The Songkran festival is celebrated in Thailand as the traditional New Year’s celebration (their New Year doesn’t start at Songkran, just the traditional celebration of what used to be the new year). However this is a New Years celebration with a massive twist…everyone – and I really do mean EVERYONE – absolutely soaks each other all day! It doesn’t really matter if you are young or old, anyone is a fair target providing they are on the street.
The New Years festivities last from the 12th to the 16th April this year, which is the hottest time of the year, right at the end of the dry season. In Thailand if a holiday falls over a weekend (aka a day that they would normally have off anyway) they switch the whole thing around and add these days onto the holiday! I love it.
I am in Chiang Mai for the Festival, as I was told that this is THE place to be! It is amazing: there are stages set up around town and everyone is just throwing water over each other and going crazy! In the main part of the Old Quarter there have been large stages set up by some of the local airlines: Air Aisa and Bangkok Airways. They have various members of their staff (well I am guessing here, but they did look like Air Hostesses) standing on the stage and blasting the passers by with MASSIVE water cannons and hosepipes. It is brilliant! Everyone is soaked and everyone is involved somehow.
I got brave with my camera and concocted a sort of waterproof bag (using a carrier bag that I found no visible holes in) for it to go into so that I can take it out to the front line! It worked for a short while, but I had to abandon the idea in the end as the bag was getting condensation and I didn’t want to break my camera.
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