Features

BARCELONA — When they were just eight years old, Spanish twins Sergio and Javier Torres set a goal: they wanted to become chefs who were among the top in their field. 

To achieve this, they strategically split up to get training in different esteemed kitchens around the world, published books on cooking and presented a popular TV show.

The plan worked.

Over four decades after they surprised their family by saying they wanted to be chefs, Sergio and Javier’s Barcelona restaurant, Cocina Hermanos Torres, was awarded a third Michelin star last month.

“We developed a plan, that I think is a perfect plan,” a smiling Javier, 51, said at the restaurant, one of only 13 in Spain and Portugal with the top three-star ranking from the prestigious French guide.

“When we started to go out of Barcelona, we thought that Sergio would take one path, I would take another, and we would never coincide until we were ready,” he added.

The journey took the twins — who grew up in a working-class Barcelona neighbourhood — to different elite restaurants in Spain, Switzerland and France. 

Before moving to Paris where he worked with top French chef Alain Ducasse, Sergio spent two years at the award-winning Le Jardin des Sens in Montpellier which is also run by twins — Jacques and Laurent Pourcel.

“We were separated but every month we met up in a restaurant, ate well, we spent the little money we had and developed the next steps of our strategy,” said Sergio as he sat beside his brother.

Grandmother influence

Each brother specialised in different areas — one learned to cook meat and vegetables, the other fish and bread, he added.

Both siblings credit their grandmother for their passion for cooking.

She was part of a wave of people who moved from the southern region of Andalusia to the more industrialised Catalonia in the northeast in search of a better life following Spain’s devastating 1936-39 civil war.

“Our grandmother looked after us, and since she was in the kitchen all day we literally grew up in a kitchen,” said Sergio.

After earning two Michelin stars with their previous project “Dos Cielos” and becoming familiar faces thanks to their participation in a cooking show, they decided to open Cocina Hermanos Torres in 2018.

The twins visited some 200 possible locations before settling on an industrial building near Barcelona’s iconic Camp Nou football stadium.

They invested nearly 3 million euros to convert it into the restaurant, which seats a maximum of 50 people at tables with no wall separating them from the three workstations where staff prepare meals.

“We wanted to reflect what we experienced in our childhood, which was a kitchen and a table, and everyone around the table,” said Javier.

‘Difficult road’

The tasting menu costs 255 euros ($265), with another 160 euros if it is paired with wine, a stiff price in a country where the monthly minimum wage is around 1,000 euros.

Praised for its creative and playful cuisine, among the dishes served is cured squid with poultry broth and an onion soup with Parmesan cheese and truffles.

“You will experience flavours that you have never experienced before, because you will discover a cuisine where you will like what you don’t like,” said Sergio.

On a recent visit at noon, 50 staff members — many of them young — are busy at work finalising details before customers arrive.

“It seems like today a chef is like a ‘super star’. It’s a very difficult road, very difficult, with long hours and it’s very hard to make it, it takes tremendous perseverance,” said Sergio.

“You have to risk it, go for broke, give it your all because if you don’t, you are not living,” he added with a smile.

WASHINGTON — Hollywood’s finest joined politicos including President Joe Biden for a rare night of Washington glitz Sunday, celebrating the newest Kennedy Centre honourees, including George Clooney and U2.

Soul legend Gladys Knight, along with Cuban-born American composer Tania Leon and contemporary Christian pop artist Amy Grant rounded out the 45th annual class receiving the highest US arts honour, after the elite group of stars enjoyed a special weekend in the American capital honouring their illustrious careers.

During the glamorous main event at the Kennedy Centre — Washington’s performing arts complex that serves as a living monument to slain president John F. Kennedy — the inductees were honored with seats in the opera house’s presidential box.

They joined the president and first lady as well as the vice president and second gentleman, along with other politicians including Nancy Pelosi and her husband, who was making a public appearance weeks after he was violently attacked and hospitalised when an intruder looking for the congresswoman broke into their California home.

Clooney — accompanied by his human rights lawyer wife Amal Clooney, who stunned in a glittering silver gown — told journalists on the red carpet that the event, which he had grown up watching on television in small-town Kentucky, was “exciting”.

Speaking at the traditional State Department dinner one night prior, Clooney, 61, joked that during his extensive travel, both as an artist and as a humanitarian, he was told one universal truth: “You sucked at Batman.”

The self-deprecating celebrity has an impressive list of films to his name, as an actor and as director and producer — “Michael Clayton”, “Syriana” and “Ocean’s Eleven” among them.

“You must be someone pretty special in the arts, Mr Clooney,” joked Sesame Street children’s TV icon Big Bird, a fellow Kennedy Centre inductee.

Julia Roberts donned a ballroom gown adorned with images of Clooney, her longtime friend and frequent collaborator, whom she called “the best combination of a gentleman and playmate”.

“Not only is he handsome, and talented in all mediums he chooses to tackle, he is profoundly present and attentive to the world around him,” Roberts said of the actor. 

Roberts, along with Matt Damon, Richard Kind and Don Cheadle both razzed and praised Clooney before the beloved actor’s father Nick delivered a touching speech of his own.

Eddie Vedder of rock band Pearl Jam led a rollicking tribute to U2’s vast songbook, singing the hit “Elevation” in his signature power warble, later bringing down the house with the ballad “One”. 

And Ukrainian singer Jamala joined Brandi Carlile and Hozier for a rendition of the U2 track “Walk On”, in support of Ukraine’s ongoing fight against Russia.

Actor Sean Penn also praised bandmembers Bono, the Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr, calling them “great musical poets for the ages” who manage to stay “consistently relevant” despite nearly half-a-century in the industry.

And Sacha Baron Cohen — in character as his darkly humorous Borat — delivered a comedic tribute to the band that drew laughs, raised eyebrows and had actor Roberts cracking up as he twistedly speared Kanye West’s recent outbursts of anti-Semitism and pretended to mistake Biden to ex-president Donald Trump.

“Your pretty orange skin has become pale,” he said to Biden, as First Lady Jill burst into laughter.

Empress of Soul Knight earned heartfelt accolades including from LL Cool J, who praised her as foundational across genres including gospel, country, rock and hip hop.

“I once heard Gladys sing the ABCs and I thought I was in church — true story,” the rapper told the audience.

Singers Ariana DeBose, Mickey Guyton and Garth Brooks delivered heart-pounding versions of some of her most beloved songs, including the standard “Midnight Train to Georgia”.

Pulitzer Prize- and Grammy-award winning Leon, 79, has already won numerous recognitions for her pioneering, sweeping compositions and chamber works that followed her immigration to the United States from Cuba as a refugee at age 24.

The moving program honouring her life’s work brought the artist — herself a regular performer at the Kennedy Centre — to tears.

Speaking prior to the show on the red carpet, Leon told AFP she was pleased the Kennedy Centre was recognising types of classical music outside the Western-oriented understanding of the genre.

“There’s many, many classical pieces in the world, of different nations or difficult cultural backgrounds,” she said.

She voiced delight at having visited the White House, describing to journalists an endearing anecdote of the president showing her the woodwork on his enormous desk.

And stars including Sheryl Crow and the country supergroup the Highwomen — comprised of Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Maren Morris and Amanda Shires — turned out to honour Grant.

The 62-year-old Grammy winner is the first contemporary Christian star the Kennedy Centre has ever inducted, and said “never in my wildest dreams” did she envision receiving the honour.

Developed with emerging markets in mind and built in collaboration with Kia’s Chinese Dongfeng partner, the Pegas arrived in the region back in 2018 to support the brand’s entry-level end of the market, as its other offerings slowly but surely inch further upmarket. Based on — and slotting in below — the Rio saloon in an ever-expanding and more sophisticated Kia line-up, the Pegas is instead positioned to take on small affordable “world cars” like the Renault Logan head-on, in the competitively cut-throat small saloon B-segment.

Rationalised and refined

The Pegas was developed to be cost effective and affordable for value-oriented, first-time, family and fleet buyers. It incorporates proven components, Chinese production and a rationalisation of some better features and finishing materials, and well-selected equipment to maximum effect to attract buyers. Designed with a slim version of Kia’s trademark ‘Tiger-nose’ grille, big gaping and functional lower, and faux gill-like side intakes, chiselled bonnet, high waistline and ridged surfacing, the Pegas fits seamlessly into Kia’s contemporary design direction, without being overly dramatic or ambitious in aesthetic. 

Even more relevant now than when it first arrived, given the gloomy global financial forecast, the rationalised and economy-oriented Pegas is powered by a sole engine option chosen for efficiency, reliability and cost-effectiveness. The Pegas’ naturally-aspirated 1.4-litre 4-cylinder engine is meanwhile mated to a choice of 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic gearboxes, driving the front wheels. Producing 94BHP at 6,000rpm and 97lb/ft torque at 4,000rpm, the comparatively lightweight Pegas is good for 180km/h, while 0-100km/h acceleration is estimated at 13.1-seconds. Combined fuel efficiency is meanwhile restrained at 6.1l/100km.

Smooth and progressive

Under-square in design and slightly more torque-biased, the Pegas’ engine nevertheless revs freely, and with a faint, distant, and muted top-end snarl. Smooth and progressive throughout its rev range, the Pegas builds power and torque in a linear fashion and is as responsive at low-end and versatile in mid-range as can be expected of such a modestly powered car. That said, it manages to keep a fair pace at moderate inclines and in city, highway and country road driving. 

Driven in auto guise, the Pegas was often hunting for a lower gear and alternately up-shifting when driven at a constant 80-100km/h on mostly inclined routes, so as to maintain or build speed. In such conditions, the Pegas would have benefitted from a fifth gear and closer gear ratios. Alternatively, the manual gearbox version would have provided the necessary ratios, quicker pace, better efficiency and more driver involvement. The Pegas’ 4-speed auto was nevertheless and otherwise smooth shifting, reasonable responsive and economical.

Comfortable 

and manoeuvrable

Riding on a Macpherson strut front and torsion beam rear suspension design, the Pegas is smooth riding and reassuringly stable on highway. It is, meanwhile, manoeuvrable, agile and easy to drive in town. A more refined drive than anticipated in its ride quality and noise, vibration and harshness isolation, the Pegas’ light steering may initially seem somewhat vague at low speed. However, pushed somewhat harder through corners, it weighs up with a more communicative level of resistance. Body roll and understeer are meanwhile kept to a minimum.

Comfortable over Jordan’s lumps, bumps and imperfect road surfacing without wallow or much bounce, and seemed settled on rebound after dips and crests. The Pegas gains much of its pliancy from its narrow and tall 175/70R14 tyres, which are sized to be affordable, efficient and more durable in the face of high kerbs and deep sudden ruts and potholes. The Pegas’ tyres meanwhile also promote a more nuanced steering feel for road textures, car position and dynamic limits as it nimbly zips through switchbacks or city streets alike.

Practical and sensible

A narrow car with comparatively good 150mm ground clearance to better cope with poorly paved roads, the Pegas is well suited for busy urban roads and less developed areas. Inside, it has good sightlines and a comfortable driving position with rake-adjustable steering and easy to reach, user-friendly console and layouts. However, it could benefit from slightly lower front seat mounting points for taller drivers, when equipped with a sunroof. Meanwhile, rear seats are adequately spaced for adults, if not as generous as its 475-litre boot volume.

A practical, attainable and manoeuvrable compact saloon with tight city-friendly 10.4-metre turning circle, the Pegas is, meanwhile, rather well-equipped for its segment. The Pegas’ features list includes a 7-inch screen Android Auto-, Apple Carplay- and Bluetooth-enabled infotainment system, rear parking sensors, A/C, electric windows, remote central locking, ABS, ESC and four airbags. 

Using some hard plastic textures, the Pegas’ uncluttered dashboard seems more stylishly upmarket than its faux leather or shiny fabric upholstery. Meanwhile, other upmarket features include an integrated driver’s armrest, and intuitively stepped auto gear lever motion.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 1.4-litre, transverse 4-cylinders

Valve-train: 16-valve, DOHC

Gearbox: 4-speed automatic, front-wheel-drive

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 94 (95) [70] @6,000rpm

Specific power: 67.3BHP/litre

Power-to-weight: 90.3BHP/tonne

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 97 (132) @4,000rpm

Specific torque: 94.5Nm/litre

Torque-to-weight: 126Nm/tonne

0-100km/h: 13.1-seconds

Top speed: 180km/h

Fuel consumption, combined: 6.1-litres/100km 

Fuel capacity: 43-litres

Length: 4,300mm

Width: 1,700mm

Height: 1,460mm

Wheelbase: 2,570mm

Overhangs, F/R: 785/945mm

Tread, F/R: 1,509/1,515

Ground clearance: 150mm

Aerodynamic drag co-efficient: 0.29

Headroom, F/R: 995/952mm

Legroom, F/R: 1,062/865mm

Shoulder room, F/R: 1,365/1,357mm

Hip room, F/R: 1,352/1,295mm

Luggage volume, min/max: 475-litres

Kerb weight: 1,041-1,062kg

Steering: Electric-assisted power steering

Turning Circle: 10.4-metres

Suspension: MacPherson struts/torsion beam

Brakes, F/R: Ventilated discs/drums

Tyres: 175/70R14

Holiday gatherings are knocking on our doors and if we don’t plan ahead, then we might as well just call it quits. Winning any battle starts way before you get to the battlefield and the same is true for us desperate dieters.

It starts at the grocery store and in our kitchens. It even starts in our bedrooms as the lack of sleep creates havoc on our sugar cravings and decimates our motivation level. I know from experience that when I get enough quality sleep, I’m better able to resist foods that add no nutritious value. The opposite is true. When I don’t sleep well, I crave sweets and comfort foods all day long.

I have found that the more weapons we have under our belt, the more chance we have of winning our battles. Combining good sleep with sound eating and daily movement makes all the difference in the world. Notice I called exercise ‘daily movement’ because sometimes the thought of ‘Exercise’ makes me so tired.

Changing the mindset

I’m more likely to get up and take a walk or dance to my favourite beat if I think of it as a fun activity. I also tell myself that I’m just doing five to 10 minutes which inadvertently turns into 30 minutes after my body is warmed up. It’s the starting that’s difficult for most of us. We tend to have the “All or Nothing” mentality and miss out on the benefits of short sporadic activity.

One of the best things we can do to set ourselves up for success is to determine ahead of time to be our own best advocates. Just like a helmet protects a soldier’s head from injury, so does our mindset protect us from losing the battle of the bulge. It starts in our head as we begin visualising what it looks like to stay strong.

Preparing ahead of time

Before going to social events, I picture myself talking to friends and enjoying the conversation. Catching up on people’s news can be fun. It’s also important to be realistic and face the truth. Remind yourself that if you’re ravenous and your stomach is running on empty then you surely won’t enjoy socialising. You’re also more likely to eat from every selection and even help yourself to seconds. Knowing that ahead of time prepares you in advance to do things to strengthen your position.

These fortifications include drinking enough water and eating some nuts ahead of time so you can be strong enough to make better choices. Keep in mind that filling up on veggies helps quiet the hunger monster so take advantage of every variety you can think of. Eating fruits and vegetables and aiming for the colours of the rainbow provides us with much needed vitamins and minerals.

The good news is that the more we include them in our meals the more our body starts to crave them. They also satisfy our sweet tooth and we’re less likely to cave in when they serve that birthday cake.

Here’s to gearing up for the holiday season fully armoured for any food attacks that come our way!

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

LOS ANGELES — Directing “Emancipation”, a brutal and harrowing film about slavery set deep in the alligator-infested Louisiana swamps, was always going to be a challenge for Antoine Fuqua — and then his star Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the Oscars.

Despite reports that Apple could delay its release until the raging controversy around Smith’s actions subsides, the movie hits theatres this weekend and streams globally next Friday, raising fears that audiences and Oscars voters could boycott it.

“Absolutely, I have big concerns about that,” Fuqua told AFP.

But “Will’s been a good guy, in front of all of us, for 37 years,” he said of Smith, who rose to fame in the 1990s.

“I hope we have more compassion in our hearts, to at least go see the work he did — because he did amazing work in the movie. They all did.”

“Emancipation” is inspired by the story of a Black man who defied enormous odds to escape slavery during the United States’ Civil War.

“Whipped Peter” became a global symbol of the horrors of slavery, after photographs of his bare back — utterly mutilated by lashings he received on a cotton plantation — circulated around the world.

Less is known about the real man, who Smith depicts fleeing sadistic slavers and evading alligators, snakes and other perils in the Deep South swamps, in pursuit of freedom for him and his family.

Paced more like an escape thriller than a sombre historical drama, “Emancipation” is as graphic in showing the savagery inflicted on the enslaved as recent films like “12 Years a Slave”.

The movie was shot on location in real Louisiana swamps, in what Smith at Wednesday’s world premiere in Los Angeles called “an absolute monster of a difficult film to make”.

But while Smith’s performance has drawn praise, critics have pondered whether it is too soon for a comeback, just eight months after the notorious Oscars night.

Smith resigned from the Academy for striking Rock on stage over a quip about his wife’s hair loss. He has been banned from attending the Oscars for a decade, though can still win Academy Awards.

An image rehabilitation campaign has included online apologies and a late-night TV show appearance in which Smith told host Trevor Noah that he “was going through something that night” and had “just lost it”.

On “the question of the slap”, Fuqua is unequivocal that “it was wrong.”

But the “Training Day” director added: “Will’s a good guy. I stand behind him.

“I was with him for a couple years, man, I’ve been in the swamps with him. The guy never complained once.”

‘Scary’

For Fuqua, part of the urgency for releasing the film now is a US political climate in which the legacy of slavery has become a hot-button, polarised issue.

“You hear about things in America especially where there’s discussion of not teaching about slavery in some of the schools... like they want to erase the past,” he said.

Republicans have slammed proposed education reforms that would address systemic racism and the legacy of American slavery in schools.

Mitch McConnell and other conservative senators wrote last year that children should not be “taught that our country is inherently evil”.

But Fuqua said there are “scary” parallels with the “Whipped Peter” photographs, which were required to finally confront many who had sought to downplay the brutality of slavery back in 1863.

“That’s why it’s important to keep the museums going, to keep alive all these things,” he said.

“A lot of kids don’t even know about slavery.”

Whether the film’s message is lost in the chatter surrounding Smith and Rock remains to be seen.

But Fuqua remains hopeful that the two men can reach a respectful reconciliation of their own.

“Hopefully they can get together, not in front of cameras, and shake hands and have forgiveness and move on with their lives,” he said.

“I just keep my focus on the film,” said Fuqua.

LOS ANGELES — The world’s focus has shifted to the war in Ukraine, but two major new documentaries aim to throw the spotlight back on Afghanistan, and the people left behind by the United States’ rapid withdrawal last year.

National Geographic’s “Retrograde” follows an Afghan general who tried in vain to hold back the Taliban advance in 2021, while Netflix’s “In Her Hands” tells the story of the country’s youngest woman mayor, who had to flee as the Islamists took over.

“We’ve forgotten about this story — when was the last time we discussed the war in Afghanistan, or read an article about it?” said “Retrograde” director Matthew Heineman. 

“Obviously there’s still some coverage of it, but... not that many people are talking about this country that we left behind.”

Zarifa Ghafari, the former mayor spotlighted by “In Her Hands”, told AFP that back under the Taliban, Afghanistan is “the only country around the world nowadays where a woman can sell their body, their children, anything else, but are not able to go to school”.

But at international political meetings, “Afghanistan is out of those discussions”.

Both movies begin in the months before the US withdrawal, as their subjects tried to build a safer and more egalitarian future for their country.

The two films end with their central characters forced to watch from abroad as the Taliban rapidly erases all their work.

“Retrograde” began as a documentary with rare inside access to US special forces.

In one early scene, US troops are shown having to destroy — or retrograde — their equipment and wastefully fire off excess ammunition that was sorely needed by their Afghan allies.

After the Americans left their base in Helmand, Afghan general Sami Sadat agreed to let Heineman’s cameras stay and follow him, as he took charge of the ultimately doomed effort to stave off Taliban advances.

In one scene, Sadat — stubbornly determined to rally his men to fight on as the situation crumbles around them — chides his aide for bringing to his war office persistent reports of nearby Afghan troops downing their weapons.

“Every neon sign was saying ‘stop, give up, this is over,’ and he had this blind faith that maybe, just maybe, if he held on to Lashkar Gah or Helmand, that they could beat back the Taliban,” recalled Heineman. 

Sadat eventually had to flee, and the filmmakers shifted their lens again, to desperate scenes at Kabul airport as Afghans fought for spaces on the last American planes out.

“It was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever witnessed in my career”, added Heineman, who was nominated for an Oscar for 2015’s “Cartel Land”.

“Discussions around wars in public policy and foreign policy, they’re often talked about and discussed without the human element,” said the director.

“One of the things I’ve tried to do throughout my career is take these large, amorphous subjects and put a human face to them.”

‘Murder’

Former mayor Ghafari had survived assassination attempts and seen her father gunned down by the Taliban before she too left Afghanistan as the Islamists moved in. 

“Talking about that moment, I’m still not able to stop crying... it was something that I really never wanted to do,” said Ghafari, who drew the Taliban’s ire by campaigning for girls’ education after being appointed mayor of Maidan Shahr aged 24.

“I had some personal responsibilities, especially after the murder of my dad... to help secure my family.”

The directors of “In Her Hands”, which counts Hillary Clinton among its executive producers, returned to Afghanistan and filmed Ghafari’s former driver Massoum, now unemployed and living under the Taliban.

In unsettling scenes, he is seen bonding with the same fighters who once attacked the car in which he was driving Ghafari.

“The story of Massoum represents the story of all Afghanistan’s crisis... why people are feeling betrayed,” said Ghafari.

‘Share their pain’

Though the conflicts in Afghanistan and Ukraine are vastly different in nature, both films offer a cautionary tale about what can happen once the West’s focus shifts.

“Obviously, that’s happened throughout history, and will continue to happen long into the future. And so what can we learn from this experience?” said Heineman.

Ghafari said: “Whatever happens in Ukraine and happened in Ukraine, it’s the same thing that we have been going through for like 60 years.

“The same thing, again and again. So we share their pain.”

PARIS — Wolves infected with a common parasite are far more likely to become the leader of their pack, according to a new study, suggesting that the brain-dwelling intruder emboldens its host to take more risks. 

The single-celled parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, only sexually reproduces in cats but can infect all warm-blooded animals.

Between 30-50 per cent of people worldwide are estimated to be infected with the parasite, which remains for life as dormant tissue cysts. However people with a healthy immune system rarely have any symptoms.

While some studies have reported an association between people having the parasite in their brain and increased risk-taking, other research has disputed these findings and no definitive link has been proven.

The new study, published in the journal Communications Biology, took advantage of 26 years’ worth of data on grey wolves living in the Yellowstone National Park in the United States to investigate how the parasite could affect their behaviour.

The researchers from the Yellowstone Wolf Project analysed the blood samples of nearly 230 wolves and 62 cougars—the big cats are known spreaders of the parasite.

They found that infected wolves were more likely to foray deeper into cougar territory than uninfected wolves.

Infected wolves were also 11 times more likely to leave their pack than wolves without the parasite, the study said, indicating a higher rate of risk-taking.

And an infected wolf is up to 46 times more likely to become pack leader, the researchers estimated, adding that the role is normally won by more aggressive animals. 

Study co-author Kira Cassidy told AFP that while “being bolder is not necessarily a bad thing,” it can “lower survival for the most bold animals as they might make decisions that put them in danger more often.”

“Wolves do not have the survival space to take too many more risks than they already do.”

Cassidy said it was only the second study on T. gondii’s effect on a wild animal, after research last year found increased boldness in infected hyena cubs made them more likely to get closer to — and killed by — lions in Kenya.

Laboratory research has also found that rodents with the parasite lose their instinctual fear of cats—driving them into the hands of the only host where T. gondii can reproduce.

William Sullivan, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology at the Indiana University School of Medicine who has been studying T.gondii for more than 25 years, called the wolf paper “a rare gem”.

However he warned that such an observational study could not show causation.

“A wolf that is a born risk-taker may simply be more likely to venture into cougar territory and contract Toxoplasma,” he said.

But “if the findings are correct, they suggest we may be underestimating the impact Toxoplasma has on ecosystems around the world,” he added.

What about humans?

“That’s the million-dollar question,” Sullivan said, adding that “no one knows for sure and the literature is mixed”.

Ajai Vyas, a T. gondii expert at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, warned against inferring that infection could increase risk-taking in people.

“There is a lot about human behaviour that is different from other animals,” he told AFP.

People often get infected by T. gondii from eating undercooked meat — or via their pet cat, particularly when cleaning out their litter boxes.

In some cases, especially in people with weakened immune systems, T. gondii can lead to toxoplasmosis, a disease that can cause brain and eye damage. 

GORICA, Albania — In mountains overlooking an azure lake in southeast Albania, wildlife experts are tracking the Balkan lynx as part of last-gasp efforts to save the species from extinction.

The “forest ghost” which lives in tree-covered mountains straddling Albania, Serbia and North Macedonia, is now among the world’s most endangered mammals, scientists warn.

The victim of deforestation and poaching, there are less than 40 of these solitary wild cats in the three Balkan countries, analysis last year showed.

Albania is home to fewer than 10, down sharply from more than 200 in the 1980s.

“We are very much concerned that if we do not manage to raise its numbers and distribution very soon, we will lose it forever,” said Manuela von Arx of the Swiss foundation Kora, which is a part of the Balkan lynx recovery programme.

For the past 15 years, the NGO Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA) has been trying to save the animal also known locally as the “Balkans tiger”.

Timid and elusive

On the Mali i Thate Mountain overlooking Lake Prespa, two experts taking part in the Balkan lynx recovery programme carefully install automated cameras at lynx height on oak trees.

They hope to capture the images of the timid and elusive carnivore that sleeps during the day and hunts at night for deer, hare, chamois and rabbit.

“It is difficult to get a good image,” forest engineer Ilir Shyti said as he and colleague Melitjan Nezaj checked the cameras’ positions.

The camera must be positioned well to cover the path used by the lynx.

In November 2021, cameras in the area caught a lynx arriving from North Macedonia, which experts hailed as a good sign for the resilience of the species.

“We are hoping that it will pass through again this year and, if we are lucky, we will be able to take a photo of another lynx,” said Nezaj, a biologist.

Subtle differences on the animal’s spotted coat and tufts of hair on the tips of its ears enable experts to identify them individually.

The meticulous tracking of the lynx is a key part of its protection, said Blendi Hoxha, a coordinator of the PPNEA lynx project.

“You have to observe it and understand its movements,” he told AFP.

“Any documented evidence of the presence of the lynx is watched for since it gives hope for [its] survival.”

The almond-eyed animal is threatened by the degradation of its habitat and significant deforestation, which are depleting the game they feed on and fragmenting its population.

Although it is strictly protected, the lynx has been the victim of poaching despite a hunting ban in Albania since 2014.

At least 14 lynx have been killed in Albania since 2006, according to the PPNEA.

Stuffed trophies

The last one, shot in 2020, was stuffed and mounted in a bar in Elbasan, south of the capital Tirana, displayed alongside the stuffed skins of other wild animals.

Trade in poached animals is punishable by up to seven years in jail, but the justice system is completely uninterested in the problem, said PPNEA lawyer Gentian Rumano.

The NGO filed a complaint against the bar but the case was dropped due to “lack of evidence” despite what it said was a report proving that it was the same Balkan lynx killed in 2020.

But the PPNEA has carried on with the fight, filing a complaint against the prosecutors in a bid to have the investigation relaunched.

Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia have joined forces within the Balkan lynx recovery programme, funded by foreign foundations like Kora, Euronatur and Mava. 

The three countries created “new zones of protection where the lynx is present and where it can breed”, PPNEA chief Aleksander Trajce said.

They also try to educate hunters and the general population about the threat of extinction.

An information centre, which serves as a summer school for the region, was opened in 2020 in Gorica.

But the battle is far from being won, especially since the animal’s low population has left it with an impoverished genetic pool.

Their shrinking numbers and isolation undermine genetic diversity which leads to health and breeding problems, warned Hoxha from the PPNEA lynx project.

“Small population equals inbreeding,” echoed Dime Melovski, of the Macedonian Ecological Society.

One way to ease the problem, he said, could be to bring males from other lynx populations to breed in the Balkans.

Seemingly purpose built for new parents that needing to switch to a more spacious and practical car, but unwilling to part with their feisty, fun and fast compacts, the hot hatch estate is the indispensible — but now ever rarer — answer. Combining the agile handling, swift performance and fuel efficiency of a hot hatch with the space and volume of an estate, “dad racer” cars like the Ford Focus ST Turnier, Volkswagen Golf R Variant and Cupra Leon TSI 300 Sports Tourer offer an excellent alternative to the ubiquitously dull family crossover.

Ford Focus ST Turnier

If not the most powerful hot estate here, the Ford Focus ST Turnier however promises to be the most charismatic, visceral and immersive. The Focus ST Turnier is powered by a larger, more relaxed turbocharged 2.3-litre 4-cylinder engine driving the front wheels. Its 6-speed manual gearbox meanwhile adds a level of driver engagement and control that cannot be replicated by an automatic system, even if such gearboxes are quicker shifting and more efficient.

The more practical version of Ford’s brawny hot hatch, the Focus ST has distinctly aggressive, urgent and expressive design, with swooping lines, bulging surfacing, jutting angles and big hungry grille and intakes. Channelling power to the front wheels through a limited-slip differential for stability and agility, the ST’s dynamics are true to its chuckable hot hatch origins. Ford’s knack for tuning in a visceral, alert and responsive chassis and steering meanwhile, add to the Focus’ fun factor.

Producing 276BHP at a comparatively lower revving 5,500rpm, the Focus ST’s full 310lb/ft torque is, meanwhile, available at 3,000 — 4,000rpm for a good compromise between muscular mid-range confidence and peaky urgency. Sprinting through 0-100km/h in 5.9-seconds, the Focus ST Turnier is meanwhile, capable of 250km/h. Sporty and spacious inside, the Focus ST Turnier features Alcantara upholstering, supportive sports seats and chunky steering wheel, and 575-litre luggage volume, which expands to 1,620-litres with rear seats folded down.

Specifications

Engine: 2.3-litre, turbocharged, transverse 4-cylinders

Gearbox: 6-speed manual, front-wheel-drive, limited-slip differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 276 (280) [206] @5,500rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 310 (420) @3,000-4,000rpm

0-100km/h: 5.8-seconds

Top speed: 250km/h

Length: 4,668mm

Width: 1,825mm

Height: 1,492mm

Wheelbase: 2,700mm

Kerb weight: 1,543kg

Luggage volume, min/max: 575-/1,620-litres

Suspension, F/R: MacPherson struts/multi-link

Tyres: 235/40R18

Volkswagen Golf R Variant

Launched last year, the latest Volkswagen Golf R Variant is both the most powerful and ‘grown-up’ entrant on this list. Well-translating the eighth generation Golf’s assertively dramatic yet conservative design for estate service, the Variant’s added length and taut but less extrovert surfacing style lends it a certain sense of reserved maturity and efficiency. This character is, meanwhile, reflected by its reassuring four-wheel-drive road-holding and efficiently succinct 7-speed automated dual-clutch gearbox.

Nestled behind its scowling fascia with its slim grille, squinting heavily browed headlights, the Golf R’s turbocharged 2-litre 4-cylinder engine pumps out a mighty 315BHP and 310lb/ft. Put down to tarmac with confident all-wheel-drive traction, this allows the Golf R Variant to rocket through 0-100km/h in just 4.9-second, and onto a 250km/h maximum. The Golf R’s broad 2,100 — 5,350rpm torque sweet spot, meanwhile, provides for muscular versatility for inclines, heavy loads and driving on inclines.

With sure-footed confidence and reassuring traction, the Golf R’s dynamic envelope meanwhile also includes an electronic differential lock for enhanced cornering agility and stability. Sporty, classy and airy inside, the Golf R Variant’s uncluttered cabin boasts supportive sports seats and generous comfort, safety, assistance and infotainment systems, including a big touchscreen. Spacious inside, the Variant features generous cargo capacity volume, which expands from 611- to 1,642-litres when rear seats are folded.

Specifications

Engine: 2-litre, turbocharged, transverse 4-cylinders

Gearbox: 7-speed automated, four-wheel-drive, electronic locking differential

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 315 (320) [235]

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 310 (420) @2,100-5,350rpm

0-100km/h: 4.9-seconds

Top speed: 250km/h

Length: 4,644mm

Width: 1,789mm

Height: 1,466mm

Wheelbase: 2,678mm

Kerb weight: 1,630kg

Luggage volume, min/max: 611-/1,642-litres (estimate)

Suspension, F/R: MacPherson struts/4-link

Tyres: 225/40R18

Cupra Leon TSI 300 Sports Tourer

A sportier and more stylish sister model to Spanish Volkswagen subsidiary Seat, the more upmarket Cupra sub-brand’s version of the Leon is also a cousin of the mk8 Golf, with which it shares a platform. Launched in 2020, the Cupra Leon TSI 300 Sport Tourer brings a premium sensibility and urgent, pouncing demeanour, with its sharply ridged creases, urgently squinting headlights and snouty grille, and is more elegant in estate body style than hatchback.

Powered by a turbocharged 2-liter 4-cylinder Volkswagen group engine, the Cupra Leon TSI 300 Sport Tourer develops 296BHP throughout a 5,300 — 6,500rpm plateau, and 295 lb/ft torque over an accessibly wide and muscularly flexible 2,000 — 5,200rpm mid-range band. Putting power down to the road through the front wheels via a slick and quick shifting 7-speed automated dual clutch gearbox, the TSI 300 accelerates through 0-100km/h in 5.9-seconds and onto a 250km/h top speed.

Lighter and expectedly more nimble and hot hatch-like in it handling properties in front-drive guise, the Cupra Leon is also offered with a slightly more powerful 306BHP version, available only for Sport Tourer estate models, and with four-wheel-drive to better deploy its power and generate more road-holding. Though heavier, the uprated variant is noticeably quicker through 0-100km/h, in 4.9-seconds. Elegantly athletic is cabin aesthetic, the Sport Tourer meanwhile accommodates 620-litres of luggage, which expands to 1,600-litres.

Specifications

Engine: 2-litre, turbocharged, transverse 4-cylinders

Gearbox: 7-speed automated, front-wheel-drive

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 296 (300) [221] @5,300-6,500rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 295 (400) @2,000-5,200rpm

0-100km/h: 5.9-seconds

Top speed: 250km/h

Length: 4,657mm

Width: 1,799mm

Height: 1,439mm

Wheelbase: 2,689mm

Kerb weight: 1,546kg

Luggage volume, min/max: 620-/1,600-litres

Suspension, F/R: MacPherson struts/multi-link

Tyres: 235/35R19