Colour Festival- Painted Up!

We travelled from Bundi to Udaipur, making a very worthwhile stop in Chittaurgah for a few hours. When we arrived at the station there was a crazy thunderstorm and then a hail storm with stones a cm wide! Madness..we've had rain everywhere and the monsoons aren't supposed to start for at least 2 months!

We hired a rickshaw to take us on a tour of the old city and fort where there are palaces, monuments and 130 temples. It was the gruesome site where over 14,000 women commited Johar (burning themselves alive) in the 16th Century. Their city was being overtaken by a foreign army, their men all rode to their deaths in battle, and to save their honour the women, led by their Queen, chose death rather than becoming the wives of other men. This mass suicide heppened three times in Chittaurgahs history! The fort had beautiful buildings, including many Jain temples which had incredibly raunching sculptures carved all over them!
We came to Chittaurgah on the festival day Holi..the festival of colour. This is the day when everyone goes into the streets throwing paint powder and water over each other. We were very sad to find out that the chaos had already happened that morning before we arrived, but enjoyed seeing the after math. Tonnes of multi coloured people riding past on scooters smiling and waving, the roads had colour splashes, and the drains ran pink.

While stopped at the fort, a group of 9 guys dove up and decided that we needed to be included in the festivities..dousing us in paint and water. Haha..we looked a state, pinks, silver, green, blue, purple and gold..much to everyones amusement who passed us! Unfortunately the colour is not so washable and in fact when you try to rinse, the colour becomes richer and covers your whole skin in a deep shade of pink! We travelled this way to Udaipur on the train recieving smiles, waves and shouts of Happy Holi! After 2 showers, painful scrubbing and much soap, I am now almost the right colour..my hair however and the pearl in my wedding ring might take a while longer! Dave says I look like a Swedish Punk Rocker..he doesnt look much better!