Wedding video filmed at luxury Maldives resort shows western couple mocked as 'infidels'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xgmdMhP9E0endofvid

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By DAILY MAIL REPORTER


After explaining the ceremony in English, the group stands and the 'minister' starts chanting in Dhivehi. Unfortunately for the happy couple, he is insulting them


Exotic weddings abroad are a booming business, particularly in the luxurious surroundings of the Maldives.

But one YouTube film has undermined the entire industry, showing members of staff mocking a western couple during a 'traditional' wedding ceremony at a luxury resort.

In the video, employees at the Vilu Reef Beach and Spa resort perform a supposedly spiritual service in their native Dhivehi tongue, but take the opportunity to abuse the English-speaking couple, calling them ‘infidel’ and ‘swine’ and declaring their marriage 'illegal'.


Oblivious: The couple are unaware that they are being insulted during the ceremony that was conducted in the traditional Maldivian tongue of Dhivehi


According to the Maldive news service Minivan News, the video which was uploaded to You Tube ‘as a joke’ shows an employee named Hussein Didi conducting a service as a 'celebrant' - a person who is empowered to perform a religious ceremony.

The document he uses, of which there is a brief close-up in the video, has absolutely no relation to marriage laws in the Maldives. Words that are legible on the document refer to ‘staff employment’, suggesting that it is a document relating to employment regulations.

Asking the couple and other ‘officials’ to raise their hands as is customary for Muslim prayers, the ‘celebrant’ begins his marriage vows.

‘Fornication has been legalised according to Article six, 1.11 of the Penal Code’, he chants in a tone favoured by religious scholars. ‘That is, frequent fornication by homosexuals. Most fornication is by males,’ he continues.

‘You are swine. The children that you bear from this marriage will all be bastard swine,’ he says to his guests.

‘Your marriage is not a valid one. You are not the kind of people who can have a valid marriage. One of you is an infidel. The other, too, is an infidel – and we have reason to believe – an atheist, who does not even believe in an infidel religion.’

The hapless couple remain oblivious as the ‘celebrant’, surrounded by 10-15 employees, calls for the marriage to be enshrined in Islamic law, followed by further personal insults against the couple.

None of the employees attempts to stop the 'ceremony' and several take photographs.


At the end of the 'service' the couple plant a coconut tree as Hussein Didi - who conducted the ceremony - and his crew make rude remarks about the bride's breasts
Various types of insults about the woman and the man, their clothing and demeanour, are spoken throughout in the form of a running commentary in a sports video.


The woman speak English, largely just in reply to the 'officials', and it appears from the video that their surname is Alexander, although one news agency maintains they are Swiss.

As the bride bends down to plant the coconut tree, a man is heard is exclaiming: 'Can see her breasts!' To which the ‘commentator’ responds: 'my beard has gone grey watching those things… I have seen so many of them now that I don’t even want to look any more when I see them.'

A police investigation has been launched into the incident while management at the resort said that the employees have been sacked and evicted from the resort altogether.

But the resort admitted that it does not have a person who is specifically designated to perform the rituals.


Paradise lost: The couple who were renewing their vows at the resort were humiliated by employees during the ceremony


The groom, who is watering the new coconut tree which they have just planted, is totally unaware of the manner in which his wife and her breasts are being discussed by the group of Maldivian men ‘officiating’ at the renewal of their wedding vows.

‘Celebrant’ Didi tells the couple they should return soon to check on the progress of their plant, testament to what had taken place on the island that day.

The video concludes with the ‘commentator’ repeatedly urging the ‘celebrant’ to make the couple ‘suck mouths, suck mouths’ - an expression used by Maldivians to denigrate the act of kissing.


A stay at the exclusive luxury resort can cost £850 per person


In a statement the resort expressed its ‘deep concern and regret’ over the incident. Set on its own exclusive island in the Indian Ocean, the Maldive resort is a popular destination for couples intending to renew their marriage vows.

A stay at the Vilu Reef beach and Spa costs from $1335 per person and it is advertised as a place where couples can ‘celebrate and capture the special moments of your life and mark a milestone in your amazing journey together or wish to rejoice another year of life’.

The video has sparked outrage from tourism authorities in the country. Deputy Tourism Minister Ismail Yasir said ‘we are investigating the matter through the resort management.

'The management informed us in writing that it would send us its findings as the matter involves the company’s employees.’

• Do you know who the hapless couple so cruelly treated in the video are? Contact the Mail Online newsdesk on 020 7938 6011 or email websiteeditorial@dailymail.co.uk
Warning: Graphic language (in Dhivehi)


source: dailymail

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Abu Dhabi 'to rival Dubai' with new Ferrari theme park and life-size Scalextric

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNiHpuy41W4endofvid

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By DAILY MAIL REPORTER

Visitors ride in miniature Ferrari cars at the opening of the world's biggest indoor theme park, Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi


Abu Dhabi has always been considered the quieter emirate when compared to gaudy cousin Dubai.

But all that could be set to change as the state prepares to welcome an estimated 10,000 tourists a day to the new Ferrari-themed amusement park - billed as the largest in the world.

Tourism chiefs hope the world's fastest rollercoaster - which travels at 149mph in 4.9 seconds, recreating the G-force felt in a Formula One car - and the more sedate life-size Scalextric-style track, will catapult it onto the world stage.


A visitor enjoys the ride at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi during its media launch in the Emirati capital


The park is expected to become a mecca for Grand Prix racing fans, particularly as the Formula One race is due to take place there next month, and the United Arab Emirates is said to have ploughed billions into the 861,000 square foot park.

The red roof of the indoor complex is modelled on the side profile of a Ferrari GT and is adorned with the largest prancing horse logo ever created.


Terror-ride: The 149mph rollercoaster in Abu Dhabi which has been built next to the new indoor Ferrari theme park


The track in Abu Dhabi: The world's fastest rollercoaster duplicates the G-forces felt by racing drivers in a Grand Prix


'We had only a few malls and desert safaris, we need such thrilling amusements and now we don't have to run to Dubai on weekends,' said Mohamed Mazroui, an Emirates' businessman and racing buff.

Once, Abu Dhabi was know as the more sober neighbour of glitsy Dubai, which made its name with extravagant property projects, outlandish tourist attractions and luxury shopping.

While Dubai spent the past decade transforming itself into a regional hub offering a Western-style nightlife, it remained more conservative when it came to drink and dress.


But when the global financial crisis hit, bursting Dubai's bubble and triggering debt problems that nearly sank the emirate's economy, things began to change.

As it wrangled with creditors over how its state-owned conglomerate Dubai World would restructure $26billion of debt, Abu Dhabi spent billions to diversify its economy away from oil, developing its industry, real estate, finance and tourism sectors.

Just next to Ferrari World's Yas Island off the coast of Abu Dhabi sits Saadiyat Island - a $27billion art and culture project planned to house spin-offs of the Louvre museum in Paris and New York's Guggenheim.

Abu Dhabi, which holds the bulk of the oil reserves of the UAE, the third-largest oil exporter in the world, is aiming for a 15 per cent annual increase of tourists with a target of 2.3 million by the end 2012.

Mubarak al Muhairi, director general of tourism, said: 'The Ferrari park is a major leap forward in our leisure proposition as it has enormous appeal regionally and internationally.'


Racing attraction: The biggest Prancing Horse logo in the world adorns the indoor Ferrari World Theme Park in Abu Dhabi


While Dubai spent the past decade transforming itself into a regional hub offering luxury shopping, beaches and a Western-style nightlife, Abu Dhabi has remained more conservative when it comes to drink and dress.

Theme park general manager Claus Frimand said: 'It will be a lot of sensations for every age group. We have managed to turn one of the world's most exclusive brands into an extraordinary experience for families and fans.'


Emirati visitors are shown a Ferrari displayed at the theme park

source: dailymail

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Face facts: How not to hold your knife as the Phuket Vegetarian Festival makes its point

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1zjFrGlqP0endofvid

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By CHRIS LEADBEATER

Blade runner: A participant in the Phuket Vegetarian Festival finds an unusual use for his knife collection


It is one of the first parental lessons you are taught as a young child. Sit up straight at the table, hold your knife and fork correctly, don’t play with your food. And definitely – definitely – don’t pierce your cheeks with the cutlery and push a spoon through the hole.

However, they do things a little differently in Thailand – as these images of the latest Phuket Vegetarian Festival demonstrate.

This annual nine-day event (which runs until October 16th) sees participants put themselves through a series of often painful trials.


As well as thrusting metal implements into their faces, the hardy souls involved walk on heated coals, take baths in hot oil and – perhaps most unnerving of all – climb ladders with rungs made of blades rather than wood.


Big event: The Festival sees parades and fireworks as well as displays of self-mutilation


But there is a serious side to proceedings beyond mere masochism.

The festival is supposed to be a programme of self-cleansing. Aside from their unusual antics with pointed pieces of metal, participants agree to give up alcohol, sex and – as the name suggests – meat for the duration of the event.

The festival’s origins are almost as odd as its unusual rituals.

It dates back to 1825, and the visit of a travelling Chinese theatre company to the Thai mining town of Get-Hoe.


Loud and proud: Devotees also detonate fire-crackers to dispel evil spirits


When the touring actors succumbed to tropical fever in the jungle-clad region, they opted to keep to a strict vegetarian diet, hoping that this would please the gods – who would then relieve them of the illness.

The plan worked – and whether or not the thespians’ improved health was down to better diet than celestial intervention – the festival was born.


Making a point: Devotees believe their painful trials bring good luck to those around them


Almost two centuries on, the face-piercing and mutilation are sacred rites that participants submit themselves to in a bid to cleanse themselves and their neighbours.

Devotees believe that they are entered by divine spirits during the festival. The possession gives them supernatural powers – and the ability to endure these excruciating tortures for the common good.

Their suffering – they hope – draws evil out of the community around them and, in doing so, brings positive luck to their friends and village.


Skewered: The nine-day festival runs until October 16


Happily for those who don’t wish to put themselves through something that will require heavy reconstructive surgery once the party is over, there are other ways to scare off dark powers.

The firework displays that take place during the festival – including the loudest and biggest, which rounds off matters on the final night – are also deemed to fend off evil spirits through sheer force of noise.


*** Click to watch vdo ****



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