Ethiopian airlines lands airbus in Abuja

Ethiopian Airlines says it will land a brand new Airbus 8350 at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Tuesday to mark the reopening of the airport on Wednesday.

The Airline’s Traffic and Sales Manager, Mrs Firiehiwot Mekonnen, said that the aircraft land in Abuja on its first day of operation from Addis Ababa and that it would remain on Abuja route.

She particularly stated that the arrival of the aircraft in Abuja marks the first time an airbus would be permanent on the Abuja route.

She said that the decision to celebrate the inaugural flight to Abuja was because of the airline’s commitment to the Nigerian market.

According to the manager, the 313-passenger capacity aircraft that landed at 11.15 am is the first aircraft to land at the newly rehabilitated Abuja runway.

“The Ethiopian’s brand new Airbus 8350 is landing in Abuja airport is the first aircraft to land on the newly rehabilitated runway and first airbus to land in Abuja.

“From now on, we are going to operate airbus on Abuja route,’’ she said.

Recall that when Abuja airport was closed on March 8 for repairs on its runway and flight operations diverted to Kaduna International Airport, Ethiopian Airlines was the first to land its new Boeing 787 in Kaduna.

The airline, being the only international carrier that agreed to operate at Kaduna, had maintained consistent operation at the airport since the beginning of the six weeks operation.

Gov. Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State had also requested that the airline maintained its Kaduna operations even after the reopening of Abuja airport.

Mokennen said that the airline was seriously considering the governor’s request.  

World Travel Awards set for Latin America Ceremony at Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya

World Travel Awards will host its much anticipated Latin America Ceremony 2017 at the glittering, all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya on 9th September.

Located on Mexico's breathtakingly beautiful Pacific Coast, the all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya consists of 687 rooms and suites in the family-friendly Hacienda section and 577 rooms and suites in the adult-only Heaven section, catering for families as well as adults seeking a child-free break.

“We are beyond excited to be hosting the World Travel Awards Latin America Ceremony for the very first time at Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya,” commented Frank Maduro, VP of Marketing for the AIC Hotel Group of which the all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya is a part.

“It is a great honour and true pleasure to welcome the region's best-of-the best in hospitality. With the World Travel Awards being a pinnacle in the travel industry and a benchmark of success, we're thrilled to be a part of such a monumental event.”

The all-inclusive Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya also boasts a private white sand beach on its door-step, in addition to six swimming pools (two family pools and four adult only pools), endless dining options, a first rate fitness centre and the Rock Spa® - the largest in the Caribbean with 75 treatment rooms, hydrotherapy current pools and steam rooms.

Further afield, the delights of Mexico’s Riviera Maya - think Mayan ruins, world-class diving sites, tropical forests and eco parks - reward exploration.

World Travel Awards President Graham Cooke said: “The Latin America Ceremony is always a highlight of the Grand Tour for World Travel Awards, and the team and I are excited to be bringing the event to the Mexican Riveria for the first time since 2009.”

“We look forward to welcoming industry leaders and luminaries to the all-inclusive five-star Hard Rock Hotel Riviera Maya in September, and I know it will be a night to remember.”

Voting for the World Travel Awards Latin America nominees will open on 22nd March 2017 and conclude on 19th July 2017.

World Travel Awards was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.

Today, the World Travel Awards brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire. Each year, World Travel Awards covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies staged to recognise and celebrate individual and collective success within each key geographical region.

World Travel Awards Ceremonies are widely regarded as the best networking opportunities in the travel industry, attended by government and industry leaders, luminaries and international print and broadcast media.

Residents, fun seekers want improvement in Calabar Carnival

Residents of Calabar and fun seekers have called on organisers of the annual Calabar Carnival to improve on the various aspects of the event.

A cross section of the residents, who spoke in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Calabar were reacting to the criticisms that trailed the timing and other aspects of this year’s carnival.

A resident, Mr Jude Ochala, told NAN that some aspects of the carnival were no longer in conformity with what he used to know.

“The timing of the different bands is becoming boring and unattractive.

“In time past, before 8 p.m, almost all the bands would have completed their parade along the carnival routes which gives residents and fun seekers a sense of joy and excitement.

“Then they would retire to the stadium where the panel of Judges would pick the various winners.

“But in the 2015 and this year’s carnival, the bands were still on the streets up till 4a.m.  in the morning.

“Those who were supposed to watch them had waited and gone back home to sleep disappointedly, ‘’ he said.

Miss Isabel Ruth, who came from Ogoja to watch the parade, said she was unable to watch them because of the lateness.

“I came from Ogoja with my friend to watch the carnival but we only succeeded in seeing two of them after waiting for several hours. We had to retire home.

“The bands were parading until midnight; I do not think it is fair. They should start early so that people can watch them and have a feeling of joy in the whole thing, ‘’she said.

In the same vein, a tourist from Anambra, Mr Morris Igwe, said he missed the opportunity of watching the bands because he was afraid of staying late in the night.

“I had to hurriedly rush back to my hotel room when it was close to 9 p.m.

“I watched one in the day time and another band came something past 7  p.m. and after waiting for the next two hours without any other band, I retired back to my hotel.

“Calabar carnival to me still stands out as the best in the country but If they really want people to enjoy the carnival, the organisers should make it early enough.

“I was told that the governor did not flag-off the event on time, hence the delay but I think there is need for adjustment, ‘’ he said.

A beautician, Mrs Elizabeth Archibong, further stressed the need for the organiS0ers to harmonise the various events and give enough publicity to enable people follow the events as they unfold.

“There was a lot of guess work during this year’s carnival.  I do not think that is right. The events should be clearly spelt out so that people can follow even from their homes, ‘’ she said.

FG TO MAKE KEY FESTIVALS ATTRACTIVE TO DOMESTIC, FOREIGN TOURISTS - MINISTER

 The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said the Federal Government is working with the private sector to make major festivals in the country attractive to domestic and foreign tourists and to leapfrog the events to the top cadre of global festivals.

 He made the disclosure in Offa, Kwara State, on Thursday at the 2016 edition of the ''Íjakadi Festival'', a traditional wrestling event that dates back to the 14th century.

 The Minister, who was represented by Mr. Raphael Arulogun, General Manager of NTA Ilorin, said the starting point is to train the managers of the festivals, which include the Ijakadi Festival

 ''As you may be aware, the training of Festival Managers is contained in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that we signed with the British Council.. Also included in another MoU which we signed with the Tony Elumelu Foundation is the need to ensure that festivals like Ijakadi are not just a mere jamboree but also a source of economic empowerment for the people, in terms of injecting foreign exchange into the economy and creating jobs, especially for the communities in which such festivals are situated,'' he said.

 Alhaji Mohammed said the beneficiaries of the partnership with the private sector would include major festivals like the Abuja Carnival, which will be made to achieve their full potentials and become household names like the Edinburgh International Festivals, the Rio Carnival in Brazil and the Notting Hill Festival in London, adding: ''Our ultimate aim is to ensure that our festivals are among the top 20 festivals in the world.''

 He announced that in order to allow prospective visitors to Nigeria to plan their trips around our festivals, ''we will be releasing, early in the New Year, a Calendar of Festivals across the country. Once this is done, a tourist coming to Nigeria can then plan his or her trip around any of the festivals. We believe that this is one of the best ways to attract global visitors to our festivals and help to make them viable entities,''

 The Minister hailed the organizers of the ''Ijakadi Festival'' for reviving and sustaining the age-long event which, he said, not only reinforces the community’s tradition of strength and determination, but also addresses the notion of equality among all the indigenes of Offa.

Why Nigerians still visit Dubai--- Obinwa

By Jimoh Babatunde

At a recent travel exhibition  in Lagos, one stand that was the cynosure of all eyes was that of the Dubai tourism.

The stand had Emirates Airlines, Emirates Holidays, IMG Worlds of Adventure, North Tours, Red Apple Middle East Tourism, Time Hotels, Hilton Hotels, All in One Tourism, Alpha Tours and Arabian Falcon Holidays displaying.

The pull for Nigerians to the stand was not surprising to the officials of the Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) as Dubai, the commercial capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is one of the favourite destinations for Nigerian travellers.

It is a top leisure destination for both leisure and business vacations for many Nigerians. This is attested to by the volume of flights from Nigeria that terminates in the city either directly or indirectly.

Speaking on the need for the Dubai Tourism to participate at the yearly travel show, the Regional Director Africa for Dubai Tourism, Stella Obinwa, said: “Dubai continues to establish itself as a destination of choice for travellers from the African continent, holding particular appeal amongst those looking for wholesome family fun, incredible shopping deals and year-long entertainment.

She said the decline in traveling due to the economic recession has not affected Dubai compared to other destinations, because Dubai is closer to Nigeria and has more to offer Nigerians.

“We offer theme parks and some opening in few months and Dubai keep reinvesting itself that is why people keep coming back over and over again.”

Stella Obinwa continued: “We are very excited to provide our African visitors a glimpse of Dubai’s thrilling additions to the family entertainment portfolio. With the recent opening of IMG Worlds of Adventure and the soon-to-be-launched Dubai Parks and Resorts, we are proud to see Dubai’s steady success towards becoming the world’s number one family holiday destination.

“We are also bolstering our commitment to further enhance Dubai’s shopping experiences which include the upcoming Dubai Shopping Festival from December 26 to January 31.”

On the Dubai shopping festival

First launched in 1996, Dubai Shopping Festival has grown to become one of the largest shopping, fashion and entertainment extravaganzas in the world, with exciting activities such as musical concerts, sports shows and fashion displays.

And what we have discovered is that yes Africans come to Dubai, but not many are aware that in certain month of the year that there is what we call Dubai shopping festival, where all the retailers are mandated by the government to run discount programmes and each one of them runs a program that is up to 70% on regularly priced items.

So, we want Africans to experience the shopping festivals for themselves and then become regulars, so we are willing in Dubai tourism to pay for 200 Nigerians to come for the 2016 Dubai shopping festival.

Tagged the “Dubai Shopping Festival Give away” promotion, Dubai Tourism plans to reward Nigerians who are keen travellers with thrilling shopping experiences in Dubai. Over the past decade, Dubai has developed into a leading shopping destination offering visitors a wealth of unique experiences and opportunities.

The package includes flights, tickets to some of Dubai Shopping Festival’s many events, hotel accommodation and visa application – all paid for by Dubai Tourism.

The festival is not all about just shopping, there is shopping, there is musical experience, there is gastronomy experience, there is much more. Even if you don’t want to shop there is so much more to do as we have planned programmes for holistic experience of Dubai.

Grilled lamb chops for Xmas

Chef Alex over Mwaura , a graduate of the famous Kenyan, Utali College, with over 27 years of culinary experience in over five countries, is the Executive Chef at Southern Sun Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos.

He shared one of his recipes for the hotel, Grilled lamb chops, which is a popular delicacy familiar to many , who are used to dining at the hotel's restaurant for in-house dining or the popular Sunday Brunch.

Sunday brunch features about 12 course meals with different culinary treats from across the world.

No matter your preferences, you are sure to find something special to delight your taste bud from the well crafted and delicious bumper brunch table by the hotel’s executive chef, Alex Mwaura and his team.

These special offerings are accompanied by a wide selection of drinks ranging from wine, champagne, cocktails and beverages. And to spice your christmas, Mwaura offers one of his recipes from his Sunday brunch’s repertoire.

Ingredients:

• 40mls olive oil

• Two cloves garlic, pressed

• 30mls balsamic vinegar

• 5gms rosemary leaves

• 5gms thyme leaves

• 20mls Worcestershire sauce

• Three pieces lamb chops

• 10gms ginger fresh clashed

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Using olive oil, marinate the cleaned chops with garlic, herbs, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic, ginger, black pepper and salt to taste for about one hour. Grill well on both sides, to medium or to well done, as desired. Serve with sautéed vegetables. Best served with basmati rice.