For those who travel from Kerala, there’s reason to be happy. Qatar Airways is gonna operate more flights from Cochin, Delhi and Amritsar from this month on. The Gulf-based full service air-carrier will add about 14 flights in a week. And, the total number of services to-and-from India operated by the airlines would go up to 88 flights a week, from the existing 56.
The additional flights have begun from the first of this month, and will be increased in a phased manner, continuing into the next month. This service will be of great importance to Kerala’s soaring tourism industry as well as to its regular flyers. The Guld region has a large section of Malayalees, working and living there. Plus, a huge number of tourists, too, visit Kerala during the peak season, just after the Monsoons.
Cochin will be graced by the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama on September 4. As a preceding affair, on August 29, an exhibition of select cartoons on the Tibetan issues was kick-started at Kashi Art Cafe. It will be on till after His visit on the fourth.
A four-day seminar, ‘Beyond conflict to Reconciliation: The Challenge of the 21st Century’ will be conducted at the Catholic Renewal Centre. Is it organised by the International Association for Religious Freedom. His Highness Dalai Lama will deliver the inaugural lecture there, which will be attended by social and religious leaders, human rights activists, social activists and about 600 peacemakers from all over the world.
Dalai Lama will also address a private function of the Friends of Tibet and them. This will be a great opportunity for Tibetans and sympathizers of their cause a chance to meet with and discuss various issues with the world-famous leader.
I have about four Bibles at home. Attend the five-day Cochin International Christian Book Fair at the Town Hall and you can see 800 of them, in all shapes and sizes. There’s the smallest Bible at 10gm and the heaviest one at seven kilos. Other two interesting Bibles are the waterproof one and the steel grip one.
The ‘slide’ Bible will be a major attraction. Made by R&D dept of NCR Corporation at Dayton, Ohio of USA, the slide Bible contains all 66 books of the Old and New Testaments, but the font size of the letters are so teeny that you need a microscope to read them! On one slide you can read 1245 pages of the holy book!
The event, which will start on the September 2, is organised by Asia’s largest publishing house for biblical books, OM Books. Their head office is located in Secunderabad. At the book fair, besides varieties of Bibles, you can also peruse through and buy over 15,000 books, Christian music products, novels, theological resources, gifts and accessories.
Can you imagine a university as resplendent as the Nalanda Univerity? That, too, right next to the ruins of the world famous university that was destroyed in 1193 in a war. The group led by a team of international academic, historians, experts and leaders, including Nobel Prize winning Amartya Sen is canvassing the government for starting construction near the original site.
This ancient seat of learning, located in Bihar, offered a vast number of subjects in the Buddhist tradition: Sanskrit, medicine, public health and economics. Once a Bill is passed in the Parliament, the work will commence to build the new university.
About an estimated $500 million will be required to build the new facility, and another $500 million for improving the surrounding infrastructure. The governments of Singapore and India have already given some financial commitments.
The successful building of the university will be a global reminder of the nation’s history as a centre of learning and culture. It will also attract more tourists to the area.
That’ll be what the oarsmen tell each other at the upcoming Nehru Trophy Race 2010. And the practice sessions are underway on the Alleppey backwaters. This is one sport that demands physical and mental toughness. The rowers, musicians and the supervisors have to be absolutely disciplined and trained.
A lot of locals and tourists come to watch the rigorous practice sessions as much as the main event itself. They cheer their favourite teams in hordes. The popular name of the races is ‘Vallam Kali’. The Nehru Trophy Race takes place on the Punnamada Lake, in Alappuzha, The 58th edition of the race will be held on the 14th of this month.
The snake boats are specially designed and redesigned for the event. They are taken out months before the race and repairs made.
Several tour agencies have organised many packages for the month. You will be received at the airport and transferred to the respective hotels. A beautiful houseboat ride also awaits you at Alleppey. You can have your meals onboard. They also provide tours to Munnar, Thekkady, Kovalam and to most of the tourism destinations in India.
Chundan Vallams (Snake Boats) are the most famous category in the races. Other events you can spot use the Churulan vallam, Odi vallam, Vaipu Vallam, Vadakkanody Vallam and Kochu Vallam. The race is conducted on the second Saturday of August every year.
Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of Independent India visited Kerala in 1952. He was given a roaring reception by the people of Alleppey, escorted by the huge snake-boats. After returning to Delhi, Nehru donated a rolling trophy to be awarded to the winner of the race. The trophy is a replica of a snakeboat in silver, placed on wooden abacus on which the following words are inscribed, “To the winner of the boat race which is a unique feature of community life in Travancore-Cochin.”
Yes, we’re proud to be Indians, and to be able to make a positive change in the world. Kuoni Destination Management India has just been declared the 2010 PATA Gold Awards winner in the category “Education and Training” for organising child protection workshops in Goa and Cochin in 2009.
The gold award by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) shows us the importance of the company’s contribution towards social responsibility. The Kuoni Destination Management India has held many workshops in Goa and Cochin, India in 2009 and 2010.
The Venetian Macao Resort Hotel in Macau, China, will be the venue for the awards ceremony, which will take place on 17 September 2010 during the PATA Travel Mart 2010.
The Latin-Kannada Dictionary Reverend Charbonnaux compiled in 1861 just got a new lease of life. Reverend Charbonnaux served as Bishop of Mysore. After 149 years, the Latin-Kannada dictionary has gone to reprint again – by the Akhila Karnataka Catholic Christara Kannada Sangha. The Dutch and the Portuguese influenced peninsular India way before the British spread their language here. Even those regions beyond the coast were quite in the grasp of the missionaries.
The reprinted dictionary is available for perusal at the St Mary’s Basilica in Bangalore. It will be in the markets by next month. The dictionary is the second one compiled by the priests of The Paris Foreign Mission Society. The first one, Dictionarium Canarense-Latinum, was compiled by Jean-Marie Auguste Bouteloup in 1855. The two were discovered in the archives of the oldest church in Bangalore, the St Mary’s Basilica.
The mission society had set up in Bangalore, and Father Bouteloup was in charge of it. He has additionally authored over 13 books in Kannada.
Bannerghatta National Park
Covering an expanse of 104.27sq.km, and established in the early 70’s, the Bannerghatta National Park is just 23km off Bangalore. The Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, is the governing body of the park. It comprises 10 reserves forests of the Anekal Range of the Bangalore Forest Division. It is located quite close to the Tamil Nadu border. In fact, a lot of animals come here from Kollegal and Tami Nadu areas during summer. The highest point in the reserve is above 1,600m.
The national park is home to white tigers and lions. Elephants and deer are the most abundantly found animals in the area. Other fauna are panthers, sambar, bears, spotted deer, black buck, wild boars and varieties of snakes and other reptiles. Birds such as cormorants, painted storks, pelicans, white ibis and spoonbills are found in the park. The lions and tigers of the reserve were hunted by former rulers of south India. It used to be their private reserves.
Within the reserves there are many trekking routes, waterfalls, hills and temples to check out. The large area of the park also consists of a biological reserve, zoo, a crocodile farm, snake park, pets corner and a museum. Kids will be enthralled to visit the park of pre-historic animals. The auditorium/theatre here screens hour-long movies and clips on animals and environment.
The place has India’s first a butterfly park. It was inaugurated by Kapil Sibal, the then Union Minister of Science and Technology, on 25 November 2006. The Butterfly Park covers 7.5 acres and has a butterfly conservatory, museum and an audio-visual room. The circular enclosure accommodates about 20 species of butterflies within it. The environment created within the dome is humid and just apt for the natural growth of the winged creatures. There is an artificial waterfall and a small bridge.
The Suvarnamukhi stream that flows through the park, finds its source in the Suvarnamukhi hills. As you enter the park, you can see a huge boulder, almost a kilometre long. The hills continue on from here. The Champaka Dhama Swamy temple, built in the Dravidian style of architecture, and belonging to the Hoysala age, is located at the foot of this giant boulder. The main deity is Vishnu. His consorts Sridevi and Bhudevi, too, are worshipped here. Another famous shrine here is the one dedicated to Narasimha. The Suvarnamukhi pond, aout two km away, is said to have curative powers. People visit it all round the year, especially in the Monsoons.
Safaris into the reserve give you a glimpse into the lives of these wild animals. The area falls under an elephant corridor that connects it to B.R. Hills, and also to areas in Wayanad in Kerala. Also, you can camp or trek with the help of the local guides. There should be at least 10 people in a group for the lion and tiger safaris. The park is open on all days except Tuesday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The best time to visit is between September to January.
And for those who just wanna bite a corn cob and walk around the zoo, that’s also an option. There are many shacks and food stalls at the entrance of the zoo – the standar fare of corn, coffee, sugarcane juice, and snacks.
Organised by the Miss Kerala Foundation, this year’s Miss Kerala 2010 will be held on August 5th. The pageant, in the last few years, has seen some stunning beauties taking to the stage. It is open to Malayalis all over the world, and those whose parents are from the state.
The event, organised by Impressario Events Ltd, sponsors many charities across the state. This year’s is called ‘Save a Girl Child’ mission. The winner will be working for it, too.
Yes, it is quite possible to have snakeboats racing across the Thames soon. Keraleeyam, a UK-based organisation, along with the state and central government of Kerala and a few other organisations, plan to launch a snakeboat on the Thames, on the 8th of July.
It will fall as a part of the inaugural 2012 London Olympics program. The fact that Queen Elizabeth II will be in attendance will only add to the glitz. The river will be witness for this event where tourists will get to see the 120-foot-long lithe boat and around 100-odd oarsmen.
Suresh Gopi, Indian actor, who is the event’s ambassador is all out to make it successful. He, along with his fans’ associations will garner funds to take the oarsmen by flight to London, and ship the boat intact, in time.
