Some of you might recall the episode of the American television sitcom, The Office, where staff member and customer-service representative Kelly Kapoor invites everyone in the office to a Diwali Party which her parents are hosting. When asked about Diwali, Kelly has absolutely no idea what Diwali means and simply tells everyone it is a lot of “fun”! I don’t profess to be an expert on Diwali and my knowledge is likely just as limited as Kelly Kapoor (and she is right when she says it is “fun”), but the following is a brief description.
This year, October 27, 2008 is Diwali – the East Indian festival of lights. Diwali (or Deepavali as it is called in South India) is the most significant holiday and festival in India. While Diwali has religious significance for Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism, Diwali has become a truly Indian, national festival celebrated by people from all faiths and denominations. The central notion is the lighting of the lamp to drive away darkness both literally and symbolically. Diwali is considered by some as the dawn of a New Year and as a time to celebrate with family and friends with food, fireworks, prayer and celebration. Employees often receive a large annual bonus from their companies/bosses on this day. Everyone in the family wears new clothes, eats lots of food and sweets, and listens to music and dances. Traditionally, the home is illuminated by hundreds of diyas, small terra cotta or brass oil lamps which are lit with matches. There are also fireworks to celebrate this auspicious occasion.
This year, I decided to throw a Diwali Party in Addis! It was a way for me both to connect to the rich cultural traditions of my family and heritage and to celebrate with the wonderful new friends I have made since moving to Addis 3 months ago. In total, there were about 32 people crammed into our house. We had a full East Indian meal, catered from Sangam, my favourite Indian restaurant in Addis! We had vegetable samosas, cracked pepper and caraway pappadum, green lime and coriander chutney, peas pilaf, navarathan khorma (mixed vegetables in a creamy tomato and spice gravy), palak paneer (rich East Indian cheese cooked in a simmering spinach and tomato gravy), freshly baked naan bread, and raitha (lightly spiced yogurt with grated carrot, cucumber, tomato and cilantro). For dessert, we had gulab jamun (essentially East Indian “Timbits” soaked in syrup infused with rose-essence, cardamom and sugar). Eric and Mary also brought some delectable Millefolille from Purple Café (which had the words Happy Diwali written on top) and there was some yummy chocolate cake from Swiss Café. For drinks, we had water and Ambo (sparkling water or Perrier bottled from the natural spring in Ambo, Ethiopia) and Mango juice (Maaza). We developed this delicious drink which I now call the “Mambo” which is a combo of 1/3 of a glass of Mango juice (Maaza) and 2/3 Ambo to create a fizzy mango drink concoction.
I must say that this party would not have been possible without Mary, Eric and Terefe’s family. I practically had to steal most of Terefe’s seating/furniture in order to have enough places for people to sit. Melat, Terefe’s eldest daughter, helped me decorate with lights and helped me arrange and light all of the candles on the pathway leading up to the main house. She also found a string of Christmas lights which we looped over the buffet. Abel, Terefe’s son, was the DJ for the evening. He found a whole host of Bollywood songs and made a mixed playlist on my ITunes with Bollywood music, South Indian classical music, bhajans (East Indian devotional hymns) and popular Western music. He played the tunes all night and made sure the music fit the mood of the moment, light instrumental and movie songs during dinner, pop music during cocktails and samosas, and upbeat Bollywood dance anthems during the fireworks. Oh yes, I forgot to mention, my amazing landlord Terefe got us fireworks for the party! About a month ago, I mentioned how important fireworks are for a Diwali celebration but how in Canada, it is virtually impossible to have your own fireworks display in your yard due to government regulations. Terefe went out the very next day and bought a huge collection of fireworks including the fountain type, the rockets, and the multi-coloured exploding type for us to use on Diwali in Addis.
At one point during the party, I thought that fireworks would be impossible. You see, as Murphy’s Law dictates, after nearly 6 weeks of hot weather and no rain, yesterday, a freak rainstorm from the Indian Ocean cast its shadow over the city of Addis, blanketing the city in a steady downpour for most of the afternoon. At one point, in the afternoon, while setting up for the party, Melat and I had to collect all of the candles from the main walkway in order to prevent them from getting wet in the rain.
When the rain stopped about an hour before the party, we thought we were in the clear, but sure enough right after dinner, when we were supposed to start the fireworks, the rain commenced anew with renewed and uncompromising vigor. I had all but given up on the fireworks and in fact, some people had started to leave after dessert when my landlord insisted that we would do the fireworks. The rain slowed and it was lightly “spitting” when he asked everyone to come out onto the front porch and started the fireworks display, launching the huge firecrackers from the front lawn! It was amazing and awesome and everyone had such a blast! Thank you so much Terefe. I will post pictures of the party, which my amazing friend Susan (who has mad photography skillz) took on my camera! Thanks Susan!
As I sit here writing this note on the actual day of Diwali, the festival of lights, I am grateful to all of the people who light up my life - my parents, family, friends, aunties and uncles, teachers and colleagues. You all mean the world to me. Happy Diwali to everyone both near and far! May the light of this special day enrich your lives, bring you joy and fill your hearts with love and laughter today, tomorrow and always. And as Kelly Kapoor so aptly put it, may today be “lots of fun and stuff.”
