The Festival of Colors (or Holi) is a Hindu holiday whose origins lie in ancient Bengal. It is a celebration of spring and the devotion (as legend has it) of Prahlada, a demon prince, to Lord Vishnu. The largest celebration of Holi in the western hemisphere is held in Spanish Fork, Utah, at the Lotus Temple.
Yours Truly did indeed attend this year's festivities. It was pretty crazy! Some friends and I drove down through Springville, through heavy traffic, and were lucky enough to find a roadside parking spot only about two miles away from the festival. As we were walking towards the temple, we passed groups returning from it. I got quite a few handfuls of chalk on my clothing from fellow revelers even before arriving.
Although quite a bit of color flies between official throwings, the actual throwings (held on odd hours) are absolutely spectacular (and make it rather hard to breath). Pix below:
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| This is at the actual festival. You can see how many people there were and this photo is only of those in front of the Lotus Temple. |
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| Right after the throwing; unfortunately, the colors had already begun to blend together when I snapped the photo. |
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| This is how our shoes looked after a little while. |
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| And my hat. |
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| A picture of Beno and me taken from the top of a trash can (for photographer's effect ;). |
Yup, I'm definitely going next year!
-Drew
Pretty crazy. And I guess it is a cultural experience. Even so, I'm glad Bron and Ron decided Morty was a bit too young to attend. Thanks for the pictures. They are almost as good as being there (maybe even better). :)
ReplyDeleteDon't worry Mom, you'll come 'round next year ;)
DeleteThose are fantastic pictures! The one of both you and Beno is gold. You should frame it! I'm glad you were able to go!
ReplyDeleteThanks! Yeah, I do like that one a lot.
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