For observant Muslim travelers, Japan’s Kansai International Airport has long been a food desert. Now they can slurp noodles with everyone else. In July the kitchen at The U-don, a Sanuki udon noodle shop, was halal-certified. This was no mere act of cultural kindness: From 2011 to 2012, the Renzo Piano-designed airport witnessed a 70% increase in visitors from Indonesia, the world’s fourth most-populous nation and home to its largest Muslim population.

Former basketball star Dennis Rodman arrived in Pyongyang Tuesday on a five-day visit amid speculation he may try to negotiate the release of jailed U.S. citizen Kenneth Bae, China's Xinhua news agency reported. In Beijing, the gateway for flights to Pyongyang, Rodman told Reuters he was on another "basketball diplomacy tour" and would not be discussing the release of Bae.

Why do they hate America? What can we do to make them like us? There has been much talk about the promise and limits of U.S. public diplomacy in the Islamic world ever since the 9/11 terrorist attacks and an assumption that our efforts need to be adapted from the Cold War. But many of these discussions ignore that the robust, global system of public diplomacy funded by the State Department from the 1920s until the 1990s pre-dates the Cold War.

On a recent Saturday afternoon, Ikea's flagship mainland store - one of the world's largest - is abuzz with people. Walkways guiding visitors from one showroom to the next feel more congested than the road outside, and almost all 660 seats in the canteen are occupied. Yet the lines to the cashiers are refreshingly short - most are not here to shop.

IOC inspectors are sure to deliver a clear message to organizers of the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics when they arrive for a two-day visit: end delays and speed up. For their part, Rio officials are expected to promise that preparations are on course after a late start. Privately, they'll try to soothe concerns about a slowdown in landing local sponsorships, worries over hotel space and transportation and recent protests over big spending on major sports events.

Fans of magic and illusion arrived from across the Gulf to witness internationally acclaimed magicians perform in “The Illusionists,” a show held in Dubai this week. Events company Alchemy Project spearheaded the drive to bring together seven of the world’s most renowned illusionists including a mind-reader and a “gravity defying” magician, The Enchantress. The show has attracted a diverse audience, according to the managing partner of Alchemy Project, Sia S. Far.

“I quit my Job in Dubai two years ago and moved to Riyadh… May I rest in peace” Saudi comedian Mohammad Bazaid quipped in a Saudi-only stand-up show held on Friday in Dubai. The first Saudi-only comedy show in the region featured prominent names from the kingdom’s comedic community who performed in front of a diverse audience. Funny-men Yasser Baker, Mohammad Bazaid and Thamer al-Meshari hosted the show which was the last of a series held during August.

I spent the past few weeks in the Dominican Republic with United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS), witnessing workers’ grassroots efforts to further basic human rights in the workplace. Conducting cultural diplomacy, American college students of USAS also work closely with Dominican workers to reform corporate social responsibility.