Day 64 - In yesterday's post, I included information and photos about the first day of the Thaipusam festival in Georgetown. The procession was heading to the Waterfall Hill Temple.
We went to see it today. Rapid Penang ran special shuttle services from the Weld Quay (Jetti) terminal. There was a bit of a queue but we were aboard one within 10 minutes. We took our neighbourhood #301 downtown first. We left here at about 9:20 AM but were walking toward the temple area by about 10:50.
Thaipusam is celebrated by the Tamil diaspora in many places. I've heard that this event is the second largest in Malaysia, after the Batu Caves outside of Kuala Lumpur. I saw figures that about 1.2 million devotees and guests participate in this one. Some domestic and foreign visitors come.
The entire area was filled with vendors and the rush of people colourful and intense. We passed the chariot and slowly ventured towards the steps up the hill. Of course, shoes must be removed in the temple itself, but most climbed the steps barefoot. Some Hindu adherents may have made vows to carry special offerings or undergo hardship on the trip up the mountain. That is why one can see some carrying milk, or lugging heavy admornment.
It was pretty warm today with clear skies and temperatures of about 32C. That means going up the hill was tough. There was one path for those heading up and a separate path for the returnees. That helped an orderly progression of hundreds of visitors per hour.
The main upper temple was large and prayers were still going on. Because of tonight's unusual lunar eclipse, prayer time will be cut short this evening. Since the procession arrived last night, people have been coming and going and will continue to do so.
The trip down was pleasant with a visit by some of the smaller, furry inhabitants of the hillside. We had a late lunch downtown and we got home late in the afternoon.