Diwali

It's been a long time since I have left my house to partake in the Diwali celebrations. I remember growing up, every year it was an exciting thing to go drive around to see all the people lighting diyas at their houses, and many parks were all decorated as well. Over the years, it seems to have died down, especially in the Port of Spain area. I know there are many other great locations to go spectate (like the Divali Nagar), but because of my limited pre planning, and the rainy weather, I went to an area close by that I was told has something every year. 

The residents of Ethel Street, St. James, put together their own little street festival, where they get permission from the police to block off a part of the street, and they line in with diyas. Traditional music playing loud enough to hear from about a street away, I even saw some tables with people eating, other residents had drinks out on the sidewalk. I struck up a conversation with one of the men that looked like one of the organisers, and he told me that they have been doing this for over 20 years, and even before that, they would just celebrate on the sidewalks.

During the time I was there, there may have been over 100 people in and out. There were many families with their kids and vendors selling various glowing toys and sparklers that all the kids were begging their parents to buy for them. There was this one glowing toy that you slingshot into the sky and when it begins the decent, helicopter like fins pop out to slow its fall (I kind of wanted one myself). All the children were having a great time, either helping light the diyas, or trying to pop bubbles from a bubble making toy gun. If you ever want to experience Diwali on a smaller scale (and without any traffic), you might enjoy Ethel Street's version.