Our daily travels around the world

🇮🇳 Over three dozen Indian laborers were rescued from a collapsed tunnel under the Himalayas. The construction workers were initially trapped 18 days ago, when a landslide caused the tunnel they were working on to collapse – though the group was able to receive food, water, and oxygen through a pipe leading back up to the surface. Recovery teams blasted an escape route through the mountain and drilled the last two meters by hand, allowing the workers to escape safely. Officials say all 41 laborers made it through the ordeal in good health.

🇰🇷💒 A South Korean city is hosting mass blind-dating events in a bid to boost the local population. The local government of Seongnam city has held five such events this year, all of which featured red wine, chocolates, games, free make-up services, and background checks. South Korea’s overall fertility rate – aka the number of children born to each woman – fell to a record low 0.78 last year, far below the average rate among fellow OECD countries (1.58).

🇫🇮🇷🇺 Finland is temporarily closing its border with Russia to avert asylum seekers. The Finnish government announced the two-week border closure following a surge in migrants, which officials say was orchestrated by Russia in retaliation for increasing defense cooperation with the US (a charge the Kremlin denies). Around 900 asylum seekers – primarily from African and Middle-Eastern countries – entered Finland from Russia this month, up from less than one/day previously.