Bringing Krishna Culture Festivals to a City Near You

Submitted by mrdas on Mon, 09/10/2007 - 20:27
Tour Diary

Arriving in Toronto, we pulled up beside the solid stone church built in
1896 (the year of Srila Prabhupada's appearance) there we camped for a
couple of days before departing for center Island with a rental pick up
truck to assist in conveying each item of FOI equipment across the impasse of
the bridge that separates the passenger ferry landing from the open areas of
the island.
Three days of intense labor had us ' ahead of schedule'

Saturday morning most of the crew joined the parade marching / dancing/
chanting down Younge street in flawlessly sunny conditions.

Shortly thereafter, on the island the entertainment began as
extraordinarily long lines pointed in the direction of the cooked - on -
site Free Feast. Then rain began to fall. Not to dampen the spirits of the
eager crow who simply moved beneath the tent tops and the trees. Soon the
rain subsided though the air had become cool.

Still, Lord Jagannatha's radiant smiles benefited everyone. Dances were
danced, Kirtan were played, and other musical performances and dramatic
presentations captivated all. With more of the same on Sunday preceded by a
fire sacrifice and vows, the whole week end seemed as quick as a lightening
flash. The impact, however, can not be estimated in sense of time.

"A reverse of the set up procedures had every piece of equipment back over
the bridge in the pick- up then to the FOI truck and secured.
By mid-day Monday we began the long haul / a transcontinental Canadian
crossing.

The next festival was in Calgary, Alberta but 2100 miles of roads separated
us from our service.