Jaipur - Holi Eve
March 5th 2015
The travel agency put us in a fantastic hotel, the Shahpura House. This place was very luxurious. We had a room on the top floor. It had a small sitting area right outside our room and a large balcony across the whole side of the building. The door to our room had colored glass panels with a large deadbolt and large padlock. I have never stayed in a place that used this type of security for the room. The room was very luxurious and totally gave us the flavor of being in India. There was also a nice pool that we did not use.
Shahpura House
This is the eve of Holi. The eve of Holi, known as Holika Dahan, signifies the triumph of good over evil, marking the end of winter with massive bonfires that burn away negativity. People gather around these fires to sing, dance, and offer grains, preparing for the next day's festival of colors (Rangwali Holi), which celebrates spring's arrival, new beginnings, love (Krishna-Radha), and unity by throwing colored powders and water. As we walked around our neighborhood, we saw many bon fires int he the middle of streets and intersections.
Bon Fires in the streets all around us.
Locals we met on the street gave us bindi dots on our foreheads for the celebrations. Bindi (third eye) represents inner vision, spiritual awakening, and focus, located at the spot between the eyebrows. Traditionally married women wore red dots and single women wore black dots.
Our guide took us to the Indiana Restaurant located in the heart of the city near many historical monuments. This heritage restaurant provided a traditional dining experience of vegetarian and vegetarian options. I tried the Kadhai Chicken Marsala and Sandy had the Curry fish. We also got the garlic naan and rice! I also tried the Kingfisher lager beer as it is considered a local beer. The chicken was dry, but the beer was good!
The dinner also featured Rajasthani folk dances and music. The dancers performed a dance called a Bhavai: Here, they would dance to the music while balancing multiple pots on their head. It was a wonderful show to watch.
Rajasthani folk dances and music
