DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

    Each July, tens of thousands of spectators line the banks adjacent to the Stari Most, the Old Bridge that crosses Bosnia-Herzegovina’s beautiful Neretva River in the city of Mostar. Undeterred by the Balkan sun, onlookers keep their eyes locked on the apex of the single-arch bridge where, one by one, divers enter the water in a spectacle of machismo and local tradition as they vie for title in the world’s longest-running high diving competition: the Ikari.    As one of the oldest venues for extreme sporting events, the Stari Most has been the place to go for male rites of passage since it was first built back in 1566. Set in the Ottoman Empire’s regional capital, the Old Bridge connected the Neretva River’s two banks at its narrowest point, a strategic location that marked the centre of the city’s earliest development. The name Mostar comes from the “mostari,” or bridge-keepers who held watch over the structure from the Halebinovka Tower on the west bank, and t...

   The  Guelaguetza , or  Los lunes del cerro  (Mondays of the Hill) is an annual cultural celebration in Mexico that takes place in the  city of Oaxaca , capital of the state of  Oaxaca  and nearby villages. The celebration includes parades complete with walking bands and the marketing of food, statewide artisanal production, and souvenirs, but centers on traditional dancing in costume in groups, often groups of only one sex. Each costume and dance usually has a local historical and cultural meaning. Although the celebration is an important tourist attraction, especially in the capital city of Oaxaca, it also retains significant independent cultural importance for the people of the state. Oaxaca has a large indigenous population, 40 percent, compared to 15 percent for Mexico as a whole. Indigenous culture in the state remains strong in its own right, with over 300,000 people in the state who are monolingual in indigenous languages....

  Ancient or just simply old castles are some of the most interesting man-made places on Earth.  They are often grand structures that are rich in history, but sometimes their history is dark and violent.  This causes some people to look at these great historical sites in a different light.  You can almost guarantee that if a person has been tortured, killed, or died of old age in a castle, that someone will claim it is haunted.    European castles have been the home to ruling monarchs, both bad and good.  They have seen the hardship, pain, tragedy and triumph of mankind.  They have also served as prisons and torture chambers and in some instances, even tombs.    Many believe this is why castles are so closely associated with ghosts and haunting's.  With so much agony being born within, it makes sense that some of that might permeate into the very structure itself.  Tower of London   Perhaps no castle ...