March 19-20, Saturday-Sunday

March 19-20, Saturday-Sunday

Jonathan showed up while I was eating breakfast this morning. Last time I saw him was October last year so it was good to see him again. He needed to pick up a pair of thai pants at a local tailor so I hitched a ride on the back of his 250cc Honda motorcycle. The driver is required to wear a helmet but not the passenger(s). So off I went, breaking every motorcycle safety principle I've practiced, never ride without a helmet and and certainly not wearing flip flops. It was all I had. I held my video camera in my right hand and held on the the bar behind the rear seat and recorded the ride to the tailor. With all the traffic you never really get going that fast anyway.

Today starts the Holi Festival. It is celebrated the day after the first full moon in March. Holi got it's name from the festival of colors by Lord Krishna, who liked to play pranks on the village girls by drenching them in water and colors. The festival marks the end of winter and the abundance of the upcoming spring harvest. This is one of those festival days that they smear or splatter various color powder all over themselves and every one else who happens along. Before I left the hotel this morning I was warned that the locals particularly love getting the Westerners so I knew before the day was done I'd be targeted. Another rite of passage in India.

After the tailor we headed to a hole in the wall restaurant for lunch. We ordered thali which is the same type of food Heather and I ate at the aurvedic restaurant a few weeks ago on our first trip to Kochin. Before the restaurnat we stopped at a small store for water. I approached a group of young men for a picture. They had been celebrating Holi as they were covered in all colors of powder. After a picture or two they enjoyed very much smearing blue powder all over my face and had particular joy in smearing it in my goatee and mustache. I have a picture. I had to take a shower to get all of the blue out.

I was joined later in the evening by Jonathan, Natasha, and Amber. Natasha and Amber are students at Jonathan's shala. They are both from San Diego and I met them once before when Leela and I went to the Mystic Kava Coffee bar in North Park for a yoga practice taught by Jonathan. We all went to the Maharaja's Palace to see it lit up by some 60,000 white light bulbs. We got there just in time to watch them go out. I did get a couple of pictures before the blackout. They only light it up for 30 minutes as I'm sure the electric bill is pricey.

Got my properly washed clothes back this morning. The simplicity of clean clothes.

The weather here in Mysore is a lot like SD. Very pleasant temperatures and low humidity. What a contrast as I went from sweating while doing absolutely nothing, to my skin feeling all dried out. I'll take it though, as I return to the heat and humidity of Kerala on Tuesday evening.

Jonathan picked me up this Sunday morning and we're at a coffee shop that has free wifi, so with the free wifi I'll send this out.