August 2013

THE 7 SISTERS FESTIVAL

As you already know, at Asia Gardens 5* Luxury Hotel we like to know everything about Asia, and today we are in a romantic mood. We want to tell you about a well known festival called “The 7 Sister’s Festival” or the “Chinese Valentine’s Day”.

The original name of the festival is “Qi Xi”, which means “seven” and “occidental” respectively. This is because the festival has been celebrated the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar for more than 1500 years.

Just like every tradition, this festival has a very curious story that, of course, is about love. The main characters of the story are Niulang, a young mule driver, and Zhinü, a fairy with six older sisters, all of them weavers. One morning, Zhinü and her sisters are bathing in the river when Niulang decides to steal their clothes. The sisters send the innocent Zhinü to get their clothes back, but Niulang is only willing to give them back if Zhinü accepts his marriage proposal, for he has fallen in love at first sight.

Times goes by and they are a happy marriage, until Zhinü’s mother finds out that her daughter stopped weaving and decides to separate them, letting them see each other once a year, the seventh day of the seventh month.

The festival remembers this young couple with incense, flowers, tea, fruit and an amazing embroidery contest, honouring like this Zhinü’s profession. The young single women make a great effort to show their abilities and find a husband. On the other hand, the couples that are waiting for their parent’s approval attend this festival with great hope.

The patios are decorated with flower rings and more offerings, such as cosmetic facial powder. When the offering ends, the young women throw half of the powder at the skies, while the other half is shared out to achieve Zhinü’s beauty.

As you can see, the Asian continent never stops surprising us with unique stories and legends. And we love to tell you all the details about them.

The best way to enjoy Asia without getting out of Spain is visiting us at the Asia Gardens 5* Hotel, where every day is an adventure. We are waiting for you.

DARJEELING TEA

A few weeks ago, we told you about the Japanese tea ceremony ( http://goo.gl/TgOQiG ). Today, from our 5* luxury Hotel Asia Gardens we are travelling to another country to learn more about one of the most famous teas in the world: the Darjeeling in India.

The region that names this tea is at foot of the Himalaya, in the north of India. Darjeeling isn’t just known for its tea, but also for the Himalayan Darjeeling Railway, which was declared UNESCO World Heritage in 1999 and has one of the steam locomotives that still work in India.

This city is in North Bengal and its name is a combination of Tibetan words that mean “land of lightning”. Its mild weather caused that many British fled from the valley to spend their summers there.

But Darjeeling is really well known for the black tea with certification of origin. This tea has lots of prizes in the United Kingdom for its unique taste and colour.

The plantation of this tea started as an experiment in 1841 thanks to Dr. Campbell, who used different tea seeds. This, in addition to the height of the plantations, the humid weather and the yearly rains, make this tea unique.

Being a first harvest tea makes it taste best when it’s still fresh. Therefore, the large sailboats of the XIXth century competed to arrive first in England with the best cargo.

According to the Indian Board of Tea, the Darjeeling tea has been cultivated, developed, produced and manufactured in the tea gardens of this region. Just like the French Champagne, the Darjeeling tea can’t be manufactured or developed in any other part of the world.

In 1983, the Indian Board of Tea created the Darjeeling tea logo to identify the packages that contain just this type of tea and avoid like this counterfeit.

It has a very dark colour, although depending on the harvest, it can turn gold. The same happens with the flavour, which is fruity by nature, but this might change depending on the harvest, which is divided in four stages: first sprout, in between/second sprout, Monsoon tea and autumn.

From Asia Gardens we invite you to try the large varieties of tea there are to keep learning about the Asian continent. We are waiting for you.

THE LEADING HOTELS OF THE WORLD

The 5* luxury Hotel Asia Gardens won last summer one of the most important prizes: entering the exclusive list of The Leading Hotels of the World. This important company was founded in 1928 under the idea of joining the best hotels around the world.

The Leading Hotels of the World was born more than 80 years ago thanks to a small group of European hoteliers that had in the beginning 38 members, among them some hotels in Europe and Egypt. That is why their name was “The Luxury Hotels of Europe and Egypt”.

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In the 70’s they decided that they should have members in every continent, which also made them establish more regional offices. Therefore, they got installed in the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia and South America.

During the 80’s they were almost 200 hotel members, but nowadays, The Leading Hotels of the World has more than 430 members around the world. The organization has 24 offices in the main cities of the world and the headquarters are in New York City.

In order to join this prestigious group of hotels, they have to fulfil some requirements. First of all, they have to apply to be included in The Leading Hotels of the World. Beforehand, they have to be in the category of luxury in every area: lodging, gastronomy, personal attention and facilities. The Executive Committee will then vote positively or negatively.

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When a hotel is already a member of The Leading Hotels of the World, like the Hotel Asia Gardens, the company carries out the “Leading Quality Assurance”, an anonymous inspection that covers every stage a guest lives: from the reservations till he is back home. This way, the hotels have to maintain the status and requirements that made them achieve this prize.

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At Asia Gardens 5* Luxury Hotel in Spain we are proud of belonging to The Leading Hotels of the World. We work hard every day to transport our guests to Asia with the best personal attention and make them live a unique experience.

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BALI BEDS

The Balinese beds of our pools are not made for early risers. But they are made to rest and relax, leaving everything else aside. From the 5* Luxury Asia Gardens Hotel we want to tell you about the origin of these beds and about the country that names them, Bali.

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Bali beds consist of a wooden structure with a very big and low mattress so many people can lay on it. White sheets surround the bed from every angle, so that the atmosphere is more intimate and you can protect yourself from the sun.

The classical colour of Bali beds is white, so that it doesn’t attract the sun heat.  Besides, the white colour has always been related to beach places like Thailand or Bali itself, where relax, wellbeing and peace are basic elements.

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Bali is known as the island of Gods. It is an island and a province of Indonesia, which has a great tourist influx because of their dances, sculptures, paintings, silver work and a particular music style. It is also a meeting point for wholesalers of fashion, jewellery and furniture. Above all, Bali is a paradise of void beaches surrounded by natural palm trees and an exceptional silence.

The little towns of this island are filled with temples, fountainheads and jungles, creating a unique cultural place.

As for the weather, it is very similar to the one in our gardens by the Asia Gardens pools (LINK): tropical. With the exception of the usual raining periods, Bali has a nice and warm weather.

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The best way of getting transported into Asia without getting out of Spain and enjoy great Bali beds with an amazing weather is visiting us at the 5* Luxury Asia Gardens Hotel. We are waiting for you.

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YOGA & BIKRAM

As you know, at Asia Gardens 5* Luxury Hotel in Spain we love to share everything we know about the Asian continent.  In today’s post we are going to tell you about one of the most recognized and healthiest practices that come from Asia: yoga. Besides that, we will also tell you about a new yoga discipline: bikram yoga.

The word yoga comes from the Sanskrit “ioga”, which comes from the verb “iush”, meaning “focusing the mind, unifying or get absorbed in meditation”. It is a mental and physical discipline that has its origin in India. Yoga is used in Buddhism and Hinduism.

Practising yoga has many benefits, such as mental and physical wellbeing, mental balance and an improved concentration, as well as the benefits for the body. By practising yoga you increase the amount of oxygen in your body and learn how to control your breathing with the “pranayama”, a basic technique for this discipline.

Yoga consists of a variety of postures named “asanas” that work on your body and mind. Some postures are very well known, like the Greeting to the Sun, the Moon and the Earth.

Bikram yoga, a variety of the classical yoga, has been being practised in the last few years, created by Bikram Choudhury. Bikram is performed for 90 minutes in a room at 41 degrees where they carry out 26 different “asanas” (postures) and two others for breathing.

His creator assures that training at such high temperatures “improves the ability of the body of controlling its corporal temperature and also improves the blood circulation”. The 26 postures work for every part of the body and that needs flexibility, so the body has to be warm, at around 40 degrees.

The combination of the 26 asanas works as a synergy that increases the benefits for each part of the body. The variety of postures is astounding, but there is one that stands out for its complication: the back-bending. As the name itself says, it consists of bending backwards until you can walk on your hands. In order to achieve this type of asana, you need a lot of practice and of course a professional teacher in a certified centre.

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You don’t just keep in shape with yoga and Bikram, but you can also cure injuring and muscle contractures. Of course, the healthiest celebrities like Jennifer Aniston, Heidi Klum or Doutzen Krous practise these two disciplines and share it on their social media.

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You already know all the benefits of Bikram and yoga. That is why we invite our guests to try our free yoga lessons in the marvellous gardens of the Asia Gardens 5* Luxury Hotel in Spain.

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