7 travel stories you shouldn't miss this week

The Intoxication Season at Kew Gardens has kicked off

Creative Commons / Ari Helminen

FOOD PORN

Condom cookbook published in Japan
You can always count on the Japanese to come up with all sorts of weird and crazy stuff. Well, as disturbing and gross as it may sound, they’ve just gone and published a condom cookbook. Yes, that’s recipes using condoms … as cooking devices, not ingredients, thankfully. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘food porn’ doesn’t it. Condom spring rolls anyone? Read more.

DRUGS

Kewing up to get high in London
If you enjoyed news that a pensioner had accidentally grown a 1.5m (5ft) cannabis plant in her back garden, you’ll love The Intoxication Season at Kew Gardens. The London attraction will examine the history behind mind-altering plants from Class As to coffee with talks, workshops and hands-on sessions until 12 October. Read more.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Career change for new Thai PM?
Ever found yourself idly flicking through the channels at a Bangkok hostel and becoming increasingly enraged by the lack of gripping drama? You’re not alone. Thailand’s new Prime Minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, has publicly denounced the quality of the country's soap operas, even threatening to write the scripts himself if they do not improve. With the UK boasting quality programmes like Made in Chelsea and Embarrassing Bodies Live, Thai broadcasting was always going to fall short in comparison. Read more.

CANINE EMPLOYMENT

Sherlock Bones
YouTube users were left doughy eyed this week after Dutch airline KLM unveiled the newest member of their lost property team at Amsterdam Airport – an adorable sniffer dog, named Sherlock. In the hoax ad, Sherlock is shown returning passengers' misplaced belongings before they’ve even left the terminal. The question we have for KLM is: why aren’t you actually investing in this?! Watch the ad:

RESTORATION

Disused London tube stations back on the map
There’s always someone who farts in a packed train carriage. When Transport for London invited companies to put forward ideas for renovating the capital’s abandoned underground stations, we dreamed of bars, hotels, restaurants and clubs. Poetically, the bloke who came up with the idea went for a “sleeping portfolio of assets”. Parp. Read more.

HISTORICAL INACCURACIES

A giant Patagonian putdown
It may have taken 100 years, but Sir Francis Drake landed a zinger of a putdown back in 1628. When Spanish explorer (and sometimes exaggerator), Ferdinand Magellan, sailed to Patagonia, he returned with tales of naked giants. But that’s not what Drake found during his visit – and man did he let Magellan know. Read more.

TRADITIONS

Spain urged to swap bulls for balls
Nothing beats the thrill of being chased down a narrow street by an angry bull – so long as you don’t end up gored in the groin. But Spain’s centuries-old tradition could soon see its raging bulls replaced with raging balls – giant 100kg polystyrene balls – after the success of Mataelpino’s ‘ball runs’.  Not convinced? Did we mention you’d be running down a hill while trying to avoid getting crushed by giant balls? Read more.