So much in Asia depends on the calendar. In February in Beijing, more than 20 million people all set off fireworks to celebrate Chinese New Year. In Nagaland in India, tribes from all over the region meet to compete, dance, and celebrate. In Thailand, spectators look on as celebrants perform bizarre rituals at the Nine Emperor Gods Festival.
With an intimate and unique knowledge of Asian culture, Remote Lands knows the importance of experiencing culture the right way. Whether you want an up-close view of the Sing-Sing festival in the Asaro Valley of Papua New Guinea or a quiet walk through the Sapporo Snow Festival in Japan, Remote Lands can give travelers the best possible experience on their celebrations throughout Asia.
The Shwe Oo Min Pagoda in the mountains overlooking Pindaya is home to the Pindaya Cave, which houses thousands of golden Buddha statues and images. During the festival, people come from the surrounding areas and set up camp around the cave for five days before the full moon, cooking, selling local crafts and celebrating together.
On this one-day festival, the people from tribes all around Guangxi province come together, wearing their best traditional clothes, all in red. There are games and competitions including beauty parades, folk drumming, sports and tug-of-war. Young men and women try to find love and there is folk music and dancing.
This festival is a celebration for the Bajaus tribe as they pay homage to their traditional sailing boat. The boats are decorated and sailed out in a flotilla to compete for the prize of most beautiful. There are cultural dance and music performances, a beauty pageant and grand firework displays at night.
The Sak Yant Festival is a one-day tattoo extravaganza held at Bang Pra Temple, just outside Bangkok. Specifically for devotees, the event is a chance for many to get inked up with Sanskrit scriptures - all from the end of a sharpened bamboo stick. Expect to see some weird and wonderful, almost magical things!
This massive cultural festival hosts a variety of international artists, traditional events, film screenings and sporting events for over a week throughout the Kingdom’s Eastern Province. Organized by King Abdul Aziz Center for World Culture (Ithra), the festival aims to promote exposure opportunities for international and local artists.
People from all over flock to Shwe Taung in the Bago Region for the fantastic eight-day festival of Shwe Nattaung. Celebrating the stunning, ancient pagoda believed to be built in the Pyu Period, visitors pass the days eating, drinking and enjoying local entertainment. This is one of the largest pagoda festivals in the country.
For just over a week, people from all over Myanmar come to the Shwe Sar Yan and neighbouring Po Kalar Gu pagodas to visit the relics of Buddha, see the painted murals and buy the traditional toys and crafts woven from palm leaves. Many also cross the Dot-hta-waddy River on small boats to visit nearby Pagodas.
The Shwedagon Pagoda is one of the most sacred to Buddhists in Myanmar and for a week before the full moon, hundreds of people make a pilgrimage to the temple to walk up the steps and listen to the monks who chant continuously. They give offerings and donations to the images and relics of Buddha and compete to weave holy robes over night.
The Kaohsiung Neimen Songjiang Battle Array Competition invites teams from across Taiwan to converge on the Zizhu Temple in Neimen for 12 days of martial arts demonstrations and contests. This 10-year-old event, held in March and April, also aims to promote this ancient art of battle whilst preserving its role in reflecting Taiwanese identity.
This increasingly popular festival brings together more than 25 ethnic groups from Tawau in Sabah as well as Johore Bahru and Sarawak. There are presentations and demonstrations of dance, music and poetry as well as examples of authentic food and costume and visitors flock to the festival to buy the handmade tribal crafts.
