Every 23rd rd of April, coinciding with William Shakespeare´s birthday, English Language Day is celebrated under the United Nations´ umbrella. The aim of this event is to inform people about the history and culture of the English language trying to be as entertaining as possible. In order to promote the language, different events are held related to literature, poetry and quizzes.
Often referred to as the world language, nowadays English is the official language or has a special status in at least 75 countries, accounting for a total population of over 2 billion. It is as well the main language of business and aviation and the most widely used on the Internet and social media. Taking these figures into account, it is hard to believe that just 1500 years ago English was only spoken by 3 tribes.
Burn Nights falls every 25th of January and it is embraced by London to honour the birthday of Scottish Poet Robert Burns. It is indeed a pretty crazy party where whisky, haggis, laughs, traditional food and big doses of dancing are the main characters. If you are planning to join this upbeat event, these are the spots you must definitively hit:
The Wild Game CO
Sooner or later you will need to try the star dish of Scottish cuisine. The Wild Game Co offers each day of the week previous to the event, all kinds of haggis and the night itself, a full menu of Scottish delights!
Kerb market
This street market is a must during Burn Nights as all vendors will be competing to offer guests the best of the traditional Scottish cuisine, surrounded by plenty of entertainment like highland games or the sounds of bagpipes, also a good chance to try your Ceilidh skills.
More than 120,000 Filipinos have settled in the UK since the 70´s when the immigration flow started due to a demand of foreign workforce. Since then the National Health Service, the hospitality and the manufacturing sectors have been recruiting Pinoys.
The Philippine Centre was officially born in 1985 as a charity organization to provide support to thousands of Filipinos who were living in the UK. Since its inception it has created a feeling of unity that has enabled them to feel part of a caring community regardless of their religion or economical status.
One of the highlights of this organization is the celebration of the Barrio Fiesta sa London. This concept, inherited from the Spanish Colonial Times, still preserves its Spanish name for party and serves as the unifying element amongst the diversity of this insular country of more than 7.000 islands.
Diwali or “The Festival of lights” marks the start of the Hindu New Year but foremost celebrates the triumph of good over evil, of light over darkness and of hope over despair.
These festivities, which mark a new beginning, are celebrated in India during five days where people offer prayers to the Goddess of Wealth, give thanks to cows (sacred animals for Hindus) worship Lord Krishna with food and brothers dedicate a day to visit their sisters.
With an estimated number of 1.4 million British Indians in the UK, Diwali has been celebrated in different parts of the country for a long time already. Although the official date this year is the 23rd of October, some cities hold celebrations on different days:
