BLOOD TESTS AT CHINESE BORDER
China has sharply increased the number of random blood tests it carries out on travellers entering the country in a bid to stem the spread of HIV. A report released last week revealed that blood was taken from 756,000 visitors last year, compared with 65,900 in the previous 12 months. Chinese authorities say 312 travellers were found to be HIV positive, a 19% increase on 2006.

WWII PILOT FOUND

A tourist photographing trees on Papua New Guinea’s Kokoda Track has discovered the moss-covered skeleton of a second world war pilot hanging in his parachute harness from the jungle canopy. The 60-mile Kokoda Track was the scene of bitter fighting between Australian and Japanese forces in 1942 and is now a popular trekking route. The Australian Defence Force said it was dispatching a detachment to confirm the grisly find.

HUFFING AND PUFFING...

The world’s longest toy railway has been unveiled at Staffordshire’s Drayton Manor theme park after engineers spent two days assembling 10,530 sections of track to create a 1.1 mile layout. Robert Mann of the toymakers Tomy said the plan had been to create “the most magnificent train track in the world”, adding that he was awaiting confirmation from the Guinness World Records that the previous record, a mere 1.03 miles held by Thomas World in Japan, had been smashed.

DOMINGO SINGS MAYALING

Placido Domingo will give a one-off performance at a charity event billed as the “Concert of the Thousand Columns”, on October 4 at Chichen Itza, to commemorate the Mayan site’s 20th anniversary as a Unesco World Heritage Site. The tenor will be accompanied by the Puerto Rican soprano Ana Maria Martinez and the Yucatan Symphony Orchestra. Journey Latin America (020 8747 8315, www.journeylatinamerica.co.uk ) offers a sevennight stay, including flights and VIP concert tickets, for £2,467.

FIVE-STAR HOTEL ON TRACK

The age of elegance and intrigue is set to return as Europe’s first luxury hotel on rails makes its inaugural journey on September 3. The all-new Danube Express, complete with lounge and dining cars, and wood-panelled, brass-fitted, ensuite sleeping compartments, will tour eastern Europe and the Balkans from its base in Budapest. For details, visit www.danube-express.com .

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