Republic Day

The streak of holidays around this time of year is quite remarkable. I know that I am exaggerating here, but it seems like every week since the beginning of Diwali in November there has been some day or festival celebrating this or that. Today, we observed yet another—Republic Day—marking the ratification of the Indian constitution and its emergence as an independent state. Today, all over the country, the day is celebrated with parades and here in Madras it was no different. I experienced the patriotism from early in the morning on my 6:30am run when I noticed that just about everyone I was running past along the beach road had an Indian flag pinned to their shirt. Already, by 7:00am there was a stage area set up near out place and music blasting national anthems. It was not a typical run. But, then again, when is it ever?

Kaia and his mama went to see a parade this morning and these are some of the shots from their experience. Apparently the different floats were rather interesting and odd—from the one with infamous Chief Minister Jayalalitha cradling a child in a God-like pose to that with the woman auto-rickshaw driver as the symbol of gender equality. In retrospect, I wish that I would have gone—especially on this day when the state has an opportunity to show off its true colors to the public—but alas, writing called. Anyway, from the looks of the photos, it seems that Kaia was a little puzzled by the floats as well. His highlight was seeing the “hebecobba” (helicopter and one of the cutest words these days) that was patrolling the beach in search of potential terrorists.

Why I Love this Time: The ticklish feet when washing at bathtime.