The Catalonian tradition of a Calçotada

Lasting from roughly January until Easter, the Catalonian tradition of a Calçotada springs up, quite literally, in a variety of places in and around the area of Tarragona. Put very simply, a Calçotada is a big barbecue that pays homage to the spring…

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Speaking of the devil….

If you happened to watch the Sri Lankan leg of Amazing Race Australia in 2011, you may recall the chaos that followed the Sri Lankan Mask Festival, as teams were lost in a frenzy of masked dancers. The history of Sri…

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Songkran Festival – it’s impossible to stay dry

Yes you read it right. Unless you stay locked up indoors, it’s impossible to stay dry during Thailand’s Songkran festival. Songkran is my favorite, and Thailand’s most famous festival. It’s the world’s biggest water fight, and it takes place from…

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The food of Thingyan

Last month, I introduced you to Thingyan festival. This month I’ll tell you a little more about Thingyan festival, but from a different perspective, food, and for a couple of good reasons: 1) It’s April so that means it’s Thingyan…

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Nowruz

Open the windows, 
For the kind breeze is celebrating the birthday of the beautiful flowers, 
And spring,
 On each and every branch,
 Close to each young leaf,
 Has turned on lovely candles! Fereydoon Moshiri, contemporary poet After a long and…

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Thingyan spirit

In Myanmar (or Burma, as it was once known before), March is the time when summer steps in, and summer holidays start. Like in many other countries, summer holidays are the time when families carry out their plans for summer…

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Yalda

At the end of last year, miles away from Iran and surrounded by Christmas shoppers and images of Santa Claus on the streets of Madrid, I was looking everywhere for watermelons and pomegranates, two fruits traditionally eaten on the Iranian…

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Jakarta Night Festival

For the last six years, I have been living between my hometown Bogor and Jakarta (Indonesia’s capital). Bogor is a city in West Java located very close to Jakarta (approximately 60 km, or 1.5 hours drive). Up until now I…

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Elephant tales

My first encounter with elephants in Sri Lanka (not that I actually remember) was when I was a few days old and I was carried under the belly of an elephant. In Sri Lanka, newborn babies are often carried under…

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Celebrating the mystery of Vijaya Dashami

Autumn is awesome in Nepal. The white Himalayas kiss the blue sky and the yellow paddy fields dance in slow motion, in tune with the caressing breeze and the whispering river playing hide-and-seek down the blue mountains. Nature is amazing….

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