Black Rice, Grown in Asian Part of World

Black Rice is a range of rice types of the species Oryza sativa, some of which are glutinous rice. Black rice is also known as 'Forbidden Rice' in ancient China since only those belonging to the upper class could afford to eat it.

The 'forbidden rice'. The secret of the intriguing nomenclature goes back to Ancient China, where a black variant of rice was consumed by a host of Chinese kinsmen for betterment of kidneys, stomach and liver, until a handful of noble Chinese men took possession of every grain and withheld it from public consumption. Black rice then became a property for the royalty and the wealthy only in Ancient China. Black rice continued to be cultivated but only for the elite classes, in limited quantities and under strict surveillance. The common folk were prohibited from growing or consuming it, and since then it earned its much renowned label - the forbidden rice.

There are several varieties of black rice available today. These include Indonesian black rice, Philippine heirloom balatinaw black rice and pirurutong black glutinous rice, and Thai jasmine black rice. Black rice is known as chak-hao in Manipur, India.

In Bangladesh it is known as kalo dhaner chaal (black paddy rice) and used to make polao or rice-based desserts. The bran hull (outermost layer) of black rice contains one of the highest levels of anthocyanins found in food. The grain has a similar amount of fiber to brown rice and, like brown rice, has a mild, nutty taste.

Black rice has a deep black color and usually turns deep purple when cooked. Its dark purple color is primarily due to its anthocyanin content,which is higher by weight than that of other colored grains. It is suitable for creating porridge, dessert, traditional Chinese black rice cake, bread, and noodles. 

compared to other types rice varieties. The whole grain rice also packs umpteen health benefits.  Black rice or the forbidden rice (Chinese) is a rare and a very old variety of rice that has been growing in India for centuries.  It is mainly grown in the North East region (called as Chak Hao) and the southern parts (called as Kavuni in Tamil) of India. Here are a few benefits of Black rice. 

Benefits of Black Rice-

1. Rich in Antioxidants
2. Natural Detoxifier
3. Good Source of Fiber
4. Preventing Risk of Diabetes
5. Preventing Risk of Obesity
6. Richer Protein Content
7. Better Heart Health

Spotted Lake or lake khiluk, Northwest of Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada

Spotted Lake is a saline endorheic alkali lake located northwest of Osoyoos in the eastern Similkameen Valley of British Columbia, Canada, accessed via Highway 3. Spotted Lake is richly concentrated with various minerals. It contains dense deposits of magnesium sulfate, calcium and sodium sulphates. It also contains high concentrations of eight other minerals and lower amounts of silver and titanium.

Spotted Lake is very highly concentrated with numerous different minerals. It contains some of the highest quantities (in the world) of magnesium sulfate, calcium and sodium sulphates. It also contains extremely high concentrations of 8 other minerals as well as some small doses of four others such as silver and titanium.

Spotted Lake is very highly concentrated with numerous different minerals. It contains some of the highest quantities (in the world) of magnesium sulfate, calcium and sodium sulphates. It also contains extremely high concentrations of 8 other minerals as well as some small doses of four others such as silver and titanium.

Most of the water in the lake evaporates over the summer, revealing colorful mineral deposits. Large 'spots' on the lake appear and are colored according to the mineral composition and seasonal amount of precipitation. Magnesium sulfate, which crystallizes in the summer, is a major contributor to spot color. In the summer, remaining minerals in the lake harden to form natural “walkways” around and between the spots.

Originally known to the First Nations of the Okanagan Valley as Kliluk, Spotted Lake was for centuries and remains revered as a sacred site thought to provide therapeutic waters. During World War I, the minerals of Spotted Lake were used in manufacturing ammunition.

Later, the area came under the control of the Ernest Smith Family for a term of about 40 years. In 1979, Smith attempted to create interest in a spa at the lake. The First Nations responded with an effort to buy the lake, then in October 2001, struck a deal by purchasing 22 hectares of land for a total of $720,000, and contributed about 20% of the cost. The Indian Affairs Department paid the remainder.

Today, there is a roadside sign telling visitors that the lake is a cultural and ecologically sensitive area, and a traditional medicine lake for the Okanagan Syilx people. The lake can be viewed from the fence that has been erected for protection from the liabilities of public access. Many travelers stop to view the site.

Claude (World Rarest Albino Alligator), California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, United States

Claude is an albino alligator  at the California Academy of Sciences. Claude lacks the pigment melanin, which results in his skin color. Claude was hatched on 15 September 1995 in Florida weighing 2 ounces (57 g). He weighs 222 pounds (101 kg) and is 9 feet 5 inches (2.87 m) long. He has 76 teeth. A returning favorite from the original Steinhart Aquarium, the Swamp is best known as the home of Claude, the startlingly white Alligator mississippiensis that's become one of the Academy's most-famous residents.

However, that isn't to say that there aren't albino alligators born in the wild. As of right now, the oldest albino alligator on record is Claude, a 22-year-old alligator at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.

He was in danger in the wilderness owing to albinism which did not allow him to camouflage into his surroundings like other alligators. There are only a couple of dozen known albino alligators in the world, all in captivity. Claude was taken to the California Academy of Sciences in 2008. In 2009, a finger on Claude's right claw was amputated after developing an infection from being bitten by another alligator.

Claude appears completely white because he lacks the pigment melanin. He also has poor eye-sight due to his albinism. The California Academy of Science, in the Steinhart Aquarium, as of 2015, has on display an albino American alligator named "Claude". The alligator is partially blind because of lack of pigment in its eyes. The only known albino alligators are in captivity.

White alligators are not a separate species but are considered extremely rare. There have only been a few documented occurrences of leucistic alligators.

But at the California Academy of Sciences, Claude the albino alligator is a star. He gets three private training sessions a week, followed by 15 fish pellets. The food is tossed inches from his jaw, so he doesn't have to search. His favorite rock is heated to varying temperatures, from 78 degrees to 95 degrees.

Albino alligators are normally found in freshwater rivers, lakes, swamps and marshes in southeastern parts of the United States. Albino alligators are extremely rare. Biologists estimate there are only about 100 existing in the world. They are the offspring of parents that carry the recessive gene for albinism, meaning they do not have the ability to create melanin to color their skin or eyes.

Albino alligators lack the pigment melanin. They are the offspring of two normal-looking alligators that carry the recessive gene for albinism. Albino alligators have ivory-white skin and pinkish eyes. The leucistic alligator usually has blue eyes and patches of normally colored skin on its body.

Jonathan, (Oldest Living Animal On Earth), Island of Saint Helena, British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean, Africa

Jonathan (hatched c. 1832) is a Seychelles giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa), a subspecies of the Aldabra giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea), and is the oldest known living land animal. Jonathan resides on the island of Saint Helena, a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic Ocean.

Jonathan was brought to Saint Helena from the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean in 1882, along with three other tortoises at about 50 years of age. He was named in the 1930s by Governor of Saint Helena Sir Spencer Davis. He continues to live on the grounds of Plantation House, the official residence of the governor, and is cared for by the government of Saint Helena.

His age is estimated because he was 'fully mature' when brought to Saint Helena in 1882. 'Fully mature' means at least 50 years old, giving him a hatching date no later than 1832. A photograph featuring Jonathan originally thought to date from 1902 actually dates from 1886, showing Jonathan four years after his arrival on Saint Helena. Measurements taken from the photograph show that he was definitely fully mature in 1886. 

The all-time verified record holder for the world's oldest tortoise, according to Guinness World Records, is Tu'i Malila, which died in Tonga in 1966 at the age of 189. Adwaita, an Aldabra giant tortoise that died in 2006 in the Alipore Zoological Gardens of Kolkata, India, is believed to have lived to the age of 255 years, but this has not been confirmed.

In February 2014, as part of the Queen's Baton Relay ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the baton visited Saint Helena and Governor Mark Capes, whilst holding the baton, posed for a photo alongside Jonathan in the grounds of Plantation House.

BBC Radio featured Jonathan in an episode of From Our Own Correspondent in March 2014 after ocean rower Sally Kettle visited Saint Helena. The Saint Helena five-pence coin has Jonathan on its reverse.

As of December 2015, Jonathan was reported to be "alive and well. He's blind from cataracts, has lost his sense of smell, and so cannot detect food (his fellow giants mug me and can detect the tiniest morsel dropped on the ground), but he has retained excellent hearing." In January 2016, the BBC reported that Jonathan was given a new diet intended to keep him healthy and extend his life. Due to his old age, Jonathan spends his days doing almost everything with his mate, including eating, sleeping, and mating.

Being the oldest land animal in the world, he has almost royal status. He is dignified and interacts in a friendly way as long as people move slowly around him. We are all very fond of him.

Ratha Yatra (World Largest Holy Gathering), Puri, Orissa, India

Ratha Yatra is a Hindu festival associated with Lord Jagannath held at Puri in the state of Odisha, India. It is the oldest Ratha Yatra taking place in India and the World, whose descriptions can be found in Brahma Purana, Padma Purana, and Skanda Purana and Kapila Samhita.This annual festival is celebrated on Ashadha Shukla Paksha Dwitiya (second day in bright fortnight of Ashadha month). RathaYatra is a colorful festival which draws millions of devotees from various parts of the country as well as from abroad to Puri, is held in June-July every year. Lord Jagannath, Lord of the Universe, comes out of His sanctum sanctorum to give Darshan to all Devotees belonging to all sects and communities. It is said that those who take part in the Car Festival 2015 earn their passage to the Heaven.

The festival commemorates Jagannath's annual visit to Gundicha Temple via Mausi Maa Temple (maternal aunt's home) near Saradha Bali, Puri. The three chariots of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhdra are newly constructed every year with wood of specified trees like phassi, dhausa, etc. They are customarily brought from the ex-princely state of Dasapalla by a specialist team of carpenters who have hereditary rights and privileges for the same. The logs are traditionally set afloat as rafts in the river Mahanadi. These are collected near Puri and then transported by road.

The three chariots are decorated as per the unique scheme prescribed and followed for centuries stand on the Bada Danda, the Grand Avenue. The chariots are lined across the wide avenue in front of the temple close to its eastern entrance, which is also known as the Sinhadwara or the Lion's Gate. Around each of the chariots are nine Parsva devatas, painted wooden images representing different deities on the chariots' sides. Each chariot has a charioteer (Sarathi) and four horses.

'SnanaPumima' marks the beginning of this festival. On this day the three deities Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra take prolonged bath on an open platform known as 'SnanaBedi', Then they retire for 15 days popularly called the period of 'Anabasara' and remain in isolation. During this period, no public worship is performed. After 15 days of isolation, the Gods come out of the temple in a colourful procession to board their respective Chariots and thereafter begins the journey known as RathaJatra.

Reference to Car Festival in JagannathaPuri is available in various scriptures like those of Buddhists. Jains and Hindus. However, the present concept of Lord Jagannath is most popular. According to the prevailing concept, Lord Jagannath was originally worshipped by Savaras a Scheduled Tribe of Odisha.Car Festival symbolizes the Lord's desire to come out of the temple for a brief period to give Darshan to the 'Patitas' and redeem them. The chariots of Lord Jagannath and His brother Balabhadra and sister Subhadra are dragged by thousands of devotees in three gorgeously decorated chariots from the main gate of the temple to GundichaMandir near about 3 Kms. away. At Gundicha Mandirthe Lord along with His entourage remains for 7 days.

When the chariots move on the main thoroughfare  of Puri known as BadaDanda through a vast concourse of humanity that  usually throng to have His Darshan, the atmosphere is charged with sanctity. It is delightful to  witness the foreigners in saffron robes dancing and reciting musical compositions in  honour of Lord Jagannath and Krishna, to the accompaniment of cymbals and  mridangas.

The Gods perform their Return Journey on the 9th day and   this is known as Bahudayatra. The deities, after a seven-day stay at 'Gundicha Mandir' commence  their Return Journey, or the Bahuda yatra. On the tenth day of the bright fortnight of Asadlia. The  Return Journey of the chariots takes place in the same order as in the RathaJatra. Balabhadra's  chariot moves first, followed by those of Subhadra and Jagannath. On His way back,  Jagannath slops for a while at Ardhasani temple popularly called MausiMaa Temple or the  Temple of Aunt. He accepts his favourite rice-cake, PodaPitha from the  Aunt.

The three chariots, pulled by thousands of devotees, reach back the Singhadwara in the late afternoon of the Bahuda day. On the next day the BadaEkadasi, the three deities are attired in costumes of glittering gold ornaments and are worshipped by lakhs of devotees. This form of the deities Is known as the 'SunaVesha'. On the Dwadasi day, the three deities go back to their original place of the temple, the 'RatnaSinghasana', in the Pahandi style. Their arrival into the sanctum sanctorum marks the end of the RathaJatra, the grand festival of chariots.

Redhead Day , Dutch Summer Festival, Nederlands

Redhead Day (Roodharigendag in Dutch) is the name of a Dutch summer festival that takes place each first weekend of September in the city of Tilburg, and up to 2018 in the city of Breda, in the Netherlands. The two-day festival, which inaugurated in 2005, is a gathering of people with natural red hair, but is also focused on art related to the colour red.

Activities during the festival are lectures, workshops and demonstrations which are aimed specifically at red-haired people. The festival attracts attendance from fifty countries and is free of charge due to sponsorship of the local government. To be classified a 'Redhead', each participant must not have altered their natural hair colour. Additionally it is encouraged (but not required) to have red clothing.

The festival was started in 2005 unintentionally by the Dutch painter Bart Rouwenhorst in the small Dutch city of Asten. As a painter, he was inspired by artists like Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Gustav Klimt. Both of these artists created dramatic portraits of women, and both artists made famous paintings depicting redheaded women. To follow in the footsteps of his favourite painters, Rouwenhorst planned an exhibition of fifteen new paintings of redheads. Finding models was problematic, since redheads are rare in the Netherlands where only two percent of the population has natural red hair. To find models, an advertisement was placed in a local newspaper. However, instead of 15, 150 models volunteered.

Not wanting to turn down so many potential models, Rouwenhorst decided to choose 14 models, organize a group photo shoot for remaining redheads, and have a lottery to decide by chance who would be the 15th and final model. Thus began the first Red head day.

That year, the focus was on red-haired women only, since they were asked to volunteer to pose for the paintings. At the events in later years, the aim was to attract redheaded men as well as women, but still the sexes are not equally distributed. The first meeting attracted 150 natural redheads.

The weekend-long festival is free to attend, and you don’t have to be a redhead to go friends, family, and admirers are all welcome. Photographers set up tents all over town, poised to do individual photo-shoots. There are speed-meeting sessions, art exhibits, fashion shows, a high heels race, lectures on the history of red hair, an Irish whiskey tasting, and beauty tutorials. An assortment of food trucks park around Kasteelplein (Castle Square), prepared to feed the crowds, and of-age attendees can quench their thirst at the Saturday night pub crawl.

The only event that requires crimson tresses is the group photo, which is taken on the last day of the festival. In 2015, the last time an official count was done, 1,721 redheads wearing blue were included in the group shot, breaking the festival’s own 2013 Guinness World Record of 1,672 redheads in one place. 

What started as a small gathering has grown into a major event attended by upwards of 5,000 people from more than 80 countries. While a number of similar festivals have popped up across Ireland, London, Portland, Chicago, and Georgia, Breda claims the title of the original and the largest.