College Students Get Rare Look at Cuba
HAVANA – Molly Morris didn’t realize how isolated Cubans are from the United States until a worker at her hotel asked for a U.S. map to see where she and other visiting American college students came from. Of course, being an American, Morris could not find Nebraska on the map.

John Paul Still a Presence, a Year Later
WARSAW, Poland – Poles mark the first anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s death Sunday with their beloved native son still very much a public presence, with some here even crediting him with continued influence in the strongly Roman Catholic country’s politics. Who ya gonna call? Pope Busters!

Fake E-Mail Topples Japan Opposition Party
TOKYO – Japan’s opposition party suffered a fresh humiliation Friday when its leadership resigned en masse over a fake e-mail scandal, handing Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi an uncontested grip on power in his last six months in office. The e-mail purportedly began: “You are big winner of International Rotto ….”

Taiwan Rejects China’s Offer of Pandas
TAIPEI, Taiwan – Tuan Tuan the panda won’t be following in the footsteps of his mother and grandparents as a goodwill ambassador for China. Taiwan on Friday rejected China’s offer of the panda and a female mate, Yuan Yuan, in the latest sign of a hardening attitude toward its communist neighbor. President Koo Kuan-min issued a statement in which he said, “Accepting the mainland’s panda pandering would open a Pandora’s box that will only lead to a pandemic of pandemonium for Taiwan.”