Palkhi

Palkhi, Palkhi, PALKHI!

oh man. today was such a fun day...

it was a blast to have the morning/afternoon off and just enjoy myself and unwind by hanging out on the front wall.

so the morning started off by jolting myself awake when i rolled over at 9:30 and heard music and people outside...i jumped out of bed thinking I was missing the big pilgrimage! So i jumped up, woke up Christa...and turns out it was just the beginnings of the crowds. So Anna, Christa and I wandered out to the front wall with all my snacks and a blanket, and climbed up to check out the action. Its probably like a 6 foot wall, so we were high enough up to see a bit down the road where everyone was coming from.

So we hung out for a while, mainly undisturbed, tons of stares but i mean we were 3 white girls sitting on a wall watching the pilgrimage - so its only fair they watch us too.

We enjoyed the action, observing all the clothing (the only time i've seen so many men in traditional dress), the different elements of the group that were clearly for the pilgrimage - like the men at the front of each group holding the flags, one woman in each group wearing what looked like a flower pot as a hat - with a tulsi plant in it, etc. It was great to people watch for a while and sort things out just by watching.

It didnt take long for people to start coming up to us, kids mainly asking what our names are, where we're from, etc. It was okay at the beginning but every once in a while it turned into a crowd at our front gate just staring at us - taking pictures with their camera phones, etc. It was strange that there was a *huge* parade of people walking past them and they were fixated on us. Check out this picture - it shows it perfectly. The groups of men were taking a break from the walk about 15 feet in front of us, and instead of watching the people walking, their backs were to the action and instead they were watching us. Obviously being a foreigner and standing out in the crowd is something I'm still getting used to.

Anyway the crowds started to get larger and larger, and I'm sure my pictures do not capture it - but the people were constantly flowing past us. We had an early lunch so we could head over to Datta Temple and be there for the action when the chariot brought the idol to the temple for one hour to stop and allow people to recieving blessings by touching the idol. So in typical foreigner fashion we go to the doors, Aruna talks to someone (her and Darshana were being our escorts) and suddenly we're cruising through the middle of the temple where no one else is allowed(these moments make up for the awkward stares and being confronted constantly). So we got to go sit up on the stage section behind where they set the idol. When the chariot arrives it is far more elaborate than I had expected and the crowds around it were intense. They were beating people back to get the idol off the chariot and into the temple, and then once it was in there was some chaos as they tried to restore order and get people who had snuck in back out into the lines. They had these lines set up to get people through to touch the idols feet and then out the door. It was wild - the people were going so quickly through the lines - no one was walking it was jogging or at least shuffling yourself through as quick as you could. Again, since we were foreigners and Sangam is nearby and people know who we are - we got to jump into the front of the line after about 20 minutes. It was cool to get to participate in something that is so important to the people in Maharahstra. People were literally lifting their babies into the air, and passing them through the crowd to touch the idol...they were basically crowd surfing - it was so dangerous but it worked and all the babies got blessed.

Anyway it was a really fun day - a nice way to unwind and get sucked into the energy and excitement in the area. Its strange, after just a few hours the entire street had gone back to being used by a few rickshaws, bikes and bicycles, no people congesting the area. They've all moved on to other places in Pune and beyond...

And soon I will be moving on as well - Mumbai for some fun on Wednesday and Thursday! woo!

******UPDATE*******

So turns out one of those wonderful people taking our pictures worked for the newspaper, and there is a picture of Christa and Anna posing with my purse as I - like the stupid foreigner I am - had to run back into Sangam for a coke. seriously!! I missed my 15 min of fame...my new goal is to get myself in the newspaper - not just my purse.