I want to thank Universal Orlando for having me out and for throwing the best Halloween event in the country.
This is the parks 28th time running the event and they tend to outdo themselves each and every year. I’m back again and rating each house by how terrifying each one was. Think of this as your friendly guide through the terror. Keep all limbs inside the vehicle at all times now. You would’t want to loose them now. HALLOWEEN 4Our first stop was in Haddonfield, Illinois where we were pit face to face with none other than The Shape himself, Michael Myers. It was interesting seeing a house based on this installment of the franchise. It really did feel like we were walking in and out of a stack of old VHS tapes on Halloween night; because sometimes the video store was out of the first film on Halloween. This meant not only was Michael getting the scares, but fan favorite Jamie Lloyd in her classic clown outfit was as well, especially nearing the final act. Pulling in aspects of the thorn films was a nice touch, but this house felt a tad a quick and the abundance of Michael’s felt almost overbearing at times. But this cast was into it and I witnessed one of the best Dr. Loomis lookalikes I’d ever seen. I’d be thrilled to see another installment of the Halloween franchise at future events (come on Season of the Witch!)House Rating: 3SEEDS OF EXTINCTION This is the first original IP house we entered of the evening. The story involves humanity being wiped off the face of the planet by a meteor. Only a select few still roam the desolate planet, as humans. Most have been taken over by plant life and they crave human flesh. As you walk up to the house, you pass a school buss with tree limbs growing through through the vehicle and out the windows. Once inside all of your fears of piranha plants come to life as the walls next to you move in the shadows. Warning: This house has a lot of dripping water and spray gags. Though, that is not necessarily a bad thing when having to stand in hot Florida lines all evening. You’ll probably welcome the cool touch of dripping acid. This house blends its scare-actors into their environments so well, they attack mere inches away from your face. Once you turn a corner and realise you’re entering not a plant nursery, but an actual human nursery; the creep factor rises to the top. All I can remember screaming through this one was “The plants have teeth! The plants have real human teeth!” House Rating: 3½TRICK R’ TREAT House Rating: 5 out of 5BLUMHOUSE HOUSE OF HORRORS For fans of films like Fun House and House of 1000 Corpses, Carnival Graveyard: Rust in Pieces transports you into a terror filled carnival of sinister evil. You as a guest trespass into the old carnival that was once full of fun and delight. Now you discover that these old rides have transformed into rusty torture devices and are run by the most sinister ring masters and evil carnies this side of Coney Island. The walls are painted with blood and the the tunnel of love is now anything but. I love the look this one had and this is easily the sleeper hit house of the event. Will you make it past the houses evil dancing sisters alive?House Rating: 4 out of 5SCARY TALES: DEADLY EVER AFTERThis is the final original IP house of the event. Scary Tales has always brought the more sinister side of fairytales to the forefront and really focused on the darker moments of these fabled tales. This year the Wicked Witch of the West has cured the land of the fairies, twisting beloved stories beyond recognition. There are no fairytale endings here. From flayed childhood characters to large and hungry bears this house was full of surprises and really made me just want to watch the film adaptation. House Rating: 3 out of 5 This is the house everyone attending the event has been waiting for. We’ve all wondered what it would be like to enter the upside down and now the park is giving us that chance. This marks the first haunted house based on a Netflix series and Universal pulls no punches. You walk through the Byers residents, make your way through Hawkins and into the containment area where Eleven is being held. I’m not sure where Universal finds these adults to portray the kids from the series, but they are spot on! Even the moving demogorgon’s to the statues are beyond detailed. You cannot get a more immersive Stranger Things experience than this one.House Rating: 5 out of 5POLTERGEISTI don’t think I’ve ever met a person who has ever said they did not like this 1982 classic. That’s why it’s the perfect film to get a house at this years event. The thing I really loved about this house was that it lets you see the film from a different side of the lens. You actually walk through the ancient indian burial grounds smelling the dirt and decomposing bodies inches away from your face. Carol Anne Freeling announces that they are indeed here in many different and trippy ways. Even the ghostly demon who attacks is puppetered here in Orlando as opposed to the simply standing statue out in Hollywood’s event. A lot of love and care for this film went into making this one and that’s why it’s one of the best. House Rating: 5 out of 5CARNIVAL GRAVEYARD: RUST IN PIECES All photos via halloweenhorrornights.comGet your tickets for Halloween Horror Nights 28 here! Let us know what you like about Geek by taking our survey.
Cape Town is looking to cash in on the increasing popularity of cruising, as it considers upgrading facilities at its harbour to better accommodate cruise liners in the near future. “Most of the cruise ships that come into Cape Town dock in the Victoria and Alfred waterfront, so the accessibility into one of the best waterfronts in the world is right there,” Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU) marketing executive manager David Frandsen told e-Travel Blackboard in an interview at INDABA. “But when the big ships come in they have to dock in the main harbour, so we are looking at what we can do to create a cruise terminal there.” Describing the Western Cape as “absolutely perfect” for cruising, Mr Frandsen said the cruise market was “very important” for Cape Town. “Many of the big cruise line operators are saying that the South Indian ocean is probably the last destination as such that remains undeveloped from a cruising perspective, so there’s definitely a great deal of interest there.” Calvyn Gilfellan, chief executive of CTRU, the official destination marketing organisation for Cape Town and the Western Cape, agreed, saying the cruise market would open up “a whole new market” for Cape Town and the Western Cape. “In terms of marketing, the city is perfectly positioned to serve as a sea & safari destination,” CTRU chief executive aid. “Cape Town is widely considered as a gateway to Africa, so it would make sense that cruises originate from here and go up either the West or East Coast of the continent.” In related news, CTRU has announced its esCape to the Cape campaign, an initiative promoting the city and the Western Cape as a winter-time hot-spot. “This campaign positions Cape Town and the Western Cape as year-round destination, exposing travellers to experiences, attractions and activities that will enthral and captivate holidaymakers through the winter months,” Mr Gilfellan said. A temperature gauge on the campaign website showing visitors the activities that are available in different parts of the province during different climates will be one of the key features of the initiative. esCape to the Cape will run from mid-May to September 2011, with the campaign microsite to go live on 19 May. The Victoria and Albert Waterfront Source = e-Travel Blackboard: M.H