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Vung Tau. Located on a peninsular bordered by ocean, this lively town of wide boulevards and buildings recalling the French colonial era, is the recreational resort closest to Ho Chi Minh City. The nearby fishing port of Long Hai offers white-sand beaches, while the offshore islands and national park of Con Dao is a boat excursion away, and centre for superb scuba diving. The Mekong Delta. Visit bustling local markets in traditional village communities, relax on the superb beaches of Phu Quoc island, or discover endless bird varieties in the Tra Su Sanctuary, a stay here is a distinct contrast to the many other attractions of this fascinating country.
An ancient capital dating from the 4th Century BC. Highlights of this extensive site include several huge dagobas chedi monuments, consisting of hemispheric bases and towering spires. There are crumbling temples, rock cave shrines, and stone-lined bathing reservoirs.
An ancient bodhi tree, believed to be the oldest tree in the world, at over 2, years, is said to have been grown from the one in Bodhgaya, under which Buddha attained enlightenment. The ruined royal palace has the remains of 1, columns, while a number of the monuments are noted for their finely carved stone moonstones guarding entrances. Built during the Dutch colonial period as the main trading port, this walled city with its gateways, ramparts, and bastions is now a World Heritage Site.
A fascinating complex of streets is lined with historic buildings, including a reformist Dutch church and former Government House. The Maritime, National, and Historical museums are worth visiting, but the city is best experienced by just strolling around, to appreciate its authentic character as a beautifully preserved tropical-colonial city. Largest city and major port of Sri Lanka, Colombo is the commercial and administrative heart of this island nation.
The National and Dutch museums are worth visiting, as are Hindu and Buddhist temples, Muslim mosques and Christian churches. Colombo also offers diverse shopping, dining, cultural and entertainment activities. A series of magnificent cave temples, some dating from the 1st Century BC, carved into massive rock formations. Highlights include a 15m. Another cave containing life-size Buddha statues with ceiling paintings featuring scenes from the life of the Buddha.
Horton Plains.
Designated a national park, it is notable for the forests of umbrella-shaped keena trees and rhododendrons. Rarely sighted leopard live here, but more common are sambar deer, monkeys, and other small game. A popular place for bird watching, including many rare species. Once the capital of the ancient Singhalese kingdom, this bustling town is the cultural and spiritual heart of Sri Lanka. Set around a scenic lake, nestled among surrounding forested hills, it is a charming and atmospheric place to explore.
The highlight is the Buddhist Temple of the Sacred Tooth, containing a symbolic relic of Lord Buddha, with its spectacular annual Esala Perahera, featuring a parade of richly decorated elephants, traditional drummers, and dancers. The landscape is diverse, rugged volcanoes contrastin. The climb up the ft. On the way up are grottos with original frescoes of 21 celestial maidens. On the summit are remains of the 5th Century royal palace, water tanks, and other ruined buildings. The view from here is superb. Tea and Spice Estates. Many of these estates still have Scottish names, recalling the planters who established them in the 19th Century.
Several can be visited on tours, to see tea growing and being processed in factories equipped with antique machinery. At spice gardens, visitors can see, and buy, a wide variety of fragrant products, ideal as original souvenirs. Yala Ruhuna National Park.
Located in the south of the island, Yala covers an area of over , hectares. This is the best place for sighting wild game, including elephant, leopard, herds of spotted deer, sambur, crocodile, monkey, wild boar and buffalo etc. Tips from A — Z. It covers a total area of 65, sq. The interior is lush, green and mountainous, the highest peak is Pidurutalagala Mt.
Pedro at 2, m. Typical souvenirs: Handicrafts including painted masks, wood carvings,. The festivals of Sri Lanka are distinctly different from those of other Asian countries and are celebrated with great enthusiasm, being full of colour, processions, dancing and music.
Many are important religious occasions, Buddhist and Hindu. Major festivals are mostly based on the lunar calendar, being held around full-moon nights, so dates vary from year to year. In addition, all full-moon poya days are scheduled as national holidays for religious observation.
Here, below, are a number of the most important festivals and national holidays during , around which visiting tourists, individuals or groups, can have itineraries exclusively arranged by Go Vacation Sri Lanka.
January 12 Duruthu Perahera Held on the full-moon poya night, at the Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara in Colombo, this festival is the second most spectacular parade of richly decorated elephants after the Kandy Perahera. January 14 Thai Pongal A Hindu harvest festival dedicated to the God Indra, celebrated particularly by Tamils and based on similar events held throughout India.
The holiday is mainly a family occasion, but public celebrations take place in many Tamil communities and temples. The doorways and floors of houses are decorated with lavish drawings using coloured flour.
February 4 National Day Celebrated nation-wide to commemorate independence from Britain in A national holiday, with flag-hoisting ceremonies, traditional dancing, parades and cultural performances. February 10 Navam Perahera Another spectacular festival, held over 13 days, with elephant processions and traditional dances through the streets in and around the Gangaramaya Temple in Colombo. Blessing ceremonies are held in many temples. April 14 Easter Celebrated by Christians throughout the island. A Passion play is presented on the island of Duwa, near Negombo.
May 10 Vesak A lunar calendar festival and annual holiday, when Buddhists mark the birth, enlightenment and passing of the Lord Buddha. After dark, temples are crowded with devotees making offerings to bring good fortune. Paper lanterns decorate houses and, in Colombo, huge bamboo frames with pictures of events in the life of Buddha illuminated with coloured lights, are erected. Puppet shows and open-air theatres are popular features. Thousands make pilgrimage to Anuradhapura and the peak of Mahintale. July-August Vel In this Hindu festival, celebrated in Colombo, a huge golden chariot of Skanda, God of War, is paraded along a processional route through the streets.
The revered relic of Lord Buddha is carried in procession through the streets, with dozens of richly decorated elephants, some adorned with multi-coloured lights. There are fire dancers, drummers, cultural shows, music, all of which are designed to pay homage to the Relic. Houses and temples are decorated with thousands of small clay lamps, gifts are exchanged, new clothes worn and many businesses mark the auspicious time to start their financial year. The festival is based on the legendary return of Lord Rama to his kingdom in Ayodhya after defeating the demon Ravana.
December 25 Christmas Like the rest of the world, Sri Lankans, especially Christians, participate with serious shopping, giving of gifts and holding parties. In Catholic churches the birth of Christ is celebrated with fire-crackers and midnight mass on December 24th. The most popular tourist destination in the Indonesian archipelago.
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This relatively small 5. Its people represent the largest homogenous Hinduistic society outside India in all over Asia, with only small clusters of other ethnic groups and beliefs. The landscape is diverse, rugged volcanoes contrasting with lush green rice terraces. Just step a few kilometers outside the few tourist hotspots, and you will find idyllic small-town Bali and villagers celebrating religious festivals like they did a thousand years ago. Feast all of your senses when watching them celebrate the descent of the gods from the mountains with music and dance.
Get even closer to their dieties by climbing mist-shrouded Gunung Agung and shop in the artistic centre of Ubud. There are cultural performances practically everywhere, such as the dramatic Kecak, or monkey dance; Barong, featuring an ugly witch; or graceful Legong dance, accompanied by the uniquely hypnotic Balinese gamelan music.
Nusa Dua has the highest density of Deluxe Class hotels in all southern Bali. The extremely tidy appearance of the widespread parks and gardens between the mostly larger scale resort hotels, as well as an extremely high standard of security clearly appeals to the type of sophisticated and well-off guest that cherishes such an environment. Nusa Dua is also home to the most popular golf course in Bali and the main convention center on the island.
The beaches here are glorious — white sand, clean, deep, long and safe for swimming. Immediately north of Nusa Dua, lies the peninsula of Tanjung Benoa with more choice of moderately priced smaller scale lodging and an ever growing choice of eateries just a step outside most hotels. Probably the best beach suitable for swimming along the west coast of southern Bali, Jimbaran Bay with its white sand shore opens up to a sea that unlike a few miles further to the North, does not see any high waves.
That makes it the perfect holiday spot for beach-lovers, but party people alike, as the famous nightspots of Kuta or Seminyak are a mere minutes taxi ride away. Extremely popular among foreigners and locals are the numerous seafood restaurants dotted directly along the beach. Diners select the live seafood that they wish to eat, and it is immediately prepared, generally grilled over a fire of coconut husks rather than charcoal. Kuta, once a sleepy fishing village until half a century ago, was discovered by travelers from Asia and wandering surfers from nearby Australia.
Stretching north from Kuta, Legian is comparably more on the quiet side, especially the closer you get to bordering Seminyak.
According to INFORM, most internally displaced persons who have returned to the east for resettlement reside in relief camps, as "only a very few have been actually able to return to their original villages" INFORM , Popular Links. This goes together well with the tranquil sweeping beach scene with traditional outrigger boats resting on the sand. English is widely spoken, especially in areas that are used to tourists, though accents and grammar may vary considerably. Writing your bucket list in online dating websites and searching for free today.
Tuban, or more commonly called South Kuta, over the past few years has become a prime resort area and a favourite amongst families with a good variety of shops, restaurants and family entertainment establishments bowling, waterpark etc. Famed for being the culinary Mecca of southern Bali, with islandwide the highest density of fine restaurants, Seminyak is also chic and trendy with a club scene more on the upper level of nightly entertainment. As a consequence, many of the hotels to be found here, foremost cater for a young and style-conscious, as well as affluent and sometimes narcissistic travelers.
Thus, the atmosphere in the nightspots and beachside lounge-bars is young, vibrant and in general, fun to watch and partake. The wide and seemingly endless beach is perfect for long walks and gazing at the picture-perfect sunset. Despite the abundance of restaurants and accommodation, it has a quiet and relaxed feel to it. Sanur tends to appeal most to a middle-aged and older clientele, especially Europeans.
Another reason for its popularity are the moderate costs for high-quality lodging and dining out.