Rich Experiences

Everywhere I turn here there are new and exciting things and I am becoming more bold in my willingness to embrace them.  My first step was to try a tuk-tuk: the little three wheeled taxis that I have described as running on a lawnmower engine.  The drivers are barefoot and let the engines die at each intersection (thank goodness) and then start them each time they want to go by pulling up on a long lever next to them on the floor.  They sound like a go-kart and move in and out of traffic effortlessly.  Riding in one is like being in Disneyland with the colors, sounds and lights whizzing by and the air blowing your hair back.  It's crazy.  I took one of these contraptions back to Randy's  to meet with his friend Augustine Paul.  I was going to teach some voice lessons and was anxious to meet the students.  However, when I got to Randy's I was in for a big surprise....

There was a huge parade going on out in front of his place on Santhome High Road.  Literally THOUSANDS of people were marching and riding on vehicles.  They were shouting, dancing, playing drums and singing.  It reminded me of what carnival must be like in Brazil.  Everyone was wearing or waiving a three colored flag that looked to be red, black and yellow with a picture of a hand holding a torch in the center.  Others were waiving posters of a well dressed Indian man giving the "thumbs up" sign.  I thought it might be some sort of evangelical festival like Luis Palau or Billy Graham.  As it turns out (and I did not know at the time) it was a political rally for this man who is actually a cinema star here in India who is running for office! (sound familiar?)  The crowd was joyous, but also in a frenzy.  They saw my camera and wanted me to take pictures, so I obliged them.  I got some interesting results.  

I ducked again inside the enclosure surrounding St. Thomas' basilica.  It was quiet inside once I got past the military guards who were protecting the entrance.   A mass was taking place and the community was marching in procession around the building.  It was beautiful and the lights of the cathedral were reflected in the fresh rain puddles around the building.  I enjoyed the music and walked around the grounds which provided some respite from the crazy crowds outside.  I took photos and I listened.  What a strange mixture of sights and sounds. 

 

After mass ended,   I decided to brave the crowds and wandered through the streets filled with parked cars.  People simply gave up for the evening and left their vehicles there.  The alleys were packed and the food stalls were open.  It was Saturday night and people were out and about.  I walked past beggars and well dressed couples, people picking through rags and paper piles and those going out to dinner.  The smells of cooking food, propane stoves, fresh tuberose, wet garbage and incense filled the air and it was an overwhelming feast for the senses.  I finally made my way through the crowd to a tuk-tuk driver who did not look too happy about trying to work his way through the crowds.  A sister from the cathedral came up and asked where I wanted to go.  She smiled at me.  She told him to take me.  He wasn't going to mess with her....he took me.  He spoke no English, but he had a horn like you would find on a bike with a squeaky ball on the end, only this was a BIG one.  It made a great sound and was quite distinctive when compared to the more normal "adult" sounding horns around us.  I felt like I was in a clown car and laughed the whole way home.