Friday, March 23, 2012

HAPPY HAPPY HOLI 2012


HOLI DAY 2012
Holi is like the Christmas of India except Christmas is celebrated with -.5 excitement and Holi is off the charts.
The two young boys wake up at 4:30 for a fire lighting ceremony and most of the group wakes up for this.  In need of a good solid rest and getting old, I decide to skip this so I can wake up early.  We wake up and enjoy some chai together while watching music videos for Holi day. I sit with Ratan and watch the family video for his caste song. I perform some of my lame Indian dancing and they laugh.   Linda is so sweet and I enjoy her company-amazing how everything works out-divas out and sweet lady in my room=)
The kids are already running around playing with color.  The one boys pants fall off while he running and we all laugh hysterically.  I head off to Raju’s house where the group of Russians are all HOLIED out already in pink, green, orange, and blue.  I am officially initiated getting dumped with a variety of colors.  We jump around and dance on the streets.  After sometime I decide to make a move to the center of town.  I am waiting and waiting for the bus and decide to hitch a ride with a couple guys.  Three people-one bike and street madness. 
For Holi, most people stay in their homes and local neighborhoods and I can see why.  The streets are loaded with drunk people and riding on a bike is a near death experience, but of course exhilarating. Kota bari is just like elephant festival without the elephants.  I start dancing in a circle and play the drums, try on the horse costume.  Everyone wishes each other Happy Holi with a nice greetings-French style a double hug. 
The celebration ends early and an announcement comes that there is a free sight seeing bus for the first 20 people.  Twenty tourists all rush to the bus and off we go shouting “Happy Holi” motor bikes stopping and throwing colors onto the bus.  The leader of the bus is a volunteer named Manu.  He has such great energy and is the one shouting Happy, happy holi.” He offers to give me a ride back to my Amer area and the rest of the afternoon we have lunch and he gives me a VIP tour of the Raj Palace, Central park, and various sites.  The city is quite and traffic is nonexistent, which makes the whole ride quite enjoyable.  He invites me to dinner later and I accept. 

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