Event of the Month: Don’t Miss! The Bali Spirit Festival, 20th-24th March

Let’s face it – everyone loves a good festival. Live music, culture, yummy food stalls, blazing hot weather (unless we’re talking Glastonbury, of course… but hey, we’re in South East Asia!). Karen Farini, Deputy Editor of S.E.A Backpacker find out all about the tantalizing BaliSpirit Festival...

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Tantra, Karma & Reincarnation! Amazing Interview with Swami Vivekananda Saraswati at Agama Yoga, Koh Phangan

The island of Koh Phangan in southern Thailand is notorious for the Full Moon Party and a hedonistic destination for young backpackers! However, there's so much more to the island than meets the eye. In recent years, it has become a hub for yoga and spirituality and draws thousands of 'soul-searching' travelers who are looking for more than just buckets and beaches. After the New Year's Eve celebrations died down this year, we made our way to Agama Yoga on the beautiful West coast of the island to meet one of the most interesting characters we've come across, the legendary Swami Vivekananda Saraswati. In a mind-blowing encounter we discuss yin and yang, the laws of karma, tantric sex, God and reincarnation!

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Thinking of Training to Become a Yoga Teacher? 6 Tips on How to Choose a Yoga School by Wise Living Yoga Academy

Millions of people head towards Asia every year to have (besides the travelling experience) an encounter with Eastern philosophies and practices. We learn more about going back to Traditional Yoga and how to become a qualified instructor in Thailand...

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S.E.A Faces & Places: Interview with Ayurvedic Practitioner, Kimmana

As conversations between backpackers begin to include Ayurvedic buzzwords such as "dosha", "five elements" and - heaven forbid - "fasting", we catch up with an Ayurvedic practitioner, to unscramble the mystery of this ancient Eastern tradition of medicine...

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What’s in This Issue? The Best of S.E.A Backpacker Mag, Issue 18: May / June

They're as precious as a Tibetan visa, as treasured as a passport full of stamps and as priceless as a a love letter scrawled on the back of a Singha beer mat... S.E.A Backpacker Magazine is officially the BEST souvenir you can take from your travels in South East Asia. And with 20,000 copies printed every two months, you can grab a copy at hostels, guesthouses, adventure centers, travel agents and cafes all along the backpacker trail. Here's a mouthwatering taster of what you will find in our current issue (Issue 18: May / June) Have you picked up your copy yet?

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Phangan Film Festival: Bringing Culture to Thailand’s Famous Full Moon Party Island

The beautiful, tropical island of Koh Phangan in the Gulf of Thailand has long been stereotyped as a 'party island,' due to the monthly 'Full Moon Party' taking place on Haad Rin Beach. However, recently the island is becoming a centre for arts and culture in Thailand, with the rise of independent events such as the highly-acclaimed, Phangan Film Festival. Held in 2012 on 24th - 26th February, the festival hosts a diverse range of global films; from a documentary about global warming, to a film exploring punk-rock and spirituality to a short movie portraying the magic island of Bali, Indonesia. Making a well-needed cultural change from the usual backpacker event, this festival is definitely one to put on your travel itinerary...

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