May 19th, 2013 at 12:00PM: istolethetv, Flickr
On May 17, a good chunk of East Asia had a day off to celebrate the Buddha's birthday (Southeast Asia will celebrate it next week). It happens that in Hong Kong the Enlightened One's birthday coincides each year with a Taoist celebration called the Bun Festival. The culmination of the Bun Festival occurs at midnight of the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, when "bun ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
festival posts
Bun Snatching At The Bun Festival In Hong Kong
May 19th, 2013 at 12:00PM: istolethetv, Flickr
On May 17, a good chunk of East Asia had a day off to celebrate the Buddha's birthday (Southeast Asia will celebrate it next week). It happens that in Hong Kong the Enlightened One's birthday coincides each year with a Taoist celebration called the Bun Festival. The culmination of the Bun Festival occurs at midnight of the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, when "bun ...Better Know A Holiday: Buddha's Birthday
May 16th, 2013 at 2:00PM: xcode, Flickr
AKA: Vesakha, Vesak, Wesak, Visak, Vixakha and many more derivatives.
When? The second Sunday in May OR the day of the full moon in May OR the Sunday nearest to the day of the full moon in May OR the eighth day of the fourth lunar month OR if you've decided all that calendric work is too much hassle, like the Japanese, April 8.
Public holiday in: Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, ...Better Know A Holiday: Showa Day
Apr 29th, 2013 at 9:00AM:
Formerly: The Emperor's Birthday, Greenery Day
When? April 29
Public holiday in: Japan
Part of: Japan's Golden Week, a series of four public holidays in the span of a week that sees offices closed, trains and planes packed and a mass exodus from the major cities like Tokyo.
Who died? Former Japanese Emperor Hirohito, posthumously referred to as Emperor Showa.
They changed his ...Sunday At The Market In Tlacolula
Mar 10th, 2013 at 10:00AM:
"Donde esta el autobus por Tlocolula?"
The question was met with a quizzical look. Where was this gringa trying to go?
Perhaps I wasn't pronouncing it correctly.
"Tloco... Toco... Tlaca..." I stammered.
"Ah, Tlacolula."
Si. There.
I don't suppose the makeshift bus stops on the highways of Oaxaca state see many tourists. But somehow, through a series of bumpy bus rides and ...Discover Scandinavia In Washington DC: Nordic Cool 2013
Feb 20th, 2013 at 11:00AM:
Aurora Borealis, new Nordic cuisine, ice hotels, hot springs, fjords, moose, meatballs and music? Scandinavia is at the top of the list for a lot of travelers these days. But if you can't book a ticket to the northern countries this year, Washington, D.C., might be your next best bet.
The city is the host of Nordic Cool 2013, a month-long international festival celebrating the culture of ...The Best Places In The US To Celebrate Chinese New Year
Jan 22nd, 2013 at 11:00AM:
Chinese New Year – or Spring Festival as it's also known – is a Chinese celebration that marks the start of new life. Each year is associated with an animal from the Chinese zodiac and 2013 will welcome the year of the snake.
New Year is the most important holiday in China (a lot like Christmas is in the West), and Chinese families celebrate by buying gifts, food and clothing. ...Russian Forest Now Features 170-Foot-Long Trampoline (VIDEO)
Dec 2nd, 2012 at 2:00PM:
At Archstoyanie, an annual festival held in the forests of Nikola-Lenivets, Russia, architects from Estonian design firm Salto created a 170-foot-long trampoline. Dubbed "Fast Track," the elongated trampoline acts similar to a people mover at an airport. Except in this case, instead of helping you get from one place to another in haste, Fast Track was designed to allow users to experience ...Thailand's Naga Fireball Festival
Nov 18th, 2012 at 1:00PM:
"Do you believe in the Naga?" the hotel receptionist asks me as I checked in to my room in Udon Thani, Thailand.
"I don't know," I reply. "I've never seen one. Do you?"
"Oh yes!" She says, and the clerk behind her nods as well.
Across Asia, the Naga is a mythical serpent-like creature. It plays a role as a snake in the Mahabarata, takes the form of a dragon in China, and in northern ...Hong Kong To Host International Food And Wine Festival
Oct 14th, 2012 at 8:00AM: Hong Kong, a city that is already well known for its fantastic cuisine and amazing selection of wines, will extend its reputation for fine dining even further when it plays host to the 2012 American Express Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival. The four-day event, which runs from November 1-4, will offer samplings of some of the finest foods from around the world, set against the stunning backdrop of ...Marriage Traditions Of Morocco's Berber Tribes
Sep 14th, 2012 at 2:00PM:
Every fall the indigenous Berber people of northern Morocco gather in the mountain village of Imilchil, about four hours from Fez, for the traditional Imilchil Marriage Festival. While the dates shift based on the lunar calendar, the three-day event will take place this year September 23 to 25.
At the Imilchil Marriage Festival, youths from different tribes get the opportunity to meet ...
La Convención: A Festival Of 'New Circus' In Buenos Aires
Jul 17th, 2012 at 10:00AM:
In the urban landscape of Buenos Aires, Argentina, fauna is fantastically diverse. I love watching the human wildlife. My favorite species is the callejero, or street circus performer. In parks around the city, they set up their slack lines. They hang their long, silk telas from trees to practice aerial dance. Juggling pins fly. The callejeros spend hours in the parks, simply teaching and ...Photo Of The Day: Turkish Tulips
Apr 19th, 2012 at 6:00PM:
April showers bring May flowers, as the saying goes. We're getting plenty of rain this month in Turkey, but we've had flowers. April is the big month for tulips in Istanbul, and you can see them planted all over town as 11.5 million were planted for this year's season. I took today's photo at Emirgan Park, one of the prime viewing spots of the Istanbul Tulip Festival. There are over 100 ...Rio Carnival 2012: Backstage at the Sambadrome parades
Feb 22nd, 2012 at 5:30PM:
"Follow the feathers" was my strategy for finding the Sambadrome stadium in Brazil this past Sunday, the first evening of Rio Carnival's famed samba parades. The metro exit was packed with crowds moving in all different directions, so I had little choice but to follow the handful of people wearing large, extravagant costumes in front of me. They were obviously going where I needed to go. ...Rio Carnival 2012: 10 best bloco street parties
Feb 20th, 2012 at 3:30PM:
If you want to feel the real essence of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro, look no further than the city streets. In the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday, lively street parties and parades, called blocos, wind throughout Rio's various neighborhoods, led by floats blaring live samba music. Crowds can swell to upwards of 200,000 people, many dressed in outrageous costumes and more than a little ...Video: Rio Carnival's biggest street party, Cordão do Bola Preta
Feb 20th, 2012 at 10:30AM:
Despite a nearly unbearable early morning start time, the Cordão do Bola Preta bloco on Saturday attracted more than 2.2 million people -- the most any of Rio de Janeiro's popular Carnival street parties has ever seen.
The party got started at 8:30 a.m. in Largo da Candelária and traveled down Avenida Rio Branco before finishing in a huge dance party in Cinelândia ...
The ultimate guide to Carnival in Rio: planning, packing and logistics
Jan 31st, 2012 at 1:00PM:
Attending Carnival in Rio de Janeiro tops many a bucket list, and for good reason. Not only is Rio Carnaval one of the world's sexiest festivals, it's also an important cultural event for the people of Brazil. Last year, more than 4.9 million people participated in the week-long festival of parades, parties, and carousing in the streets, and the number is expected to increase yet again this ...Video of the Day - Thailand's Yi Peng Festival via iPhone 4S
Dec 6th, 2011 at 6:30PM:
The Yi Peng festival is a special event in Northern Thailand that occurs on the 12th full moon of every year. Coinciding with Loi Krathong (a festival celebrated throughout Thailand) it is observed by lighting sky lanterns and letting them float into the sky, resulting in what appears to be large flocks of giant jellyfish floating through the air.
There have been many fantastic videos ...
Green Living Project to feature global/local short films at San Francisco Film Premiere
Oct 16th, 2011 at 2:00PM: The Green Living Project will be showcasing a new lineup of local and global short films at the 2nd annual San Francisco Film Premiere. The event will take place on October 22, 2011, from 6PM-9PM at Hub SoMa.
The Green Living Project has created over 60 films from 17 countries across Latin America, North America, and Africa. This event will feature their most popular projects dealing with ...Austin City Limits 2011
Sep 28th, 2011 at 11:00AM:
"We should make sure we go to at least one music festival a year for the rest of our lives", I said to my fiance as TV on The Radio took the stage in front of me during Austin City Limits 2011. The sky in Texas is one of Texas' best qualities. It seems to canopy the entire sphere of Earth sometimes, looking elastic and bright enough to make you squint. At sunset, pastel colors are strewn from ...Photo of the Day - Bubbles in Bosnia-Herzegovina
Aug 25th, 2011 at 6:00PM:
As children, we are captivated by bubbles. A little soap and water and the reflections can be magical. Outside of the occasional bubble bath (and the delicious bubbles in sparkling wine!), we don't have many occasions to enjoy bubbles as adults. In today's photo by Flickr user Marko Musnjak, the little girl and her mother look equally mesmerized by the street seller's bubble toy. Taken at the ...
