PATA’s 60th anniversary celebrations to be held in Beijing from April 9-12, 2011

The 60th Anniversary of PATA, Pacific Asia Travel Association is on its way and would be hosted by one of the leading tourism authority, The China National Tourism Administration (CNTA).The event will be held at China World Hotel in Beijing from April 9- 12, 2011.

Some of the major activities would take place in the Macao Resort Hotel, Macao from September -14-17 and would continue through 2011.

The theme of the event would be " Building tourism: Past, Present, Progressive " reflecting the past present and future of PATA's events and work. Anticipations are high with the event and Zu Shanzhong, Vice Charirman, CNTA said " We are looking forward to working with PATA for successful conference."

Hiran Cooray, Chairman, PATA said, “With 60-years of history behind us, we want to take the opportunity to recall the contribution PATA has made to Asia Pacific tourism, while also looking ahead to consider what role PATA will play in the years to come.


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Uganda Tourism Board Give Node to Kampala and Says its Safe.

All those who were planning for Uganda in coming months were shocked by the recent terrorist attacks that killed an estimated 74 people. Most of the travellers have piut their Safari plans on rest.

After seeing the recent cut in travel plan, Uganda Tourism officials are appealing travellers not to cancel their trips. "Kampala is safe," said Cuthbert Baguma, executive director of the Uganda Tourism Board, in a statement. Baguma said that security agencies are on "full alert" and the situation is under control.

There is no need to cancel or change itineraries because there is no indication of a re-occurrence of any sort."

Though the US State Department had not issued a travel warning for Uganda yet the recent bombings are raising safety concerns among American tourists.Uganda is emerging as an attractive ecotourism destination. Primate safaris, bird watching and village tours are popular activities in this East African nation.

It was difficult to promote Kampala to American tourists and the recent attacks have actually detoirated the image of Uganda. It has been seen that Uganda Tourism officials are taking number of steps to increase the inflow of tourists to Uganda.




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Travel Activities to do in Singapore

If you are thinking what all you can do in Singapore, apart from shopping, so let me tell you that there are few intriguing activities that can keep you engage once you are in Singapore.

Night Safari
This is one activity that you should not forget to try out. The famous Singapore Night Safari unravel 1040 animals of 120 species and their behaviour during night time. It is not a typical moonlight safari, as lights are kept brighter so that a visitor is able to distinguish them. It occupies 40 hectares of tropical rainforest and walk between its eight different sections.

Underwater World
It is amongst the interesting oceanariums in the world, Underwater World gives Singapore tourists the chance to discover Asia’s fascinating sea life without doing any diving whatsoever. An 83-meter-long travelator will carry you through an acrylic tunnel as over 2,500 marine animals swim around you. Underwater World Singapore sets itself apart from other oceanariums through its unique interactive attractions, like Meet-the-Dolphin, where visitors enter a pool and play with Humpback dolphins. Singapore’s first doctor fish spa and the stingray feeding pool also offer unique experiences.

Butterfly Park
One of the most famous attractions in Singapore, Butterfly Park and Insect Kingdom introduce you to a world of living colors and creepy crawlies. As deforestation rendered many species of insects extinct, the government of Singapore decided to protect them by building a haven that imitates their natural habitat. It is a home to 50 species of butterflies and 3,000 rare insects call Butterfly Park and Insect Kingdom and tourists have the opportunity to approach and closely examine them. Witnessing the birth of a butterfly as they come out of their tiny eggs at the Pupa Hut is a unique and unforgettable experience.





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Wedding In The Caribbeans- Jamaica The Place To Be

The Caribbean island of Jamaica is a familiar name among the travellers who love the sea, sand and sun with a mix of cultural diversity. Known as a hub for some relaxing and cozy holidaying, Jamaica has gradually attained the stature of being a perfect wedding location for couples who want to celebrate their unison in a different way.

Getting married outside your native land is a recent phenomena and is catching the imagination of the young and the adventurous. The enigma is toxic and it passes with stories to share and moments to cherish while cuddling up each other in lazy rainy evening.

So, if you are planning to get hitch shortly and want to altar the experience in to pearl in your memory, do visit Jamaica. The reason being its several aspects that makes it a preferred wedding destination.

Jamaican weather: The tropical weather of this island offers a perfect background for a romantic unison of hearts with the occasional rain blessing the newly weds. In Jamaica, you are open to choose your wedding venue either in a garden or a beach and with the conducive weather it becomes an ideal scene. The resorts have inbuilt Chapels, so no need to worry about divine presence.

Friendly Resorts: The resorts of Jamaica is tailor made for some wedding celebrations with all the required facilities. The party halls of these resorts can accommodate a considerable number of guests supported by a cooperative and humble staff. And if you fall under their terms and conditions of a privileged guest, you might stand a chance to have a wedding ceremony for free!

Wedding and Honeymoon at one shot: This is a practical but very interesting aspect of a Jamaican wedding. Why to brain storm on choosing the honeymoon site when you are already in one of the most popular one? The beaches, the restaurants combined with a mesmerizing night out by the sea makes up a honeymoon plan to envy of.

Friends and family also get the facilities: The only probable problem with a abroad wedding is the issue of the near and dear ones travelling down. But the free passes provided by some of the resorts as complimentary to the wedding bookings not only gives them the opportunity to fly to Jamaica but also spending a vacation there.

Cost effective angle: As you notice from whatever has been mentioned aforesaid, a wedding in Jamaica is not a very expensive affair. Avail the special packages that the resorts offer and get ready to flag off your new life in a new zeal and spirit.

Skiing In The Most Beautiful Resorts

Skiing is something, that I can't claim that, I am very much into and is quite been there it, done that kind of affair. This is not because of the fact that I don't like skiing; I truly enjoy doing it and am fortunate enough to experience the thrill in some of the best destinations for this spine chilling sport. I just feel that the more I do it, the more it leaves me with an insatiable desire to try it one more time! It reminds me of Britney Spears who explodes- Hit me baby one more time!!! and like her I also want to sulk by saying- Oops I did it again!

As I penned before, I am kind of lucky (another Britney number, you can blame it on my inclination towards her music) to ski down some awesome ranges across the globe. Here they go:

Saint Moritz, Switzerland: Wow! My trip to Switzerland was as freaking as it could have been! This ski resort is a sort of paradise with extended snow covered slopes that offers a memorable skiing session. Well, apart from the exciting skiing time in Saint Moritz, I really felt special when I learnt that several Bonds movies were also shot in this location! At the sideline of skiing, I also stepped in the Segantini Museum and visited the Morteratsch Glacier.

Verbier, Switzerland: I was not done with the former and bugged the guide for more skiing resorts. Helpless, the poor fellow suggested me to hit Verbier, another mind blowing destination. As I was based in Geneva which stands at a distance of 160 kms from it, I took a train to Verbier, though I had other options like hiring a cable car or boarding a bus. The slopes of Verbier are a tough deal as it threatens the pro and the ametuer alike. Of them, I liked the slopes of Mont Gele that truly met with my desire for a thrilling adventure.

Cortina d’ Ampezzo, Italy: Though I had already done much of skiing in Switzerland, I could not resist myself when I heard about the Cortina d‘ Ampezzo (Queen of the Dolomites) during my trip to Italy. The snow ranges are exotic and believe me, is a cool break from the Gondolas. Did I have a good time there!

Courchevel, France: Frankly speaking, I was in no mood to try skiing in France. Was happily strolling in the streets of Paris mingling with the finest crowd in the world. But, from nowhere I came to know about two of the most ecstatic skiing resort in the world that is located in this charming country. The first is Courchevel resort that offers a challenging slope for the skiiers, but it was not that toiling to over come that. And that left me with enough energy to burn in the party at La Croissette, right at the center of Les Caves.

Val d’ Isere, France: Once I stepped in this ski destination, I thanked my decision to come here. It was simply superb! The slopes are pretty high; but it really doesn't matter given the fact that you go skiing to push the limits. The stretch of the skiing range is almost 300 kms in area and is well equipped with modern resorts.

Quite heavy on the wallet though, but every penny spent is worth!

Michael Jackson: His Forlorn Legacy

Few people can boast of a legacy as left by Michael Jackson. The Superstar not only excelled in his music career albeit touched the life of millions across the globe. He had followers in zillions no matter what culture, religion, race or creed they belonged to!


Michael was born on August 28, 1958 - one of 9 kids. cute African-American very talented guy. Despite the current, sad stories about his lonely, sad childhood, Michael Jackson grew up surrounded by famous people and an adoring public. At the age of 5, Michael and his brothers were the amazing 'Jackson 5'. They played locally, then in New York and Philly.


His father reportedly nicknamed him "Big Nose". But Michael was very much apprehensive about his nose and he desperately wanted to get rid of the same.

This was his "Thriller" Era and his music touched millions of people across the globe no matter their language or culture or race or politics. Michael Jackson gets his nose slightly narrowed and his eyebrows shaped to match to the toes. Michael Jackson lived a life that of a king and only few can think of emulating such a lifestyle of extravaganza.

He was cute as hell and such was the charisma of this bronze skin lad that he was quoted as a cute little guy by many. Oh, baby! He went on giving interviews, had perfect sense of humor and was often seen on the national television basking in the glory of his success. Well what he was not seen with was wearing the face mask filled with oxygen layer. He had a big infectious smile enough to enchant his fans all the way round. He made hit after hit, celebrated music videos one after another, sealed obscenely huge record sales and contracts.

But then then something happens which really turns the life cycle of Michael Jackson upside down. His craze to beautify himself lands him into something which nobody can dream of!

He gets his nose work done again and the Plastic surgeon botches up the surgery. Truly pathetic! But this was not enough for him he gets cheek bones done. In a mere year and a half his skin's gone from beautiful cocoa bronze to fish belly white. He first denies this, then blames it on the medical condition Vitiligo which causes people of color to develop light patches of skin that lack pigment.


Well he doesn't say this, his "people" say this. Rumors mills also say that he's been allegedly taking female hormones to remove facial hair and keep that voice of his at the 12 year old boy pitch. Now he was speaking with the voice better connoted as a small girl's whispers!

Now Michael Jackson is said to have become creepy. He has become a point of joke for many and people quoting him as that “Only in America can you be born a black man and end up a white woman”.

If this was not enough Michael Jackson went on for a manly cleft in his chin and a dropped, square jawline. Oh God ! He gets his nose job done again and now sports little teeny triangles for nostrils and a sharp razor ridge you could grate cheese on!

He messed with it all again! Now his skin color has changed to toilet paper pink, cheeks seem to be squirrel socking nuts away for the winter. The devastating part is that the tip of his nose is so damaged from the operations that the tissues have died, and for sure he's now wearing a fake prosthesis tip!

The shocking news of child molestation charges comes to light and it was indeed the last straw for his sponsors to cancel his contracts!

Whatever strangeness occurred in his life, however wrapped in controversy his sudden death due to drugs overdose was another event that has become one of the milestones which history can never think of repeating. Jackson has left the world an incredible legacy that cannot be denied!

There are some people though for whom the influence of Jackson will much more significant. Well, they can never forget him and his legacy persists for time long.

His friends and family knew a totally different but far more significant version of the man and own his legacy in a totally different way. Chief amongst those people are his children, Prince, Paris, and Blanket. Their experience with the man were something totally unique and will live with them forever, even as they sit alone in isolation, wrapping duct tape around their arms and spreading cheesecake over their faces. They don't have any friends. They don't go to school, they have private lessons at home.


The three children apparently get along well with each but are paralyzed with fear when meeting outsiders, just like ordinary losers. The Jackson children really have had a unique life that will likely only become more so as it goes on. Yes, they lost their father but they also have access to virtually unlimited funds to sustain themselves.


Jackson lived a strange isolated life from a very young age and it turned him a little funny. That is a legacy he has passed onto his children and so it’s quite sensible to assume that they will also turn out strangely. For now they are just regular losers, but in the long term it will be quite rough.”Hard to believe but this was Michael Jackson.


For the millions of his fans, and even those who could care less about the man and music, that legacy will forever be a part of their lives.

Though the impact can diminish as time rolls on, as they grow and live their own lives, but Jackson will always be a part of them even if it is in some small way.

Famous 5 Christmas Markets of The World

I am personally very fond of Christmas and Christmas carols. Last year, I happened to visit Europe during Christmas time and found out not one but 5 Christmas Markets. Amazing... It was fun to shop and celebrate Christmas The way I wanted to. Locals confirmed the fact that these markets are common in December as they form an unusual aura of celebration and gaiety that prevails whole month.

Prague, Czech Republic

In Prague, there are two Christmas market, namely in Old Town Square and in Wenceslas Square. The start off by 5 th December and exhibit till the christmas eve. Both are perfect hubs to buy red stockings, stars and the glitters that add sparkles to Christmas Fiesta. It is a tradition here to sip mulled wine (svaree vino) while visiting the huts with handicrafts and hot food.

Dublin, Ireland

It has already hosted four christmas markets. Being the capital of Ireland, it naturally attracts travellers but during Christmas Dublin has another magnetism that draws tourist towards itself. The market run from December 12 to December 23 and overland travellers can expect seasonal food, stocking fillers, carol singers and bands to perplex the atmosphere.

Stockholm, Sweden
What Dublin can do, Stockholm can do better. Being one of the richest and the oldest in all of the Europe, Skansen Christmas Market becomes a special attraction in the month of December. You can find everything here from sausages to linen, gingerbread and children’s toys. Old carols can be heard all over this wonderful open-air museum and you experience first-hand the beauty of a Christmas up North.

Copenhagen, Denmark

Most of the christmas markets onset in the month of December but Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen is bit different as they start from November 20 and continue to till the end of December. I specially enjoyed the merry go round that was 150 years old. You can collect number of souvenirs from here that range from handicraft work to delicious cakes.

Berlin, Germany

Berlin beats all by pompously holding 60 Christmas markets in it vicinity and satifying the strong urge for those shopoholics who cann't do without shopping. The ones at Charlottenburg Castle, in Gendarmenmarkt and on the Alte Postdamer Strasse are some of the most popular. Mulled wine and the cinnamon stars are just a few of the delicacies one can find; hand-made presents are also very sought after.


 

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