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A peek into Minangkabau culture

Where the men rule but women call the shots!
There can’t be a more contradictory sentence than the one above but it strikes true everytime in West Sumatra.

It was late afternoon but still bright when I stepped out of Padang Airport in West Sumatra (Sumatra Barat). A designated guide received me and we started walking toward the parking lot. By force of habit I always look back to see how things looked like. I did so this time too and I stopped!

Padang, Minangkabau culture

Padang Airport based on Minangkabau architecture

In front was the beautiful

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Bali Barong Dance Drama of Indonesia

Bali Barong Dance Drama in Ubud Indonesia

If I am asked to choose one dance of Bali, Ubud Indonesia, I’ll probably take more time than expected. Almost all dance forms are expressive and vie for the first spot. However, for me, Barong is probably the most prominent of all the Balinese dances. There is a great richness of styles and eloquent drama involved. This was also the first dance performance we saw.

barong dance of indonesia

Barong is a story telling dance narrating the fight between good and evil. This dance is a classic example of

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Sand Art in Jordan

Sand art in Jordan

He puts a little sand of beige color, which acts as a background, in a small bottle and then slowly adds another colored sand. His skilled fingers are at work! He adds every new color with a thin stick or a funnel. Meticulously he ‘paints’ the parts of that color in the picture, only occasionally glancing at it.

Sand art jordan

While the silent fingers

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Evocative Bali Craft

Evocative Bali Craft

One of the aspects of our short but interesting tour of Indonesia, which is forever etched in my mind, is the many types of handicrafts in vogue there. The crafty carvers of Bali have indeed carved a place in our hearts. From painting to sculpture to other forms, the craft magic was enchanting and wove us into its spell. I will talk about some of them here.

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1. Stone Carving

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Ramadan in Turkey

Come Ramzan (Ramadan) and it’s a festive mood around us. There are many countries where it is a time of great celebration, something like carnival atmosphere, with trees, mosques and homes in towns are decorated with lights.

The followers of Islam in India, Malaysia, Turkey and other parts of the world fast during the daylight hours of the month long festival of Eid-ul-Fitr or Ramadan maintaining their self-resistance towards their needs and urges. Come evening, they break their fast with mouth watering dishes in this holy month with much gusto.

Today on this occasion I take you to Turkey through pictures.

Ramadan in Turkey

Famous mouth watering Baklava, impossible to resist.

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Giving Alms to Monks

I waited in the dark. It was around 5 am, dawn was a few minutes away. I stood at the wooden makeshift steps at the bank of the river Tha Chin. Gentle and fresh breeze caressed my face and locks. Innocuous clouds were hovering over me wondering what I was up to. Holding my plate I was waiting for two things … the sun to come out and the monks.

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My plate had

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