Holi festival © Nuno Valadas/Getty Images
The ancient Hindu festival of Holi will find revelers caked in these colorful powders by the day"s end. Also referred to as the Festival of Spring, the Festival of Love, and the Festival of Colors, Holi is celebrated during the full moon in the Hindu calendar month of Phalguna, which falls around the middle of March in the Gregorian calendar. This year it"s March 18. Holi symbolizes the triumph of good over evil and celebrates the beginning of spring, the end of winter, and the blossoming of love in all forms. It"s a time for affirming friendships, burying old grievances, and letting romance bloom.