To commemorate Visakha Bucha Day, worshippers and tourists in the ancient town of Sukhothai are welcome to gather at Wat Chang Lom and participate in the wian thian ceremony between May 21 and 22 to mark the birth, enlightenment and death of Lord Buddha.
Situated in the Sukhothai Historical Park, the temple will be turned into a recreational place for people of all ages to enjoy a wide range of interesting cultural performances, local delicacies and DIY workshops from 4-9pm. To pay homage to Lord Buddha, visitors can circle the venerable stupa three times while carrying flowers, incense sticks and a lighted candle.
This temple was constructed to house the Lord Buddha's relics. It's home to a Sukhothai-style stupa with a base adorned with 32 sculptures of elephants from the Himmaphan forest to represent Mouth Meru in the heart of Buddhist universe.
Call 055-616-228 or visit the TAT Sukhothai Office on Facebook.
Vivid Sydney
Vivid Sydney 2024 highlights 'Humanity'
From May 24 to June 15, several sites across Sydney, Australia, will be illuminated with an astonishing assortment of multimedia artworks as part of Vivid Sydney 2024. Designed around the "Humanity" theme, the festival has four pillars -- Vivid Light, Vivid Music, Vivid Ideas and Vivid Food, for broadening creative horizons.
Starting from Sydney Tower, American artist Yvette Mattern will use a 40km stretch of rainbow lasers to light up "candles of hope", while award-winning artist Julia Gutman takes visitors on a visual journey with Lighting Of The Sails: Echo (2024) at the Sydney Opera House.
With mesmerising light installations and 3D projections, Reg Mombassa, Guan Wei, Leila Jeffreys and many more join the line-up, converting the city into a dynamic open-air art gallery that expands from Circular Quay to The Goods Line.
A 1km trail in the abandoned railway tunnels underneath Sydney's Wynyard Station will be turned into eight themed chambers, each with a monochromatic colour scheme and backing track of electronic dance music.
Vivid Music brings the city back to life with a wide range of live performances, concerts and DJ sets. Tumbalong Nights features established and emerging artists including Budjerah, grentperez and Mallrat, while the brand-new Machine Hall Precinct is buzzing with headliners like Deerhoof, Jen Cloher and No Fixed Address.
Visit vividsydney.com.
KTC
Credit card travel spending on the up
According to KTC, credit card spending on travel is still rising after Covid-19, and it is utilising key strategies to provide members with exclusive travel experiences, revamping the website to serve as a "one-stop" travel promotion hub, and combining exclusive privileges from over 100 leading travel websites to enhance convenience.
KTC is expanding the high purchasing power member base through stronger partnerships with both domestic and overseas travel merchants, reinforcing the quality of KTC World Travel Service provided by experts and reliable professionals, and strengthening brand awareness of "KTC: The Only Card, All You Need To Travel With".
"In the first quarter of 2024, the travel spend hit the second-highest growth among all categories. KTC travel spenders' behaviours have evolved significantly, many plan their trips, maximising online channels to discover tourist attractions, book tickets, hotels and travel with purpose, tailoring their itineraries and activities to suit unique lifestyles and preferences," said Pranaya Nithananon, head of credit card marketing at Krungthai Card.
KTC anticipates that by year-end, the travel category will maintain its domination in the industry, achieving a growth rate of over 20%.
