Author Archives: pushpitha

Festivals in Koh Phangan – Soak in Thailand’s island culture

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Take a well-deserved break on the beautiful island of Koh Phangan, nestled in the sparkling blue waters of the Gulf of Thailand, and indulge in some of the intriguing events and festivals happening throughout the year. To make the best of luxury by the sea, superb options reside in the beach resort town of Hua Hin, home to a premier range of Hua Hin Hotels. One of the finest Beach Hotels Hua Hin Thailand has to offer is the Anantara Hua Hin Thailand Resort, a perfect place to relax and unwind in the lap of luxury after fully absorbing the sights and sounds of tropical island culture. Koh Phangan, located to the South of the Thai mainland, hosts some vibrant festivals for the culture vulture. The party-heartiers better think twice about leaving before sampling the exciting half-moon festival held twice a month every month, with a decadent dish-out of pounding beats and pumping rhythms to propel the party-hoppers out of this world. A fun-soaked experience comes in the form of the Songkran Festival, the Thai New Year, which is heralded by water fights featuring super-soakers, water guns, hoses, buckets of water, basically anything that can make a splash! The water signifies the washing away of negativity and bad luck, so grab anything you can find, fill it up and get soaking! For the independent soul looking for something more “meta”, Koh Phangan is home to the Phangan Film Festival, which offers a range of interesting independent films with a focus on nature and spirituality for viewing and appreciation. Whatever one’s brand of fun, you’re sure to find something to tickle your entertainment bone in Koh Phangan.

Phuket Race Week – an exhilarating regatta filled with fun, challenges and entertainment

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The Phuket race week is an award winning regatta that welcomes an international fleet of boats and sailors to the southeast coast of Phuket. It is known to be one of the best tourist attractions in Thailand. The Phuket race week stands out not only as an excellent sailing event but it is also popular for its extravagant parties and entertainment off shore.

The Phuket race week was prestigiously awarded the best Asian regatta of the year at the Asia boating awards 2011 which recognizes the topnotch of Asia’s marine industry under twenty three categories. It is the only Regatta in Thailand to be presented with this award.

The race takes place for a period of nine days with four days of yacht racing and five days of great beachside partying. The race offers opportunity for competitive racers as well as those who are less serious about the contest and takes part for fun. The regatta offers six to seven classes of races, which includes cruising, bareboat and charter yachts. Apart from being recoginsed for its internationally accepted competition strategy, the race week is known for its legendary evening parties which participants say “keeps getting better and better each year”. The race has successfully completed a decade with a steady growth in participants to compete and attend the races. It is one of the biggest in Phuket and attracts a large gathering of tourists from around the world. In 2013 it will take place during the month of July and this year’s event will be bigger and better since it will be its 10th successful year.

Phuket is all about having a good time and enjoying the sunny beaches of Thailand and what better way to celebrate the oceanic beauty than being a part of a regatta. Holiday-goers can indulge in the most hospitable lodging, mouthwatering cuisine, entertaining nightlife and enjoy the beautiful beaches that the country is known for.

The Thanyapura hotel is an ultra modern boutique hotel in Phuket that is conveniently located with access to many of the city’s prime locations. This sports hotel Thailand would be the ideal getaway if you are attending the Phuket race week or not. It is a unique hotel that will make your holiday an unforgettable one awakening your heart, mind and body.

Witness the Ramadan Festival in Maldives

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Located within a very short distance from the Male air port is Kurumba Maldives, the first private resort among all Maldives Resorts. The beautiful and tranquil surrounding and lush greenery will relax and refresh you during your stay. The Maldivian hospitality blended with modern amenities makes this resort one of the best among all luxury hotels Maldives.

The lifestyle of the Maldivians revolves around tropical beaches and serene retreats. Apart from this during your vacation in this paradise you might come across various festivals celebrated by the locals. One of the most important festivals that you would find is the Ramadan Festival. This is celebrated during the Ninth month in the Muslim calendar. This is also known as the Rorda Mas and has a lot of religious respect. During this time the Muslims fast for a 30 day period in the daytime. The normal working hours are altered too during this season.

The Eid-al-Fitr Festival in Maldives

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The Kurumba Maldives is one of the most beautiful luxury hotels Maldives that you would come across while searching for accommodation in this amazing nation. The beautiful surrounding and the friendly staff and the modern amenities make this resort one of the best Maldives resorts.

Maldivians have a very attractive and vibrant culture. While spending your vacation in paradise experience some of the most important cultural festivals that are celebrated in high scale. The Eid-al-Fitr is a very important festival which takes place at the end of Ramadan. It normally falls on the first day of Shawwal, the month following Ramadan. All Muslims gather in the mosques to perform the Eid prayer. After that celebrations begin, where family members and friends are visited and gifts are exchanged. In Maldives a three day vacation is declared for the entire country. You will be able to witness people wearing new clothes, preparing special meals and enjoying various entertainment activities. The entire environment would be full of fun and frolic. It would be a very unique experience that you would get during this blessed time!

Witness the Buddhist festivals in Bhutan

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Festivals are a resplendent affair in the land of the Thunder Dragon with people dressed in the finest hand woven material, coral and turquoise jewels. One of the most significant festivals is the Tsechus which is held in all districts once a year on auspicious days of the Bhutanese calendar in honor of Guru Rinpoche who introduced Buddhism to Bhutan in the 8th century. The dance dramas and masked dance rituals last up to as long as four days with hundreds or even thousands of Bhutanese gatherings at monasteries to watch.

Monks as well as community dancers gather to form the parade of masked dancers. The monks prepare for months in advance in deep prayer and meditation and perform special mystical dances that are believed to be inspirations of enlightened beings in history. Bhutanese believe that watching these dances are essential to gain enlightenment and try to attend at least once during their lifetime and consider it a blessing to attend. Families from all over gather at dzongs or fortresses or at monasteries donned in their best clothes and resplendent jewels with packed picnic baskets in traditional bamboo baskets to watch the festival and so is a good place to meet your family members and have a good time.

Tsechus is a traditional way of passing on the knowledge, values, spiritual beliefs and mythology through oral forms such as music and dance. On the dawn of the final day a giant silk tapestry called the thangkha painting is unfurled amid prayers and offerings. Most of these appliqué thangkhars depict one or other of an important Buddhist deity such as Guru Padmasambava. The dromchoe, a festival dedicated to protective deities are celebrated at certain monasteries such as Paro and some re-enact the war against Tibetans and archery contestants complete with victory dances and cheerleaders to support. The fire dance or Thangbi Mani is a ritual practiced in central valley to purify the soul and the Drum Dance celebrated in the Eastern hills celebrates Guru Rinpoche.

It would do well to check on the local festival dates before booking your Bhutan Hotel to include the festival during your stay, especially if staying at a Paro Hotelwhere the festival is celebrated with vigor in the city. One can watch the parade re-enacting the 17th century war against Tibet at Paro and after a busy day head back to the comfort of Uma Bhutan.

Royal Ploughing Day – A festive event in Thailand

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Thailand is a country that has a very rich culture. One of the many reasons that tourists come to this country is to experience this unique lifestyle of the Thai people. If you visit any place in the country you would definitely come across a vast number of temples and other important historical locations or culturally important sites that would awe you. The number of cultural events or festivals that a foreigner would get to experience in this beautiful country is countless. The Royal Ploughing Day is one such unique festival.

This is one of the most important royal festivals celebrated in the country during the month of May each year. The main purpose of holding this is to give an auspicious beginning to the new planting season. This had been celebrated from the ancient times in Thailand. The festival is interesting to watch and is very vibrant.

It takes place at Sanam Luang which is an open field and a public square. The “Lord of the Festival” will arrive at Sanam Luang and will be offered three choices of cloth which are cut in three different lengths. It is believed that if the “Lord of the Festival” chooses the shortest piece of cloth that there would be plenty of rain throughout the season. The longer the piece of cloth the less chance there would be rain. Following this, the Phraya Raek Na or the Lord of the Festival would plough a piece of land to begin the ploughing season.

The entire environment is filled with festivity. There is a red-and-gold consecrated plough drawn by bulls decorated with flowers, sacred women taking gold and silver baskets filled with rice seed, drummers dressed in green playing enchanting tunes and Brahmas chanting throughout the process to bless the ceremony. Rice seed, sesame seed, beans, hay, water, maize and liquor would be presented to the bulls and according to what they choose from these foods there are many beliefs on what would happen to the harvest. At the end of the festival the spectators get the opportunity to rush to the field and collect one of two sacred grains of rice for good luck. There is a special dress code for the event so make sure that you are in line with it before taking part.

Enjoy a unique time at this event and go back to your favourite Patong beach resort and relax and pamper yourself in the luxuries provided. Millennium Resort Patong Phuket is an elegant Phuket resort that you would come across while on the lookout for the perfect accommodation spot. The modern amenities and the friendly staff at this hotel would make sure that you have the perfect vacation that you planned for and the delicious range of international cuisine prepared by the experts would add more value to your stay.

Poson Festival, a significant milestone in Sri Lankan history

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mihintale

Mihintale Rock by Jolle~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims). [GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The Poson Festival natively referred to as Poson Poya in Sri Lanka celebrates the introduction of Buddhism to the country during the third century BC. It is a significant historical event to the country where majority of people practices Buddhism as their religion.

The Mihintale rock plays a significant role during the Poson Festival which is held during the month of June, since it is said that it was in Mihintale where King Devanampiyatissa of Sri Lanka was converted to Buddhism by the Arahat Mahinda who came from India. With this legend Mihintale has become the main site for festive activities during Poson and many locals and foreigners visit Mihintale during this season to perform religious rites as well as for leisure.

There are many religious activities organized during the period of Poson including Sil Campaigns and Bodhi Poojas in temples in which only Buddhists participate. Dansal which are set up with the aim of giving away food and beverage to people sees the participation of all religious and ethnic groups.

Generally a Dansala is organized by a group of people or an individual and various food such as rice and curry, sandwiches, boiled chickpeas as well as tea, coffee and fruit juices are served to those who visit the Dansala free of charge as a charitable act.

There are several other rituals that come with Poson. Devotional songs are sung by Buddhists in every nook and corner while Poson Pandols which are colourfully lit illustrations from the 550 Jataka Katha or the 550 past life stories of the Lord Buddha can also be seen in plenty in every city of the country. These pandols are veritable sights glistening at night and many people from around the country come to see them in the late evening till past midnight.

Sri Lanka is a country that is rich in tradition and culture; you will find that the people are hospitable and easy to talk to. There is much to see in this beautiful island and the mouthwatering local cuisines must be tasted if you make a visit to the country.

Travelling in the country is quite safe and you will find Sri Lanka car rental services such as the Malkey rent a car that offers vehicles that are comfortable and in good condition to travel to any part of the country. You will be able to hire a vehicle for airport transfers Sri Lanka as well but make sure you go to a reliable source since you wouldn’t want to miss your flight!

London Literature Festival – Literature brought to the limelight

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The event is scheduled to be held between May and July at the South Bank Centre and gathers many celebrated authors, poets and critics and speakers who are well versed in this wonderful art of creative expression and fans can look forward to an excellent combination of events from book readings to speeches to exhibitions that spans throughout a week. The series of five lectures by the celebrated author Claire Tomalin is going to provide much interest to the lovers of old classics as the lectures are going to be based on the works of Thomas Hardy and Jane Austen. Fans of the bestselling authors Barbara Kingsolver, Lioner Shriver, James Salter would need to do much to contain their excitement as their idols are going to be present in person, discussing their work. Yet another highlight of the event will definitely be the prize book reading of the nominees for the Man Booker of the year which includes a reading from the Israeli writer and Holocaust survivor, Apharon Applefeld’s work. The festival will include ten such readings from works of the ‘world’s 10 best writers’ which are all contending for this prize. Giving a slightly different and glamorous touch to the event is the guided tour around London’s famous jewellery garden- Hatton garden by author Rachel Lichtenstein. In addition to the renowned authors, the celebrities joining the discussion on their love of literature will be designer Tom Dixon, actor Rupert Everett and fine artists Cornelia parker and Gavin Turk. A more sentimental touch to the event will be added by the singing of some Pablo Neruda’s love poems by one of the visiting musicians.

It takes quite a lot of effort and excellence to be an Award Winning Hotel in a city where the hospitality trade is extremely competitive. This is achieved by the COMO Hotels and Resorts whose presence in London is a definite relief for travellers who are unwilling to settle for mediocre standards in their residential options. This Luxury Hotel Group already has an untarnished image and reputation which it continues not only to maintain but to upgrade with each passing year leading to the immense satisfaction of its patrons and clients throughout the years.

Tap your toes at the Timbre Rock & Roots Festival

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Music makes everyone lose control. Be it babies or bold tattooed muscle men, it can get anyone’s feet tapping, hips swaying and mouth unconsciously singing along known and unknown melodies, making up words as you go along. Almost everybody has their favourite song; a tune that gives them goose bumps, lets you relive memories, wipes away the ones you want to forget making you feel very much at ease. The Timbre Rock & Roots festival celebrates all of these and more.

A 2 day event held in Singapore, it features some of the biggest names in the music industry. Even Grammy Award nominees have performed at this festival and famous artists include The Fray, Imogen Heap, Wind & Fire, Bob Dylan, Buena Vista Social Club and even John Legend.

Held at Fort Canning Green, this year’s festival saw an energy ridden crowd of 11,500 celebrate music with led Zeppelin, Paul Simon, Bonnie Raitt and Robert Pant. Unlike other music festivals where food and drinks are priced heavily, Timbre Rock & Roots lets you bring your own food and other items. Picnic baskets, foldable chairs and blankets are a common sight here.

The 2013 event held on the 22nd and 23rd of March held true to the festival’s aim of capturing the diverse flavours of music. It also included some never before heard artists who are more popular in their own region; this enabled Singaporeans to be introduced to expand their playlists with more fresh musicians. 64-year old Jamaican singer Jimmy Cliff had everyone grooving to reggae tracks, like never before.

They say that your taste in music reflects who you are, and f you are someone with a penchant for classy then Studio M Hotel Singapore is perfect for you. ThisSingapore hotel is located in Robertson quay close to Orchard road, Changi international airport, Central Business District and many other popular as well as convenient locations. Singapore hotel accommodation can be tricky to find, especially if you are looking for something that isn’t way too expensive but also offers luxuries. Studio M is then the perfect choice for you.

Royal Ploughing Ceremony – A grand affair

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Marking the traditional beginning of the rice growing season, the Royal Ploughing Ceremony also known as Lehtun Mingala or the Mingala Ledaw is a grand affair indeed. Accommodation Bangkok would not be much of a hassle during this season as Somerset Sukhumvit Thonglor Bangkok conveniently located amidst all the acitivity harbours some of the most sought after Sukhumvit apartments located within the city. The festival is celebrated in both Cambia and Thailand and traditionally takes place at the beginning of the Buddhist lent in the Burmese month of Waso which usually falls on the 11th of May. On the day of t6he ceremony, two sacred oxen are tied to a wooden plough after which they are made to plough on a ceremonial ground. After the ploughing, rice seeds are being sown on the ploughed land by court Brahmins and the oxen that ploughed are offered grand feasts of various cereals, grass and rice whiskey.