Diwali–Festival of Light

by Jamie Rhein on

This year Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Light is November 9. As with many celebrations that involve candles, it symbolizes the rescue from a dark period of time where evil has had control into a time of peace, goodness and well-being. Diwali,signifies when Lord Rama, his wife Sita and brother Laxman returned to Aydhoya from their 14 years of exile after Rama killed King Ravana, the demon. Ravana was one nasty fellow. After Ravana’s death, Lord Rama is crowned king and all is right with the world.

The story of Rama is a long one with many chapters and is the subject of much drama, story-telling, dance and art throughout the year. This segment is my favorite. In India, the different regions have different Diwali traditions.

I first learned of Diwali when we lived in Singapore. In Little India, during the days leading up to it, you could buy wonderful brightly colored decorations depicting Rama and Sita. But, my favorite items were the simple, shallow clay candle holders that held small tea light-sized neon candles.

People place these candles everywhere-on window sills, on tables, along walkways– to symbolize the light that comes after darkness. In India, Diwalli decorations are as plentiful as Christmas decorations are in the U.S.

For Hindus, this is a time for giving thanks for one’s wealth and prosperity no matter how poor one might be. This is a time of year when people exchange cards, sweets, clean their houses in preparation, wear their nicest clothes and go to temple to pray. The temples are decorated as well. Here are some pooja decoration ideas you can try at home.

There are other places in the world where you might come across Diwali celebrations. For example, in Kenya and Tanzania, 1% of the population is Hindu and live in closely knit communities. There are enough Hindus that Diwali is a national holiday. Other Diwali hotspots: Mauritius, Nepal, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Japan Thailand, South Africa, Britain, Australia,Trinidad & Tobago, Guyana, Surinam, Fiji.

We do have a few candle holders left. I gave some away as presents. I need to remember to get them out. The street scene photo is at the entrance of Little India off Serangoon Rd. in Singapore. It was posted on the Diwali entry on Wikipedia.

India to put an end to public defecating

by Catherine Bodry on

If you travel through India there’s a couple of bodily-function issues you might notice (outside your own, that is). One is that there’s a large poor population that doesn’t have access to any form of plumbing. Railroad tracks tend to become the local slum toilet — at least that’s what I noticed while traveling by rail. The other is that areas where public toilets are in place, the stench is often overwhelming (I’m thinking back to some roadside urinals I constantly passed en route to my guesthouse in Delhi).

The World Health Organization estimates that 2.6 million people live without access to a proper toilet, and more than half that number live in India. It’s difficult to imagine a solution to a problem that huge, but India is working on it. The government aims to eradicate “open-air defecating” by 2012, promised Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad at the World Toilet Summit.

Only problem is, he didn’t say how.

Read the report here.

Big in Japan: How to cure a hangover

by Matthew Firestone on

Did you know that the scientific name for a hangover is veisalgia?

Veisalgia describes the headache, stomach sick, sensitivity to light and sound, weakness and depression that comes the morning after you’ve hit the bottle a bit too hard.

Although scientists might disagree, veisalgia also describes the feeling you get when you roll over and realize you’re sleeping next to someone significantly less attractive than you.

Veisalgia also describes the feeling of waking up naked on the side of the road without your wallet or your keys and only the vaguest recollection of what happened the night before.

(If you’re reading this mom, I swear that happened to someone else!).

In Japanese, the word for hangover is futsukayoi (??????????), which directly translates as ‘two-day drunk.’ Sounds pretty bad, though my hardcore Japanese friends assure me that you haven’t truly partied until you’ve experienced a mitsukayoi (??????????) or ‘three-day drunk.’

Let’s start with what we do know about the commonly experienced but rarely understood phenomenon that is a hangover.

Scientists who spend most of their days drinking vodka shots from beakers and separating the layers of their vomit in centrifuges have identified reasons why humans experience hangovers.

Although I’m convinced that the true cause of hangovers is simply drinking too much, people much smarter than me point to the following culprits: hypoglycemia, dehydration, acetaldehyde intoxication, and vitamin B12 deficiency.

For those of us without PhDs, the previous sentence translates to ‘not enough sugar, not enough water and more alcohol than blood in your veins.’

Of course, most of us are more interested in preventing hangovers than curing them, which is why all of us raging alchies have our own tricks of the trade.

For me, I try to guzzle a few pints glasses of water and slurp down a huge bowl of noodle soup before I pass out in a violent fit of shame and self-loathing. For one of my friends, it‘s the tried and true ‘pull the trigger’ method, which also has the unintended side effect of keeping her super skinny.

As you may have imagined, the Japanese love their drink, which is why the hangover cure market over here in East Asia is a multi-million dollar industry.

With Japanese salarymen prone to long-night binge drinking sessions with their colleagues, it’s only natural that the convenience stores and vending machines here in Japan stock hangover cures.

Although every Japanese drinker has their own favorite brew, I’m partial to リポビタンD (Lipovitamin D), a tasty energy drink chockfull o’ vitamins and minerals that always puts an extra spring in my step.

Truth be told, I have no idea what’s in the stuff (or even if it works), but it’s comforting to know that this little bottle may have the cure for what ails me, even if it only works as a placebo.

Anyway, I guess this blog entry brings about one simple question: what do YOU do to prevent a hangover?

(And yes, I know the answer is simply not to drink, but if you’ve figured out a way not to, please share the secret with the rest of us!)

** Special thanks to CollegeHumor for the amazing picture entitled ‘Ummm you have some stomach in your hair. **

Singapore Airlines asks passengers to “please refrain from sex”

by Catherine Bodry on

Jamie already covered the potential outcome of putting double beds on an airplane. But now Singapore airlines is directly addressing the situation as well.

The airline’s new Airbus A380 flies with two double beds in First Class, which are made private by a screen. But the airline is hoping to quash any funny-business ideas travelers might get when booking a lover’s package First Class bed. In a statement to Reuters, the airline said “All we ask of customers, wherever they are on our aircraft, is to observe standards that don’t cause offense to other customers and crew.” I’d say that statement is open to interpretation, wouldn’t you?

A passenger on the inaugral flight argued, “So they’ll sell you a double bed, and give you privacy and endless champagne and then say you can’t do what comes naturally?” Still, the rooms aren’t completely soundproof or sealed, so you’ve either got to have mad skills or enjoy the fact that you might get caught.
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Big in Japan: Asia’s biggest Halloween Party!

by Matthew Firestone on

Halloween is in full effect here in Tokyo.

This past Saturday night, three -thousands Japanese revelers decked out in their choicest threads headed to ageHa, one of Japan’s most famous party spots.

Although Saturday night also brought with it an unseasonal typhoon, that didn’t stop the Japanese from hitting the dance floor and strutting their stuff until the wee hours of the morn.

From Captain Jack Sparrow and Pocahontas to all shades of sexy devils sweating temptation, Halloween fever was hot and heavy in the crowd. Indeed, much of the night was lost to strong drinks, skirt chasing and a healthy amount of sinning.

As with most nights out in the pleasure land that is Tokyo, details of what exactly happened inside the club are hazy at best. However, judging by the epic hangover that I’m just now beginning to shake, clearly the party was fueled by an absurd amount of alcohol.

Other signs of unchecked hedonism include an empty wallet as well as the sinking feeling that my brain and my liver might never be the same.

If you’ve never been to ageHa, allow me to educate you on what you’re missing.

ageHa (あげは), which means ‘Swallowtail butterfly’ in Japanese, is located on the waterfront in Eastern Tokyo’s reclaimed industrial district. Since 2003, ageHa has garnered a well-deserved reputation as one of the world’s best clubs.

International DJs including Paul van Dyk, John Digweed and Fatboy Slim make regular appearances at ageHa, as well as a number of Japanese DJs including Ko Kimura and Yoji Biomehanika.

On any given night however, you can expect top quality DJs spinning everything from hip-hop and R&B to deep house and trance. There are also occasional reggae nights, live rock performances and a healthy dose of Tokyo-spawned underground beats.

What makes ageHa so legendary is that it’s massive, especially by Japanese standards. The main dance floor is the size of most of the country’s concert venues, though the action is spread out amongst lounge rooms, outdoor dance tents and several terraces.

ageHa even boasts an outdoor swimming pool, which sees plenty of action in the sultry Tokyo summers as well as in the drunken early twilight hours. The sound system is also billed as the loudest and most advanced in Japan, which is easy to believe once you step foot inside the club and feel vibrations that are strong enough to shake the change out of your pocket.

Of course, the highlight of any night out at ageHa is usually watching the sunrise over the Tokyo skyline. By this point in the night, you’re usually dripping with sweat and blitzed on all sorts of liquid poison. But, when the sun peaks above the horizon and the sky lights up, it’s hard not to pause for a moment and realize just how good life can be.

ageHa is located a few minutes by foot from Shin-kiba (新木場) station, which can be accessed by several trains including the Keiyo and Yurakucho lines. The club also runs a free bus service that runs back and forth to the east exit of Shibuya (渋谷) station. Entry fees vary depending on the act. For more information on upcoming performers, check out their website at www.ageha.com.