One of my utmost ambitions whilst in India was to be formally invited to a traditional Indian Wedding. I didn't know if we would be lucky enough to be in a position to know someone getting married whilst we are here living in India but the thought excited me. When I visited my friend Gareth earlier in the week, he assured me that we will receive numerous invitations as he and his partner has during their assignment here in Vadodara. Last night, Bruce arrived home from work and handed me our very first Indian Wedding Invitation from one of his work colleagues due to take place on Friday the 30th January 2015. I didn't expect to get one so quickly....we've only been here for 11 days.... The invitation reads as follows: "Invitation Wedding Reception Mr & Mrs Gandhi Cordially request and desire the sweet fragrance of your loving presence on celebration of the unforgettable moments and an auspicious occassion of Wedding Reception of their beloved son Pranav weds Divya on 30th January 2015, Friday at Common Plot Rajdeep Society near Baroda High School at 6:30pm onwards. Kindly grace the occassion and shower the couple with your valuable blessings for everlasting relation when a beautiful new beginning. Awaiting You Gandhi Family. Isn't that just beautiful....... Now to go Sari shopping......Think this is going to be fun!
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Celebrating Uttrayan-Gujarati Kite Festival Day 2: 15th January 2015. Note: please read Day 1 blog before you read this sequel. As mentioned in Day 1 blog, the Indian state of Gujarat celebrates this festival like none other around the world. Talk to any Gujarati and they'll tell you Uttrayan is their favourite celebration each year....I can certainly see why. Thursday the 15th January started reasonably uneventful.....I don't know if fate is responsible or if it's the chance circumstances of the day that sucked us into its unexpected splendour. We had planned to meet Bruce's Brisbane co-worker engineer, Hanoo (born and bred in Finland) for breakfast at 9am in the hotel restaurant. As things don't get started in India at least until 11am each day, we decided to meet again in the foyer at 10:45am and catch a taxi to the Palace. We checked with reception as to whether or not the Palace would be open on the public holiday. They made some enquiries and it was established that the palace was closed. The beautiful thing here in India is that when a public holiday is called, the shops and paid activities are closed and everyone is free to be with their families and friends unlike the Western world where the ultimate dollar and greed play a major part and shops and services are open regardless of the importance of the holiday. As Hanoo had not been to Old City Vadodara, I suggested we take him there to wander around the lake and bazaar area. You may have read my previous posts of Old City, and if not, please do. It is what you may conjure up in your mind of typically raw India. There are many slums, the less fortunate locals dressed in rags of material hanging from their sparse skinny bodies, Sadhus dressed in orange drapes sporting long white beards wander shoeless on the paved dirty roads with white carved walking sticks dodging fresh cow, dog and human faeces. The cows stand and chew freshly cut crops on the roadside around the central lake, staring at us with their huge brown eyes and drool dripping from their horizontal grind as we wander past.....Some have horns as large as half a metre long. The area smells of rotting vegetation from uneaten crop offerings for the cows, impure water stench from human bathing and toileting and the general choking pollution from the exhaust fumes of the many Auto Rickshaws which congregate in the area to transport locals on their daily missions in life. The taxi dropped us at the lake where we spent the best part of an hour circumnavigating it, allowing Hanoo to photograph the sites unfolding before his eyes. Many were flying their kites over the lake area some kites were as high as visibly possible, a glistening spec in the heavens. We then wandered into the Old City Bazaar area. Most shops were closed and the bazaar was only a shell of its former self as I'd seen it previously buzzing with a hive of activity. Many people live above the bazaar shops so we decided to meander the preserved cobbled streets from centuries ago, washing draped from balconies above....6-8 metre multi coloured saris glistening and floating in the warm midday breeze. We were wandering the lane ways aimlessly similar to feeling beaten in a maze. One lane way caught my eye.... It seemed to draw me in. I suggested to the two men that we walk up that particular alley way. I was photographing the architecture of the multi century old buildings when a well dressed middle aged man introduced himself as Hasim and asked us if we'd like to come upstairs onto his rooftop to see the kites. We agreed and took him up on his offer. As it turned out, he and his wife owned the whole apartment block of which they occupied the third floor as their home. He is a business owner dealing in electronics and cable installation so I think of the upper working class it seemed. The exterior was concrete with little Romeo & Juliet balconies overlooking the cobbled lane-way. We walked four sets of stairs before climbing a rickety wooden ladder which protruded onto an open rooftop with geometrical shapes moulded into the concrete balustrading. We dare lean on the balustrading though, the cracks were severe on the overly dried concrete and it could easily be the last lean you ever do if you chanced this stance. People were flying kites on rooftops as far as the eye could see. It was an infectious atmosphere to say the least. As we stood and watched in awe, Hasim's wife and nephew appeared with homemade Indian snacks for us to enjoy. Sesame seed treacle snaps, round balls of rice bubbles about the size of a small orange and little green apple like fruit. We accepted the offerings gratefully which were particularly good I must say. The spoken language between us was limited but we all as human beings have a universal language...a smile and acceptance. He insisted we climb yet another ladder in even more disrepair up onto the pinnacle of the roof...The area was about 3X3 metres square. His nephew brought us about 20 kites and reals of string so we started joining in on the communal act that the state of Gujarat is so passionate about. Hasim's wife, Marrina, brought us chai tea and cooked balls of tasty potato with hot chilli sauce. This apparently was our lunch....we felt a little embarrassed that we had gate crashed their home but it seemed clear now that our presence was welcomed. We sat and talked as best we could and reviled in the surrounding atmosphere of the sprawling neighbours. Hasim's nephew said he'd be back at 4pm with his family and to wait until he came back. Meanwhile Hasim's Sister arrived and so I was then invited with the women only down into their home to have the grand tour. After removing my shoes, I entered their tiny dwelling of which they were most proud of. It had tiled flooring and concrete walls. The entry area was the living room and would have been perhaps 3X4 metres in size. She had a carved timber cabinet filled with special collectibles such as ostrich eggs, shells, brass water vessels dated 1650....all of which she was very proud of. A large flat day bed filled most of the room and I was encouraged to take a nap but I wasn't sleepy so smiled and nodded. Behind the living area was a very small area with a table with pots and pans, food supplies etc. and a fridge (complete with 5 star rating)... this room is the food preparation area. The women sit on the floor and prepare the meal. The kitchen was quite sophisticated to what I was expecting.... It had storage cupboards, small bench top areas, a gas cooktop and she even had a couple of modern pieces of equipment like a stick blender and electric hand mixer. The cooking utensils were all unusual to me but very practical. The bathroom was a tiny cold room with a cold water tap...no bath tub or shower rose. The bedroom was modest and she had a double sized bed with a beautiful hand embroidery made quilt. Old wooden shutters opened right throughout the home to allow the natural flow of air for the hot summer months reaching 48 degrees Celsius. I watched her make chai tea for us....it was a very involved process. The chai tea we order from coffee shops in the Western world is a very poor excuse for the flavour we had yesterday. The mixture was ground masala, tea, water, a nob of fresh ginger freshly ground to pulp, other spices unknown to me, sugar and milk. This is boiled rapidly for some minutes before straining and pouring into delicate fine china tea cups to be enjoyed. The men joined us in the house and she insisted we eat sweet biscuits and more cooked spinach balls rolled in fine powder again served with chilli sauce along with the spicy hot chai tea Soon after we'd finished our chai tea, the men stayed and talked in the house and us women folk went up onto the roof and flew kites again. Laughing and smiling we seemed to enjoy each others company. A few more women arrived and I was beckoned downstairs to the house again where all the women sat on the floor and chatted eagerly amongst themselves and cut up fruit and vegetables into a bowl. Green bananas, cucumber, persimmon, chilli and tomatoes were all carefully cut into small chunks very methodically. It seemed to be a very joyous time for them making this recipe.... I later found out they only make this for the Uttrayan festival. By this time it was 4pm and the nephew arrived back with his family, a beautiful little girl and his young wife. They could speak some English so we exchanged small conversation....enough to get us by to know what was going on. The surrounding rooftops bubbled with excitement. Each building had masses of people on top as did ours....Our party grew to around 20 people in all. Aunties, Uncles, friends, friends of friends....we were as one. The neighbours excitedly took photos of the 'celebrities' on Hasim's rooftop.....children and adults waved at us just hoping to get some recognition. Music blasted louder than ever thought possible....huge industrial speakers were everywhere on every rooftop. Indian music pounding like a massive Bollywood extravaganza. People were dancing on the rooftops having fun wearing beautifully tailored Indian clothes. Children blew paper horns, the sound not unlike peacocks calling their mate. This was the party of all parties..... Everyone flew kites, some large, some small, every colour you could possibly imagine was in the sky. You could not possibly look in any direction and see space between kites. The sun slowly sunk towards the horizon again gifting us with that golden peachy hue I so love in India. As dusk crept in, the lanterns drifted effortlessly above our heads. As day faded the fire lanterns seemed to brighten like golden jewels all over the sky....similar to three million fire flies perhaps. Fireworks exploded from every possible area around us. Some close, some far....we thought Brisbane River Fire was impressive but it certainly has nothing on this. Everyone has fireworks here....no WHS restrictions....Just light them up and off they go. Huge spectacular pyrotechnic displays....as familiar to fireworks as you may be, you've never seen anything like this before. At around 7pm, we (the intruders) had to dictate when we should eat. Everyone took photos with us before heading back down the rickety ladder into the house where we were served huge portions of the green banana and fruit/ vegetable mix I'd seen the women preparing earlier. It had been cooked in a pressure cooker and was served with some sort of dry sprinkles and hot chilli sauce. We were served our portions and they watched us eat. After a while, they all joined in and ate. The women sat in a circle in the food preparation room, cross legged on the floor to eat whist the men sat on small benches in the living room with us. We hadn't had water for hours and we'd been sitting up in the hot sun on the roof and now this hot hot chilli dish.....I thought my mouth was going to explode. I was earlier told that they boil their water.....and figured I'm going to get sick sooner or later. I was so dry I just threw caution to the wind and drank two huge glasses of water just to put the fire out. It's now mid afternoon the following day and I'm fine... So guess I dodged that bullet! We thanked the hosts graciously at about 8pm for their hospitality and decided to catch a rickshaw back to our hotel. Two of the men escorted us out to the area where we could catch a rickshaw and they negotiated a price far better than we would have ever done. We thought Uttrayan was an amazing experience....such a shame most Westerners never get to experience this. Gujarat is not particularly a tourist destination (which is good news for us).....but if you find yourself in India around January one year, visit one of the major cities in Gujarat and embrace and celebrate this crazy atmosphere in festival mode.... You won't be disappointed. Celebrating Uttrayan- Gujarati Kite Festival- Day 1: January 14th 2015. The last two days have been unbelievably amazing and yet a contrast so diverse from each other. The majority of you reading this blog will not possibly be able to comprehend what Bruce and I have experienced during this major Indian festival, but I would like to try to walk you through the previous two days of our lives just to give you a little insight. I have divided my Uttrayan blog into Day 1 and Day 2....not because it goes on and on and I wanted to bore you but because we celebrated the two days in entirely different ways both of which were something we'll never forget and I wanted you to be able to read and experience through my blog how amazing this place is and how passionate the people are. We've never experienced anything like this before....The culture, the acceptance, the passion! A little background on Uttrayan (Kite Festival): Usually held around the 14th January each year and includes two days of public holiday. Uttrayana is the day when the sun starts to travel towards north as a sign of coming summer. People fly kites from their rooftops in celebration of the festival and we have been told that the flying of kites signify releasing any bad luck from the previous year. The state of Gujarat is the only state of India which partakes in this extraordinary festival. It's the party of all parties.....I honestly believe if you think you can party....you have not partied until you have done so for Uttrayan in the Gujarati state of India and may I remind you that Gujarat is a dry state, so no alcohol is involved. Our day started slowly at the hotel. After breakfast we went to the hotel rooftop and was a little disappointed by the lack of kites in the sky. We'd been promised a sky full of kites and we could see maybe five at best count. We had been invited to an expat party late afternoon and hoped the kite situation might accelerate as the day went on. We visited our house where we will move in in a few weeks time and climbed up onto the rooftop to see across the sprawling Vadodara city. Still not a lot was going on around 2pm but we could see things were starting to happen slowly. We walked the streets and found a few locals starting to get into the spirit. A rooftop of young teenage boys beckoned us up onto their roof however we declined as we had plans an hour later. Our French friends, Andree and Herve met us at our hotel where we walked to the party location only three blocks from where our hotel is located. We were greeted by our French hosts Valerie and Gregory and taken up onto their rooftop to fly kites of our own. As expat after expat started to arrive, our rooftop party grew in number to about forty- fifty people. Kids, teenagers and adults all had fun flying kites, laughing, talking and bopping away to the pounding enormous speakers spilling out mostly French music across the suburb of Alkapuri in Vadodara.....this added enormous atmosphere to our party. We duelled with the neighbours as to who had the loudest music yanking the volume to an all new high......Mixed music genres graced the suburb louder and louder as though we were all doing battle amongst the various cultures. We flew kites, lost kites, sliced other peoples kite strings with the glass tethered strings and of course reviled in glee at doing so, nursed string cuts on our fragile hands, wrapped fingers in tape to protect them from new cuts. It was indeed a lot of fun. The kite flying continued until dark with kites of every possible colour bobbing, weaving and soaring in the sky. Birds precariously navigated kite stings as they flew amongst the ever growing amount of kites in the vivid blue toned sky. The deep orange sun hazed by smoke began to set gifting us with a sky washed with a velvety deep tangerine colour I've only ever experienced in India. As dusk crept in, we began to see floating fireball lanterns grace the skies of Vadodara. There must have been literally millions dotting the sky as far as the eye could see. We released a few from the rooftop also, they can be difficult to initiate but once you've mastered the art, the lanterns glide higher and higher in the direction the soft breeze takes them. Whilst there were a few released in Alkapuri, Old City Town seemed to have the majority of action off in the distance along with continuous fireworks around the outer perimeter of the city, many kilometers from where we were but they were still impressive to watch from a distance. The lanterns slowly glided across the city like slow flying gold stars. Due to last years fire problem from this ritual, the lanterns were banned this year.....but hey! This is India and if you want to light a lantern to release it into the sky well go right ahead...besides how can you prove it's yours when there is about three million others floating past. Some of our friends had attended earlier parties in Old City Town where they said the atmosphere was electric even early in the day. It was from then on, our ambition, to make some friends in Old City for next years Uttrayan festival to experience such local involvement. After many hours sitting, watching, meditating and just enveloping the infectious atmosphere of Gujarati's biggest festival, we went back down to their penthouse unit for a potluck dinner. We had all brought a contribution to the event to share with each other. As Bruce and I are still slumming it at the Hilton, we took pre-purchased Indian sweets as it's a little difficult to cook in your hotel room. We had a great night meeting up with existing friends and also making new friends from the expat society. We left the party at around 9pm and returned to our hotel by foot. The streets were quiet with one or two motorbikes. Looking up we could still see lanterns floating effortlessly over the city and the sound of music and fireworks blaring from every direction. Our plans for the following day were to be with one of Bruce's Brisbane co-workers,Hanoo, an Engineer who is in Vadodara for two weeks. We thought we'd show him some Vadodara city sites. Our plan was to visit the Palace on Thursday mid morning......Day 2 instalment of this blog To Be Continued! .....you won't be disappointed. Thanks to Andree for some of the photos. Lamb was on the menu tonight! We opted for the lamb chunks rather than the whole leg of lamb..... I do believe my bib is very stylish! Today my friend Andree and I went to visit another expat friend,Gareth. Our mission was not only for a friendly chat with this wonderful man, who I know right now is going to be a great expat buddy....but also to severely 'pick his brains' for information on survival techniques in India! We talked for hours and acquired some very useful info even down to what milk to buy. After we left Gareth, Andree and I had lunch at a local cafe and then caught an Auto Rickshaw to a shopping mall where we wandered the aisles looking at products and groceries on offer for when we move into our homes. I think we'll need to be a little resourceful at times, some products we are use to buying don't seem to exist whilst others exist but cost the earth as they are not commonly used in India. An example of this is dishwasher tablets.....1600 Rupee for a box of 20 Finish tablets..that's about AU$35.50. Think we'll be washing up by hand until we get our maid somehow. We saw both men and women working on building sites. WHS is definitely not an issue here....No scaffolding and balancing precariously on the edge of a 5 storey apartment building laying bricks to the outer rim unbothered by the risk of falling. One woman carried a dish of something heavy on her head down numerous flights of stairs with a child in her arms. They all work on the building sites....men, women and children alike....and they work so hard like machines not stopping for breaks. Makes us look so soft in the Western world. Concreting with bare feet and hands, carting rocks...it's all here. We saw little boys flying their kites, getting into the spirit for tomorrow's kite festivities. Overall....I had a massively fun day! Last night we were in our hotel room watching a movie. I commented to Bruce about the unusual music and noise out in the street. I said that something seemed to be going on outside so we went up onto the rooftop and saw a celebration happening in the courtyard opposite the hotel. We decided to go and have a look. A brass band dressed in white uniforms sported drums, saxophones, maracas and horns and were eagerly dancing and playing their instruments with great passion beckoning on the wedding festivities about to take place. It was a hive of activity out on the street. Word got around, it seemed, that we were out in the street watching.....women in beautifully gold woven decorated saris and amazing gaudy jewellery came out of the courtyard in droves to chance a glimpse of us. They were smiling and waving, excited to have us there watching. The Brides father sent a friend out to invite us to watch and follow the ceremony. We were very embarrassed as to how we were dressed/ presented. (I had a pair of 3/4 pants and a fairly ordinary top on whilst Bruce hadn't even combed his hair since we quickly went to see what was happening in the dark outside of our hotel)......we weren't exactly prepared for a wedding invite. Drums, chanting, dancing...I could feel it building to a climax. The official photographer arrived with a spot light that would blind you from a kilometre away I'm sure. Out of the lane way appeared a Cinderella coach covered in jewels and complete with two white horses in all their finery, sure to satisfy any little girls obsession of a fairy tale wedding. The Groom appeared and climbed into the coach along with his Mother, Sister and a few children. The wedding procession began. It was so exhilarating to see the joy on everyone's faces. Ladies with electric light hats on their heads walked beside the carriage strung together by electric cable attached to a generator being pushed behind the carriage by a man as the procession of followers danced and sang to the deafening music. People came from all around to join in the procession....the beggars on the street even participated. We spoke to locals not unlike ourselves just wanting to see the joyous occassion unfold. The procession wound around the lane ways for about an hour and a half before reaching the original courtyard once again where the Groom disembarked from his well lit Cinderella carriage and joined in dance with his family and friends. Fire Crackers were ignited and shot into the night skies. The smell of gun powder rich in the air and the noise echoing to and fro off the surrounding buildings made for an exciting atmosphere. The Groom was hoisted up onto the shoulders of family members and carried around before being carried into the courtyard. We didn't catch a glimpse of the bride at all.....not sure where she was. But what we experienced was magical and for these opportunities, I am extremely grateful I am here in Incredible India! This morning Bruce & I ventured into Old City Town of Vadodara....the old, the raw and basic of basic Indian Bazaar. After negotiating with the auto rickshaw drivers for a suitable fare and determining by photograph where in fact we wished to go (it is quite a distance from where we are staying), we boarded our auto rickshaw and headed to the less popular side of town for Westerners. It is humbling to be able to visit and experience such a bazaar.....it's something you've only seen on SBS documentaries or on the movies, free from tourists and touts. Westerners rarely visit here and during our 3 hours of wandering the tiny lane ways and alleys, didn't see any westerners other than ourselves. I had visited this area on my last visit here, however it was a first for Bruce. I am becoming quite comfortable with living here and culture shock seems to be evading my thoughts and scences now. I go about my business not giving a thought that I'm 'different' to those around me. Every now and then I become conscious that people stare but generally it's far from my thoughts. Along with becoming comfortable with living in India....your scences begin to return heightened to how I remember living unbothered in Australia. Every corner you turn a new unusual sight unfolds, the smells (good and bad) are rich in the air. The smell of crushed rose petals, burning incense, the smells of cooking street foods and the sounds of Indian life grace your ears. Little girls pat your arms to feel your white skin...their hands dirty but soft and innocent. The store vendors are glad of a smile and a friendly wave or a slight exchange of a greeting. 'Namaste' is the Hindi greeting word and it now rolls of my tongue easily. On our return to the Alkapuri area where our hotel is, we walked up to a popular cafe for the locals. The stairs are broken and rough, the door is heavy and large. The cafe is dark, we are greeted by three waiters dressed in suits and sandels. As we sat and perused the menu, we decided on Paneer Korma and 2 garlic Naan. The food was amazing and the Naan bread was the holy grail of Naans believe me! I am enjoying sharing my experiences with you but only wish I could share the smells and sounds that excite me each and every day. Enjoy my photos..........This is Incredible India! We've had such a busy and hectic lead up to the move to get over here to India, we haven't actually chilled out together for probably 6 weeks at least. We are here and there's an available weekend off for Bruce to relax. After a late breakfast in the hotel restaurant followed by a visit to the hotel rooftop to check out the days activities of the locals below, we took a stroll to our new house location about 10 minutes walk away. As we've not before orientated ourselves to the conveniences to our new home, we took a good look around on foot, checking out the in's and outs of whats close by. It looks very convienient to everything so we're very pleased about that. We found our way up onto the rooftop of our house also. Indian houses all have rooftop areas.....it's a feeling of freedom and you can see for miles (well at least as far as the smog allows...). The bird life is very abundant with huge eagles gracing the skies waiting to swoop and clutch an unsuspecting squirrel for its lunch. We called into a little bakery & sweets shop to have a look at what unusual wares they vendored. The shopkeeper insisted we taste test his Indian sweets, so I'm really not sure what we were eatting, however they were tasty and opulent looking. He was telling us they had crushed flowers in them. You don't see sweets of that sort in Australia..... We wandered the streets and found Indias answer to Max Brenner....'The Chocolate Room'! We didn't indulge ourselves but many were sipping on the thick hot Choc drinks served in the typical egg shaped China mugs. We weaved the lane ways then successfully negotiated the hectic midday traffic of the main road taking us back to our hotel. Sitting at the writing desk in the hotel room looking out onto the street hived with activity of late Saturday afternoon in Vadodara, I chance see a sight too good not to excite my electrician husband by extreme lack of work place health and safety....a long and lanky Indian shimmying up the electric lamp post to change an expired light bulb, swinging off electrical wires as he went. This place is so exciting.....if you snooze you lose! Tonight we have a dinner date with another expat couple who arrived here in India on the same day as us. They are French Expats who work for another company here in Vadodara different to that of Bruce's. I met the woman Andree a few days ago so think we'll be doing quite a few things together over the upcoming months. We've had such a busy and hectic lead up to the move to get over here to India, we haven't actually chilled out together for probably 6 weeks at least. We are here and there's an available weekend off for Bruce to relax. After a late breakfast in the hotel restaurant followed by a visit to the hotel rooftop to check out the days activities of the locals below, we took a stroll to our new house location about 10 minutes walk away. As we've not before orientated ourselves to the conveniences to our new home, we took a good look around on foot, checking out the in's and outs of whats close by. It looks very convienient to everything so we're very pleased about that. We found our way up onto the rooftop of our house also. Indian houses all have rooftop areas.....it's a feeling of freedom and you can see for miles (well at least as far as the smog allows...). The bird life is very abundant with huge eagles gracing the skies waiting to swoop and clutch an unsuspecting squirrel for its lunch. We called into a little bakery & sweets shop to have a look at what unusual wares they vendored. The shopkeeper insisted we taste test his Indian sweets, so I'm really not sure what we were eatting, however they were tasty and opulent looking. He was telling us they had crushed flowers in them. You don't see sweets of that sort in Australia..... We wandered the streets and found Indias answer to Max Brenner....'The Chocolate Room'! We didn't indulge ourselves but many were sipping on the thick hot Choc drinks served in the typical egg shaped China mugs. We weaved the lane ways then successfully negotiated the hectic midday traffic of the main road taking us back to our hotel. Sitting at the writing desk in the hotel room looking out onto the street hived with activity of late Saturday afternoon in Vadodara, I chance see a sight too good not to excite my electrician husband by extreme lack of work place health and safety....a long and lanky Indian shimmying up the electric lamp post to change an expired light bulb, swinging off electrical wires as he went. This place is so exciting.....if you snooze you lose!
Tonight we have a dinner date with another expat couple who arrived here in India on the same day as us. They are French Expats who work for another company here in Vadodara different to that of Bruce's. I met the woman Andree a few days ago so think we'll be doing quite a few things together over the upcoming months. This is the treat we're in for next week. One of THE main festivals in The State of Gujarat, the International kite flying festival. Kites do battle all over the skies of Vadodara and the last kite flying is the winner! The idea is to have your kite string so strong and some are coated in crushed glass to cut the opponents kite strings. It's 'cut throat' stuff....literally. Scooters and motorbikes are all wearing protective wires so kite stings glide over their heads so as not to decapitate. There has been many fatalities in previous years of people riding motorbikes during this time. Guess coming across a fallen kite string covered in glass wouldn't be a good thing riding your motorbike at 60km. We've been invited to a gathering that day at 4pm. When it gets dark, lit lanterns consume the day for hours to celebrate the kite festival. |