Gala, Krysti, and I welcomed spring by traveling out to the end of Queens, walked in a parade as the only snowflakes in the area, and got smothered in a sea of colorful talcum powders.
It was to celebrate Holi. An Indian word that translates to “festival of color”
The community would come up and cover you with these powder and water guns full of dyed water, and say “Happy Phagwa”
Due to my bad memory, I remembered the pronunciation of Phagwa, by thinking of one of my favorite meat treats, foie gras. mmmmm
Anyway, it was pretty fantastic adventure. The day became more amusing as we ventured further away from the parade and closer to Manhattan.
awww that Krysti story is too cute. I can totally see her doing that! I was reading about Phagwa the other day – it seems like it would be really awesome to experience.
it was pretty god. You should come up and get involved, next year!
they should of sprayed the cops too! antique them in the face.
I almost went up an hugged one of them while covered in color, before Gala told me there was a huuuuge rule about how touching them would get you arrested
Great shots, the colors make it, obviously. I had never heard about Holi until an NPR story last week. Just goes to show that when you first hear about something new you then start hearing about it everywhere. Looks like a much less drunken but no less fun version of Mardi Gras. Sort of anyway. Spring is good.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123976710
Pingback: Holi Back Girls
That’s weird, I didn’t make that post. There must be some word press gremlin at play.
I think I may have accidently set it that way.
Thanks for the link, Frank!
You got it, Rainbow Bright
Oh man, I love the first photo. It looks like a war is going on behind her!
Was the color difficult to wash off? haha
There were kids who were spraying people with permanent dye, but We dodged them pretty well
wow! PERMANENT dye! ha ha ha!
Hello…found my way to you via Gala…your photos are magic! Your ‘eye’…oh my God… you are amazing.
I’m Indian and I absolutely love Holi, not just for its exuberant celebrations bit also for the spiritual aspect… we wear white clothes to represent the ‘blank canvas’ we are born as…and then the colours fill us with vibrancy…with life. I wear colour every day because of the symbolic representation.
The throwing of the coloured powders was traditionally of medicinal benefit! The traditional equivalent of throwing around panadol!
Pingback: Rest In Peace, 2010. « Shoplifting in a Ghost Town