When: Spring bank Holiday Monday, 4th June 2102
Where: Cooper’s Hill, Brockworth,, Gloucestser, England

Every Spring bank holiday Monday at Cooper’s Hill in Brockworth, Gloucestershire, people come from far and wide to throw themselves down the incredibly steep hill, racing after a huge round of Double Gloucester cheese as it bounces and bounds down it at break neck speed.

The hill is so steep there are “catchers” waiting to catch the cheese chasers as they reach the bottom. The first person to cross the finishing line wins a Double Gloucester cheese for themselves (hopefully not the one they have just been chasing after!)

This British custom has been around for hundreds of years and may have been started by the Romans or ancient Britons as an ancient fertility rite or a way of guaranteeing the rights of the villagers to graze their livestock on the surrounding land.

As you can imagine, there have been many injuries over the years, and this along with other local politics surrounding the event, sometimes causes the event to be officially “cancelled”. However in previously “cancelled” years, the cheese has still been rolled down the hill with many a foolhardy soul throwing themselves after it.

Cotswalds Food & Drink

Eat Double Gloucester Cheese of course! Visit Gloucester cathedral for their Pilgrim’s pie. Their own pies containing lamb, onion, garlic, white beans, herbs and honey-roasted carrots. The recipe is inspired by the food of the Benedictine Monks who once lived at the Cathedral.

Travel

Stratford-upon-Avon in Gloucestershire is a beautiful place to stay. The nearest airports to are Birmingham or Heathrow. Book flights and hotels in the are with ebookers.com. You may need to search for flights and hotels separately.

	Further information & useful links
			Gloucester Cheese Rolling on Wikipedia Official Cheese Rolling website Latest news on Gloucester Cheese Rolling		Picture by IanHaskins, on Flickr More Cheese Rolling pictures on flickr Gloucester Cheese Rolling videos on YouTube

Bathing Buddha by hkdigit, on Flickr

When: Varies – May 24th 2013
Where: China (or anywhere in Asia and the Buddhist world)

“The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly”

Buddha’s Birthday is known as Vesak day (and many similar variations of the same name!). Vesak is the major Buddhist festival of the year and celebrates the birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha all on the same day (and just to be confusing this day is different depending on where you live or what type of of Buddhist you are!).

Anyway, wherever you go, colourful lanterns adorn every home and luminous displays decorate the streets signifying the light of the Buddha.

In China figures of the baby Buddha are placed in bowls, and sweet perfumed tea is poured over them to “wash” the baby Buddha.

To attain a good rebirth, the people of Thailand believe that they must build up positive karma by doing good deeds. In Malaysia and Singapore good karma is thought to bestow itself on those who release caged creatures so as part of the celebrations frogs and birds, doves and tortoises are released from tiny cages on the steps of temples. No meat or alcohol is consumed for up to a week.

In India, Vesak Day is known as Buddha Purnima and on this day, Buddhists do not eat meat as an act of compassion towards animals. People perform other acts of kindness such as sharing food with the poor or setting up road stalls providing food and drink for passers by.

Devoted Buddhists throughout Asia pray in temples from dawn until dusk. As the sun sets, there are colourful processions lit by candles and lanterns.

When is Vesak Day?

Chinese Mahayana Buddhists (mostly China, Hong Kong and Korea) celebrate Vesak Day on the 8th day of the 4th lunar month, while Theravada Buddhists (the oldest form of Buddhism from India) celebrate Vesak on the on the full moon Uposatha day or the 15th Day of 4th Lunar Month (mostly Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and India). Just to confuse things further, if you go to Japan then its fixed to the 8th of April and called Hanamatsuri.

Vesak Food & Drink

On Vesak day Buddhists do not eat meat of any kind, many are vegetarian all year round and free vegetarian food and drink is given out at Buddhist temples. Try our vegetarian curry (Sabzi Kari) recipe.

Travel to Asia

Travel to anywhere in Asia but do check ahead which date they are celebrating Vesak. Book flights and hotels with ebookers.com.

Dates / venues may be subject to change or cancellation. Distances may be straight-line estimates. Please verify information before booking.

Enjoy your trip! And when you’re home we’d love you to come back and tell us all about it!

Αναστενάρια by tsakalidis konstantinos, on Flickr

When: May 20th to 23rd every year.
Where: Northern Greece, Southern Bulgaria

Having danced themselves into an trance like state, locals in the villages of this area of Northern Greece and Southern Bulgaria then dance across hot coals in honour of Saint Constantine and Saint Helen. Clutching icons of the saints, they walk across the burning ground unharmed. Live musicians accompany the Anastenarides (fire dancers) which gets faster and more furious, and those who have apparently been “touched by the saints” say they don’t feel the flames.

The festival starts with music and dancing on the evening of May 20th (the eve of the feast of Saints Constantine and Helen) to begin the process of inducing the ecstatic state. The main firewalking event is the next day and this is open to the public, however the villagers request privacy for the event’s final day when more firewalking is carried out in private.

The legend behind this fiery custom dates back to the Middle Ages, when the Church of Saint Constantine went up in flames. The story goes that as flames engulfed the church, the icons of the saint and of his mother, Saint Helena, could be heard crying for help from inside the church. Some brave villagers ran into the flames to rescue the icons but miraculously both the villagers and the icons remained completely unscathed by the fire.

Travel

Anastenaria is a tradition that takes place in a number of villages in Greece including Ayia Eleni (near Serres), Langadas (near Thessaloniki), Melike, Mavrolefke, and Kerkine, and in the Bulgarian villages of the Strandzha mountains, namely Balgari, Gramatikovo, Slivarovo, Kondolovo, Kosti and Brodilovo. (Ayia Eleni is probably the place most famous for the tradition). For the Greek villages fly into Thessaloniki and for the Bulgarian villages fly into Burgas on the Black Sea coast.

Fresh Coconut Wine by Biologist Buliklik, on Flickr

When: 18th May every year
Where: Barugo, Leyte, Philippines

The Sanggutan Festival honors the ancient methods of coconut wine processing and takes the form of a dance that portrays the winemaking process during the old times in Leyte.

A “sanggut” (or scythe) is used to gather sap from the coconut buds which is then fermented to make the wine (called tuba). The costumes are the everyday wear of the mananggete (wine maker) and his family, which are mainly red because the tuba stains everything and everyone that it touches!

Food and Drink

Eat: Chicken Adobo is the national dish of the Philippines
Drink: Long Island tea cocktail or Brandy with Ice Tea powder

Travel to the Philippines

The festival is held in Barugo, on Leyte in the Phillipines. The nearest airport is Tacloban (33 km away) but you may need to book a flight to Cebu on and then take an internal flight to Leyte island.

When: May 15th every year
Where: Lucban, Philippines

Pahiyas means “decor” and every May 15, the fronts of houses in Lucban, Philippines are are elaborately decorated with a brightly colored rice wafer, called kiping.

Fruits, grain, vegetables, and woven palm hats are also used as decorations all in aid of is giving thanks to San Isidro Labrador for a good harvest.

When the festival is over, the kiping are cooked and eaten as rice chips.

Food and Drink

Eat Chicken Adobo is the national dish of the Philippines. Drink Long Island tea cocktail or Brandy with Ice Tea powder

Travel to the Philippines

Fly into Manila about 73km away from Lucban. Book flights and hotels in Manila with ebookers.com.

Give your home an island feel We have found you some beautiful bamboo and coconut shell candles to give a tropical feel to any summer celebration. There are also some pretty hibiscus flower floating candles too!

	Further information & useful links
			Philippines travel books Pahiyas Festival on Wikipedia Philippines Travel Guide		Pahiyas by susancorpuz90, on Flickr   More Pahiyas Festival pictures   Pahiyas Festival videos

Bulacan by outsideboundimages, on Flickr

When: May 14th & 15th every year
Where: Pulilan, Bulacan, Phillipines

At the Carabao festival in Pulilan, Bulacan in the Phillipines, the farmers pay tribute to their water buffalos, (known as carabaos) by giving them a makeover for all their hard work tilling the land.

The farmers brush their animals until they are sleek and shiny, and then decorate them with ribbons etc. The well groomed carabaos are then lead to the church square where they kneel to be blessed and then take part in a parade and races.

Food and Drink

Chicken Adobo is the national dish of the Philippines. Drink Long Island tea cocktail or Brandy with Ice Tea powder.

Travel

Travel to Pulilan, Bulacan in the Phillipines. Fly into Manila (47km away).

Dates / venues may be subject to change or cancellation. Distances may be straight-line estimates. Please verify information before booking.

Rocket Untangling by simonparisphotography, on Flickr

When: May every year. May 12th – 13th 2012.
Where: Phaya Thaen Park , Yasothon, Thailand.

To the villagers of Yasothon firing ginormous rockets into the sky is apparently the best way to lure the rain gods, and things can get very noisy and rather hectic at Phaya Thaen Park when the Yasothon Bun Bang Fai Rocket Festival takes place.

This explosive event originated as a ceremony to encourage rain for the rice-planting season. The rockets were thought to stimulate the rain clouds and encourage the rain gods to provide a good watering for the newly planted crops. Teams launch their huge rockets into the sky in an effort to reach the greatest height. With all thoughts of health and safety right out of the window, the contraptions of bamboo filled with explosives and gunpowder are launched amid much toasting and merriment by their creators.

For more information visit the Bun Bang Fai website.

Thai Food & Drink

Thai cuisine can be quite hot and spicy. Try our mouthwatering Hot and Spicy Crispy Beef or Pork or Chicken Satay recipes. Drink Rice wine.

Travel to Thailand

The nearest airports to Yasathon are Ubon Ratchathani or Udon Thani.

Dates / venues may be subject to change or cancellation. Distances may be straight-line estimates. Please verify information before booking.

Pabasa 2008, Magdalen 0031 by hrlmorales, on Flickr

When: May 12th every year
Where: San Roque, Valenzuela, Philippines

The single women of the town of San Roque, Valenzuela in the Philippines dance in a street procession lasting all day and all night.

Legend dictates that if a girl wishes to find a boyfriend or a husband she must join the street dance so her wish is granted by San Roque.

Inevitably the procession of dancing girls causes great excitement as it serves to separate the girls who are looking for love from those who are already taken, making it easy for the boys to find their lady!

Food and Drink

Chicken Adobo is the national dish of the Philippines. Drink Long Island tea cocktail or Brandy with Ice Tea powder.

Travel to the Philippines

The nearest airport to San Roque, Valenzuela in the Philippines is Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, 22km away.

at Gainesville May Day celebration by barb.howe, on Flickr

When: April 30th & May 1st every year.
Where: Europe.

The earliest May Day festivities started long, long ago with the Festival of Floralia in Roman times, and the raucous Germanic / Scandinavian Walpurgis Night or Celtic Beltane celebrations the night before (hence the hangover!).

During the night preceding May Day, as with Samhain (or Halloween), the boundary between the living and the dead is supposedly weak allowing the spirits to roam. Traditionally bonfires are built to keep these harmful spirits away. The next day the return of light and the sun is celebrated on May Day marking the start of warmer days – a cause for celebration if ever there was one!

May day traditions include putting daisy chains around children’s necks to protect them from mischievous sprites, and leaving offerings of food out for the Fairies. In past times, the boys and men would get up early on May Day to gather baskets of flowers and sometimes sweets for all the girls and women of the village.

The Celts added the maypole as a form of tree worship. Tall poles decorated with flowers and ribbons are still erected on English village greens, and pairs of boys and girls hold the ribbons as they dance and weave in and around each other until the ribbons are woven tightly around the pole. The maypole’s flower crown (apparently representing sexual organs) is meant to channel the Earth’s energy through the top, bringing fertility to all who dance around it.

When is May Day?

For our ancestors, days began at nightfall rather than midnight, so May Day actually begins on the evening of the last day of April with the bonfire festivals of Beltane (or Walpurgis night). Originally this was celebrated at the height of the month of Taurus (around May 4th or 5th), but now it is mostly celebrated on April 30th and May 1st. Other traditions say Beltane should be held on the first Full Moon of May.

May Day Food & Drink

Traditional foods for Beltane came from the dairy – butter, milk, cheese and eggs were all eaten on this day. Oatcakes, May Cakes, and bannocks were also eaten, scored with the lines of the Bel-fires (a grid with nine blocks). Sometimes a charm was hidden inside a May cake and distributed amongst the men. Whoever had the cake with the charm was crowned with a wreath of green leaves and declared the Jack O’ the Green. Drink Honeyed mead. See also Walpurgis Night Food & Drink.

Travel

For a firey start to the May Day celebrations on 30th April, head for Germany, Estonia, Finland or Sweden for Walpurgis night, or to Edinburgh in Scotland for the Beltane Fire Festival (see the official Beltane Fire Society website for more information).

May Queen by Swirley, on Flickr

When: April 30th every year.
Where: Europe, especially Scandinavia and Germanic Europe.

Rather like Halloween it is believed that the boundaries between the spirit world and the real world become thin on Walpurgis Night.

Many of the Germanic and Scandinavian European countries celebrate by dressing as witches, singing round bonfires and drinking alcohol to keep away the dead and chaotic spirits. This is followed on May the 1st by the return of light and sunshine on May Day. Or, as its is more affectionately known in Estonia, Kaatripäev (Hangover day, derived from the German word kater meaning hangover). These celebrations on last the day of April and first day of May are closely linked with the Celtic festival of Beltane.

Walpurgis Night Food & Drink

As dusk falls and the Walpurgis Night bonfires light up the evening skies across Scandinavia, families and friends gather for picnics with gravlax, herring salad, fresh strawberries and sparkling wine. The Finns make nest-shaped May Day fritters (Tippaleivät) and drink lemony Spring Mead (Sima). See also May Day Food & Drink.

Travel

Head for Scandinavia, Germany, Estonia or Finland for Walpurgis Night celebrations, or to Edinburgh in Scotland for the Beltane Fire Festival (see the official Beltane Fire Society website for more information).

Dates / venues may be subject to change or cancellation. Distances may be straight-line estimates. Please verify information before booking.

Enjoy your trip! And when you’re home we’d love you to come back and tell us all about it!