I hope life in your respective cities is treating you well. My life has really picked up in Kolkata and there is much to tell you about.
This past weekend was Kali Puja and Diwali. Kali Puja consisted of more pandels like I described in my last email. We were fortunate to have a friend, Neela, take us pandel hoping because she took us to really crazy, unique pandels. One of them depicted all the stages of Kali's life with real children. We were urged to not use flash photography because the kids were suppose to keep their eyes open the whole time. It was wild! Then, we went to this other pandel that was equally crazy. When we entered, there was this strong blue light and a foam/bubble machine. Then, in the middle of this field of bubbles was this girl posing. Once we walked through, we saw the idol. Again, really crazy. Although Kali Puja does not have as big of pandels as Durga Puja did, there were perhaps even more pandels then the holiday for Durga. |
Work is picking up for me. I met with a school in north Kolkata that I'm going to offer four classes at, starting in December or January. I've also found a western pianist who wants to collaborate on some music, which is nice. Aakash and I fly to Chennai tomorrow for four days, and then will train to Bangalore. It will be Aakash's first time in India south of Kolkata. I'm looking forward to getting out of the city for a bit. As always, I'll keep you updated! |
Love,
Jayanthi