New Year's Day Carnival

Everybody loves a parade, right? Well, I don't. In fact, while I definitely enjoyed the New Year's Day carnival in Kochi, I actually found the crowd, which seemed to outnumber the parade participants by about ten to one, much more interesting than the parade itself. There were circus floats, dancers, men dressed in drag (women aren't allowed to participate), the cast of Avatar, and many others in colorful, often homemade costumes, but that wasn't quite as compelling as the excitement of the crowd and sheer mass of bodies thronged together. I don't really like being in a crowd, and for the most part managed to skirt this one. As always, the locals were kind and facilitating. At one point we found ourselves inescapably deep into the parade crowd, and Vanessa was able to appeal to the wall of onlookers to let us pass through to safety, or really, lower anxiety. I don't mean to overstate this, it's not like I have a proper phobia, but rather, sometimes when I find myself surrounded on all sides by human bodies, I wonder, "why did I come here?" And so, the edge of the crowd was really much more my speed.

The mood was celebratory, everywhere we went people were excited to put their English into practice, wishing us a "Happy New Year," and grinning at our replies. The kids were out in force and, without exception, once one youngster had their picture taken they all wanted in, huddling together and mugging for the camera. Perhaps the day's most infectious good mood was emanating from the Michael Jackson memorial dance float, where in particular, a nattily dressed gent in a tweed sports coat and straw hat was demonstrating some serious moves. Bill had opted out, and after about an hour and a half I could see why, having had my fill of the excitement. All in all, we were glad we went.