Cultural Diversity Day

Every year I am lucky to perform a dance at the University of Iowa Cultural Diversity Day. I have been learning Indian classical dance ever since I was a young child. This year for the performance, I learned a brand new dance and was extremely excited to perform. After getting ready for two hours, when I reached Iowa City, the park was filled with stalls and people all from different cultures. Everyone was wearing their native clothing, selling their home made crafts, and selling their delicious food. It was like heaven for an anthropologist. Different cultural performers, like a Filipino group, Tai Chi group, and obviously an Indian group performed their native dances and songs. It was just a wonderful cultural experience that was eye opening.

Let's Party!!

Throughout the world, people celebrate all kinds of festivals. Each festival is unique in its own way; even in the same country one part can celebrate it differently compared to another part. So, if you are ever planning a trip and love to party and have fun, here are places and festivals you can celebrate.

To party in the States, go down to New Orleans in early January to celebrate the one and only Mardi Gras. This two week festival is quite famous for its parades that are headed by kings and queens who are followed by floats that are beautifully decorated. People throw candy and little trinkets at the crowd, who are all happily enjoying the time. At the end of Mardi Gras is Fat Tuesday when everything and everybody just lets loose. Ash Wednesday follows and is the first day of Lent; therefore, in the weeks before and especially on Fat Tuesday everyone just parties and enjoys life.

 

Similarly, in February in Rio de Janeiro, is the festival called Carnaval. This four day long festival also has everyone partying and dancing to samba. A million people come each year to watch the Sambodromo parade and watch neighborhoods compete against each other in dance competitions. Decorative floats, nude women, Masquerade Ball, people wearing costumes, are few images to describe this festival.

In Thailand, Songkran is the traditional new year, which has become an important holiday for many. Thais pray to Buddha, clean homes, and sprinkle water on elders. Nowadays it has transformed into a practice that has gotten wild. Everyone from Thais to tourists go out on the streets and get drenched by water balloons and water guns. It is like one big water fight.

Guatemala celebrates Semana Santa to worship the Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Jesus in a week. Jesus statues are sent down the streets, decorated with flowers, pines, fruits all varying in design. The crucifixion is reenacted and the entire city is draped in black and smells of incense.

These festivals around the world bring people together to celebrate and have fun. Each festival is unique and attracts a lot of tourists for different reasons. So, if you ever want a big party trip or want to experience another culture, head to one of these places to fill your needs. Just wait for more festival information or click here. 

Unusual Traditions: Part Uno

To people who are not accustomed to some traditions, they tend to find these traditions quite weird, odd, and unusual. But who are we to judge, people may think traditions that we may find normal are quite funny. For example, Americans in total eat 18 acres of pizza a day. That is a ridiculously large amount of pizza that most people not living in this country would probably think is an insane amount to eat. I even live here and can't believe that fact is true, well now that I think about it; we Americans do love our pizza.

 

On that note, here are some traditions that seem to be weird to people who are not familiar with them. Wedding ceremonies can have some unusual traditions like Polterabend and blackening of the bride. Polterabend is a German custom where guests come together at the bride’s home and break porcelain dishes, pots, and other objects on the night before the wedding. It is believed to be good luck for the wedding and also helps provide entertain the guests. At the same time, in Scotland, the tradition of blackening the bride may seem weird to some. This is because brides tend to be seen in a white dress, but in this Scottish tradition the bride and sometimes the groom are covered in spoiled milk, sauces, mud, feathers, fish, syrup, and many other gross items. It is believed that if the couple can overcome this humiliation, they will be able to stay together for life. How romantic?

 

Then there is also baby tossing. This seems kind of scary. I mean who would want to toss their baby, especially off the side of a 50 foot tower. However, parents in India, specifically in Maharashtra, climb to the top of the tower and toss their babies off. At the bottom, villagers hold a sheet out to catch the falling babies. It tends to be more of a Muslim Indian tradition, though some Hindus do practice it. By doing this, parents hope to provide the child with good luck for a healthy life. I wonder if any of these babies grow up to have a fear of heights.
 

In the Philippines, dead people are buried and hung in limestone caves around the Sagada. Similarly, people in China (Bo people) practice the tradition and in Indonesia the Toraja people hang coffins of the young. It is quite interesting to see that various parts of the world have similar traditions and they all have religious or spiritual meaning attached to it.

 

Though these traditions may seem weird to some, it is a tradition to others that contains religious and a spiritual meaning. There is always a reason behind why these things are done, and should not be judged. Some may seem sweet, others may seem weird, and others may just be plain disgusting, but we shouldn’t judge them. If it is what people want to do and believe then we should allow them to do it without judgment. Just always remember that it is important to be tolerant. I find all these cultures to be unique and interesting because of their traditions and would love to witness some of these traditions. Stay tuned for more weird traditions and if you want more information now, click here, here or here.

Ten Days, Nine Nights

Every year around this same time, I have the pleasure of going to many friends’ houses to celebrate an important holiday. We all eat, talk, pray, and enjoy time. The host house builds a stair step altar filled with beautiful figurines that depict a story and make all these delicious foods. Everyone else, mainly the women, visit their homes to view the amazing altar and with them, they bring gifts. Together we all enjoy, eat, pray, get presents, and celebrate a wonderful religious holiday.

As an Indian and a Hindu, there is always one week of the year, technically ten days, that is an important religious and celebration week. This week is called Navratri, meaning nine nights in Sanskrit. During these nine nights, Hindus worship the nine different forms of Shakti or Devi or Durga (the same god, just different names). The final tenth day, is a special one, called Dussehra. Durga is the divine mother god who provides a person with energy. She cannot be created or destroyed; she is always there. The reason we worship her is that she is the divine mother and the mother of all, her energy and greatness will help us in life. The nine days are separated into three sections, one for each of the main goddesses, Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. Durga is worshipped to destroy all our impurities, Lakshmi is the goddess of wealth, and Saraswati is the goddess of wisdom. Yes, I understand that there are a lot of gods and goddesses in the Hindu religion, but the main reason we celebrate these nine nights is to bestow wealth, knowledge, success, and powers to overcome obstacles upon us.

In these ten days, there are celebrations and prayers every day. I remember, ever since I was a little kid, I would look forward to this week. All of my friends and I would go around to different houses, eating food, getting to dress up in amazing clothing, and hang out, while spending time with our families and praying. It was a win-win situation. As we grew older, we would participate more in the religious aspect by singing songs and leading prayers.

Living here in the US has brought me away from my native culture. At times like these ten days or other important Indian festivals, it reminds me of my roots. I love being able to take part in both American and Indian culture, it helps me become more aware of things around the world. These ten days not only are a celebration and religious time, but it is a time that reminds me of who I am and where I am from, which is what I love.

Where Do You Want To Go?

Sometimes in life you come across obstacles and struggle to make it through. At times like these, we all just want to escape and leave. We all just want to give up, but we can’t. As we depressingly wander on with life, we always imagine for a better time or dream of a better place. There is no problem with that. Anyone can always imagine and dream, it’s a quality that helps me get through hard times.

One of the places I always imagine going is Australia. Though it is home to some of the scariest things in life, like excessive snakes and spiders (two things I fear the most) there is plenty to do. This beautiful country seems to have most of its major cities located on the east coast, a great desert land takes up most of the country, and then a few loner cities can be found on the west coast. The country has so many opportunities to explore and live life to the fullest. Its capital, Sydney, is home to the famous opera house. However, the fact that catches my attention about Australia the most is the ability to have adventure. While visiting Australia one can go surfing and catch some waves or go snorkeling or scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef. Australia has plentiful beaches, national parks, places to go hiking, rain forest walking, and waterfalls to swim under. It seems like heaven for an adventure and nature lover.

At the same time Australia has great diversity. Plentiful restaurants offer various types of foods. A great amount of places to shop for shopaholics. Site seeing lovers also have many places to visit and theater lovers can have a good time as well. Australia has it all and is a great travel destination. I can’t wait till the day I get to go there.

So the next time you are down, just imagine where you want to go and want to be. Imagine and dream of your future, and don’t give up, just escape for a little bit. When you come back to reality, take it by storm and forget about your problems. Just keep dreaming and one day the dream will come true.

October's Rocktober Travel Destinations

October is now upon us. It’s the time of pumpkins, candy, sweaters, Halloween, and the beautiful colors of fall. Everybody is back to work and back to school; travel may not be a part of the plan for October, but it can be. A weekend getaway is all it takes. So let’s talk about the top places to visit this October.

October means Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany. Each year around six million people head to this city to eat brats, drink beer (only if they are of age) and attend the Bavarian Oktoberfest. This modern city that is Germany’s most expensive city is found near the Bavarian Alps and the River Isar. The streets are lined with retail stores and BMWs. October in Munich means sixteen days of Bavarian food, rides, drinks, and parties. A great trip for those who love a good time.

Fall is upon us. This means the leaves changing colors. If you are a nature lover and want to see nature transform right in front of your eyes, head to pretty much any national park, such as Yellowstone. Due to the fact that it is fall and everyone is busy working or going to school, the parks will be less crowded. This allows for more time and freedom to explore, hike, and watch summer transform into fall.

Albuquerque, New Mexico is waiting for you to come and visit. Every fall since 1972, it has been home to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. This event has become the largest hot air balloon event in the whole world. During the first week of October, many travelers to go see the hundreds of balloons, 1,000 pilots from 28 different countries take off on their flight.

A cheap place to visit is Chicago. This diverse city has much to do and is located near Lake Michigan. Amazing restaurants, shops, and delicious deep dish pizza can be found throughout the city. Museums, zoos, art institutes, parks, shows, can all be found in Chicago. Plus, during the fall the weather is beautiful and the scenery is fantastic.

For those who want to travel out of the country, Tokyo, Jerusalem, and Paris are great choices. Tokyo’s Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden has yellow and orange leaves that flutter of trees and colorful chrysanthemums symbolizing the changing seasons. The Tokyo International Film Festival and Seven-Five-Three Festival also takes place at this time providing more to do. Jerusalem has great hotel rates, small crowds, beautiful sites, and perfect weather for any traveler. Paris, the romantic city, has great weather, less crowds, and cheap flights and hotels. The city has much to do and see; a wonderful place to go to relax and getaway.

For more information click here or here.

The Government Shutdown's Effect On Travel

I know many people may be discussing this and you may be tired of hearing it, but sorry I am still going to mention it. Today I am going to talk about how the government shutdown will affect tourism. If this shutdown takes place for a decent amount of time, it can affect the places you wish to visit. The national monuments and parks will all be closed, such as the Statue of Liberty and Yosemite National Park. Not only does this affect tourists, but it also affects tour groups like schools and weddings who have planned their trips well in advance without the idea of a government shutdown in mind.

One of the major downers of the government shutdown on travelers who are travelling by planes is excess delays and cancellations. Because the government provides for air traffic control, the shutdown causes less people to be put to work in these positions. Therefore, larger delays and more cancellations of planes will occur because of the decrease in the amount of workers who basically provide an extra set of eyes for the air. If someone is planning on going on a trip soon and hasn’t gotten their passport yet, they may be out of luck as well. Though the Department of State says it will continue to work on issuing passports and visas of foreign applicants, once again there will be delays, not only for the foreign applicants, but people living here in the US as well. Luckily transportation systems like the Amtrak will still be running, though that doesn’t help the foreign travelers much. Also, on the bright side, the US Customs and Border Protection will still be working. This means if you leave the country, you can still get back in. For example, a short trip to Canada is allowed.

 

Though there may be some effect on travel due to the government shutdown, like delay in flights, passports, and the closing of national museums, parks, and zoos, it is most likely that it won’t affect us too much. Travel will still be able to go on, with minor issues. Hopefully our government can come to a compromise and fix the issues they have amongst themselves. This way workers of the government can go back to work, children can go on awesome field trips to national sites, weddings can take place in the parks they had booked for, and tourists can go on vacation.

All this information can be found here.