Stadium Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho.Electric experience at Soccer stadium Sao Paulo - Pele glorified.Elsie Gabriel

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                                       Goalllll ....  aand its am amzing win for Brazill....

                                     Stadium Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho

[ Copyright all pictures Elsie Gabriel.Lifting and copying photos is a legal offence.]

Electric experience at Soccer stadium Sao Paulo-Pele glorified.

I'm not a huge football fan but toured this brand new football museum while visiting Sao Paulo. The Football Museum is a thematic museum, located in the Stadium Municipal Paulo Machado de Carvalho. My husband took me there in celebration of our wedding anniversary, I relented because there was a Brazilian gourmet tour agenda following. I have not a single regret believe me…

The three storied building enclave explains Pele's life and achievements. There is an entire wing which is "interactive" and you'll be challenged to beat Pele's scoring, dribbling and running feats. I have never seen so much footage on the game and past World Cups.  The historical data is impeccably documented and illustrated. It is a fabulous collection and you can see how much hard work has gone into the setup.

The museum features many highly ultra modern and state of the art technology in interactive audiovisual resources. Pictures of great players such as Pelé, Zico and Ronaldo are projected on large screens, and narrated displays introduce their life stories in the history of the sport.

Club histories are also represented with every intricate memorabilia, flags, banners, posters, and other personal life photographs.

My Son Ridge who loves hi end technology, a “virtual field” was God sent. It allows visitors to kick an imaginary ball into a 3D goal. He took a shot, ofcourse he didn’t beat Pele but am sure he felt what it was to experience an international field virtually.

Very high and assorted incredible content on all the ABCs of football is on display. It's a must-see for anyone visiting Sao Paulo.

 

They have Pele's entire foot balling history there, in almost every format. You can take your time and find out all about him, interesting facts and quotes. I remember my Uncle who is a reverend priest, who first introduced me to a Pele film as a tribute to me finishing my ICSE exams as a teenager and then Pele has stuck in my mind ever since. He is inspirational and after a visit here…God you want to play football for sure…

The history of Brazilian football is exhaustive and impressive, highlights of each and every world cup competition since 1930, videos and portraits of Brazilian former players dominate the areanas. The best audio show were the radio sound bites which covered the matches were replayed to bring back life like memories of each goal on full volume speakers which transport you to the game. Tickets aren’t very expensive but you can always show your student ID card to get a very good discount.
Keep almost three hours for the tour, and if you have kids remember to keep your wallet full as the souvenir shop is highly rated and you can’t come away with out a FIFA replica ball or T shirt, can you!!

Explore the Caves Khao Khanap Nam,Krabi, Thailand. Elsie Gabriel

Explore the Caves Khao Khanap Nam,Krabi, Thailand.
Kayak Trip to Khao Khanap Nam,Krabi,Thailand.

Elsie Gabriel

Drifting in the beautiful lagoon, exploring the spectacular rivers, inlets and limestone caves on your own personal kayak, is how one can best enjoy Krabi, in Thailand. As one of the first settlements in southern Thailand, Krabi offers numerous cave destinations which are rich in archeological treasures, artifacts and cave drawings.

Thailand is not all about the sunshine, massages, night life, beach swims and food, it is deeply embedded in history to say the least, and do not forget to unearth that aspect of it.

Krabi is a southern province on Thailand's Andaman seaboard with perhaps the country's oldest history of continued settlement. Krabi has many cliffs and caves where ancient colour paintings, stone tools, beads, pottery and skeletal remains have been found. The mountainous geography, broken by highlands and plains on the mainland, and 130 big and small islands in the Andaman Sea make Krabi a perfect place for recreation.

We were privileged to stay at the Maritime Park and Spa Resort which features over 25 acres of tropical gardens, and is located approximately two miles from Krabi Town, and ten miles from Krabi International Airport. The hotel has a jungle pathway which leads out into the natural river waters and exotic mangroves leading to the spiritual caves.

As you emerge out into clearer waters, you are over whelmed by natures bounty.

The tail boat takes us lowly to the mystic Khao Khanap Nam caves surrounded by a couple of raged hills. Stretching  out of the natural waters is the Khao Khanap Nam rocky structures, where there are several magnificent caves with impressive clusters of stalactites and stalagmites. A number are said to be the home of spirits and are steeped in local forklore, containing images and items of spiritual worship. One climbs a staircase to see caves with endless stalactites and stalagmites. It is quite dark inside with little rays of light seeping in.Finally, make your way through the cave's numerous grottoes until you arrive at a viewpoint overlooking the mangrove forest and sprawling ocean. It's quite a sight to behold. Almost ethereal. Step into the cave's cavernous mouth to marvel at the ancient paintings and pictoglyphs found inside. Wander through the numerous stalagmites and beneath the beautiful stalactites to study the paintings and understand a piece of Thailand’s rich cultural past.

Of course my lessons in Spiritual ecology came reeling in, rushing in to help me to reawaken my self with the mystery of the existence of the ‘Earth’. I almost froze soaking in the awakening. There is nothing greater than Gods creation, nothing compares to this. When I headed down from the stairs I saw numerous skulls and skeletons all elaborately laid out on the sandy beaches below. The guide explained how ‘ancestors’ were worshipped and honored and then the skulls explained their ornamental value, sacred and surrounded by flowers and twigs. Deep.

 The only other way tourists can get there is by boat from the Chao Fah Bridge in Krabi. The two iconic magnificent hills, roughly 100 meters high, flank the Krabi River running between them to form a picturesque post card. Kilometers of pristine Mangrove forest, home to an astonishing variety of birds are spotted which have drawn birdwatchers from all over the world. While cruising in a longtail boat or a sea canoe, keep your eyes open for species such as Gurney’s Pittas, Brown-winged Kingfishers, Flame backs, Pacific Reef Eagles and Dollarbirds.

It takes 15 minutes to reach Khao Khanap Nam’s twin peaks by ‘long tail boat’ from Chao Fa Pier.A boat can be rented at 300 baht per trip to visit Khao Khanap Nam, mangrove forests and Koh Klang fishery village.

You will enter the small canals of the mangrove forest and see different types of mangrove trees as well as local wildlife, including monkeys, birds, and fish.

Thailand only has a few areas that have been recognized as wetlands of the world and the mangrove forest of Krabi Province, stretching from the city to Koh Si Boya, is ranked in the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance. The protected area also covers 12 square kilometers of up to 2-kilometer wide tidal mudflats.
So far the best wetlands that I have visited around the world!

Try Waving like Miss World at Sun city! South Africa.Elsie Gabriel

 Waving like Miss World at Sun city! South Africa.

If you ever want to dive into a lush and tropical fantasyland deep in the African bushveld, try the Sun city! Two words- pure luxury. Pamper yourself and soak in the sun.

Located in South Africa's North West Province, only  two hours drive from Johannesburg, Sun City is a vibrant mix of entertainment, spas, swimming pools, wave pools, water sports, golf, gambling and family fun.  Besides all the shopping and games, the hotel group has not forgotten to maintain its natural spots.

The kids loved the twenty five hectare botanical gardens, with an aviary and pet corner too. We got to take a ride in the chuga chuga train ride which takes you all around the expanse of the hotels. The birding experience was awesome and fish in the lakes were plenty. The green jungle is threaded with meandering paths, boat rides, cascades, lakes, pools and a variety of water adventure rides.

  

I found the whole experience exhilarating.  Sun City is internationally renowned as Africa’s premier holiday resort. You are spoilt for choice. You simply don't know where to begin.The Sun city offers four  hotels to choose from, The Cascades, Sun City Cabanas,  The Palace of the Lost City and the Cabana’s.

 Sun City is often called the South African Las Vegas. Try your luck with any of the 852 slot machines and 38 gaming tables on Sun City's casino.  You can see a concert at the Sun City Superbowl  City Hotel where ‘The Beach Boys’, "Frank Sinatra', 'Paul Anka' 'Elton John' and 'Rod Stewart' are some of the big names who have performed there.

Sun city is famous for Miss World pageants and Miss South Africa Teen Pageants, which attract thousands of visitors to the site.

I of course was attracted to the Pilanesburg Safari treks which were close by and ventured to simply get lost in the jungles. But kept coming back to  pose and wave the famous Miss World ‘wave’ each time I took a dip in the pool to cool down!!

I knew I had missed the Miss World bus a long time ago!

Come with me and do the devil mask dance in Sri Lanka! Elsie Gabriel

Come with me and do the devil mask dance in Sri Lanka! Elsie Gabriel

 I loved the drama, the entertainment, historic ritual and of course the anthropology involved in the beautiful colorful ‘masks’ worn during the charade. Sri Lanka is fascinating. An island famous for its pristine beaches and wild life, you have to give in to the ancient cultural mythological stories when it comes to the history of ‘Masks’. Masks used in various dramatic rituals in Sri Lanka can be classified as demonic, animal-spirit and human figures. The significance and designs of mythological masks are associated with iconography of the folk religions of the historical period.

The Mask dance is said to have been a carefully crafted ritual with a history reaching far back into Sri Lanka’s pre-Buddhist past. The Lankans love their visual art and the ‘Mask’ is one highly coloured and revered piece of artifact used in religious ceremonies as well as entertainment. The masks are mainly made from a durable wood called ‘Kaduru’.  The wood is light and allows carvings to be made very easily.

 The ‘mask’ rules in most ceremonial and devotional performances. The use of masks in  rituals and ceremonies is a very ancient human practice across the world, although masks can also be worn for protection, in hunting, in sports, in feasts or in wars or simply used as ornamentation. Some ceremonial or decorative masks were not designed to be worn. Although the religious use of masks has waned, masks are used sometimes in drama therapy or psychotherapy.

If you ever go to Sri Lanka do not miss the ‘devil mask’ dancing which is generally performed with the motive of healing. These are also accompanied by drummers, to enhance the accompanying crazy steps and movements of dancers wearing the geometrically brightly coloured masks.

It is an extraordinary cultural phenomenon .Mask dancing and drama are mostly  attempts at invoking the supernatural. But the most elaborate masks are for drama. It is more like an opera, having a central theme and a series of episodes enacted by dances wearing masks of different sizes, culminating in the dramatic presentation of a story. 

Try and find a local Mask maker and see how well it is chiseled, crafted and painted. Each one is a master piece!

By hiding your face the mask allows you to play a totally different role, it gives you the liberty to assume another personality. It is symbolic and magical, anonymous and mysterious.Well when I danced the mask dance in Sri Lanka, I felt liberated; the mask did not hide my persona but accentuated my feeling s of freedom. 

Try one next time. 

Think of it, the Mardi
gras, the African cultures, South Indians and Chinese dragon mask dances all simply celebrate cultural well being!