Nairobi  - For a long time, Rosemary Agutu idolized US actor Robert Redford, who played the character of Denys Finch Hatton in the movie Out of Africa.

Agutu is a museum guide at the Karen Blixen Museum and Redford can no longer compete with her latest idol.

"Barack Obama, of course. His election victory has given us a big lift," says the 26-year-old. Agutu now hopes that the tourist industry in her country will benefit from the "Obama effect."

Nowhere else in the world does US president-elect Obama have so many relatives as Kenya - his father's birthplace.

Rosemary knows almost all of them. "After all, I was born in Kogelo where Obama's grandmother Sarah lives," she says.

Singapore/Hamburg  - Singapore Airlines has implemented a new charge for economy class passengers who want to book a seat beside an emergency exit.

Passengers will now have to pay a minimum of 50 dollars for an advance, online seat-booking on each stretch of the route.

The decision means a flight on the airline's Frankfurt-Singapore-Sydney route can cost an additional 100 dollars.

So far, passengers could check-in online and book an emergency exit seat free of charge.

Alexandria, Egypt  - Just mention Alexandria and the name city rekindles the Pharoh era when the city was the location of a lighthouse that was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The Library of Alexandria was the biggest at that time, but what of modern Alexandria? Is there more to this city than its famous name?

Authorities in Egypt's second largest city believe so and are planning to capitalise on its magnificent past.

Bonn, Germany  - The findings of a study show that the Painters' Path in the eastern German state of Saxony is the most popular in the country.

The 18-kilometre route through Saxony got the most votes of approval from the 5,400 regular hikers polled in the survey, according to the Bonn-based organisers.

The second, most popular route was the 25-kilometre path through Wutach Valley in the Black Forest which stretches from the town of Lenzkirch to Wutachmuehle.

Next in the survey came the 14-kilometre section of the Maximilian Path in Bavaria that begins in Oberstaufen at an altitude of 1,830 metres above sea level.

Berlin (dpa) - Germany's second biggest airline, Air B

Liege, Belgium  - The local history museum in Liege has reopened to the public after a four-year renovation.