Searching for Diwali

From Friday November 5

We returned to the hotel from our visit to India Gate, Humayan's Tomb and Qutb Minar at about 2:30 for a late buffet lunch of yellow dal, paneer (fresh cheese) in a creamy curry sauce and curried cauliflower. Rather than eating on the rooftop terrace, we were relegated to a basement banquet room, I don't know why. The food is very good at the Good Times. I don't know how they do it because there is not a recognizable restaurant or kitchen, only the rooftop terrace. Maybe there is a cooking area nearby. But every meal we ordered here was tasty; this one, however, was spiced for a Western palate and could have used a little more heat.

We were all a little jet-lagged so the plan for the rest of the day was to rest until 6:00 this evening when the group would meet to find and participate in the festival of Diwali. Diwali was one of the two reasons we were traveling to India at this time. By coming now, we would be able to experience both Diwali and the Pushkar Camel Fair, scheduled for later in the month. The appeal of the camel fair is self-explanatory; Diwali was a mystery. I have never heard of it before.

 When we arrived in India all we knew about Diwali is that it is the "Festival of Lights" and is one of the most important festivals on the Hindu calendar. But when I asked our airport taxi driver about his plans for Diwali, he responded that he would be working; Diwali was for rich people, not working people. Further questioning only revealed that Diwali was a multi-day holiday. 

From the hotel staff, I learned that during Diwali many of the buildings and streets were decorated with lights and that people set off fireworks and firecrackers. From our guide Janesh, we learned that Diwali lasted 5 days and was the Hindu equivalent of Christmas, that people exchanged gifts during this holiday, and that everyone wanted to be with their families. And from the shopkeeper Pramod we learned that it is customary to share special Diwali candies, when he kindly shared several delicious pieces with us when Carol bought her suit.

Before I could relax, I needed to deal with THE PACKAGES. Three times yesterday, the front desk guy pointed to 3 large, rather heavy, gift-wrapped boxes in the front lobby and indicated that those packages were for our group to help us celebrate Diwali. (Evidently he thought I must have some leadership position on the tour - maybe because I was the first male from the group to check in.) He kept referring to Diwali crackers, which I took to mean some sort of food treat. I tried to assure the guy that Reid would handle it in the morning (Reid would not arrive until early this morning), but the 4th time he mentioned it to me I took the hint and had them brought to our room. Reid had no clue about the boxes; he assumed they must be from the booking company he was using to handle the tour logistics. 

Reid had the honor of opening the first box, revealing a case labeled Fosters Beer. Wondering what could possibly be inside, he opened the box to find, to our amazement, it really was a case of Fosters Beer in those huge Fosters Beer cans. There were two of these cases. The third box contained a box of the Diwali candies and bunch of fireworks. Well, maybe we didn't have our Ritz crackers but we did have something to ignite a Diwali celebration.

The group met in the hotel lobby to begin our search for Diwali. We found a young lady making a rangoli, a floor design usually made from colored flour or crushed rice. It is the custom in India to decorate areas in this way for festivals and celebrations. 

Reid had questioned Janesh about the best place to go to see the Diwali festival. It was recommended that we go to Connaught Circle, the center of Delhi; Reid called it the "Times Square" of Delhi. We took the metro - a modern elevated train quite comfortable but heavy on security, with pat-downs, baggage conveyors and x-rays, and armed guards behind sand-bagged bunkers - to the Circle, exiting the subway station to find the area deserted and peaceful. Connaught Circle is defined by two concentric circular streets, with a huge park inside the inner-most circle. We walked around this inner circle to try to find the party. I was walking with Reid when we passed this old stooped guy who greeted us as we neared. I cheerfully called out, "Where are all the people?" He replied, "They're all at home celebrating Diwali."

So, like all good Hindu people on this night, we returned to our home, the Hotel Good Times, to celebrate Diwali. We drank our Fosters, enjoyed another buffet, even better than lunch, and listened in amazement to the cacophony of Diwali crackers going off all over the area. I have never heard anything like it; it began in late afternoon and was still going on when we went to bed. I woke up once at three in the morning and it had stopped, I don't know when. But here is a sample - a minute and a half of Diwali crackers. There aren't so many sky high, brilliant explosions so it is not as visually appealing as, say, Sevastopol on New Years. But awe-inspiring, nevertheless.

We were jet-lagged and about to call it a night when we remembered the box with the fireworks. We didn't know what to do with them and after some discussion decided to give them to the hotel staff. Surdh, our hotel guide from the previous day was on the terrace so I told him they could have the fireworks. He and another guy picked up one big package of fire crackers and started to walk away. "No, no." we cried, "All of them. the whole box." Well, they became as excited as, well, as kids on the fourth of July when presented with a moving-box full of fire crackers to set off themselves. We lost our entire staff of waiters when they took the box down to the street, returning several times to urge us to go down and watch them set off our "crackers." Diwali is a family festival; we were lucky to find a sort of family for the evening. Enjoy this video of our Diwali crackers.

This day, especially this evening, was one of the highlights of our travel experiences. Not only did we experience the exuberance of the hotel boys enjoying the box of fireworks, but the search for the Diwali celebrations is one of those experiences that exemplify the cultural differences that make travel so mystifying, rewarding and adventurous. We were looking for the 4th of July but found Christmas. I can't help thinking about what went through Janesh's mind when trying to tell Reid about the best place to experience Diwali. What would you say to an Indian guide if he asked you where to take his group to experience the festival of Christmas?