Songkran!

Songkran is a huge festival in Thailand. It is the Thai New Year and takes place during the hottest part of the year. This year I stayed in Phet’buri for the festival and had a fantastic day.
Traditionally Songkran used to e monks sprinkling a little water on people’s heads when they visited the temple on the morning of the Thai New Year, nowadays, however, it is a free for all! It basically means that the whole day people everywhere throw buckets of water at each other. Also it is the only day of the year when guys can touch women on the face. They make up a paste of talc or chalk and water and put it on the faces of everyone that gets close to them.
I began the day by visiting a seamstress who was adjusting a new blouse I had bought. Bad move!! As soon as my friend and I turned up we were besieged by children and adults alike, throwing water at us and pasting our faces. I went back to my friends house and we armed ourselves with some rather large water pistols. We then spent a happy few hours downtown in the main market area both attacking people and being attacked. In the afternoon we went to another friend’s house and ended up in the back of a pick up truck filled with her husbands extended family. We had huge rubbish bins full of water and proceeded to ride around town attacking both pedestrians and other trucks with the same plan as us.
We then drove out to a beach close by called Hat Chao Samran and jumped in the sea to warm up!! We stayed there to eat some seafood on mats by the beach and to dring some beer. By the time I got home I was exhausted and went to bed for a happy few hours of blissful sleep! Well earned I think J