The Audley Food Festival 2011
Audley Food Festival 2011
Friday 23rd September 2011 was the date of the first ever Audley Food Festival and, as with anything food related at Audley, the event was tipped to be a merry affair!
Archive for 'Southeast Asia'
Swan Hellenic cruise in Indonesia cancelled – Audley taking alternative bookings now!
Alternative option with Audley: Between October and January the Ombak Putih, a traditional Buginese schooner, travels around eastern Indonesia on 10 to 13 day cruises
Our Southeast Asia manager has just told me that we’ve had a few enquiries recently from people who have had their Swan Hellenic ‘East of Java’ cruise cancelled. It appears that the ship is being refurbished at short notice and that bookings for January are no longer available.
While this is not an Audley cruise we may well be able to assist with possible alternative holiday plans if you have booked with Swan Helenic during this period.
Book your alternative Indonesia trip with Audley now!
Please go to our Indonesia section of the website for details of what we can offer, or alternatively either contact us online, or speak to one of our Indonesia country specialists on 01993 838 110.
Anantara Golden Triangle wins the ‘Leading Resort in Thailand’ award
Anantara's Chris Adams receives the award from WTA's Graham Cooke
Our Southeast Asia team as well as the rest of Audley would like to send congratulations to the Anantara Golden Triangle, on winning ‘Thailand’s Leading Resort’ at the prestigious World Travel Awards (WTA) in Bangkok last night.
Chris Adams, the General Manager of the Anantara Golden Triangle, said of the award:
“What an honour it is to win this prestigious award and to be recognized by our peers in the travel industry, I’d like to dedicate this win to all the staff members at Anantara Golden Triangle who continuously strive to give our guests a truly unique and indigenous five star experience.”
The WTA win comes hot on the heels of a runners up prize in the 2011 Condé Nast Traveller World Savers Awards, so it’s great to see one of our favourite properties in Thailand doing so well.
Again, well done!
Book a tailor-made holiday in Thailand
Our Thailand specialists can put together an individual tailor-made trip for you which could include a stay at the award winning Anantara Golden Triangle. Take a look at our Thailand itinerary ideas to get an indication of what is possible.
Phone us on 01993 838 115 or make an enquiry online.
Seven wonders of the natural world
Uluru or Ayers Rock in Australia has been shotlisted for the new 7 wonders of the natural world
A global campaign organised by a Swiss philanthropist has begun to decide the seven wonders of the natural world, out of 28 that have been shortlisted.
Obituary: Vann Nath – survivor of the Khmer Rouge regime
I’ve just learned that Vann Nath, the last survivor of the Khmer Rouge’s infamous S21 prison, has passed away.
Vann Nath was incarcerated in S21, the headquarters of the Khmer Rouge’s state security in Phnom Penh, in 1978. He was one of around 15,000 detained here but unlike virtually all of the other inmates who were interrogated, tortured and then killed within its walls, he lived to tell his story.
The World would probably have never known of Vann Nath had it not been for his artistic talents; he was due to be executed in S21 but was reprieved so his skills could be put to use in painting the Khmer Rouge’s leader, Pol Pot.
His survival finally led to his testimony in UN-backed genocide trails in Phnom Penh just two years ago, which in turn convicted Vann’s sadistic former jailer, Kaing Guek Eav.
Vann Nath, artist and human rights activist, born 1946; died 5 September 2011.
You can read his full obituary on the Guardian website.
Note, the short video clip above is from a documentary: Victims of the Khmer Rouge: The Artist and is narrated by Vann Nath himself.
Irrawaddy dolphin faces extinction
The now critically endangered Irrawaddy dolphin of the Mekong River, Cambodia
Although there are about 6,000 Irrawaddy dolphins dotted about in small populations around Southeast Asia, those that live in the Mekong River in Cambodia are facing imminent extinction according to new research by the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF).
Inle Lake Pagoda Festival in Burma
Inle Lake in Burma is the setting for the annual 'Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival'
There’s probably no better way to experience the local culture of a country than to see at first hand one of its biggest festivals. Accordingly, if you want to see what makes the locals tick in Burma you need to visit the annual Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda Festival, one of the largest Buddhist festivals in the country.
It takes place in and around the stilted villages of Inle Lake and is held from the first day of the waxing moon to the third day after the full moon of Thadingyut: September and October in our western calendar.
During this festival, four Buddha statues are transported clockwise from village to village to bless the monasteries, on a barge shaped as a mythical bird. With traditional music, dancing and boat races, this holy festival attracts visitors from all over the Shan State in Burma.
Our Burma specialists can put together an individual tailor-made trip just for you. Phone us on 01993 838 105 or make an enquiry online.
Worlds largest tiger reserve proposed in Burma
There are only about 50 tigers in the Hukawng Valley in Burma, but all are at risk from poaching
You may not realise it but Burma has its own small population of tigers in the Hukawng Valley in the north of the country.
Unfortunately, the area is too remote and the tiger numbers too small for tourists to have any real chance of seeing them but that could all change if plans for a huge reserve in the area get the go ahead.
The Burmese government plans to protect almost 8,500 square miles of the valley (almost the entire valley) and in doing so it will create the world’s largest tiger reserve (see map below).
It’s only a proposal at this stage but if it gets the go ahead it could eventually support several hundred tigers and be a massive boost overall to their numbers in Southeast Asia.
Map showing the proposed new tiger reserve in Hukawng Valley in Burma
Our Burma specialists can put together an individual tailor-made trip just for you. Phone us on 01993 838 105 or make an enquiry online.
BBC 2: Komodo – Secrets of the Dragon
The Komodo Dragon of Komodo Island, Indonesia
Komodo Island in Indonesia is a very special place because it’s home to the world’s largest lizard – the Komodo Dragon. Certainly, seeing it is one of the highlights for some of the Audley clients who book a tailor-made itinerary to Indonesia.
Tonight a BBC documentary (8pm on BBC2) will shed light on some of the more unusual and unknown aspects of this fascinating creature.
PS. If you miss it catch it again on BBC iPlayer for a limited period.
Critically endangered Gibbons discovered in Vietnam
Northern white-cheeked crested gibbons
Unfortunately, all of the species of gibbons in Southeast Asia are now endangered (some critically) due to the destruction of their habitats for logging, agriculture and continued expansion of human populations.
So, a bit of good news I saw recently was the discovery of hundreds of critically endangered northern white-cheeked crested gibbons living in the Pu Mat National Park, northern Vietnam, not far from the border with Laos.
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