Burning Santa

and our last day in Fort Cochi... its new years so we may try to find a party
...
there's a big carnival tomorrow
which is why we've stayed
and tonight at 12 they burn a giant effigy of Santa
yes Santa
which is symbolic of burning the old year out
being done with the past
but why Santa?
...
and along the streets a few kids have made effigies of Santa... and are doing a penny for the guy thing like we do for November 5th... funny that both our Guy Fawkes and their Santa get burnt
... and bth are an excuse for kids to beg where otherwise begging would be out...
and there all manner of santas appearing all over town... skiing santa, happy family santas, tightrope-walking santa, moped santa... mostly municipal santas... though the drunken santa, shabby and sprawled and surrounded by bottles, in a field in the middle of backwater nowhere, yesterday, wins our votes ...
and its full moon, and the police are out in force... the hotel owners of the town were called to a police meeting, where they were warned to warn tourists to look out for "untoward incidents..."
...