Happy Holi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well.. Holi sucks, if you are celebrating (or I should say having/bearing/watever) it in US. What did I do?? Slept at 8 in morning and almost slept till 7 in evening (except LATE lunch in afternoon. Americans can have dinner by that time) and then went to my Taekwondo class really sleepy & tired (2 lessons learnt; too much sleeping doesn't relaxes you but makes you tired; and do not go to a taekwondo/martial-arts class when you are sleepy). Went back home & decided to treat myself with good food atleast, so made mutter-paneer with aaloo-paratha, raita and kheer as well (well most of it was ready to eat or ready-mix). And then went to bed...... What was different? Well, it's very different in India, here it goes... 

Wake up by 8-9 in morning and be READY, for Holi. Means, put on old clothes.. & hey I put lot of oil on all my body so color can't stick to me. And then I apply lot of different colors on my face in advance to make sure it looks multicolor and nice (people usually just put red or green, i like lot of color and good combination/decoration of my face!!). Gujhiya & sweets are ready at home so eat some awesome sweets and then get ready for going out round. Call a friend or two or three or four or even MORE.... go to people's houses and color them with abeer/gulaal (powdered color) and enjoy sweets at there home too, afterall everyone has different taste (no calorie counting please, just enjoy!!). By late afternoon you are filled, with color on outside & food on inside; which means you had lots of FUN!!!!! The washing/bathing process takes TIME, sometimes detergent soaps are needed to clean it. But if you really had fun, the fun lasts; which means the color lasts on your body for couple of days proving you really had FUN!! So that's Holi in India. Anyways, for those who do not know anything about holi or the religious aspect of it, here's a video of the Prehlaad-Holika story. And the most famous Holi song ever..... HOLI HAI!!!!!

Happy Lohri!!

Lohri reminds me of the nice lohri campfire and great music playing really loud, dancing around, throwing groundnut & popcorn into it and just having fun. Specially in Delhi or in Punjab where this is a major festival. Traditionally, by the end of the first week of January, small groups of boys go ringing doorbells and chanting some kind of doggerel with each line ending in “HOYE” (in chorus). Lohri songs are rhymed nonsense, at times very funny. For example:

Saalee paireen juttee

Jeevey Sahib dee kuttee

Kuttee no nikalya phoraa

Jeevey sahib da ghora

Ghorey uttay kaathee

Jeevey sahib da haathee

Haathee maarya padd

Dey maaee daanya da chajj

(My sister-in-law has slippers on her feet/ Long may live the Sahib’s bitch./ The bitch developed a sore/ Long live the Sahib’s horse./ The horse has a saddle/ Long live the Sahib’s elephant/ The elephant let out a loud fart/ It gave the old woman a start.) Happy Lohri to all my Readers. Have fun!!

HAPPY DIWALI!!!

Hey friends, wish you a heartiest Happy Diwali!! Another Diwlai in US is like no Diwali atall; inspite of US President wishing Diwali (Below is a message from Nobel Prize winner US President Barrack Obama). Diwali is a real celebration in India, there is so much that happens here. That's why it was always the first pick when we had to write essay in school on something, or Holi .Not much thinking but just writing the obvious stuff, added with whatever we have crammed up (Just start with Diwali is festival of lights or Holi is the festival of colours.). Diwali was the day to really celebrate; celebrate with new clothes (3 times a year your parents had to buy you new clothes, Diwali, Holi & Happy B'day!!), shopping, gifts, lights, crackers (I was always anti-cracker, not because I was scared but I was environment conscious... I guess!!!) and ofcourse tons of sweets. It was always a wait to see what the other person has brought you as gift; mostly sweets & snacks, but alway fun to get free gifts (remember.. that uncle gave such cheap sweet as gift, the other one brought such nice thing, lolzzz). Lots of cleaning was supposed to be done before Diwali which used to go on till last day. And then decorate it with all those fancy lights (now all cheap chinese lights, if they work they are best or your luck with chinese), shiny paper designers & all that crazy awesome stuff. Mom used to start preparing the best sweets (rasgullas & yummy gujhiya) & there was sleepless nights of such work for one night of fun & party. Ahhh... all that happens here is fake desi parties at most (like the one I went to @ Mantra in Boston, it was terrible without any real Indian music, sweets & the true spirit of Diwali). Well, all I can say is... Shubh Deepawali!!!