This and more is possible if you happen to visit the Choolanur Peacock Sanctuary which is located in the Thrissur and Palakkad districts of Kerala in South India. The entire forest area spans around 500 hectares and is the most favoured sanctuary in this part of Kerala due to the vast collection of peacocks that so form the main feature here. More than 200 peacocks live here and this along with the diverse avifauna and the innumerable butterflies make this a perfect haven for all nature lovers. So while you bask in the glory of the tall swaying palms, also enjoy the beauty of being amidst the greenest regions and the most fascinating habitat.

One can reach Choolanur by road, rail or air. The nearest station is the Palakkad station in Kerala. The Coimbatore International Airport in Tamil Nadu is the nearest airport. Buses are available to Choolanur from Palakkad. This sanctuary has been renames as Kunchan Smritivanam in memory of the famed Kerala poet Kunchan Nambiyara. It was at Killikkurissimangalam that Kunchan Nambiyar was born and Killikkurissimangalam is near Choolanur.

A sojourn to this lovely land of peacocks is not going to be with its own thrills, adventure and excitement. So get ready for a perfectly exciting wildlife experience as you go to Choolanur. Immerse yourself in the pristine surroundings and let the whole ambience seep through into your heart, mind and soul making it a memorable travel experience for you.

Choolanur Sanctuary provides shelter to more than 100 species of avifauna and more varieties of other beautiful living things. So bird watchers find it pleasurable to come here and enjoy the pleasures of being here in style. Explore the entire area and enjoy the blessings of Mother Nature here. Any tourist coming to this part of Kerala should make it a point to visit this paradise of peacocks just after the rainy season gets over. For this is when the butterflies come here in full flow and the peacocks let their plumes down to the utter fascination of the onlookers. A good camera would capture your travel here forever.

This sanctuary is also a great medicinal hub. There are a great many trees and plants here which are of medicinal value and give great relief to normal health disorders.

The beauty of the Choolanur sanctuary is that it is covered with dense forests. Peacocks thrive in spacious expanses of greenery so dense forests are not particularly their forte. The sanctuary incidentally ahs been declared a national sanctuary for peafowls. The Peafowl Sanctuary has been dedicated to Sri.K. K. Neelakanthan. He was a great ornithologist in the state of Kerala and he also wrote a book called the ‘Keralithile Pakshikal” which means the Birds of Kerala. This author belonged to Kavassery a place near Choolanur.

Choolanur Peacock Sanctuary provides ultimate travel pleasures for all bird lovers and all those interested in ornithology. One who comes to Choolanur should also visit the Kuzhal Mannam which is a memorial for the great Carnatic singer Chembai.

Fast forward to the current team which Real Madrid has and a new team of legends has been formed. Ronaldo, Pepe, Kaka and Alonso along with stalwart Casillas have continued to impress and they frequently defeat their opponents in the Champions League by a hefty score line as well.

To see Real Madrid in action, watching Real Madrid TV is one way of doing this (which broadcasts in both Spanish and English). However, when wanting to see Real Madrid live and uninterrupted, buying a ticket for one of their matches is highly recommended. When Madrid tickets are required, choosing STB (Spanish Ticket Bureau) will enable their fans to see their heroes in action.

On the STB website are all of the games which Real Madrid are involved in. Whether this is La Liga games or cup games, details about Champions League games are also provided as well. As the opponents who Real Madrid plays in the Champions League are respected teams as well, watching Real Madrid in action courtesy of STB will enable for other excellent teams to be watched as well. As tickets are affordably priced, choosing many of them can be within a person’s means too.

The park became a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and was a part of the major natural areas which have a lot of scenic delights and have the best of conservation, educations and training as the main aims.

It is said that Killarney National Park, has had inhabitants which date back to the Bronze Age when copper was first mined at the Ross Island. People have been living here from as far back as 4000 years ago. There were monastic settlements here which provide a lot of occupation here. The Innisfallen monastery is a very popular and important. It was founded by St. Finian the Leper. There are a lot of information sources here in the Annals of Innisfallen and these date back to the 11th to the 13th centuries.

Then the country of Ireland was taken over by the Norman invasion and there were two chieftains Mc Carthy Mor and O’Donoghue of Ross who took over the responsibility of holding the lands of the Lakes. Then the lands came into the control of Herberts of Muckross and the Ears of Kenmare respectively. In the year 1911, Mr. W. B.Brown purchased the Muckross Estate and gave it to his daughter Maud.

Muckross Abbey was founded by Donal McCarthy which is a Franciscan Friary in the year 1448. There are very well preserved ruins that were believed to tbe the burial place of the local chiefs.

The Muckross Demesene is the most popular part of the National Park and the Muckross house is the mainstay of the place. The House was constructed in the year 1843, is today managed by the Trustees of Muckross House and the national Parks and Wildlife Services and is a major tourist attraction in this part of the world.

The Muckross House has a special admission charge and today is a projected as a late 19th century house. There is a craft shop and also a restaurant in the earlier stables in the house.

In fact Muckross Gardens is popular for the varied collection of the species of rhododendron and also azaleas and hybrids. There is a large water garden here and also a rock garden which provides the tourists with the needed tour attractions and the natural limestone outcrop is another important aspect of this region. There are many exotic trees which thrive in this land of pleasurable sights and natural wonders. With the best collections of plants and beautiful sights, the Killarney National Park is a sight to behold and a tourist attraction in this part of the world.

Come to this region of Killarney National park in Ireland and enjoy the pleasures of being in an exotic land of absolute delights. A perfect way of enjoying the wildlife beauty of this part of the world, it is certainly a must see in tours here.

The British Council is in support of some of the international partnerships that are related to the education programmes.

Two Roses for Richard III

This would be in the Courtyard Theatre from May 7 to May 12 at Stratford upon Avon. Again from May 18 to May 23 it would be in Roundhouse in London.

This production Two Roses for Richard III  is a play which is inspired by the history plays of Shakespeare and is a combination of the text of Shakespeare with multimedia, circus, aerial choreography and visual metaphor. So we would see Renato Rocha of Companhia Bufo Mecanica developing a new piece which is inspired by the tragedies of Shakespeare. There would be a group of local teenagers who would perform Side of Love. there is an underground space at the Roundhouse . The RSC and the British Council would be working with the partners in Brazil on a programme on education which would explore what Shakespeare would mean to the youth.

Romeo and Juliet in Baghdad

This is another play that would be showcased in Swan Theatre in Stratford upon Avon and is from April 26  to May 5. this is a version of Romeo and Juliet from Iraq . This would be done by Baghdad’s Iraqi Theatre Company and is adapted by Monadhil Daood. This is set against a conflict between communities and families and also generations and is mixed with the rich traditions of music and poetry and ritual and this is a new Romeo and Juliet for the present generation. This is in Arabic with English subtitles.

A Soldier in Every Son

This is an Aztec Trilogy which is shown in Swan Theatre in Stratford upon Avon. This is a co production from the Royal Shakespeare Company and national theatre of Mexico and is controlled by Luis Mario Moncado. The play is inspired by the history plays by Shakespeare. There is a lot of intrigue, power, and passion and it is played out in a political thriller and is in three parts. This spans an entire Aztec history and is in Spanish with English subtitles.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

This is on August 10 and August 18 and  is in Royal Shakespeare and is on Stratford Upon Avon. This is from August 10 and September 2 . This is some of the most fascinating talents of this generation and is from Russia and the artist and director Dmitry Krymov and is a remarkably visually inspiring representation of the Midsummer Nights’ Dream. See this lovely magical comedy and see this beautiful dream like never before.

Then there is Macbeth Leila and ben and also Cymbeline , the Comedy of Errors and the Worlds Together as also the Worldwide Classroom which is a lovely showcase of the most fascinating pleasures of the best kinds of talented display.

The comedy of Errors is by the Rah e Sabz Afghanistan company which is on May 30 and May 31 which is in the Globe theatre London. This is very popular for the controversial productions where women and men act together. This is a production that is being rehearsed in Kabul at the British council till the building was attacked last year. This is a performance that promises to be a fantastic moment for celebration and is created totally under difficult conditions. this is the first time that the group leaves for Kabul for the first time to showcase their talents.

William Shakespeare is a very famous playwright and is popular across the world. The World Shakespeare Festival commemorating him is the best thing that would involve the entire world with William Shakespeare.

With the kind of ambience and the most beautiful surroundings in this part of the world, experience the best of tour pleasures and enjoy coming here to this lovely vegetated land. The extreme temperature here generates extreme winds and this is the reason there are wind farms in Africa.

Amongst the many wind turbines that are found in the African region and Kenya is one such land where you would get to see such wind turbines. There are more than 365 huge turbines in Kenya and they are all installed in the desert regions around Lake Tukrana in the northern part of Kenya. This has in fact created the biggest African wind farm. It is a project that has been supported by the African Development Bank and would have a great capacity and it has one of the highest proportions of wind energy that would be fed in a national grid in any part of the world.

The natural fuel in Kenya comes from the wind and also from the hot underground rock and the sun. Their potential is great and is sometimes hardly considered. Once the set up cost is achieved the energy is almost free. The region is blessed with one of the highest wind velocities in the entire world and gets the best ways of getting exposed to the sun. The African countries have actually been a little slow in getting the alternative power methods. Egypt and Morocco have been taking giant strides towards ensuring that the wind power is on commercial scales. The countries of Ethiopia and Kenya are also onto making an effort to fill the gap between the supply and demand that is available here. They are getting used to tapping the wind energy and Ethiopia has in fact a lot of wattage in the Tigray region thus covering around 15%of the electrical capacity. Ethiopia has intentions of covering a lot more projects like these and in fact Tanzania has a lot of plans to generate around 100 MW of power from two projects in the Singida region. To ensure that wind power is generated and dependence on the coal generated energy is reduced South Africa has a kind of feed in tariff for the wind power. There are many people who are interested are contribute by helping to generate wind energy. In fact this is the first region in Africa that has contributed to this respect. The Lake Turkana wind Power Project has the German Consortium taking care of it and has leased around 66,000 hectares of the largest desert lake. There is a hot wind that blows here in the entire year and the region between the Ethiopian and Kenyan highlands are filled with a kind of eco tourism that is also being followed.

But it is a tedious task to transport turbines to the secluded regions of this area like the Loiyangalani. The place is also around 300 miles to the north of Nairobi. The trucks have to ply on the bridges and roads and these need to be mended. There are also security issues which make the local tribal people carry guns with no inhibitions. Kenya would take lot of efforts to promote a lot of clean energy and also some amount of sustainability which have crossed a lot of wealthy countries. The ecotourism industry here is made of small lodges and camps most of which have turned to solar and wind power as another method of burning stoves. There are droughts here which have made the demand for firewood more as this is what the Africans normally use for cooking their meals. The excessive use of firewood is turning the grasslands and also the savannahs into grassy patches. According to the Household Energy Network or the HEDON there is a lot of smoke that is produced by the wood. This is also the fourth leading cause of disease and death in the countries in the world today.

The Premier Travel Photography Awards is a contest that is organized by the photographers for the photographers. It is open to all the photographers across the world from all countries. The photographers could be professional, amateur; they could be an expert or a beginner. They could be old, they could be young, the fact remains that there are categories that fulfils everybody’s requirements. The photography experts judge the photo entries and then give away prizes to the deserving candidate. The supportive sponsors and the travel adventurers and the photography enthusiasts find this a great platform to be in.

The prizes notwithstanding, it is the brilliant exposure that a photography enthusiast gets in the Premier Travel Photography Awards that makes it a great place to be in. Often there are picture buyers, who want a source of the images on the web, and the Premier Travel Photography Site has some of the best galleries and also the most visited pages in the entire web world.

There are features for the best images in the portfolio books and then there is also an exhibition at the royal Geographic Society. This year there would be a similar exhibition that would be from June 22 to August 19. This is also the same time that the Olympic Games would be held in London.

The contest is open for all, so whether you are an amateur or a professional and whatever age you are, you can be a part of the Premier Photographer Travel Awards. You just have to click on the competition tab and check out the categories. There is a one shot single image category which is for those under 18 years. There is a new Talent section for those who are starting out on Photography. There is something for every interested party in photography.

This year it is going to be something special for the Premier Travel Photographer of the Year and London as the winning pictures are going to be exhibited in the Royal Geographical Society’s Kensington gallery in the months of July and August. They would then be shown in the London Olympic Games. Located next to the Hyde Park this is a great way of encouraging the aspiring photographers. The area would thus be a cultural hub for all and the photographic exhibition would thus be a major hit for the tourists coming there at that time.

This autumn the Travel Photographer of the Year is also having a festival especially for the travel and photography events in the same place and is going to go on for several weekends.

The Travel Photographer of the Year for the year 2010 was Larry Louie from Canada. Such events have helped many photographers to come up in their interests and has set a career fro them. They get commissions and the Travel Photographer of the Year rightly has an Artists Bill of Rights approved list.

There are many elements that make the Travel photographer of the Year so important and special. There are ways you could improve on your photography skills and there are classes you could join to hone your skills in this line. Make sure you explore the categories and the prizes that have been there last year so that you can register at east this year. Have the fun of shooting the best pictures and also decide which the images that could fit your requirements are. This is a great way to encourage aspiring photographers and gives them a chance to showcase their talents and expertise in this line. The Travel Photographer of the Year has joined hands with the Young Photographer’s Alliance and thus the event has been taken to another level.

Ensconced in the lovely rugged terrain of the Western Ghats, this is a lovely paradise in the beautiful surroundings of the district of Pune. Come here in the months of September and August, and get enchanted by the lovely manner in which the entire area gets a shade of green and is covered with the best ambience of the monsoons. Very famous for its beautiful mist covered mountain, this is a lovely locale to be in just for enjoying the cascades and to feel the beauty of the ambience here. It is as if Mother Nature herself had taken a vow to be at her best here.

With a plethora of flora and fauna, this is a great zone to be in, during this time and an ideal rejuvenation and relaxation spot. With the amalgamation of scenic pleasures and travel experiences no one would ever want to go back after coming here to the land of pleasure, fun and thrill. With the greatest sights of the collection of cuckoos, flamingos, crakes, quails and rails, this is a great place to be in and a lovely place to experience.

How to Reach

Malshej Ghat is located in the district of Pune and is located near the Thane and Ahmednagar border. AT a distance of around 154 km from the south of Mumbai in the northeastern part and around 130 km to the north of Pune. With Kalyan as the nearest railway station, one can go to Malshej Ghat by road. It is very near the city of Mumbai and one takes the NH3 which leads to Bhiwandi. There are state transport buses which go up to Malshej Ghat.

Activities

It is a great place for all the hikers and trekkers, and is a great paradise for all and is the ideal place to be in and has the best scene of beautiful rolling hills and provides a great experience. Explore the peaks and the wild jungles here and the most beautiful paths here and enjoy the cover of foggy pleasures in this mystical land of the Indian leader Shivaji who was born here. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj the great Maharashtra leader and the greatest Indian hero, has traversed this land as a child and this land today is one of the most preferred destinations for all those who get attracted to the pleasures of monsoon beauties.

Bird Graveyard

Yes, come to this lovely paradise and see the dubious distinction this shares to be a bird graveyard. This is the place where the small birds are seen during the time monsoon sets in. Most of the birds are found amongst the cliffs of the Western Ghats and in this strong gusty ambience, the heavy rains and the fog only add on to the bird getting totally disoriented and out of focus here. So come here and see how many birds actually fall prey to the lights of the vehicles passing here and how many get hit by the cliff faces and thus die. But with times, and people getting more aware and protective about nature, this graveyard has a lesser number of bird deaths.

The area is very near a town here and there are not many restaurants and shopping malls here. There is an MTDC resort here which gives a lot of comfort and convenience to all and it is a great place to stay in. This resort has undergone lot of improvement in the past years and is huge and fantastic. Here one gets to see the best views of nature.

With all this in tow, Malshej Ghat is a sure bet for all those who wish to do something different.

This seas shore locale in the state of Maharashtra in India lies along the coast of the Konkan in the state. This is popular for its serene ambience, lovely scenic beauty and a virgin expanse of land and water. It is known by the other name of Dakshin Kashi and has great spiritual importance amongst the Hindus. There is a temple here and the presiding deity is the Indian god Shiva. Many people come to Harihareshwar specially to see this temple.

The city is believed to have been existing since the time of the emperor Shiva and the first Peshwa Bajirao is believed to have come here sometime in the year 1723. There are many temples here which are a complete proof of the kind of architectural intelligence India has and the Maratha influence on the constructions would interest a historian. There are many sculptures here which lend a lot of interest to the people interested to know more about the Indian epics and the extravagant historical tales that India has to relate always.

Shrivardhan is the city located near Harihareshwar and one can reach here from sea too. There are launches which take a person from the city of Shrivardhan to Harihareshwar. There is the Harihar hill or the Pushpadri which is near the Harihareshwar beach .The lovely green ambience shows that Mother Nature has constantly blessed this place and the thick vegetation only adds to the beauty. The glory and grandeur of the past is seen here and one has to just come here and enjoy and feel the difference of being in a paradise away from the rest of the world.

People normally come to Harihareshwar to feel the coolness of the sea breeze here and the tranquility in the beach. This place is the ideal spot for those who want to have the best of ambience, the least of noise and the calmness of spiritual surroundings. The sands in the beach are a perfect blend of softness and purity and people would surely love to lie in the lap of the Arabian sea and feel the serenity of the luscious surroundings enveloping them with thrill and pleasure. The unpolluted sands make a beach lover want to come here more and the sun tanner would love to get tanned here.

Tourists coming here get the lovely water travel on the small boats that are provided specially for this. Tourists are quite enthusiastic about coming here in these small boats and the experience is unbelievably nostalgic. You would always remember a trip to Harihareshwar.

Then you have the Ganesh gully , the land of Ganesh temples and the Kalbhairav temple which is another added attraction. All in all a must visit spot.

Haridwar is the place where the holy River Ganga is said to descend down, and crosses before she gurgles down to  the other town. Haridwar is the place where the Char Dham journey of India begins. The Char Dham journey includes Kedarnath, Badrinath, Yamunotri and Gangotri. It is believed that any person who takes a holy dip in the River Ganga here attains salvation.

This pilgrim spot is a heavenly place at 249.7m altitude and has a huge area of around 2360sq km. The summers are very hot and the winters are very cold in Haridwar. There are many religious celebrations here all through the year and the festivals of Ganga Dusshera, Kumbh Mela, Somvati Amavasya Mela are all popular. The Kumbh Mela is a unique fair of the Hindus which is held once in 12 years and it is believed that this is the time the planet Jupiter gets nearer to the planet Uranus.

Any devotee would be greatly content if he goes to Haridwar as it is a treasure house of temples and other religious destinations. There are lovely shopping areas for the devotees and also some sanctuaries where wildlife are preserved. It is required that a trip to Haridwar should include a visit to these places too. The Har Ki Pauri and Mansa Devi temple is a must go destination for anyone coming to this land of God Haridwar.

There are mythological tales related to Haridwar and also many references in the Indian epics too. It is also believed that history proves the existence of Haridwar since the time of the great Mauryan Empire. However the distinction of mention of the city goes to the Chinese traveler Huan Tsang who mentioned it in his works. This is also the place the Sikh founder Guru Nanak had his bath and today it is a Gurudwara .

The Har Ki Pauri is the centre of Haridwar’s attractions. This is where pilgrims go to have their bath and also worship the River Ganga. It is legendary belief that this is where the nectar fell when the ocean was churned while creating the world. And a footprint on the stone wall is believed to be that of the Indian God Lord Vishnu’s. The sight of the floating lamps that are put in the evening in the river at Haridwar is something to remember forever.

Then the Maya Devi Mandir is another important religious spot to be visited and gives Haridwar the other name of Mayapuri.

The Mansa Devi Mandir is also a popular pilgrim spot in Haridwar.

Many more places to see in Haridwar, and do make a point to visit this heavenly entrance.

Of the many places in the world, Trinidad and Tobago comes across as a great place for eco tourism. Just lying around 10 miles from Venezuela, this beautiful region has the best kind of flora and fauna and is said to have been a part of Venezuela but got separated some 11,000 years back. This offshoot of the Ice Age is a beautiful region of mountain ranges and hills with rich alluvial soil dominating the region. The Trinidad island has three mountain ranges – The Central, Northern and the Southern Hills. They are headed west and have the EL Cerro del Aripo as the highest peak. At a height of around 3000 feet, the place is made of quartzite, phylite and limestone. Here the soil quality is not very good and the vegetation is predominantly rainforests and woodlands of elfin. There are some plains having alluvial soil and the savannah belts are found here in plenty. The Caroni floodplains are also a main feature here.

Deciduous forests are found in the southern plains and they border the coastline. The hills are filled with two swamps – The Caroni Swamp and the Nariva Swamp. The Caroni lies in the western side ,the Nariva Swamp lies in the east and the Los Blanquizales Swamp in the south west.

While Trinidad is famous for this, Tobago has the reefs bordering the island and the water here is a beautiful blue green. The ranges here are from north to east and also from south to west. The Pigeon Peak here is a beautiful high locale and is the highest peak point. At an altitude of 1800 feet, a visit here certainly leaves you spell bound. There are lot of islets on the eastern portion of Tobago, and deciduous forests dominate the region mostly. The vegetation here is scrub and xerophytic and limestone is the main rock here. While you take a tour of this place you would be taken to the Pigeon Peak Reserve which is a haven for birds and is existing since 1765.

Eco tourism here is beautiful with the varied habitats and species found here and is a perfect entry for the ecological balance in this part of South America.

Trinidad and Tobago have a seasonal climate and the flora and fauna thrive according to the climate here.

With this kind of variety of animals, birds and trees, Trinidad and Tobago form a perfect place for eco tourism. With the myriad variety around, you certainly wouldn’t want to miss this pristine virgin spot tucked away in this part of the world.