Odd News Roundup: Yandex robots start to deliver restaurant meals in central Moscow; Time is precious, says Vietnamese collector of European church clocks and more

The Yandex.Eats app, one of several food and grocery delivery services in Moscow, is offering customers around the White Square business district the option to have meals delivered by a buggy-like delivery robot instead of a human.

Following is a summary of current odd news briefs.

Solo sauna a hot favourite in Tokyo as coronavirus cases rise

The spread of the novel coronavirus may have slowed economies and closed many businesses worldwide, but it hasn't been a damper on a newly opened Tokyo sauna that caters to solo customers. The Finnish-style sauna rooms at Solo Sauna Tune, where customers can relax in solitude and enjoy the heat from water over hot stones, are so popular they are booked up within hours.

Time is precious, says Vietnamese collector of European church clocks

For more than two decades, Pham Van Thuoc has scoured Europe in search of historical church clocks, bringing them back to his home in Vietnam where he lovingly restores them. He now has 20 clocks - many of which are more than a hundred years old and including one so big it weighs a tonne - housed in a warehouse in northern Thai Binh province where they fill the air with a cacophony of whirring noises, ticking and chimes.

Yandex robots start to deliver restaurant meals in central Moscow

Driverless robot buggies started delivering hot restaurant meals to paying customers in one central Moscow district on Wednesday, their operator, Russian Internet giant Yandex, said. The Yandex.Eats app, one of several food and grocery delivery services in Moscow, is offering customers around the White Square business district the option to have meals delivered by a buggy-like delivery robot instead of a human.

Hearts aflutter, China's pigeon racing enthusiasts spend big to indulge their passion

Yu Yuguang's heart beats faster every time he stands on his roof, eyes trained to the sky waiting for one of his pigeons to pass through the trap door of its home loft. "Those are the most intense and enjoyable moments of a pigeon race," says Yu, 57, adding that the sport is like playing the lottery.

Mexican archaeologists uncover facade of Aztec skull tower in capital

Archaeologists have unearthed new sections of a famous Aztec tower of human skulls dating back to the 1400s beneath the center of Mexico City, authorities said on Friday. The team uncovered in March the facade and eastern side of the tower, as well as 119 human skulls of men, women and children, adding to hundreds previously found, according to the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH).

With Christmas parties off, some Spanish firms send gift baskets instead

There will be far fewer corporate parties over Christmas as big gatherings are banned due to the pandemic, but in Spain, better-than-expected sales of seasonal gift baskets are going some way to making up for foregone festivities. Ranging from a small present to elaborate parcels containing wine, liquor, Iberian ham and assorted sweets, the holiday baskets are a common way in Spain to thank employees for their work over the last year.

Barcelona skateboarder proves height is no big deal

Petar "Stewie" Stantchev has an arsenal of skateboarding tricks he likes to display on the streets of Barcelona, the sport's European hotspot. The fact that he is about half the height of most of the people he skates with does not trouble him - he slides his board on the same ledges and jumps the same high stairs.

(With inputs from agencies.)