The Holi experience

Last Sunday, it was the Holi festival - the only Indian festival I had heard about before coming here, the one I had been waiting for. If I got it well (Indian friends, please, correct me), Holi is the celebration of the end of the winter, the day during which boys and girls can play together, breaking traditional gender roles and norms - something rather similar to our Carnaval and Mardi gras I guess. The principle is simple: throwing colours (in powder or mixed with water) at each other. But obviously, one has to be cleaned afterwards which means that very quickly it becomes a colour fight/water fight with water guns and buckets as favourite weapons. Result is you run around soaked and coloured during three hours, trying to ambush others and to protect yourself (without really trying, it's true). All of that took place on a terrace, on a thankfully sunny Indian Sunday. And here's the result. And also a green belly for a few days, pink ears and fingernails of an interesting variety of colours.