Happy Holi..!
Today I celebrated the Hindu festival of Holi under
clouds of technicolored powder along with millions of people in Nepal, India,
and around the world. This annual raucous Festival of Colours is a celebration
of the vibrancy of spring, fertility, love and the triumph of good over evil. I
flew in from Toronto the previous day especially for the festival and the
opportunity to celebrate a festival that had long been on my adventure travel
bucket list!
With a fresh round of jetlag, I sat down with a
steaming pot of coffee and mountain of french toast at The Terrace (my home
away from home) to develop a holi (or rather holy!) plan of attack. My
objective - to participate in the infamous technicolour Holi celebrations which
would imminently unfold between the cars, motorcyles, pedestrians and cows of
Kathmandu’s chaotic and dusty streets. I’d mentioned to Raaz, my host at The
Terrace, that I’d planned to venture out to “experience” the festival and he
chuckled to himself – no doubt anticipating the state of my return and already
preparing for the laundry request.
To celebrate Holi, festival revelers of all ages
dress in white clothing and come together to celebrate by smearing bright
colours on the faces of family and friends and by throwing water-filled
balloons and dye-filled squirt guns while greeting each other with wishes of
‘Happy Holi’. I’d heard that in Thamel – the ‘backpacker area’ of Kathmandu –
the festival can get quite raucous. The festival dates vary from year to year
so if you plan on booking your trip to Nepal (or India!) around Holi festival
dates, it’s best to check them in advance.
I set out on my adventure at around 10am, hoping to
get a ‘taste’ of the action without having to engage in full fledged battle
with hyperactive Nepali children and overzealous Western tourists. Logically,
throwing brightly coloured dye and squirting water out of guns at unsuspecting
tourists does involve consumption of copious amounts of alcohol so the earlier
start was also strategically planned around getting a more “controlled”
experience (damage control!).
I decided
to participate in Thamel because it was within walking distance of my guest
house in Durbar Marg and an area that I know well (with strategic hiding places
which I’d scoped out to duck for cover). There are however areas all around
Kathmandu where holi is celebrated. There are private, family gatherings
focused on family, food and fun as well as more public festivities which can
attract thousands of revelers e.g., Durbar Square.
As I set out into the street, I realized that my
fashion faux pas was that I didn’t wear white… (which may also have been my
saving grace – future tourists take note!). On hindsight, this turned me from
‘target’ to ‘tourist’ and gave me some initial ‘cover’ and time to fully assess
the celebrations from a distance.
And the celebrations didn’t disappoint – it was, in
two words, ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT and so much fun. For many reasons I wish that I
would have come better prepared. Having experienced Kathmandu in many different
ways and guises over the past 17 years, it was wonderful to see the streets so
alive with colour and filled with laughter. Men, women and children of all ages
gathered in the main thoroughfares of Thamel and smeared canary yellow and
blood-red dye on each others faces laughing and screaming ‘Happy Holi’ while
water-balloons pelted down from the arms of laughing children sat in the open
windows of the buildings above. At one point, a pick-up truck flew through the dusty
square, open backed and crammed with people chucking water balloons and
pointing dye-filled water pistols at revelers on the street. Rammed
strategically into the back of the pickup truck sat a smug looking man caked in
blue dye holding a giant (and especially expensive looking) video camera
completely covered in plastic. This clearly wasn’t his first rodeo.
Despite some weak attempts to stay as ‘dye free’ as
possible I did end up getting suitably and appropriately inked that morning.
The giant smiles on the faces of the children who approached me open-handed
with red dye were 100% worth the industrial sized box of wet-wipes it took to
wash the colour off..! Whilst my experience was very much on the periphery of
the festival, I’d certainly recommend it to others thinking of including it in
future Nepal / India adventures. Do your research before you go and come
prepared… It will certainly be a day that you’ll not soon forget!
Have Fun and Smile..!
Finally, what struck me today in the streets of
Kathmandu were the smiles and the fun. With that in mind, on this day of Holi, I'd
like to wish you and your families more smiles, less worries; more compassion,
less judgment; more blessings, more love and more prosperity today and in the
year ahead…!
Posts
