Celebrate Songkran (Thai New Year)

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Thai New Year or Songkran happens astrologically in April usually around the 14th in western calendars, but for convenience the celebration period has now been set as the 13th to the 15th. Celebrating the festival traditionally involved ceremoniously washing the Buddha statues on display in temples then sprinkling the same water over the hands of their elders and the theme of throwing water continues today - though now it is much more of a national water fight with people carrying water pistols and water bottles to douse people they meet. Real enthusiasts will stand in their front gardens spraying passers by with a hose or go to a town centre for an all in water fighting, dancing, alcohol and the resulting good laugh (Khao San Road in Bangkok is one of the biggest sites and quickly deteriorates into a drenched and talk covered mob of dancing bodies.). Water fights aside, people still visit temples with offerings for monks and clean shrines in the home, believing it encourages good luck. It is also a time for cleansing be it physically or mentally in the form of making new years resolutions and a good excuse for a family get together (which could be more interesting due to the water throwing.). Songkran is also celebrated in Cambodia, Burma, Laos (though there it is called Lao New Year) and in the Yunnan Province of China.

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