Namaste'.. what does it mean? It is 'How to greet a Nepali', in Nepal – you say Namaste, thereby honoring the opposite person. Generous and polite. Nice.

Going to Ponsonby for Rainbow Festival later on, we firstly looked-in on Nepal Festival 2021 at Aotea Square around midday.

In Aotea Square, the entrance to the Nepal festival was emblazoned with that word Namaste: yes, we’re at the right place. It reminded me of yoga classes, with Eastern teachings and philosophies; mindfulness plays an important role in the society today. Namaste ... thoughts of meditation, to calm oneself and reach for that which is a deeper, inner peace.

In walking to the Nepal festival, we chanced upon a bevy of superbly-dressed ladies, all in gold and red sarees, a dash of green, yellow and purple, and duly followed them to Aotea Square. It was a windy day, rain was threatening, flags and buntings were wildly blowing very early on, askewly wrapped around the poles of the gaily bedecked stands. A thought: the Ponsonby Rainbow parade is on tonight and streets will be closed to traffic; I wondered if the rain will stay in the clouds until its finished? We had a look at the lovely wares on display, listened to the band on stage, and then had to carry on with our next appointment. We'll see...

Ponsonby Festival Rainbow parade, after the much awaited, postponed by Covid-19 event, is like the parades we had seen in London, Spain and elsewhere: here it was full of Auckland flavour. It was an event celebrating the history of diversity, unity, and inclusion.

Before the start of procession however, I had a bit of time to do some shopping - the festival was on the whole day in Ponsonby, and is a brilliant area to shop with ‘sales' in the air. We had a bite to eat at one of the many eateries (or cafe/restaurants of which there were many) in Ponsonby, in full view of the parade when it passed.

When you're not-so-able, as I am still (SEE: Struck by Stroke)- what is accessible to one disabled person can mean something completely different to the next, making spaces and events as accessible meant that more people could enjoy the simple pleasures of life, i.e. being out-and-about in multitude of places: at the beach, sailing, in the snows, traveling, even in restaurants, etc.

In Spanish culture, the Carnival is hugely celebrated. It’s actually is a world-wide festive season, just before Lent, where during Lent individuals would have to forego certain pleasures. The use of irony, or ridicule, also cross-dressing, gothic-dress and the use of black - invade the streets of the cities and towns. It was a calender full of events to mark these festivities, occurring in February or March depending on the year.

We were fortunate to witness the Burial of the Sardine during the Carnival Alicante, when we lived in Spain. In the midst of winter, we had fun following the minstrels just as the townsfolk did, annually; the minstrels played evocative, haunting melodies of poignant melancholy. It was slightly unnerving & unreal and a wistfully medieval experience; sent goosebumps along my spine.

The Carnival was celebrated over 10 days, each night after dark, it was another time of wondrous (cultural) events. Flavour of the day: massive street parties; satirical 'giants'; Black Man's dance, all gothic-gowned laces & finery, and lots of masks. I was hobbling around the cobbled streets, with me taking great care in following the minstrels down dimly-lit alleyways, the doomed 'sardine' lead the way to the pyre where it was finally set alight.

It was a funny thing, in the UK, Carnival in the 18th century was something not extraordinary at all; masquerading, drinking, cross-dressing and the like, was not frowned-upon in the British fairgrounds. Satirical comments were the norm. A more recent Notting Hill Carnival was really something to look forward to, when we were living there. Brilliant colour, fabulous spectacle, reggae music, and amazing dance moves.

We were surprised to have experienced 'Fasching' Festival during our skiing holidays in Austria. It was before my stroke, again when we were living in London. But, what is fasching? In pagan rituals, it represented the time of year when the power of the grim winter spirits were shooed-out, expelled with a broom stick or two. Similar to the festive Carnival in Europe, in Germany, Fasching is celebrated around Lenten period. What a hilarious festival, with masks, evil spirits begone, to usher out winter and the trials of the previous year, then welcoming in the brand new year and good tidings.

Back to the Rainbow parade in Auckland:: a veritable kaleidoscope of colour as the parade made its way down Ponsonby Road, which had been closed to traffic a couple of hours before. Rainbow it surely was - whatever race, ethnicity or creed: proudly diverse.

The representative of the National party was in attendance, with a 'coat of many colours'; some supporters in wheelchairs were in the parade, also on the sidelines - I was wheelchair-bound for some time; I walk with a legbrace, but have challenges with footdrop, impaired sensation & clonus. SEE: Relearn to Walk

All too soon, the procession was over for another year. The organisers were not mistaken, psychedelic swatches of neon-coloured fabric were imprinted on my mind forever more. But wait, there were sounds of a jazz band playing in the far distance - feet tapping, we followed where it led.

All along Ponsonby Road, restaurants were full to brimming; appetizing aromas of lamb, bacon and other delicious food. No space available, so move along to the next restaurant. Just shy of the Three Lamps district, again restaurants abound, and lo! – a restaurant with a table to spare. Exquisite Italian cuisine, right next to that jazz-band playing on the footpath.

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