BA offers $40 round-trip US-India fare by mistake Oct 10, 2009
Commencing Sunday, Qatar Airways will begin a direct service four times a week from its Doha base to Amritsar, allowing a wide base of Sikhs/Punjabi diaspora in North America (where it flies direct to Washington DC, Houston/Dallas among other cities), Europe, Africa and the Gulf/West Asia region to make their Golden Temple pilgrimage expeditiously. The airline, which already flies from Doha to eight other cities in India, will also begin a Doha-Goa service on October 25, making it one of the... (India Times, India)
The Newseum's Tim Russert Shrine Oct 9, 2009
By making a pilgrimage to the Russert shrine, his disciples hope to prove their faith and intensify their closeness to him. I'm not kidding. (Slate)
Mystery over Iranian researcher Oct 9, 2009
Shahram Amiri disappeared in June in Saudi Arabia while on a pilgrimage. Iran on Wednesday accused the US of involvement in his disappearance, but did not confirm media reports that Mr Amiri was indeed a nuclear scientist. (BBC News -- Africa)
Iran accuses U.S. in scientist's disappearance Oct 9, 2009
Iran accused the United States Wednesday of involvement in the disappearance of an Iranian nuclear scientist it says vanished after leaving for a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia in late May ... The Obama administration has said U.S. intelligence had known about the plant's construction near a military base for at least one year - well before Amiri's pilgrimage in May. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Iran accuses US over scientist who vanished Oct 9, 2009
TEHRAN: Iran has accused the US of involvement in the disappearance of an Iranian nuclear scientist it says vanished after leaving for a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia in late May ... The Obama Administration has said US intelligence has known about the plant's construction for at least one year - well before Amiri's pilgrimage in May. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Yearning for the Golan Heights: why Syria wants it back Sep 30, 2009
The only others allowed across this border are Druze religious figures who make an annual pilgrimage to Syria, as well as a limited number of Syrian women who are permitted to marry men in the Golan but are then barred from returning. Despite these hardships, displaced Syrians from the Golan say they will ensure that their Golanese identity remains alive and that when the moment arrives they will be ready to go back. (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Can Miley Cyrus Save Health Care Reform? Sep 30, 2009
The title "Party in the USA" makes explicit what the lyrics' Nashville-to-L.A. pilgrimage and Jay-Z and Britney name-drops suggestthis isn't a mere single so much as a red state/blue state, hick/elite, rural/urban dtente. Pop bliss eradicates regionalism. (Slate)
U.S. alone can't solve world's problems, Obama tells U.N. Sep 24, 2009
In his U.N. speech, Obama repeated a familiar refrain for U.S. presidents who make the annual pilgrimage to its Turtle Bay headquarters. The world body should live up to its promise, he said. (Fresno Bee -- Nation)
Georgia-Florida game should take turns on campus Sep 23, 2009
No. Would it add to the tradition of alumni making a pilgrimage to SSI for a round of golf and good times with their friends to make it every couple of years instead. No.. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Sports)
Rail will come when Georgia gets its act together Sep 22, 2009
I rode the Metra or whatever the hell it s called in DC during the family s occasional pilgrimage to the capital of the once greatest nation on Earth, just a short jump to the other side of the Mall, and I remember how nice it was to be sized up by the local thuggery and the welcoming stares they gave us for invading their space. Wasn t a cop in sight. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
Cond's out of fashion Sep 18, 2009
Ed Menicheschi, who is chasing fashion business for the magazine, is still making his annual pilgrimage ... Publisher Ed Menicheschi, who is chasing fashion business for the magazine, is still making his annual pilgrimage. (New York Post -- Business)
Lifetime biopic 'humanizes' artist Georgia O'Keeffe Sep 18, 2009
"People don't know her vulnerability. Her pilgrimage out there did not come out of nowhere. She had two sides, and if emotional things (in her life) were not going well, she'd break down.". The source of her sorrows: Stieglitz, a groundbreaking artist/photographer and gallery owner of the early , 24 years her senior and the man who discovered her, promoted her, photographed her (mostly nude), moved in with her (while still married to someone else), married her and, eventually, cheated on her. (USA Today -- Life)
Emperor Norton, zaniest S.F. street character Sep 18, 2009
Every January, on the Saturday nearest the anniversary of his death, members of E Clampus Vitus, a society that combines a love of drinking with a love of history, makes a pilgrimage to the emperor's grave. Norton's legacy lives on: There is an Emperor Norton Inn on Post Street and the Emperor Norton Restaurant and Pizza parlor, which features "Bummer's favorite pizza" as its signature dish. (San Francisco Chronicle)
My Ramadan World Tour Sep 16, 2009
Seventeen family members and I had joined an Iranian pilgrimage tour of Saudi Arabia. Generally, these trips last two weeks, but since ours coincided with the beginning of Ramadan, three additional days were added at no extra charge. (Slate)
For Flight 93 memorial, long-awaited progress Sep 11, 2009
"If people make a pilgrimage, which is what this is, to Shanksville, Pa., and they have a rewarding experience that's about the remembrance of this event and a larger connection to American history, then the site will live on because word-of-mouth does its job and people will want to go to this very special place," he says. "If it's not a special place, people are going to lose interest pretty quick.". (USA Today -- News)
Swine flu back: What's ahead? Sep 1, 2009
In Saudi Arabia, people younger than 12 and older than 65 are being barred from this November's hajj, the pilgrimage to holy cities that many Muslims save up their whole lives to make. And in Australia closely watched by the U.S. and Europe as a predictor for their own coming flu seasons hospitals set up clinics outside the main doors to keep possible flu sufferers from entering and infecting other patients. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Health)
Return of swine flu: Whats ahead Aug 31, 2009
In Saudi Arabia, people younger than 12 and older than 65 are being barred from this November's hajj, the pilgrimage to holy cities that many Muslims save up their whole lives to make. 1. (MSNBC -- Health)
Kennedy compound future Aug 27, 2009
Every year, tourists make the pilgrimage to Hyannis, hoping for a glimpse of the Kennedys, a taste of their way of life. They sail into the harbor for a better look at the home. (Boston Globe)
What an Endeavour! Keyser resident witnesses history Aug 25, 2009
On this first five- day pilgrimage, I saved the last two dates for launch attempts. or delays as it turned out. (Keyser Mineral Daily News Tribune, WV)
Early Ramadan Raises Health Concerns Aug 24, 2009
The World Health Organization announced recently that 50 percent of Iran s 144 swine flu cases have come from Saudi Arabia, and a young Egyptian woman died July 19 after contracting swine flu during a pilgrimage to Mecca. Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Egypt have imposed restrictions -- or outright bans -- on the pilgrimage. (EurasiaNet.org)
Years after working in the fields, astronaut set to head into space Aug 24, 2009
remembers asking his second-grade teacher for a couple months worth of homework when it came time for the family s annual pilgrimage back to Mexico. The teacher urged his parents to set down roots; his father eventually started a trucking business. (Boston Globe)
Mubarak meets Obama to patch up US-Egypt relationship Aug 19, 2009
"It was like his annual pilgrimage," says Khalil Al-Anani, an analyst with the Al Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies. Then came Sept. 11, the war on terror, and a pronounced chilling of the US-Egypt relationship. (Christian Science Monitor -- World)
Country profile: Iraq Aug 17, 2009
Pilgrimage unites Sri Lankans after ravages of war. Football's rich clubs worry South America's coaches. (BBC News -- Africa)
Saudi Arabia wavers on Obama's plan Aug 13, 2009
As a few thousand pious Muslims now prepare to leave both Gaza and the West Bank to travel to Saudi Arabia for the hajj pilgrimage, there is some expectation their Saudi hosts may be able to do some good reconciliation work while they are there. Helena Cobban is a veteran Middle East analyst and author. (Asia Times Online)
THE WANDERING CYCLIST: Bosnia-Herzegovina Aug 12, 2009
This is considered a pilgrimage site and six people claim to have seen an apparition of the Virgin Mary. Behind Crkva Sv. (Swampscott Reporter, MA)
Much to remember in 85 years Aug 11, 2009
I have no idea, Stride says of the reason for his family s pilgrimage. I often think about my mother and how she came from New York to California on the train with five children and one on the way. (Klamath Falls Herald & News, OR)
British contractor allegedly kills 2 in Iraq Aug 11, 2009
The spread of swine flu in the Arab world has raised concerns about the region's ability to control the virus' spread among millions expected to attend this year's hajj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. Source: Associated Press. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Iraqi death toll down Aug 2, 2009
In two key tests of their ability to handle their newfound responsibilities, Iraqi security forces last month successfully secured Baghdad's first international football match since the invasion as well as a major Shiite pilgrimage in the capital. Despite the decrease in levels of unrest, Iraq is still plagued by violence and July saw devastating attacks, including a double suicide bombing in the northern town of Tal Afar on July 9 that killed 35 people. (iAfrica.com)
Iran Thousands clash with police over ban on grave visit Aug 1, 2009
Riot police on Thursday cordoned off Agha-Soltan's grave, which has become a point of pilgrimage for Mousavi supporters. When Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, another defeated candidate, arrived near the grave in southern Tehran, hundreds of supporters swarmed their white sport utility vehicle, witnesses reported. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)
Clashes erupt again in Iran with new fury Jul 31, 2009
Riot police on Thursday cordoned off Agha Soltan's grave, which has become a point of pilgrimage for Mousavi backers. Thursday marked the 40th day after her death. (AZCentral -- News)
Security forces, demonstrators clash in Tehran Jul 31, 2009
Riot police yesterday cordoned off Agha Soltan s grave, which has become a point of pilgrimage for Mousavi supporters. When Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, another defeated candidate, arrived near the grave at Tehran s vast Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in southern Tehran, hundreds of supporters swarmed their white sport utility vehicle, witnesses reported. (Boston Globe)
Report Exposes Bus Company Safety Scam Jul 31, 2009
Charter carrying Vietnamese worshipers on pilgrimage runs off highway overpass, killing 14. (AP) Hundreds of tractor-trailer and bus companies ordered to shut down because of federal safety violations ranging from suspended licenses to possible drug use have stayed on the road by using different names, investigators say. (CBS News -- US)
UPDATE: US revokes visas for Honduran officials... Jul 30, 2009
"To those far away, it might seem very symbolic, with little importance. But to the Honduran oligarchy, the focal point of their pilgrimage throughout the world is Miami," said Carlos Sosa, Honduras's ambassador to the Organization of American States. Post a Comment. (The Drudge Report)
Daniel Boyd: A Homegrown Terrorist? Jul 30, 2009
Boyd's wife insists the trip was a holy pilgrimage, but U.S. authorities claim Boyd was attempting to contact radical jihadists in Palestine. That same year, his 16-year-old son, Luqman, was killed in a car accident near the family's home. (Time.com)
Terror allegations against NC man shock neighbors Jul 29, 2009
In an interview with the News ver of Raleigh, Boyd said her husband and sons' trips abroad were pilgrimages, specifically denying prosecutors' allegation that Daniel Boyd took a son to Gaza in 2006 to meet with others bent on violence ... "The point of a pilgrimage is to see the Al-Aksa mosque, the Dome of the Rock, to hear the call to prayer and to make a prayer," she said. (Fresno Bee -- Local)
Immigrant case ends Jul 28, 2009
If Americans live in these countries, they pay their way In fact, they make the pilgrimage back and forth to the states, as required by the laws of the countries they live in who are these people who feel they deserve a free ride. To Ignorance. (The Palm Beach Post)
Cheney's Fall From Grace Jul 24, 2009
Cheney recently made his weekly pilgrimage to the Senate, where he had lunch on March 6 with Republicans. He took his usual seat on one side of the stately Mike Mansfield Room and watched the proceedings quietly. (Time.com)
The Legacy of the Jewish Mother Jul 24, 2009
The pilgrimage continues today. Everyone has a story tailored from personal experience. (Townhall.com)
Shiite ceremony tests Iraqi security forces Jul 19, 2009
BAGHDAD, July 18 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces faced their first serious test of working on their own, after the June 30 U.S. troops withdrawal, to maintain security during a major Shiite religious pilgrimage that draws millions of pilgrims ... The Iraqi authorities consider the security measures during themajor pilgrimage as a key test for its security troops after over two weeks of the U.S. troops withdrawal from Iraqi cities and towns in line with a security agreement signed late last... (Xinhuanet, China)
The crisis where? Jul 19, 2009
The government in Beijing also has harshly suppressed Islam and Uighur culture, restricting religious education, curtailing festivals, and making it nearly impossible for Uighurs to go on pilgrimage to Mecca. Peaceful activists pressing for greater religious and political rights in the province have been jailed, even executed. (Boston Globe)
2 million pilgrims visit shrine as Iraqi security forces pass test Jul 19, 2009
Latest Political Stories. Latest World Stories. (Fresno Bee)
Ghana After Obama Jul 18, 2009
No matter our news and views about President Barack Hussein Obamas visit to Ghana and no matter how our judgements and expectations are going to be on his preference over sub-Saharan economic giants such as Nigeria, South Africa and his own blood-related home country Kenya- that became the centrepiece of his message of hope to Africans, it could be said that the Obamas pilgrimage to Cape Coast- an outreach post of Western colonization and slave trade, is an embodiment of... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Obamas Visit To Ghana And The Promotion Of African American Roots Tourism Jul 15, 2009
President J.A Kufuor also launched Africa's Golden Gateway Project in Washington aimed at stepping up Ghanas efforts at attracting American investors and tourists and the Joseph Project to encourage African Americans to return to the homeland at least for a pilgrimage and to reconnect with their roots. Blacks of African ancestry form about 13% of the American population. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Get Out Events, Hunting & Fishing Calendar: 7/12/09 Jul 12, 2009
This week the Keystone Trails Association will sponsor an annual pilgrimage to sprawling 280,000-acre Sproul State Forest for the annual Prowl the Sproul Hiking Weekend. The area includes the 50-mile double loop Chuck Keiper Trail and 52-mile Donut Hole Trail. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA -- Sports)
The Manny To End the Steroids Era Jul 7, 2009
Ramirez's weird pilgrimage to the bushes served as a living reminder that the great steroid hunt is almost solely an intramural problem between baseball and its various acolytes. The overwhelming number of baseball fanswho, given the economic problems of the moment, are filling ballparks in reasonably overwhelming numbershave quite obviously made peace with what happened in the game over the past 20 years. (Slate)
New national monument dedicated Jul 4, 2009
Nearly 700 people, including about 400 Japanese-Americans attending the ongoing Tule Lake Pilgrimage, sat under a blistering sun Friday to dedicate the park unit, which was created by presidential proclamation last December ... Hiroshi Shimizu, president of the Tule Lake Committee, a group of former internees that sponsors the pilgrimages, termed it appropriate that the ceremonies were held in front of the former camp stockade, which many call a prison within a prison. (Klamath Falls Herald & News, OR)
Staples Center offers to host Jackson memorial Jul 2, 2009
The narrow, two-lane road lined with cattle ranches and oak-studded hills was nearly impassable to traffic and fans, forcing visitors to park more than a mile away and make the final pilgrimage to Neverland on foot. Reminiscent of GracelandIn a scene reminiscent of a latter-day Graceland, many mourning fans placed notes and flowers and then departed, but about 100 settled in to wait. (MSNBC -- Music)
Black and White Jul 1, 2009
had "been to jail thirteen times" by age 11; in prison, she and other children were "fed dry beans with rocks as punishment for demonstrating to get our parents the right to vote." Contrary to her name, Bland was the most memorable "living civil rights memorial" during the author's pilgrimage through the South. An "" salutes "an old-fashioned ice cream shop" that opened in Roanoke, Va. (Slate)
Meet Italy's Version of Andy Warhol Jun 29, 2009
My pursuit of the Italian Futurist movement was a different sort of pilgrimage: a whirlwind intrigue rather than the latest installment in an enduring romance. Instead of stalking a specific person, I was chasing an entire avant-garde, one that, from what little I knew, I felt ambivalent about. (Slate)
Why Iran's Changed Forever Jun 25, 2009
Qom and perhaps even Mashhad, an important clerical and pilgrimage site where Khamenei has his financial power-base, would go into permanent opposition. Iraq's great clerical training ground in Najaf, the most sacred of Shiism's "gateways" to heaven, where an Iranian, the Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, presides, would likely become more assertive in expressing its views on how good Shiites everywhere should live. (CBS News)
• Palau president: Gitmo detainees still fear China Jun 23, 2009
The deeply religious men, who would be unable to travel abroad while in Palau, also told the delegation that they would still feel confined if they were unable to undertake the Hajj; Under Islam, all able-bodied Muslims are obligated to make the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, at least once in their lives. "There's something that's making them feel like they are in detention regardless of the fence," Kuartei said. (Burley South Idaho Press, ID)
Pilgrims' progress Jun 22, 2009
This group of walkers is making a pilgrimage in the summer heat to protest the death penalty. For Scott Bass of Raleigh, the group's leader, this isn't the first such pilgrimage, and it won't be the last ... Summer is a time when many people of faith make pilgrimages. (News & Observer)
Iran Is Not the Enemy Jun 18, 2009
In the great Shia pilgrimage city of Mashhad, on the old Silk Road to China, I understood for the first time that this was something utterly apart, as separate from Sunni practice as a Sicilian Roman Catholic might be from a Scotch Calvinist ... If Shia make the pilgrimage to Mecca, they find they are sourly tolerated but not welcomed as friends ... But beside it sparkles a garish row of shops selling the local sweetmeat, a sugary brittle made of pistachio nuts, without which no pilgrimage is... (The American Conservative)
Awards and plans of CHS graduates Jun 16, 2009
Jenna Albert: Oregon State University; Student Government Association Grant, OSU Diversity Scholarship, Vic and Emily Logan Tuition Scholarship, Dale and Thomasina Trout Tuition Scholarship, National Honor Society, Presidential Volunteer Service Award-gold, delegate-2008 United Nations Pilgrimage for Youth, 2008 Oregon Model United Nations Consensus-builder Award. Andrew Allen: Linn-Benton Community College. (Corvallis Gazette Times, OR)
Obama versus Muslim conspiracy theories Jun 5, 2009
One bold step would be a pledge of US funding for many poor Muslims to go on hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, one of their religious obligations. This would astonish the Muslim world. (Yahoo News)
S Koreans bid farewell to former S Korean president Roh May 29, 2009
Since Roh's death by jumping off a rock last week, nearly 1 million mourners have made the pilgrimage to the ex-president's hometown Bongha as of Friday morning. A guard of honor carrying the picture of deceased former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun departs from Roh's hometown Bonghwa village in Gimhae for the public funeral to be held in Seoul, May 29, 2009. (People's Daily Online, China)
Funeral for Late S. Korean President Begins May 29, 2009
" At a subway station near City Hall, the walls were covered with posters of Roh accusing President Lee of pushing Roh to his death with the investigation. Earlier Friday, Roh's family attended a brief religious service outside the community center where the late ex-leader's body lay in state. Son Roh Gun-ho bowed deeply, then took his father's portrait to his home for a last look at the village the late leader loved and returned to after leaving office in February 2008. Roh's wife, Kwon... (Time.com)
South Korean president Lee Myung-bak attended former president Roh Moo-hyun's funeral on Friday, offering flowers to the deceased. • S Koreans bid farewell to former Roh May 29, 2009
Since Roh's death by jumping off a rock last week, nearly one million mourners have made the pilgrimage to the ex-president's hometown Bongha as of Friday morning. Earlier in the day, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited the altar in tribute of Roh, set up in the South Korean Embassy in Washington D.C, praising his dedication to democracy and rights. (Xinhuanet, China)
Memorial Day events May 23, 2009
On May 30, American Legion Post 171 will conduct its annual Memorial Day pilgrimage to the following cemeteries. 8:30 a.m., Seventh Day Adventist Cemetery, 108th Street; 8:45 a.m., Scotch Settlement Cemetery on Raynor Avenue; 9 a.m., St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery in Dover; 9:20 a.m., Yorkville Cemetery on Old Yorkville Road; 9:40 a.m., Pilgrim and Trinity Lutheran Cemetery on 51st Street; 10 a.m., West Lawn Memorial Cemetery on Highway 20; 10:20 am. (Racine Journal Times, WI)
Veteranshonored this Memorial Day weekend May 23, 2009
- Sunday American Legion Bixby-Hansen Post 171 of Union Grove will hold its annual pilgrimage to area cemeteries by the Honor Guard, beginning at 8 a.m.. - Monday American Legion Bixby-Hansen Post 171 of Union Grove will hold a Memorial Day program and procession at 9:15 a.m. at American Legion Memorial Park, Seventh and Main streets, Union Grove. (Racine Journal Times, WI)
Israel plays on Obama's Iran policy May 22, 2009
Khamenei, despite a recent public rebuke of Ahmadinejad over a merger of the Tourism and Mecca Pilgrimage offices, which was widely interpreted as Khamenei's displeasure with some foreign policy mishaps, the leader continues to have confidence in Ahmadinejad and in today's Iran that is a huge factor in determining the outcome of national elections. Rezai, on the other hand, has pledged to prioritize Iran's relations with its neighbors, particularly in the Persian Gulf region, and has singled out... (Asia Times Online)
US swine flu deaths hit double-digits May 21, 2009
While Japan's Health and Welfare Minister Yoichi Masuzoe urged citizens to remain calm, Egypt's health minister warned that Egyptians who perform the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca risk being quarantined upon their return. "It is my job to warn," Hatem el-Gabali said. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- World)
Walt Disney to build at National Harbor May 21, 2009
"People can come to our nation's capital and have a Disney vacation at the same time they're having a patriotic pilgrimage to the nation's capital.". Peterson said the Disney resort here will be a boon for D.C. tourism rather than a source of competition between Washington and Prince George's County. (Baltimore Business Journal, MD)
I Have Seen the Legs of Eliza Dushku May 20, 2009
Like swallows come back to Capistrano or tooth doctors convened at the ADA annual session, the ladies and gentlemen of the advertising industry have made their yearly pilgrimage to the network upfronts, there to buy commercial time in advance of the fall TV season. I saw an item in the news the other day hinting that the economy has slowed down a tad, and this situation seems to have repercussions for the TV industry as well. (Slate)
Pope ends Holy Land pilgrimage with call for peace May 16, 2009
JERUSALEM - Pope Benedict XVI ended his pilgrimage to the Holy Land Friday with a stirring call for peace at the site of Jesus' crucifixion and then made an emotional appeal to Israel and the Palestinians: "No more bloodshed. No more fighting. No more terrorism. No more war." ... The pope appeared to make headway on those fronts, though his visit lacked the historic resonance of his predecessor Pope John Paul II's pilgrimage nine years earlier. (Rhinelander Daily News, WI)
