Diwali in Tobago



Arrangement of diyas on Diwali night

The Tobago Missionaries were invited by the Ramkissoons, who are members of our branch to join them in celebrating Diwali.  

Sister Ramkissoon is from a large Hindu family.  Her father owns a lumber store where they held the celebration.

Not knowing what Diwali is, I looked it up in Wikipedia where I learned that Diwali is a five-day Hindu festival of lights.  For Hindus, Diwali is one of the most important festivals of the year and is celebrated by families participating in traditional activities.

The family was very kind and friendly and we had a wonderful time enjoying the unusual but delicious food and the traditional Hindu culture.  Sister Ramkissoon's father took me on a tour of the lumber yard and I was stunned by the volume of exhotic woods of teak, mahogany and cedar.

Diwali is called: The Festival of Lights

Diyas are an oil lamp, usually made from clay, with a cotton wick dipped in ghee or vegetable oil

Diyas and decorations on the stacks of exhotic wood and lumberyard floor

I asked the owner of the lumberyard if he was worried about starting a fire in all of the lumber.

  

He didn't seem concerned

Split bamboo arches with diyas.  We walked under the arches as we came into the lumberyard

The delicious food was served on banana leaves and eaten without utensils

Top left is bread of puri used to pick up the food.

Left side bottom is chana.

Right side top is katri.

Right side middle is nutrella vegetable meat.

Right side bottom is mango chutney. 

All vegetarian - Meat isn't served during Diwali

Sister Schindler with one of the family members dressed in a traditional Hindu gown

A picture with Sister Linton

A beautiful young Hindu girl in traditional clothing

Mother and daughters/nieces

A darling girl that wanted to make a special pose

Another adorable child

And another in pink

All of them loved having their picture taken

Beautiful child

and 
Her mother in the lumber yard



Scorpion Orchid

It was in the yard of Brother Campbell who is an investigator being taught by our sister missionaries.
He told us to pick one - Sister Reddy put it behind her ear.

Sister Reddy, one of our West Indies Missionaries, is from Fiji
The orchid suites her well

Sister Reddy brought her indian salwar kameez clothing that was given to her by her grandmother before leaving on her mission

Sister Reddy dressed Sister Schindler in the red sari that Sister Linton purchased in Trinidad from an Indian store

The companions trade clothes - a Diwali dress-up day at the Linton's apartment