Skip to main content

Festival of Chariots

from Festival of Chariot's gallery
My boyfriend and I were driving , and along the road we see colorful tents not yet set up. We saw a sign that said, "Festival of Chariots." He looked over and said, "Oh, that's the Hare Krishna festival. They had one when I lived in D.C." I looked over with a smile, and subliminally he got my message...I had already decided that we would be going. For those of you who don't know, Hare Krishna of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) is a small religion (some say cult) that is an offshoot of Hinduism that was formed in the 1960's. It's often associated with people with shaved heads and saffron robes.

White is a funeral color in India, but also practical to stave off the heat.


We went yesterday with my mother, and it was a pleasant surprise. I wanted to go mainly for the delicious vegetarian food, but also for the cultural value. We were surprised to have only received one pamphlet about Krishna and "the Reservoir of Pleasure." To which I remarked, "Reservoir of pleasure my ass! They're celibate and vegetarian." Well, I got half right. They are vegetarian, but they are not required to be celibate. Although, any sexual activity must be for purposes of procreation only. Anyway, returning to the festival, there wasn't as much music or dancing as I thought, and it ended up being somewhat low-key. It was enjoyable nevertheless. I got to go through and read their information on reincarnation and other beliefs, and I delightfully flocked over to the vegetarian propaganda tent where I pointed at information to my mom and boyfriend, grumbling, "This is very true," because it was the one aspect of the culture/lifestyle for which I felt included.


The excitement came to a boil when we made our way over to the strip of food trucks and caterer's tents. We went over to the Bollywood Zing truck for Samosa Chaat and Chaat Papdi, and we stopped off at the Bubble Tea Truck for iced kiwi basil seed teas. The drinks were splendid on such a hot day and a nice compliment to the Indian street food.
Samosa Chaat and Chaat Papdi

Kiwi Basil Seed Tea
As the day started to wind down, so did we. We decided to leave, but not before I took a picture with a girl dressed as Krishna. I hope to go again next year.
Krishna

Labels:

Comments

  1. Mantan CalaverasJune 10, 2014 at 3:07 PM

    Hare hare, hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, hare hare.

    One of my roommates is a yogi. Of course he's more a devotee of Ganesha than Krishna.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OddGhoulOutJune 12, 2014 at 10:37 AM

      That's really interesting about your roommate!

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Depeche Mode Concert

Last night, Depeche Mode came to town. After a long week and much time spent looking forward to this, I'm glad to say I was in attendance. Justean and I ventured off to the venue with little incident this time (meaning not getting horribly lost like before). When we arrived, we noticed what a broad spectrum of fans Depeche Mode reached. There were a lot of drunken middle aged people, but besides that, there was a range of alternative types as well as more mainstream looking people. One thing is for sure that most everyone seemed excited to be there. In fact, at one point, I almost got in an altercation with a couple who was so excited, they decided to squeeze right in front of me and cut me off! Let's just say I got them to vacate my vicinity.  It was a great night for a concert. The moon shone brightly, and looming rain clouds dissipated. As for the show itself, Depeche Mode knows how to work a crowd. They sound mostly the same in concert as on their albums. They eve...
14 comments
Read more

New Hair: 20's Inspired

For my readers who have followed this blog for any considerable amount of time, you probably aren't surprised that I've changed my hair yet again! I got rid of my orange patch, and I exchanged it for a color close to my natural hue. It's been a while since I've had them, but I decided to go with bangs again.  This cut reminds me of Daisy Buchanan's in the recent Gatsby.  Daisy Buchanan I'm a fan of the Roaring Twenties. It was an age of decadence, but also an age of self-discovery. Besides, some very good authors and artists came out of that era. Speaking of 20's artists and writers, If you have not seen Midnight in Paris, then you certainly should.
13 comments
Read more

Halloween Update: A Change of Plans

So everyone, I am a little disappointed to say that my Marie Antoinette costume is not a go this year. There has been so much piling up on me between things in my personal life, work, and school, that I have been unable to find the time to get the rest of my costume together. I bit off more than I could chew this year, but I know for next time to plan better. Perhaps you'll see the Queen next year... Although I will not be doing Marie Antoinette, I do have something planned that I can easily do with what I have! I will be using my red dress, a hat, roses, black lace and accessories, and of course some creative make-up, to throw together a Día de los Muertos costume. I think it might even be a better option this year, as I plan on visiting my aunt's house who has decorated her home in a  "Dead Hat Society" theme this year. If you don't remember the aunt to whom I am referring, here is the link to my post about her house.  I will take pictures! It's really spe...
12 comments
Read more