Day 149: Vishu and Amma Arrive

Today is Vishu, the Malayali new year. If I were at home, this would have meant waking up early in the morning and looking first at the Vishukani - a small shrine arranged with a Lord Krishna idol, some yellow flowers, money, new cloth, jewellery, vegetables etc. Basically the idea is that you start the new year with a good sight - that of abundance and prosperity. Later on, there would be the vishukaineettam - when the elders in the family bless the younger ones by giving them some money (used to be the highlight of the festival when we were young), then bursting the fire crackers and last but not the least, enjoying the sumptious vishusadya (feast).

But well, I am not at home in Kerala. Instead am spending my 12th consecutive Vishu here in Singapore away from home. But no worries, it was still a rocking one. Instead of the vishukani, the first thing I saw this morning was my mom's face. She was at the door, back again for a week's visit to get some formalities done for her visa. So there, that was a good enough start to the new year.

The vishukaineettam and fire crackers also didn't quite happen but there was no missing the vishu sadya! My foodie hubby even cancelled one of his meetigns for the sake of the sadya, he claims. So the three of us - hubby, mom and I, went to our favourite Kerala restaurant Swaadishth and had the 24-item Vishusadya. Yummy.

I feel satisfied. Not quite the Kerala Vishu, still not a bad one at all!

Vishu Ashamsakal (Happy New Year) everyone!

851 more to go.