On any regular day, the Golden Stupa is a sparkling tourist attraction, but on November 11 to 17, 2013, the whole nation celebrates the cultural importance of this icon with three days of pilgrimage and cultural festivities and a week-long fair after. As this is a public holiday, businesses, schools and government offices are closed on the first three days on the actual dates of Boun That Luang 2013.

“Phasat Pheung” Procession

The “wax castle” procession starts at Wat Si Muang, a temple at the city center of Vientiane, and wounds its way to the Golden Stupa 5 kilometers northeast. Participants usually wear their best ethnic costumes, and dance to traditional music. Upon reaching the Golden Stupa, the monks lead the devout in a “wien thien” ceremony, slowly circling the temple three times in clockwise direction.

Phasat Pheung are miniature castles made of banana trunks decorated with paper money and flowers made of wax.

A similar procession on the second day comes from Vat Nongbone, another monastery with elaborate roof decor less than a kilometer west of the Golden Stupa. This procession, however, lasts into the night under the full moon, as the devout light candles and carry the wax castles around the Golden Stupa three times before putting the wax castles on the skirt of the stupa.

“Taak Baat” Almsgiving

On the morning of the third day of the That Luang Festival, people get busy early as devout usually go to the Golden Stupa even before the sun rises to secure a spot within the cloister of the stupa where they prepare for their offerings and begin to pray. At 7AM, the “taak baat” (give alms) ceremony starts. To facilitate easier almsgiving to the monks, the devout now sit in one place and the monks go around to receive their food and other offerings. When “taak baat” is finished, the lay go inside the stupa to pray, light candles and burn incense.

In the afternoon, a traditional game, “tikhy” or “tikhee,” is played between a team of villagers and a team of government officials. It is Laos’ version of hockey where players use bamboo sticks to direct bamboo balls to their goals. A victory of villagers would mean that the people would be spared from famine, and a good fortune and economy awaits for the year.

On the last day of the festival which coincides with the rising of the full moon, the monks and the devout make another evening procession around the stupa, and the combined effects of thousands of candles and the full moon on the spire of the stupa makes for one compelling photo opportunity.

Trade Fair at Vientiane’s Exposition Center

The occasion of Boun That Luang is also the best time to come visit Vientiane because many local shops and artisans put their products on display. Other festival games, cultural performances and food booths are also showcased during the week after the formal festivities, so a trip that coincides with Boun That Luang is a fitting introduction to Laos.

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The fluvial procession that takes place during the waxing of the moon until three days after the full moon of Thadingyut (from September to October) and takes these images around the stilted villages of Inle Lake is the Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival. It is widely attended by thousands of devotees from the Shan state and around country. Because of Burma’s isolation in recent years, the Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival is one of Southeast Asian festivals that mirror the people’s authentic celebration of their faith and local culture, an apt and colorful introduction to any travel to Myanmar.

The Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival 2013 will start on October 5 and end on October 22.

Fluvial Parade of Gold-Leaf Covered Images of Buddha

On the occasion of the festival, four out of five Buddha images are taken out of the pagoda for a fluvial procession. The fifth image is left behind to guard their resting places in the pagoda.

Each of the four images are placed on elaborate pagoda replicas aboard a barge that looks like a mystical goose or swan.

These elaborate barges are then towed by boatloads of famous Inle Lake leg-rowers in a clockwise fashion along the shores of the lake, making an impressive spectacle by the sheer immensity of the procession and the ornately decorated vessels. The gold-leaf covered images – which are themselves made of pure gold and very heavy – usually make lunch stops and even stay the night at the main temple of the villages along the shores of Inle Lake to allow people to pay homage to these holiest of Buddha images. The entire procession takes 18 days to complete.

Unique Boat Races of Leg-Rowers

The procession concludes as the images arrive back at the Phaung Daw Oo Monastery and received by a Myanmar government official (a role taken by a Shan royalty in the past). Many pilgrims travel far and wide to venerate these images as they arrive, but only male worshippers are allowed to cover the Buddha with gold leaf.

The last day of the festival is also celebrated with boat races near the home pagoda and participated by both men and women in their traditional costumes. These boat races are unique because rowers use their legs to propel the boat, much in the same way they do when they are out fishing in Inle Lake.

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Holi has a particularly strong significance for the people in the Braj (Uttar Pradesh) region in India. Mathura, Barsana, Nandagoan and Vrindavan are places that are associated with Lord Krishna, who is a central figure in one of the traditions of Holi celebrations. These places become tourist destinations during Holi.

The Hindu calendar sets Holi during the Phalguna Purnima, or the full moon of the month called Phalguna. In the Gregorian calendar, this happens sometime between February and March.

In 2014, Holi will start on the 17th of March.

Origins

The world holi comes from Holika, a demonness who could not be burned and the sister of the king of demons, Hiranyakashipu. A boon given to Hiranyakashipu by Brahma for a penance made him difficult to kill. Because of this, Hiranyakashipu became arrogant and demanded that he should be worshipped instead of the gods.

Hiranyakashipu’s son Prahlada, was a devotee of Vishnu and would not stop worshiping the god despite his father’s threats. Many attempts were made to end Prahlada’s life, but he was always unharmed thanks to the protection of Vishnu. Incensed, Hiranyakashipu ordered his son to sit on a pyre on Holika’s lap. To their surprise, Prahlada remained unharmed, but Holika was consumed by the flames until she died. Prahlada’s salvation and Holika’s burning became the basis for the celebration of Holi.

Purposes of Holi

Thousands of Hindus join in the festivities of Holi each year. It welcomes the start of the spring season, although originally it celebrated the fertile land and good harvest.

Holi, like many other Asian festivals, also celebrate the triumph of good over evil.

Celebration and tradition

On the eve of Holi, bonfires are lit. Wood is gathered days before and are piled in major crossroads in the city. Effigies of Holika are placed on top of wooden pyres and burnt, representing the triumph of good over evil.

Play of Colors

The play of colors is the main celebration of Holi, and is done of the day of Dhuleti. This practice is said to be from a legend where young Lord Krishna was unhappy with his skin tone, compared to his beloved Radha’s fairer complexion. To appease him, his mother Yashoda allowed him to color Radha’s face using any color he wanted. This became the basis of throwing colored powder, a symbol of happiness and good fortune.

In modern times, these colors are made with powder dyed in various colors. Natural colors were used before, using turmeric, paste made of sandalwood and dyes extracted from flowers and plants. Synthetic colors are slowly replacing the natural colors, which have become a cause of worry for many people as it often brings adverse skin reaction as well as the concern for the materials’ toxicity.

Food

Of course, what celebration would be complete without food? Traditional Holi delicacies are prepared for consumption. Try the gujia, a North Indian dumpling-like dish. The pastry is stuffed with a mixture of roasted and grated dried fruits, coconuts and a milk food called khoya. Enjoy the biscuit called mathri that is simply made with flour and water and served with mangoes or chili and tea. To sweeten the deal, finish it with some malapua or Indian pancakes.

Holi is a gathering for thanksgiving and praise. It is a celebration filled with much fun and gaiety, a holiday where barriers are gone and people give in to the joy that is coursing through their veins. Join in the festivities, and you will find yourself laughing and smiling all throughout.

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Christian Origins

The most accepted and widely recognized origin of the the Christmas holiday centers on the birth of the man the Christians recognize as the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The books of Luke and Matthew tell how a young woman named Mary received word from an angel that she was to conceive and give birth to Jesus. Her fiance, Joseph the carpenter, was a native of Bethlehem and just shortly before she was to give birth, the couple traveled there to participate in a census. Unfortunately, all the rooms in the inn were filled, so the couple took refuge in a table where Mary went into labor.

Both gospels also talked about the people to who came to visit the baby. Luke spoke of humble shepherds who were led to there by an angel. Matthew told of wise men or kings who followed a bright star and gifted Jesus with frankincense and myrrh. Further accounts in Matthew’s book tell of the family feeling to Egypt to escape King Herod’s plans of killing Jesus.

While the real date of Christ’s birth is highly debatable, its current date has been widely accepted and internationally recognized as Christmas day.

Widespread Christian Practices

Christians share similar practices across the world. Many of the faithful start Christmas by attending mass or service, and the celebration is highly religious in many ways. Tableaus depicting the first Christmas are presented, and are a popular centerpiece for many Christmas shows in schools and churches. Nearly everywhere, however, Christmas is a time for gathering with friends, family and the community.

International celebration

Christmas is a major and public holiday in many countries around the world. It is celebrated not just by Christians, but also by people from different faiths. In some countries where there are a small population of Christians, many secular elements of the holiday have been adapted including decorating homes, Christmas trees, gift-giving and iconic figures giving these gifts, one of which is Santa Claus. It is even in places where the population is highly non-Christian. Only a few countries do not hold Christmas as a public holiday including China (Hong Kong and Macao are excluded), Japan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia and North Korea.

Traditions

When it comes to Christmas, there are certain practices that are common across cultures and faiths. During Christmas, people take time to give each other gifts. Others opt to give out Christmas cards and often these include short missives of how the family has fared in the past year. Homes and establishments are decorated with many symbols that originate from different cultures. Even in countries that typically do not grow pine or have snow or chimneys will have Christmas trees and Frosty the Snowman and Santa Claus.

Food Fest

The biggest tradition of all is the gathering of family and friends to participate in a feast. Traditionally, a big dinner is held on Christmas Eve, but some hold it on Christmas Day. Depending on the country and the culture, food varies as well. However, some dishes do cross countries, particularly if one has migrated to a new country and brings with them a taste of home. Expect to have dishes of chicken or turkey, roasted beef or ham, wassail, eggnog, cheese and other gastronomical delights.

Southeast Asia Christmas

While there are many Christians in most Asian countries, not all of them of them recognize it as a public holiday. Take for instance the different Southeast Asian countries and how they uniquely celebrate Christmas. Still, this does not stop them from joining in the festivities, adapting the holiday to fit their own cultures and customs. Like in other parts of the world, it is considered to be one of the most colorful holidays each year.

Ancient Holiday

However, history shows that celebrations during mid-winter has been a long-time tradition of many cultures around the world long before the coming of Jesus Christ. Often, this celebration falls on the winter solstice and marks the end of the darkest day of winter and the coming of brighter days. Similar celebrations are held all across Europe and countries that experience cold weather during these months.

Christmas has truly morphed into an international holiday. These days, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a place that doesn’t have something that symbolized Christmas. However, it isn’t just about the commemoration of Christ’s birth. Christmas has become the season for people to be more generous and caring, and allows people time to reflect upon the blessings and challenges of the past year.

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Unless you are from south Zanzibar, then you probably would end up in jail hitting someone hard with a banana stalk as an expression of taking out grudges and starting the year on a clean slate. Americans are familiar with the concept of spring cleaning, but government sanctioned “violence” is certainly not part of it.

Every year, around the third week of July, the people of Makunduchi in southeastern Zanzibar exorcise all evil spirits and carry on their age-old tradition of ritualized aggression to celebrate the end of the old growing season and the beginning of spring. The date coincides with “Nairuz” or the Persian New Year, although the event itself predates the arrival of Shirazi immigrants who were the first foreign settlers in this part of Africa.

Mwaka Kogwa 2013 will take place from July 15 until July 21.

It All Starts With a (Mock) Fight

Seeing out the old year and welcoming the new starts with a feast and ends with a gift, or in whatever sequence feels comfortable to households following the western way of celebrating New Year. In Makunduchi, where Mwaka Kogwa is elaborately celebrated in full color and enthusiasm, the first day of Nairuz starts with taking out emotional trash and dumping it to the neighbor.

At 11AM on the first day of Mwaka Kogwa, two brothers from the south of Makunduchi challenge two brothers from the north in a central wide open space called Kae Kuu. There are no set rules that govern the mock fight and certainly there is no referee to stop a below-the-belt hit.

The representatives of both ends of the town are eventually joined by their brethren and supporters, and then the ritual becomes a free-for-all, out and out brawl, except that no one really gets injured. The banana stalks split upon contact, and when a participant has had enough of beating and being beaten, or couldn’t find an unscathed “weapon” in sight, he can just raise his hands and surrender. (In the past, real sticks and cudgels, the ones that really, hurt, were used.)

Life, Love and Titillating Taunts by the Women of Makunduchi

While the men are testosterone-fuelled in the thick of the action, the women, dressed in their best, sing songs of love and village life. The songs are in Swahili, and are often sexually nuanced as they are directed to men. One example would be “buy me a pair of khanga (traditional piece of cloth) and you can make love to me.” Of course, the titillating context of the song is lost in translation.

To which the men, with their “weapons” held over their heads, would reply to in unison, “We don’t want you anymore. We like town women better whom we can get wherever we go” or something to that effect (again, the provocative context of the reply is lost in translation). This sultry exchange of taunts has only recently started, but certainly adds a spicier dimension to an otherwise one-sided verbal fight.

A Hut, A Priest and A Fire

When everyone has had their chance to air out their grievances or are physically exhausted, another ritual commences. The people would build a thatched hut on the eastern side of the Kae Kuu, and then a local priest would enter the hut and burn it. While the hut is ablaze, he would escape the structure unscathed and hide in a bush. He would then come out to divine the coming year’s fortunes depending on the direction of the smoke. Then the community would extinguish the flames by throwing earth and stone on the blazing hut. The Makunduchi believe that all evil spirits that might cause harm using this element would not claim a life with it.

A Banquet and Public Dance

A feast is held later in the day when the rituals have been performed. The Makunduchi share a banquet not only among themselves but most especially with every guest who may have strayed in their village during the celebrations. Travelers who may only be passing through the village are morally mandated to participate in this banquet because the villagers believe that a household with no guest is going to be unhappy in the coming year.

At night, the Makunduchi villagers put on their finest clothes and rejoin everyone in a “koba” for a traditional public dance.

Watch how “the year is washed” (Mwaka Kogwa’s literal meaning) by the people of Makunduchi.

By settling scores of the previous year and channeling pent-up emotions and fantasies in a friendly banana-stalk fight, the Swahili start the Shiraz (Persian New Year) on a clean slate.

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In our previous posts, we have featured some other (mainstream) festivals that border on squeamish to plain insanity, like the face-piercing Vegetarian Festival of Phuket to the mind-numbing Thaipusam of Malaysia to the really hilarious Parada ng Lechon of the Philippines. And if you think those festivals are next to normal, then get ready to suspend your unbelief for the moment for some more festivals that are better labeled as borderline.

Naga Fireball Festival, Thailand

Opinion is divided as to whether Naga fireballs are indeed natural phenomenon unexplained or simply pranks, especially that Naga fireballs have not exactly earned mainstream tourist traffic comparable to Songkran. But if you want to see for yourself, clear your calendar on October 18-19, 2013, and head to the Isaan region near the Lao border where the mighty Mekong River forms a border between the two countries.

Omed-Omedan Festival, Indonesia

You must have already heard about Thailand’s Songkran festival, the biggest of its kind not only in this part of the planet but around the world. This festival in Denpasar, the capital city of Bali, is part-Songkran (on a smaller scale) and part-Smoochfest. The Balinese call it the “Omed-omedan Festival” with the goal to make its youth more cohesive. It took place last March 13, 2013, the day after Nyepi, or the Balinese (Silent) New Year.

Nothing bonds people stronger than “kissing in the rain.”

Here’s Omed-omedan in action.

Lembah Baliem Festival, Indonesia

Ritualized aggression or mock fighting has long since replaced actual battles and that in itself is a huge leap anthropologically. At least, humans have found bloodless ways to express pent up emotions be it towards their neighbor or their society in general. Such displays of raw bravery may no longer be relevant in a society where the alpha male is brainy and no longer brawny, but it does serve the purpose of a socially-sanctioned outlet for whatever aggravation the “warring” parties may feel. West Papua (Western New Guinea), in a remote swath in Eastern Indonesia where non-essential travel requires special permit, still has warring indigenous tribes up until 20 years ago when the government intervened and introduced a more peaceful means for them to engage in “combat” without unnecessary loss in life and without inciting long-lasting vengeance. The result is the Lembah Baliem Festival complete with authentic accoutrements (spears, bows and arrows) with warriors in traditional loin cloths. The mock fighting and traditional games and cook-offs take place around mid-August, with the date revealed only days before the actual event.

This video offers a glimpse back in time minus the gore, blood and decapitation that usually accompany such battles.

Varuna Yajna, India

Rainmakers have long been highly regarded in ancient, particularly agricultural, societies for the simple reason that sometimes, the heavens get snooty and plainly refuse to let go its store of condensed water vapor. When this happens in Southern India, Hindu priests say prayers not just five times a day as Muslims would, but chant “vajna” up to 50,000 times a day! And no, the priests don’t do it with a religious song-and-dance but rather beseech Varun, the Hindu god of rains, for much needed moisture from the confines of rain barrels. (The Varuna Yajna is more of a ritual, and performed whenever the threat of drought looms.)

Kanamara Matsuri, Japan

Ultra-efficient and highly electronic are what people the world over know about the Japanese. Unbeknownst to many, the Japanese, despite their obsession with perfection and their inclination to commit “hara-kiri” if things go haywire, occasionally indulge in social “disorder” that is out of character. For who would think that beyond the spotless, ultra-modern toilets of Japan, there exists a festival built around – of all things – gigantic pink phalluses complete with all the anatomical nuances of the real thing? Known to Nihongo speakers as Kanamara Matsuri, the Festival of the Steel Phallus is serious business on the first Sunday of April in Kawasaki, a strip of land south of Tokyo and north of Yokohama. Quite fittingly, Japan needs more than ever to implore the goddesses of fertility: The country’s birth rate is desperately low and if they don’t do something about, they will face a demographic crisis. Of course, they need more than pink phallic symbols to accomplish that.

These photos may be politically incorrect but they leave very little to the imagination so those who want to see the festival may decide whether a parental guidance restriction is required or not.

The “steel phallus” in action.

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Mud madness this year starts on July 19 and concludes on July 28.

It’s a Mud World Out There

A country can’t grow much in a vast expanse of mud. Instead of pushing for agriculture that might not be as lucrative, enterprising South Koreans thought of marketing mud cosmetics and making them more appetizing especially to Western residents who work in South Korea. The result is one big mud festival that is the most internally attended of South Korea’s biggest festivals.

The festival kicks off on the third week of July, but it is during the final weekend that the “mud-ness” reaches a frenzied peak.

The two-week-long festivities open with a good helping of mud dancing and percussion and extravagant fireworks. Truckloads of Boryeong mud are dug from the mud flats and dumped into the Daecheon Beach, a 10-kilometer-long tidal flat on the west coast of Boryeong which becomes the “Mud Experience Land” for these two weeks in summer. But it’s not just all mud, as the Daecheon Beach is just as excellent and, unlike the mud, clean for swimming.

Much Ado About Mud

There are plenty of activities that go beyond wallowing in mud pools and pulling a solitary mud self-massage. Certainly, a lot of other activities are more physical than mud marathons.

Mud slides are made for all ages, while mud wrestling events are geared for the more adventurous. The artistic can join colored mud body painting contest, while the architecturally creative can put up mud creations for the sculpture contest.

For the really intrepid, there are mud skiing competitions, Mudflat obstacle relays, and mud futsal. Of course, the children are not left out, and are installed their own Kid’s mud land. There’s also a mud prison for those who want to serve (mock) jail time.

A mud fountain is also erected for those seeking eternal youth. After all, that’s what facials and body wraps are for, and here, you can get them all for free and for as often as you like in the stretch of two weeks.

Boryeong Mud Festival, despite its moniker, offers good clean fun. Certainly, beach parties and loud music go on all day and night, but there is practically fun for everyone. Street parades, cultural performances, concerts and fantastic fireworks display round up the festivities and make for entertaining digressions if mud starts to look drab and gray.

History of Boryeong Mud Festival

Attracting more than 2 million international visitors a year, the Boryeong Mud Festival is to South Korea as La Tomatina is to Spain. Both are opportunities to make a mess of oneself and suspend reasonable thought for a moment to simply just have fun. But unlike the La Tomatina Festival (which just spontaneously rose out of a vegetable-throwing incident), the Boryeong Mud Festival arose from a necessity to market Boryeong mud cosmetics that are said to contain essential minerals for better skin health.

Indeed, a large assortment of mud products are sold at the festival: mud body cleansers, mud packs, shampoos, sun block lotion, cleansing cream are packaged for retail consumption. They don’t come cheap, however, so if you want to get all the benefits of Boryeong mud and then some, get down and dirty and pack away a good helping for use at home if you don’t mind to pay extra luggage.

For the Boryeong Mud Festival video:

Here’s how festival revelers get wet, wild and dirty!

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If there ever is a pre-Lenten celebration that indulges – with cherry on top – all imaginable carnal pleasures before the mandatory abstinence after Fat Tuesday, Rio Carnival is it. (In fact, the Guinness Book of World Record considers Rio Carnival as the biggest of its kind.)

The major celebrations of Rio Carnival 2014 are going to be held on Sunday and Monday evenings after March 1 (this year’s carnival has just concluded last February 12).

Sizzling Samba Dancers With “A Lot To Show”

Rio de Janeiro is the samba capital of the world, having given birth to this type of dance right at the very Afro-Brazilian “favelas” of Rio more than a century ago. Samba, and the history behind it, is at the very core of the carnival from the end of the 19th century until today.

But what makes Rio Carnival a visual delight of epic proportions is the sheer number of samba dancers who twist and turn and gyrate in choreographed fashion around a float that represents a neighborhood samba school. Every over-the-top decorated float is escorted by no less than 4,000 samba dancers, all clad in colorful, exotic headdresses, tail feathers and for women, mile-high stilettos and practically nothing else.

Rhumba and merengue also make their beats heard over the cacophony of more than 4 million revelers (2013 census) who flow with the tide of humanity that Harlem Shakes in all directions. All these culminate in the 80,000-capacity Sambadrome, where the elaborate floats and frisky parades all come together for the ultimate showdown and final judgment.

Going Loco Over Blocos and Bandas

Dance is at the very heart of the Rio Carnival and it definitely is not celebrated in silence! The irresistible rhythms created by percussion instruments make singing, dancing and parading a multi-tasking necessity.

Band members usually start the street music parties by tuning their instruments in local meeting places, staying there for the duration, or moving about along a predetermined route. Revelers gather in steady streams at the first sounds of “batucada”, the dance music that accompanies samba, until legions of them colonize the entire neighborhood or street. A small party of merrymakers is called “blocos,” and a bigger one thousands of revelers strong is called “bandas.”

While the loudest and most riotous music parties can be found outside the “Sambadromo,” there are literally hundreds – 300 as of last count – of such parties happening simultaneously in Rio de Janeiro on the occasion of the carnival.

CosPlay and Drag

True to the spirit of overturning the moral order of the city before Ash Wednesday, the prevailing fashion of Rio Carnival is anything goes (if revelers dress up at all). The most popular, however, has been the wearing of costumes, swimwear, and of course, drag. Getting all dolled up – or none at all – is a moral imperative when a reveler finds himself or herself in Rio Carnival.

Origins of the Rio Carnival

It was the Portuguese who first had the idea of reversing the Brazilian social order in a merrymaking parade called “entrudo” which involved water and mud fights. After all, they came from Europe where the Venice Carnival (a similar, but masked, social-order-reversing festival) was starting to become highly popular, especially among the elite who wanted to escape the cultural constraints of being rich. When rich European migrants began settling Rio in mid-19th century, the festivities became more civil, celebrated with carnival balls, horse-drawn floats and street parades that featured the dance craze that swept Europe at the time, considered too conservative by the now Afro-Brazilians who have co-located (albeit in slums) with the rich in Rio.

Tasteful as the Rio Carnival celebrations may have been during this time, the working class that mainly consisted of Afro-Brazilians kicked up the dance steps a notch and made them “scandalous” with their suggestive moves and frisky jerks. Samba was born, and the street parties of Rio Carnival would become much wilder and grander in scale than their frontrunner cousins in Europe.

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American Thanksgiving

Compared to Europe and Asia, America is a relatively young country. However, they have their own thanksgiving holiday, and is possibly one that is well recognized all over the world. It is also one of the most important holidays in the United States and it marks the start of the holiday season that includes Christmas and ends with the coming of the New Year.

Thanksgiving 2013

In 2013, Thanksgiving will fall on November 28.

Historical Roots

Modern day Thanksgiving is widely attributed to the celebration held in 1621 at Plymouth by the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians. This first gathering was said to held after the first harvest in the New World, and many of the prepared foods were taken off the surrounding land.

Thanksgiving was officially declared as a national holiday by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863. In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared that the date of the holiday should be annually celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. However, some accounts show that President George Washington proclaimed in 1789 the first national celebration of Thanksgiving.

This Thanksgiving holiday is mostly secular, and is celebrated in Canada, Puerto Rico and Norfolk. Most government and public offices as well as schools, businesses and organizations are closed on Thanksgiving Day. Expect regular traffic and travel to be disrupted.

Food Fest

Like many gatherings of thanksgiving, the American Thanksgiving is known for its lavish feast. Pilgrim community leader and first thanksgiving attendee Edward Winslow noted in a letter the food that was prepared and served during that first gathering. Among of these are barely, corn, wild turkey and venison. The crops were grown by the people, and the fowl was hunted and prepared from the wild.

These days, people prepare all sorts of dishes for Thanksgiving dinner. These are mostly based on personal preferences and personal traditions. Immigrants bring in their own dishes and add it to the ones that are traditional to the American celebration. Of course, central dishes in this feast are turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce, vegetable dishes and the like. For dessert, there’s always pumpkin pie. These represent the dishes that were served all those years ago.

Unusual Traditions

It’s interesting to note that America has quirky traditions when it comes to Thanksgiving. Each year, two turkeys receive a presidential pardon, therefore saving them from being served on the dinner table. This has been a longstanding tradition, and its origins have been quite forgotten.

Thanksgiving Parade

In most parts of the country, Thanksgiving is celebrated with a parade. However, one of the most well-known and much anticipated parades is the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. Conceptualized in the 1920s by immigrant employees of Macy’s department store, it was initially meant for them to show their appreciation for their adopted country. Over the years, more participants joined in the parade. Over a million people watch it along the streets of Manhattan, while an additional four million or so watch it from the comforts of their homes as seen on national television.

Not Celebrating Thanksgiving

Despite its popularity, Thanksgiving is not celebrated by everyone in America. Since 1970, a group of Native Americans along with their supporters stage a protest on this day. It is called a National Day of Mourning and happens at Plymouth Rock in Massachusetts.

American Indian Heritage Day

American Indian Heritage Day or Native American Heritage Day is celebrated the Friday after Thanksgiving. This is an annual holiday that recognizes the culture and heritage of the native Americans, as well as their contributions to the country.

Shopping Season

Because of its proximity to Christmas, Thanksgiving also marks the start of the Christmas season. The Friday after Thanksgiving is also known to the retailers as Black Friday. Here, shops and stores have special offers on their wares, and many of their products can be bought at discounted prices. This day is often a non-working day, thus making Thanksgiving a four-day long holiday for most people.

The American Thanksgiving has a long history and closely ties the people through tradition and culture. Over the years it has grown and adapted to the country’s dynamic people, but the core of it stays the same. Thanksgiving is coming together with family, friends and the community in gratitude for the blessings received in the past year.

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As the name suggests, bulls are let loose out of their corals and herded into their proper destinations in the bull ring, except that their journey will be accompanied by daredevil (or suicidal, if you look at it another way) runners clad in white shirt and red scarves. The runners will outrun the bulls and attempt to get out the way should the bulls choose to run amok and gore any red-wearing animal in its path.

For many young males, this very idea is a turn-on, a reality TV opportunity where one gets to play Man vs. Animal and experience the fight-or-flight rush of a very real threat of not winning the battle.

The Running of the Bulls 2013 will take place starting July 6 and end on July 14, in the city of Pamplona in the region of Navarra, Spain.

Encierro: The Running of the Bulls

The “encierro” is the highlight of a bigger festival known locally as the Sanfermines or a festival in honor of Navarra’s patron saint, San Fermin. Though there are other activities in this week-long event, the Running of the Bulls is easily the most popular.

To open the Sanfermines, people gather at the Plaza de Ayuntamiento on July 6. At noon, rockets are fired in an opening ceremony called the “chupinazo” to start the weeklong event. Red scarves are put on after the firecrackers have gone off to indicate that people should stop working and start partying.

Thereafter, from July 7 to July 14, runners assemble before 7:30 AM between the City Hall Square and the Education Building in the Cuesta of Santo Domingo. Then, before the clock of San Cernin strikes 8AM, the runners scream a chant to the patron saint three times: at five minutes to go before 8AM; at three minutes; and finally, at one minute before the gate of the corral is opened at exactly 8AM. To signify the start of the bull run, a rocket (or firecracker) is fired.

Then the bulls – six fighting bulls accompanied by six oxen – run the 825 meters from the corral outside of the city, in Calle Santo Domingo, and into the bullring inside the city where they will take part in the bullfighting event later in the evening.

The Running of the Bulls usually takes four minutes to cover the distance, but sometimes takes longer than 10 when a bull strays from the herd (or stampedes over a moron who incited the bull with his red scarf).

All Quiet and Safe on the Corral Front

The bull run has ended when all of the six bulls have been safely led into the corral inside the bullring. Rockets are fired from the bullring to signify that the transfer of the bulls has been completed. The final rocket (fourth of the sequence) is fired when all the bulls are safely tucked into the corral and readied for the evening bullfight.

Origins of the “Encierro”

The “encierro” started out of the need to transfer the bulls from their pens outside of the city (where they were brought in by cattle farmers) into the bullring inside the city for a bullfighting event. As to when people started running before the bulls as the transfer occurs is still unclear to this day.

WARNING for the Non-Participants

Not everyone can have the bragging rights of having participated in the bull run. Unless you are (young) male, fit as a fiddle, quick as a squirrel, and cold-blooded as a reptile, you should not risk your life or limb. If the sight of flaring nostrils and sharp-horned four-hoofed juggernaut easily excites you (or worse, terrifies you), you are better off in the sidelines.

Given the real dangers of the bull run, only the fittest and bravest of men, known as “mozos,” are allowed to take part. The rest can view the spectacle from a safe distance, preferably:

• Behind the second fence that marks the route. Get there early as reservation of standing space is second to impossible.
• In Calle Santo Domingo, the spot where the race starts.
• From an elevated place. Another reason why you should book your accommodation early when heading to Pamplona for the bull run is so you can choose an elevated spot from where to safely view the drama and adrenaline rush that unfolds. Be sure to book an apartment or hotel room with a balcony view that overlooks the route.

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WOMAD 2013 will take place from July 25 until July 28 in Wiltshire, England.

From West African “Griots” to 100 Other Artists from 40 Countries

The core goal of WOMAD is to give performance artists of all colors and stripes the opportunity to showcase their talent before eager audience where there is none in their home countries. In this day and age of split-second look-up in massive search engines populated with billions and billions of indexed pages and yielding results in millions, who wants to hear oral tradition from West Africa?

But “griots” bring indeed just that, and then some. These people are repositories of their oral traditions, and they cleverly weave their stories with their music for a more well-rounded performance.

The ensemble of talents comes from little-heard places like Mali, Senegal, Niger Republic, Mongolia, Cape Verde and Azerbaijan. This year, while the acts are yet to be confirmed, there will be 100 artists coming from 40 countries who will showcase what they have got.

Not Just the Sights And Sounds But The Taste of the World, Too

With four days to celebrate and dozens of nationalities coming together in one small park (Charlton Park, Malmesbury), it is inevitable that the neighbor’s cooking would waft into another’s tent. To satisfy the curious palates of the festival participants, an international cook off (of musicians and artists themselves) adds spice to the already steaming hot plate of sights and sounds that the participants are going to get for the duration of the festivities. Food-tasting events in the Global Village are likely to inspire the musically inclined to diversify to the culinary arts. The visual artist may want to seal his love affair with the WOMAD by learning skin art and/or getting one.

Children are not left out in the festivities. There are workshops solely intended for them, so they cultivate the love of everything artsy early on: making graffiti and clay models, painting, story-telling and circus-performing are just some of the things they get to learn when they sign up in one of the festival’s many workshops.

Of course, adults get to learn to play unusual musical instruments, stretch in yoga sessions, twist and turn in salsa lessons, and maybe even bar-hop in night owl happenings.

The Global Market

Inevitably, when people gather, they tend to exchange all sorts of intangible and tangible things. The WOMAD is exactly the kind of international event where the exchange of food and wares comes natural. Aptly named “The Global Market,” a portion of the festival grounds is turned into an international bazaar of trinkets and treasures that come from the artists’ home countries.

Origins of the WOMAD

Founded in 1980 by Genesis frontman Peter Gabriel, in collaboration with Thomas Brooman, Bob Hooton, Stephen Pritchard, Martin Elbourne and Jonathan Arthur, the WOMAD has since evolved from just a musical ensemble into a full-blown, multi-flagged festival that aspires to express all forms of art without pigeonholing it, as usually happens in mainstream art scene. To borrow a publishing jargon, one can expect that some performances are likely to “fall between two stools” if they were to be showcased before a mainstream audience outside of WOMAD.

Because acts that fall between two stools are hard to market in the real world, WOMAD performers often find themselves devoid of appreciative audience. This is what WOMAD has always tried to address: international exposure for undiscovered local talents.

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And what fun La Tomatina can be, when there is no rhyme or reason to pelt each other with tasteless tomatoes and paint the town, literally, ketchup red.

In 2013, the tomato-throwing will take place on August 28.

Crimson Tide Minus the Submarine

Every last Wednesday of August, the streets of Buṅol are awash – rather, inundated – with crimson juice as thousands of participants throng the narrow streets of this plain industrial town 38 kilometers west of Valencia, Spain. It is going to be one massive “unclean” fun as 150,000 tomatoes will fly out of every direction, and leave behind a slushy mess of tomato soup which will make famine social workers raise eyebrows.

But it is this senseless pandemonium – the idea of wading in crimson tide and getting drenched in tomato juice tsunami – that makes the experience appealing to people who are otherwise logical in their professional lives.

The tomato madness starts at 11AM, when a firecracker is lit to signal the start of the fruit fight. Then, one by one, dumper trucks with 40 tons of red ammunition make their way slowly amidst the heaving wall of human bodies that could possibly be packed in four narrow corridors that constitute the La Tomatina circuit. As the trucks discharge their precious cargoes – said to be grown specifically for the festival – revelers scoop out the orbs, squish them (to minimize injury) and start throwing them, pelting them, chucking them, tossing them, catapulting them in every conceivable direction. The chance of standing in the trajectory path is 100%.

This squishy mayhem continues until noon when another rocket is fired to signal the end of the suspension of reason. Then everyone heads to public showers or get free dousing from hoses and buckets provided by the locals, change into immaculate clothes, and hop on public transport smelling of – stinking – La Tomatina, while nursing a hangover on the ride back to the hotel.

Virginal White Shirt, Goggles and Sangria

A true La Tomatina “warrior” wears virginal white shirt to best show the world the festival’s true colors. Men who don’t want to waste a good shirt don’t wear anything at all, except for skimpy “loin cloth” that they prefer to call their fashion of the day.

But whatever their choice of outfits, if at all, revelers make sure that they don’t miss protective eyewear. Goggles and snorkeling masks make appropriate contraptions in the tomato version of Waterworld.

Tomato juice, however, is not the beverage of choice during the festivities. Sangria, a staple in Portugal and Spain, is dispensed by liter-load in large plastic containers well before midday and well into the thick of the action. Beer and wine also make an obvious presence, and are guzzled in equal proportions. Given the quantity of alcohol making rounds, La Tomatina indeed makes for one messy, drunken revelry.

Origins of La Tomatina

One of the many proposed origins for Buṅol tomato-throwing was that it started in 1945 as a spontaneous brawl between young men who were refused entry to a parade and the local law enforcement who tried to break up the fight. Because there were vegetable stands nearby, the brawlers made the most of the tomatoes and started a riotous tradition that proved to be hard to suppress.

In the intervening years, because of the damaged caused by tomato-throwing, the event was held on and off until 1957 when the overwhelming demand for it made La Tomatina official.

Now, the local authorities themselves provide the “ammunition” and bear the brunt of clean-up after the “riot” is over.

Check out this video from TravelYourself:

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