Cancún, a Mexican city on the Yucatán Peninsula bordering the Caribbean Sea, is known for its beaches, numerous resorts and nightlife. It’s composed of 2 distinct areas: the more traditional downtown area, El Centro, and Zona Hotelera, a long, beachfront strip of high-rise hotels, nightclubs, shops and restaurants. Cancun is also a famed destination for students during universities’ spring break period.
Musical Instruments: ‘The Ancient Oud Of Lebanon’
Nazih Ghadban is one of the few remaining makers of the oud instrument. He’s handcrafted them at his small Lebanese village since 1976.
The oud is a short-neck lute-type, pear-shaped stringed instrument, usually with 11 strings grouped in 6 courses, but some models have 5 or 7 courses, with 10 or 13 strings respectively. The oud is very similar to modern lutes, and also to Western lutes.
Top Walks: ‘Athens – Greece’ (4K UHD Video)
Athens is the capital of Greece. It was also at the heart of Ancient Greece, a powerful civilization and empire. The city is still dominated by 5th-century BC landmarks, including the Acropolis, a hilltop citadel topped with ancient buildings like the colonnaded Parthenon temple. The Acropolis Museum, along with the National Archaeological Museum, preserves sculptures, vases, jewelry and more from Ancient Greece.
Walking Tours: ‘Chester’ – Northwest England (4K)
Chester is a city in northwest England, founded as a Roman fortress in the 1st century A.D. It’s known for its extensive Roman walls made of local red sandstone. In the old city, the Rows is a shopping district distinguished by 2-level covered arcades and Tudor-style half-timber buildings. A Roman amphitheatre, with ongoing excavations, lies just outside the old city’s walls.
Video timeline: Timeline: 0:00 Chester Cathedral 8:00 Northgate Street 11:00 City Walls 17:30 Eastgate Clock 19:00 City Center to Roman Amphitheatre 23:30 Chester Roman Amphitheatre 27:30 St John Street 29:00 Eastgate Street / Watergate St 34:00 West of the Old Town 38:00 Back into the Old Town 41:00 Pepper Street / Grosvenor Shopping Centre 44:00 Eastgate Street 45:00 Frodsham Street 47:30 Along the Canal 48:30 Walking Towards the Railway Station 50:00 Brooke Street 55:00 Chester Station
Aerial Views: ‘Kazakhstan – Landscapes & Waters’ (4K)
Kazakhstan, a Central Asian country and former Soviet republic, extends from the Caspian Sea in the west to the Altai Mountains at its eastern border with China and Russia. Its largest metropolis, Almaty, is a long-standing trading hub whose landmarks include Ascension Cathedral, a tsarist-era Russian Orthodox church, and the Central State Museum of Kazakhstan, displaying thousands of Kazakh artifacts.
Saturday Podcast: News From London (March 6)
The weekend’s biggest discussion topics in 30 minutes: a round-up of the day’s papers, our editor in chief Andrew Tuck’s weekend column, and why books have been so important during lockdown.
Trave Guides: ‘5 Must-See Places In Berlin’ (Video)
Berlin, Germany’s capital, dates to the 13th century. Reminders of the city’s turbulent 20th-century history include its Holocaust memorial and the Berlin Wall’s graffitied remains. Divided during the Cold War, its 18th-century Brandenburg Gate has become a symbol of reunification. The city’s also known for its art scene and modern landmarks like the gold-colored, swoop-roofed Berliner Philharmonie, built in 1963.
Political News: ‘Brooks & Capehart’ On Covid Relief Bill, Texas Opening Up
New York Times columnist David Brooks and Washington Post columnist Jonathan Capehart join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week in politics, including the battle over voting rights, the lifting of pandemic restrictions in some states, and wrangling over the $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill.
Employment: ‘How Small Cities Are Attracting Remote Workers’ (Video)
As the pandemic changes how — and where — professionals work, some smaller cities and regions are offering hefty relocation incentives to attract remote workers to help jumpstart their local economies. WSJ met one family who accepted an offer to make a new home in the Ozarks. Photo: Craig Kauffman for the Wall Street Journal
Walking Tours: ‘Flatiron Distric – New York City’
Named after the iconic wedge-shaped Flatiron Building, this commercial neighborhood is also home to tall apartment buildings and office high-rises. Locals and tourists frequent the hip bars, stalls at Italian food emporium Eataly and eclectic food trucks along Fifth Avenue. A focal point is Madison Square Park, known for its seasonal art installations and the long line at the original Shake Shack.