Songkran in Phuket

This year I spent Songkran holidays in Phuket with the family.

Songkran is Thailand 3 days long new year's celebration which happens between 13-15 April and this year it corresponds to year 2551 according to their calendar. For Thais, Songkran is the biggest and longest holiday break where most people will come back to their hometown and celebrate the new year with the whole families. Its bigger than the December's new year celebration, it's similar to Xmas, Easter in the western world and Lebaran in Indonesia. Most shops, banks and offices will be closed during this period allowing people to go back home. However, despite being celebrated in April, Thais simply change their year number (from 2550 to 2551) together with the international calender, ie in last Jan 1st, not in April 13rd.

Nowadays, Songkran is mostly known by people and tourists for its water splash festival where people are pouring, splashing, throwing, shooting other people with water in almost any open public places, and off course you cannot be mad. If well prepared (mentally and physically) people of all ages enjoys this water splashing war. Many shops sell big water guns, forget about small squirt gun, aim for the big bazooka blast with pump tanks, you will enjoy it. These water guns will cost you around 80 - 400B ( 2-11 US) depending on the size.

Usually this water war starts after lunch until dawn and you better properly protect your belonging (eg wallet, camera, mobile phone) if you dont want them to be wet, and yes, you will be completely soaked wet from head to toe. Sometimes I feel sorry for tourists who just arrive in Thailand during Songkran holidays, many were shocked, angry and clueless why strangers in the street, Thais and non Thais, were throwing water to them, I hope their passport were not damaged.

Therefore, if you plan to have a short holiday in Thailand, less than one week, unless you specifically come for the festival, dont come during Songkran for 3 good reasons : first, you cannot walk freely in the street without being thrown a bucket of sometimes-cold-water, second, many of the shops, banks, travel offices are closed hence you have less things to do, third, many of the tourist destination areas, eg zoo, national parks, beaches, down towns are jammed packed with people, both tourists and locals.

Most of the wars happens in the street, especially in a crowded intersection, where many people travel in open pick up trucks throw water at people in the street and at other pick ups vice versa.

I cannot take pictures of this water war in Phuket because I dont have a proper protection for my Nikon D40 and I cant afford to let it broke. So I just grabbed a Songkran photo in the Internet (http://www.patong-beach.com/).