Christmas Eve was filled with fireworks. In between barrages, one could hear carrolers going door to door. Later in the evening, our gang went for a walk to look at the decorations on houses in the neighborhood. We walked among a sea of stars, lights and nativity scenes, with fireworks exploding overhead.

In contrast, Christmas day was very quiet and relaxed. All the guests got up late, and then sat on the porch drinking coffee. Even in the morning it was quite warm, certainly the warmest Christmas I’ve had.
When Raj’s parents got back from Mass we opened presents. Each of us got a Mundhu (Sp?) — 4 meters of white cloth with colorful borders that are wrapped around the waist like a long skirt. This is the traditional clothing for the men here in South India. They are very comfortable in the heat.
In true Christmas fashion we were fed lots of food. Raj and I almost ate ourselves sick on steamed coconut cake.