With the new year upon us here in the west it puts me in mind of the Thai New Year which is known as the Songkran Festival or Water Festival. Thailand has a different calendar than the Gregorian calendar we use in the West and the traditional Thai New Year and Songkran festival falls on April 13th to the 15th.

Historically Songkran was a time to visit and pay respect to elders. A symbolic small amount of scented water would be poured on the elders hands or shoulders as a cleaning practice. In recent times all but the most traditional of people have forgone this practice.

Among Thai’s Songkran is still a time to visit family and friends and many Thai’s will return to their hometown for this festival. In addition, it is considered to be a time for cleansing. The cleansing is thought to bring prosperity and good luck for the new year. People do this by throwing water on Buddha images and also on each other! As I’m sure you can imagine this is the best and most fun aspect of Songkran!

If you have the good fortune to be in Thailand during Songkran you’ll see that everyone gets into the action. Buckets, water bottles and squirt guns of all sizes are used to douse as many people as possible with water. Of course it is all in fun and if you gently tell someone “mai na khrap” they will generally leave you alone.

During the day you will see trucks roaming the streets full of people and water barrels literally drenching people as they drive by. I have been splashed by groups of children as I ride by on my motorbike, by men in suits, by old ladies and even by the girl behind the counter at the 7-11. You’re not safe anywhere, but it all in good fun and everyone laughs and has a great time!

Bangkok is typically quite deserted during Songkran as everyone has left to visit their homes. The biggest (and longest) celebration of Songkran is in the north in Chiang Mai where they have beautiful parades, a Miss Songkran pagent and Songkran has been known to go on for weeks if not the entire month of April. Celebrations in the northeast or Issan region or Thailand are also very lively as many of Bangkok’s citizens come from Issan originally.

While Songkran is observed in other parts of SE Asia such as Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia, nowhere has it gained the reputation and size like it has in Thailand. If you’re planning a trip to Thailand around March/April I highly recommend that you stay for Songkran Festival, I know you won’t regret it!

Has anyone else experienced Songkran Festival outside of Bangkok? I haven’t yet and I would love to hear from you what it was like so please leave a comment.

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