Good News

BULLETIN 4 November

Good afternoon, here is your Good News:

# The highly anticipated La Dolce Vita Orient Express train will be launching in Italy in 2025. The train, which is inspired by the glamorous sophistication of 1960s and ’70s Italy, features nine passenger carriages. Three-Michelin-starred chef Heinz Beck will create distinct dining journeys inspired by the 14 Italian regions explored on the new train’s eight routes. These include a truffle route between Rome and Nizza Monferrato, and a Tuscan vineyards tour that visits Montalcino. Prices start from around 66-thousand-rand.

# Lindie-Alet van Staden from L’Ormarins Wine Estate in Franschhoek in the Cape Winelands, is the Western Cape Prestige Agri-Worker of the Year. The competition recognises the crucial role agri-workers play in growing the provincial economy and ensuring food security. This year saw a significant increase in participation from 36 entries in 2002 to one-thousand-233 in 2024. MEC for Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism, Ivan Meyer, says given Van Staden’s leadership abilities and skills set, she will continue to make a valuable contribution to the agri-sector.

# The Tshwane University of Technology hosted its annual Chancellor’s Awards ceremony at the Kievits Kroon Gauteng Wine Estate. The prestigious event recognised the outstanding academic achievements of the top seven graduates from each of the university’s seven faculties. They included the Faculty of Economics and Finance’s Simphiwe Patrick Xolo, Faculty of Science’s, Zanté Bester, and Faculty of Arts and Design’s, Alden Clapper.

# For the second consecutive weekend, Venom: The Last Dance, topped the Chinese box office, earning over 2.5-billion-rand. The movie sees Tom Hardy return as Venom, one of Marvel’s greatest and most complex characters, for the final film in the trilogy. In its opening weekend, Cesium Fallout starring Andy Lau and Karen Mok came in second with The Unseen Sister in third. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the fourth Harry Potter film to be re-released was fourth, and the Chinese horror film Yuanyang Lou in fifth.

# And finally: Collins Dictionary has named, brat, as its word of the year for 2024, defining it as someone characterised by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude. The UK-based dictionary publisher credited British singer Charli XCX with making brat one of the most talked-about words this year. Other words that made the shortlist included delulu, meaning to be utterly mistaken or unrealistic in one’s ideas or expectations, and anti-tourism. Last year, the dictionary named A-I as its word of the year.

Stay tuned for more news………….