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Itinerary India

Indias HarvestFestival Season

HoliMany themes and practices are repeated

throughout the Indian festivals of this season.

The core of most celebrations of this time is the

end of winter and the beginning of spring, as

people look forward to a plentiful harvest.

TexT JOdy-Lan CastLe

(c)PorasChaudhary

It is also th triumph of good ovr vil. Warm bonfirs, colourful

kits and dlicious swt dlicacis ar common parts of

fstivals in Northrn India during th coolr months. Thr

ar rgional and rligious variations of ach on, rflcting

Indias divrsity.

India is prdominantly a Hindu country, but is rnownd

for its rligious and cultural divrsity. each fstival has rgional

variations, so practics and rituals will dpnd on whr you ar.

As a plac populatd mostly by Sikhs, and also many Hindus,

Amritsar is th prfct city to njoy th procssion of fstivals

that go on btwn January and March. Th glorious Goldn

Tmpl, or Harmandir Sahib, is at th

picntr of th city, and is an atmosphric plac to b during all

Indian fstivals.

Dlhi, as th countrys capital, is hom to th numrous

landmarks and rligions houss of worship. It hosts th

architctural jwls of th Bahai Lotus Tmpl, Humayuns

Tomb and Akshardham Tmpl to nam but a fw.

Pictursqu wondrs can also b

found in th stat of Uttar Pradsh, with

Lucknow as its capital. It boasts th citis

of Agras Taj Mahal, Varinasis scnic viw

along th rivr Gangs, and Mathura, th

birthplac of th Lord Krishna.

S a n

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Holi, th F

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Itinerary India

GettInG tHere and arIndira Gandhi International Airporthe easiest to fly to from most cDelhi to Mathura, the nearest trato Vrindavan, the ticket will cost frupees. From Mathura, it will be 2Vrindavan by rickshaw.

Trains run regularly between Deland Lucknow. For timetables andwww.makemytrip.com/railway

WHen tO GOThe end of Winter and coming offestivals begin on the 13th Janua

earliest, and continue in various the end of Holi on the 9th March

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rflcting how good was favourd ovr vil. As with Lohri, a

communal bonfir is important on th first night of th clbra-

tions. Familis gathr around to pray and lay offrings, and

coconuts ar thrown into th hart of th fir so that

whn th mbrs hav did down, th innr soft whit but

may b dvourd.

Holi, which can last up to a wk long, is th only tim of th

yar whn it is prmissibl for anybody to throw colourd watr

on strangrs and passrsby. Onc daylight coms, balloons

ar filld with rd, blu and yllow watr, rady to burstand paint popl multicolord. Th strts ar filld with

laughtr, citmnt and vibrant colour, as popl shout Holi

hai (Its Holi).

Bright flowrs lft to soak th night bfor ar on of

th sourcs of colour, and primary-colourd powdrs can b

mid up to crat th rmaining colours of th rainbow. Playful

childrn smar paint on achothrs facs, and fill buckts and

watr-pistols rady for thir nt victims. Thos who ar smart

bgin th day waring cloths that thy know will b staind.

Holi can b njoyd in any town or city in India. espcially

in sacrd citis that hav rsonanc for many Hindus as th

birthplac of th Lord Krishna, Mathura and Vrindavan in Uttar

Pradsh ar intrsting placs to s th fstival. Thy boast

many tmpls in th mmory of Krishna and Radha, whos lov

is rflctd by th flirtatious pastims ntaild in this fstival.

In Mathura, rows of mn pois opposit rows of womn, rady

to start playful mock sword fights. As thy fight with woodnsticks, thos standing by spray th opposit tam with

colourd watr.

A rang of brightly dcoratd floats also mak thir way

through th strts. Blivrs of all rligions com to Vrindavan

on pilgrimags, and it is spcially popular with Har Krishna

worshipprs. It gos without saying that anyon visiting

Uttar Pradsh should also visit th grand Taj Mahal, with its

bautiful symmtrical architctur and gardns strtching from

ach sid. AGP

13 Jan:

Lohri

Lohri, or Punjabi Nw Yar, symboliss

th wintr solstic and is blivd to b

th longst night of th yar. Familis

and communitis gathr around bonfirs

for warmth during this coldr sason,

tlling storis, singing songs, and dancing

traditionally. It is customary to snack on

ssam sds, panuts and popcorn and throwthm into th fir whil asking God to banish

all lazinss for th yar ahad. Th nrgtic traditional danc,

Bhangra, is prformd to th upbat and livly Punjabi drums,

Dhol.

As joyful childrn march around th nighborhood singing

of th famous Dulla Bhatti, famous for his morals and acts of

bravry, thy ar han dd mouth-watring Lohri swts. Four

typs of sd, including ssam, ar dousd in jiggry and

hatd. Th rsult is th famous Gachak, a swt which is atn

during Lohri. Anothr Lohri swt is Rewri, a ssam-coatd

crunchy snack. Ths ar bst atn with a hot masala ta.

26 Jan:

repubLic Day paraDe

Rpublic Day is a national fstival, clbrating th activation of

Indias constitution, following indpndnc from colonial rul.

Th spcific dat signifis th signing of th Dclaration ofIndpndnc in 1930.

It is charactrisd by th grand Rpublic Day parad, in

which military marchs ar followd by procssions of colourful

music, danc and acrobatics prformancs circl th citis.

Th most travagant of th parads happns in Dlhi, as th

capital city of India, howvr vry stats capital and major

city put on on too. Th national drsss of all th stats ar

showcasd at th Dlhi procssion, as wll as army, navy and

air forc marchs.

28 Jan:

basant panchami

As th clbration of th Hindu Goddss of

Music, Art and Knowldg, Saraswati, Basant

is charactrisd by vibrant colour, danc and

kits. Though it is a Hindu fstival, it is also

clbratd by Sikhs, and coincids with th

bginning of Spring.

Amritsar, boasting th aw-inspiringGoldn Tmpl, is on of th bst placs to clbrat th fstival

of Basant. Th pristin whit walls with intricatly-dsignd

archd windows and doorways, surround th glorious Goldn

Tmpl, which houss th blovd holy book. Th baths which

ncircl th shrin rippl with th wind, adding to th placs

srnity.

Multi-colourd papr shaps glid through th sky as

childrn njoy kit-flying, and falln ons fill th public bath

of th Goldn Tmpl. Girls war yllow, a colour rflctd

throughout th fstival, and danc th traditional Punjabi

Giddha . On fin ampl of th hospitality that Indians ar

famous for, is th Langar(fr kitchn) srvd at Gurdwaras

(Sikh tmpls) throughout th world. Langar is a part of th

Sikhs blif in srvic to humanity, so th food is all vgtarian,

and is mant for anybody who visits.

If your clbrating Basant Panchami in Amritsar, Katra

Jaimal Singh Bazaar with its colourful, aging buildings, th OldCity and th Nhru Cntr ar th prfct placs to find modrn

and traditional Indian cloths, shos and snacks.

8 March:

hoLi

According to Hinduism, Ki ng Hiranyakashipu wantd to pun-

ish Princ Prahlad for loving God mor than him, by throwing

him into a burning fir. But Vishnu savd Princ Prahlad for his

dvotion to God. That is why th bonfir is also symbolic of Holi,

A r a b i a n S e a

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I N D I A

Mathura

LuckVrindavan

Amritsar

p A k I s tA N

It Is customary to snack onsesame seeds, peanuts andpopcorn and throw them Intothe fIre whIle askIng god tobanIsh all lazIness for the

year ahead.YasbantNgi/IndiaTodayGroup/GttyImags

NARINDeRNANU/AFP/GttyImags

NARINDeRNANU/AFP/GttyImags

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