Travel
It was a hot summer day when a friend of mine and I pulled into the parking lot of Sombrio Beach, on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. We planned to be there for the day and set up a shady spot on the sand to enjoy our ocean views. We were hoping to see some wildlife — a bald eagle, a sea lion, maybe even a breaching whale.
Since 2008, when the main city George Town was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, tourists flocked to Penang to savour the food, see the sites, and indulge in ‘heritage tourism’. Every day, you can see walking tours searching for the Insta-famous street art peppered across the Heritage Zone. However, heritage tourism is a double-edged sword; what they think is cultural heritage is, in fact, a brilliant tourism campaign promoting the historic image of Penang at the cost of the locals who live it.
A block from Havana’s famous Malecon, I found myself standing on a curb, sharing a bottle of rum with my good friend and traveling companion Sandra, and three strangers. We’d all met earlier at a nearby salsa club tucked in an alleyway between the Centro and Old Havana neighborhoods, a local joint.
As the world eagerly awaits the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, cities across the globe gear up to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new with awe-inspiring displays of fireworks. These dazzling shows have become synonymous with celebration, joy, and the promise of a fresh start. Join us on a captivating journey across continents as we explore the New Year's Eve fireworks displays that have captured the world's imagination. Since we will be ringing in the new year in Las Vegas, I’ll start there.
Kwanzaa, the vibrant and culturally rich holiday that celebrates African heritage, unity, and community, is observed by millions of people worldwide. As the holiday gains widespread recognition, communities around the globe come together to commemorate the principles and traditions of Kwanzaa. While the celebrations vary in scale and style, some locations stand out as hosting the largest and most impactful Kwanzaa festivities.
Poetry is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Washington DC. Despite its storied literary history, diverse music communities, and world-renowned museum system, visitors and residents alike have trouble seeing beyond the shadow of Capitol Hill.
It turns out that Santa Claus doesn't visit the entire world. Officially, the Christmas holiday is on the 24th and 25th of December each year. However, in reality, each region and country celebrates Christmas at earlier or later dates based on their own traditions and beliefs.
The cholita indigenous women from Bolivia’s countryside, are an indomitable symbol of resilience. In a country ravaged by colonial greed, ransacked resources, and periods of crippling poverty, the Bolivian people are no stranger to adversity.
From botanical gardens to open-air museums with reconstructed villages, amusement parks have long been part of the mantra, ‘work hard, play hard’. They have been a place to escape the toils and responsibilities of everyday life (a sorely tempting offer, right now). The latest addition is Ghibli Park, scheduled to open in November 2022.
During this season, Texans celebrate these holidays with unique customs and traditions. With a population fast approaching 30 million, the diversity of the Lone Star State is particularly demonstrated in the last month of the year.
Sunlight streamed in as I parted the window curtains of the double-decker luxury bus my husband and I were taking from Mumbai to the popular summer destination of Mahabaleshwar, 264 kilometers East of India’s biggest city. Outside, low-hanging tufts of clouds touched the opulent carpet of green that rolled down the hills.
It was Christmas Eve and it was snowing! This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for me. Growing up in Houston, Texas, we rarely saw snow, and for it to happen on Christmas Eve had me jumping for joy.
