to put it simply, holi is the hindu celebration of the triumph of good over evil. named after holika (the hindu demonness who was burnt to death) it involves throwing/rubbing brightly colored powders and water on each other. there is no mercy!! everybody is a target. but it's all in good fun.
given the nature of the celebration, i had to completely wrap my camera in plastic for protection.
we were fortunate enough to witness and partake in the sacred ritual of painting the elephants for the holi celebration. these docile creatures love the attention and cooperate gladly. what an amazing experience. most of the pictures below are of our friend "pinky". she is a 36-year old asian elephant who loves to interact with people.
Hard to believe it's already March, isn't it? The time has come once again for blossoms and bumblebees, sunnier days and evenings gradually growing later. Most welcome, don't you agree? It's starting to feel like Spring, that fresh scent hanging in the air, squirrels chasing each other through the parks, green green grass where grass exists.
Hoping it would feel a bit more like Spring, I walked down to Columbia Road Flower Market on a Sunday afternoon, following the opposite direction of everyone who had armfuls of flowers already. It did, at least a bit. The vendors looked like they were having a lot of fun, it was colourful, the shops along the pavement behind the flower stalls are quirky and interesting (all independent - art galleries, vintage shops, cafes, bakeries, garden shops) and, at the end of the afternoon, the flowers were going cheap - "Everythin' a fiver!" they call out, and some are even a bunch for £1.
