When next you visit Marrakech look out for The Seven Saints, seven three-story towers located on the outskirts of the city that bear the tombs of seven saliheen (righteous men) from the 12th to 16th century.
Today is, sadly, the final day of the Himalayan Film Festival at Quad Cinema in Greenwich Village. Screenings run from 1 to 9:45 p.m., so check out the schedule to squeeze in a film before it’s too late – and they’ve saved the best for last! Today’s films have been selected as the Director’s Choice, and we recommend trying to catch Tingvong, set in Sikkim, the least populated state of Northeastern India. Riding solo to the top of the world or Thin Ice, both set in the Ladakh region of Jammu Kashmir, are perfect for tails of transcendence.
If the silver screen leaves you wanting a real-life experience, Shakti offers three distinct village experiences (in Kumaon in Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Ladakh), and Shakti 360° Leti four-cabin hotel for treks and retreats in the Indian Himalayas. Explore trails and terraced fields between villages, catch views of the Nanda Devi, or schedule a yoga lesson at 8,000 feet above sea level!
Indian mystics have long used beds of nails to achieve balance between body and mind. The treatment remedies emotional, physical, and mental obstructions by targeting specific pressure points. Yet to achieve these healing powers one must lie on a bed of nails… and that’s not a real DIY project.
The new Shakti Mat uses the same Indian practice, but combines it with new Swedish technology for a more practical way to achieve relaxation and renewal – sans the hardware. For starters, lie on the mat for just 10-15 minutes per day and slowly increase to 20-40 minutes to relieve years of stress and tension. It’s a bed of nails that will feel like a bed of roses.
You don’t need a shaman or natural mystic to discover more yogic remedies. Find out on your own with Banyan Tours & Travels and customize your next India adventure!
Goa is paying tribute to its past with the new Goa Chitra. Located on an organic farm in Benaulim (in South Goa, if you don’t really know your geography), the museum pays tribute to the Goan ancestral way of life and houses a collection of about 4,000 artifacts. (more…)
Ramadan officially started August 11th and marks the month-long period where Muhammad is believed to have composed the Quran. In honor of this holy month, Muslims around the world will focus on inner peace and cleansing from now until September 9th through daily fasts during sunlight hours and abstain from any harmful habits that introduce toxins to the body (like drinking or smoking).
Ananatara resident spa guru and unofficial Ramadan expert, Liz Smailes, shared her advice with us on incorporating the relevant messages behind the holy celebration into daily life. (more…)
When packing for Santa Fe in the summer most travelers think of sunscreen and sundresses, but this time of year an umbrella is just as important! The summer season is referred to by locals as the “monsoon” season for its daily – albeit normally brief – showers.
Inn on the Alameda’s resident naturalist and concierge shares a little history on these summer storms.
National Yoga Month is only 19 days away… and we at AMPR couldn’t be more ready! We were very surprised to learn, however, just how popular yoga has become across the country.
About 16 million adults practice yoga and spend $5.6 billion a year on classes and products. That’s a lot of classes (or mats and spandex?) given that the average class only costs $12.
If you haven’t joined the yoga bandwagon yet, don’t be shy! Three-out-of-four yoga practitioners have only been practicing themselves for five years or less.
So jump on and see just what the hype is all about. With lululemon stores generating an average of $1,800 in sales per square foot – three times as much as J-Crew! – looks like yoga is set to become the new classic Americana.
At Park Hyatt Paris-Vendôme, guests are able to learn the secrets of the skilled and experienced bartenders at the famed Le Bar. Whether it is a simple gin drink or a frozen cocktail, favorite beverages will be demystified. Head barman Yann Daniel organizes cocktail classes available to anyone who is interested two Saturdays each month from noon to 2:30pm. Each class has a specific theme or main liquor that is used in all of the drinks that are made during the session. Upcoming themes are Rum, Gin, Champagne, and Whisky. The choices are endless, with a mix of classic drinks, like mojitos and cosmos, and inspired in-house cocktails, like the award-winning Park Flower or the sweet and creative lemon pie martini. Executive Chef of Michelin-starred Pur’Grill Jean-François Rouquette personally prepares tapas to accompany the long-awaited tasting of the cocktails. This is a fun and exciting way to learn how to make cocktails and mixed drinks for social events!
An exciting new opportunity from Crystal Cruises! The dedicated ComputerUniversity@sea offers extensive computer classes onboard, and new in September will be state-of-the-art iMac workstations with large – 32 inches! – LED screens, operating on both Windows 7 and Mac OSX 10.6 platforms. Participants eager for knowledge about new Mac technology can choose from a variety of introductory courses. The classes range from ‘Introduction to Computers using iMac and OS X’ to ‘Processing Photos with iPhoto®’. You will never want to take a computer class on land again!
Over Memorial Day weekend, one of the world’s most anticipated literary festivals, Calabash Literary Festival, took place for the 10th year in a row at Jakes, the seaside retreat located in Treasure Beach on Jamaica’s south coast. The quiet fishing town plays host to the annual festival, which attracted over 2000 guests this year. On a stage decked in coconuts and conch shells, guests were entertained by global literary talents including Nigerian-native Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka and U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins. The three-day cultural festival features readings, discussions, reggae music, film screenings and yummy authentic Jamaican cuisine (Jerk chicken! Ackee! Salt fish!)
While out of sight and many miles away, the recent turmoil was not out of mind for the festival-goers as the theme of the necessity of arts in a time of crisis was a consistent thread throughout the weekend. The Wall Street Journal perfectly described the event as “all that’s right about Jamaica”.
The festival takes place annually in May. Check back for more information on the 2011 event!
Florence Nightingale just might be the most famous nurse of all time, but does anyone know how she earned herself the nickname of “The Lady with the Lamp”? Learn this, and more, at Claydon House in Buckinghamshire where for the first time a selection of Nightingale’s personal papers and memorabilia, including letters and journals, are on display. Members of the Royal Oak Foundation gain free entry to this exhibit, as well as countless other National Trust properties throughout Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Nightingale is no stranger to the Claydon House, as it was formerly the home of Nightingale’s brother-in-law, Sir Harry Verney. Since May 8, aside from the various photographs and documents available for visitor’s perusal, the National Trust has recreated a sitting room in the house using photographs from Nightingale’s archives, allowing visitors to get a tangible feel for how this fearless female lived.
So why “The Lady with the Lamp?” Nightingale was given this name during the Crimean War because she often made rounds at night with a lamp in hand, tending wounded soldiers. Nightingale then later helped establish professional nursing as a career by starting the world’s first secular nursing school.
