NINA NOELLE-HALL searched the region for creative gift ideas that will ensure a happy homecoming

Auroville, India Forest Pottery Studio

Ange Peters dabbles in the craft of gargoyles. Her trade is ceramics, which she spins and moulds into magical dragons for display. Find her fiery works online or at her studios, located in Auroville, an alternative-living township in south India. www.forest-pottery.com

Kampot, Cambodia Kampot Pepper

Often considered a staple in fine cuisine, Kampot pepper is produced in the small, mostly Muslim province of Kampot.

It’s harvested and worked over by a small cooperative of the region’s farmers. Now in season, the pepper is abundant – but stocks become limited around May when its short season ends. www.kampotpepper.biz

Bangkok Amulet Market

Set against a magical background of an unusual looking monastery nicknamed the ‘metal palace’, there sprawls an equally magical market of talismans. Buddha images, good luck charms and amulets have all been blessed to protect or produce bonne chance. Find this hidden treasure outside Wat Ratchanada. Intersection between Ratchadamnoen Klang and Mahachak Road.

Dhaka Grameen Check

A distinct style of cloth called ‘Grameen check’ is re-emerging from the depths of Bangladeshi bazaars to high-style billboards and fashion magazines.

Hobart Lark Distillery

As unlikely as it seems, a group of Scottish distillers recently travelled to Hobart, Tasmania, to inspect the rising fame of Australian whiskies, like Lark’s Single Cask release, which in 2009 was dubbed the best Australian whisky and one of the world’s top 10.

Come for a bottle, a taste test, or a oneto four-day experiential tour. www.larkdistillery.com.au

Singapore Give Art

Buy art without breaking the bank – that’s the idea behind the newly opened Give Art gallery, which allows collectors, enthusiasts, friends and family to pitch collectively on authentic works. The gallery is set in China Town, but works best in cyberspace, where it has been set up with a social-networking spin so art lovers can call dibs with a PayPal touch. www.giveart.net