My favorite meal this week was the Pongal feast I ate at their house. The feast included green beans seasoned with coconut and mustard seeds, sambar (a lentil-based vegetable curry with tamarind), rice, sakkarai pongal (a sweet rice pudding), yam, vada (a deep fried savory snack that is made of black lentils and spices and is shaped like a donut), pumpkin, avial (a thick vegetable stew seasoned with coconut), banana, appalam (a crispy rice flour chip) and a kaju katli (a sweet that resembles the texture of marzipan or fudge but is made of cashews, butter and cardamom).
When I go on runs, I listen to music by Chappell Roan, Childish Gambino, Milli Vanilli, Lana Del Rey, and SZA. There was a Pongal celebration at my apartment complex, which included a dance performance and Kollywood music (similar to Bollywood music, but in the Tamil language while Bollywood is in Hindi).
This week was Pongal, a four-day harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu. The festival celebrates the Sun, Mother Nature and farm animals.
I celebrated Kanu Pongal, which is the third day of the Pongal festival. On Kanu Pongal, I helped assemble a kanu pidi, which includes balls of mixed rice placed on turmeric leaves. This is left outside for crows and other birds to eat. Crows are believed to represent strong family bonds.
The kanu pidi is usually a ritual that sisters do for their brothers. Afterwards, the sisters and brothers exchange gifts.
