Songkran in Patong Beach Phuket

What a fun day! Loads more photos here:

• Songkran 2009 - Patong Beach - Phuket

See you next year!

 

Songkran is nearly here!

Woohoo! Some people do get a bit excited about Songkran, all that water throwing and wet tshirts, a chance to party, throw water at people who would normally kill you for it, but can't do anything because it's Songkran!

I live in Phuket, which does not go as crazy as some other places for Songkran. We just have one day, April 13th, for waterfights, then back to normal, except the 13th - 15th are public holidays, so all banks, government offices etc.. are closed.

IMPORTANT... Everyone travels around Songkran, and since Easter Sunday is the 12th you have double holiday trouble. If you are coming to Thailand in the next few days and do not have hotels booked - BOOK A HOTEL!




Try looking at LateStays.com for good deals - links below for Thailand hotels:

Bangkok Hotels
Chiang Mai Hotels
Phuket Hotels
Pattaya Hotels
Koh Samui Hotels
Krabi Hotels

Enjoy Songkran!

 

One month until Songkran!

Yes, Songkran 2009 is just around the corner, just one month before the wettest of all celebrations, the Thai New Year, aka Songkran. I am sure by Googling you can find out that "Songkran is a Sanskrit word in Thai form which means the entry of the sun into any sign of the Zodiac. But the Songkran in this particular instance is when the sun enters the sign of Aries or the Ram. Its full name is Maha Songkran or Major Songkran to distinguish it from the other ones.".. see Thailand Life. You can also find out that "This is the time for Thais to pay homage to Buddha images, clean their houses, and sprinkle water on their elders in a show of respect.".. see Songkran in Thailand.

Traditional Songkran

A show of respect... I think to appreciate the older and traditional aspect of Songkran you have to maybe visit a temple in the morning of April 13th, or if you have some local friends, all that traditional stuff goes on behind closed doors. We will take out our Buddha images and clean them, the kids do Songkran activities at school and a couple of years ago we attended a turtle release ceremony at Nai Yang Beach in Phuket.












Crazy Songkran

It seems to me that the tradition has all but been swamped by the other side of Songkran - waterfights, water throwing, alcohol, one big party all over Thailand. In Phuket (home), this only lasts one day. A couple of years ago, the local authorities decided one day of water fights was plenty, so it's only on the 13th of April. In Chiang Mai it goes on for days. This means you have to be in the right mood for days. I can handle a day, don't mind getting wet for a day, shutting the office for a day, partying for a day, but a week is crazy indeed. If you go to Chiang Mai for Songkran, be ready and don't say you weren't warned! No point getting angry when someone throws a bucket of ice water all over you and follows it up with a smear of wet talcum powder.









I'm happy to be in Phuket for Songkran and just have a day of fun, and be reasonably sure of being safe from drenchings on the 14th... Looking forward to it already!

(All Photos © Jamie Monk)

More Songkran photos on Jamie's Phuket blog:

• Songkran 2008
• Songkran 2007

In Thai, the word Songkran is สงกรานต์ - You are forgiven for writing Sonkran or Songran or Soncran or Songcran. After all, this is Thailand!

 

Songran is just under a year away!

if you like a day of fun, Songkran is a great time to be here in Thailand. To give you an idea of what goes on, here's a few links to photos from previous years...

Songkran 2008
Songkran 2007
Songkran 2006

 

Songkran 2009

This is just a placeholder. You can see these blogs for Songkran 2007-2008

Songkran 2007
Songkran 2008