Holiday Convergence

Interestingly, there was a holiday convergence for the Hindu, Moslem, Christian and Zorastrian religions this week- March 20-21st.

Thursday, March 20, aka Maundy Thursday, fell on Muhammed's Birthday, Mawlid an Nabi.

Good Friday, March 21st was also celebrated by the Hindus as Holi, the festival of colours, which sounds like its origins are rooted in man's earliest celebration rituals. Holi celebrates joy and friendship amongst people of all faiths. In the north they celebrate by throwing colored paint and water at each other. Even more pertinent, the colors relate to the colors of certain medicines used to heal the frequent bouts with flu and cold that the fluctuating temperatures of spring incur.

In the south, it is called Arattupuzha Pooram, and is one of the major festivals of Kerala in the district around Trichur aka Trissur. Arattupuzha Pooram is celebrated with a puja replete with caparisoned elephants who will also race each other at some point before the festival ends.

And the Parsi community is celebrating Navroz, the Zoroastrian New Year, proclaiming the start of another year for good actions-good thoughts, good words, and good deeds.

I am not sure which holiday accounts for the fireworks I heard throughout the night.

And another saree that will be nice to wear

My new favorite crepe silk saree

Cochin

Yesterday was a shopping day saga. School was closed for what I thought was only Maundy Thursday. Turns out, there was an even bigger Hindu holiday, Arrattupurha Pooram, which I will write about in a subsequent post.

By the time our driver arrived -20 minutes late, in the wrong car (no a/c) , and rumbled us over a bumpy path to change cars for an a/c deluxe(?), stopped for water, and then the gas station for a fill-up, we had a very late start to the morning. That extra 45 minutes makes the crucial difference between the trip taking 2-1/2 hours or 3-1/2 hours. And that hour is crucial when one has a full day of running around and needs to get out by 4 PM for the 3 hour commute home. After 4PM, the commute becomes interminable and nightmarish due to center city traffic.

What we were not counting on was the rain to complicate matters.
So now you have an idea as to my devotion to finding the perfect saree -

this is what I had to wade through to get to Jayalakshmi.



(Would hate to see Cochin during monsoon. This was only one little itsy-bitsy afternoon of rain.)

Vishu Day

Normally we know Vishu Day is fast upon us because the Cassis Fistula or Kanikonna tree that heralds it, sheds it golden (konna) flowers, carpeting the ground with a plush fluffy yellow shag rug. Dismayingly, this year, the golden layer is soggy not fluffy, but still shining brightly through the rain. Better photos to follow...

Rain....

Apologies for continuing to talk about the weather but it is soooooo uncommon to have rain in March, and certainly daily thunderstorms should not be happening before the end of April, at the earliest. Normally this is the season when one feels blisteringly hot 24/7, and worries about the water supply as the wells run dry. At least the water shortage is disappearing, but this rain is totally bizarre. Delightful, but weird.

Mystery fruit

Any thoughts on what this fruit could be?




I'll give you two big hints:

1. It is not just a fruit, but a well-loved nut.

2. Well, this should give it away!

Rain...

It's raining again- every day for the last week, and every 2-3 days for the last two weeks. Mind you, I am not complaining, this is the time of the year where I normally can't sleep at night for the heat and humidity, and end up taking an afternoon siesta in spite of myself, knocked out by the relentless heat. So this cool weather is a blessing for me. It's just that is so abnormal.

I wonder what it does to nature. I am noticing lots more skinny worm and millipede traffic on my walls-and I HATE them, really hard to catch - after all how can a biped compete? - and reputed to hurt if they get you. So I do a sweep of my room at night, just in case, not that that prevents them from entering later.

I also notice that I am not seeing any of the larger ants that used to roam my floors at sunset. Is it too cold for them?

IT'S RAINING AGAIN

Wildlife Encounter Week

Tuesday, I nearly had my toe bit off by a chameleon trying to get to the other side of the road at the exact moment I happened to be walking home. We both jumped and ran as I wondered, 'what are the chances of that happening? ' Chameleons are exceedingly rare around here, only spotted every couple of years.

Thursday, I saw a mongoose dash out a driveway, then flip 180 degrees and plunge back into the thicket. I'd never seen a mongoose run like that. The reason was close behind- Killer Housecat. This time, the mongoose was the cleverer and escaped, as puzzled KH wandered aimlessly down the road. But it was a close call. Sometimes I really hate cats.

I have never seen so many baby geckos running around, how do they survive-a bitesize morsel for any hairy spider or reptile-savoring bird.

And to cap off the week, I just opened my door to see a fairly-large-what-I-hope-was-a-cherai slither along my wall at chest height - meaning I got a really good look at him. I say I hope it was a cherai because that means good luck as against a cobra which is generally considered rather less fortunate. The question being "which is it?". Because as I start gathering info, it seems just as likely to have been one as the other.

lolgecko, anybody?

After lolcats
http://icanhascheezburger.com/

And loldogs
http://ihasahotdog.com/

I propose lolgeckos or iminhoneyjar.com!

Richard Gere off the hook

Front page Hindu has one article that makes sense anyway- the arrest warrant issued against Richard Gere last year for THE KISS. As the judge who threw out the warrant exclaimed, "How can you give Mr. Gere's address as the American Embassy?...you are just bringing a bad name to our country."

So Richard, coming for another visit anytime soon?