DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

    India is a secular nation and houses every community. Christians are a minority here and form nearly 2.3% of the population. But the fact that there are only about 25 million Christians in India, in no way lessens the observance of the festival. Moreover, the occassion is celebrated not only by Christians but by people of other religions as well.     The tradition of  Christmas  observance was introduced here with the colonisation of Europeans. Though the country gained its independence in 1947, many European  customs  and festivals stayed on. The fact that there is the presence of a Christian community in India, helped the maintaining of these traditions in no less a way. Today, Christmas is the biggest and most-loved festival of Indian Christians. The festival is also enthusiastically celebrated by people of other religions residing here.     Like in many other countries, Christmas is observed in India on 25th December. Everyone gears up for the festival fr

     Camel wrestling  is a sport in which two male Tulu camels wrestle in response to a female camel in heat being led before them. It is most common in the Aegean region of Turkey, but is also found in the Marmara and Mediterranean regions of that country. There are an estimated 1,200 wrestling camels in Turkey, bred specially for the competitions. The Parade     The day before each Championship is set aside for a parade through the town of Selcuk, with the animals dressed up in all their finery. Not all of the fighting camels will attend the parade however. In 2011 around 30 camels were on show on the Saturday, with around 100 taking part in the fighting. The most beautiful camel in 2011 was "Palavra", a camel with a particularly talented foaming mouth. The Championships     Held in an ancient stadium at Ephesus, 6 kilometers from the town of Selcuk, on the 3rd Sunday of January, the camel wrestling championships have drawn thousands of spe