After all the island hopping in Thailand it was time to hit the mainland again and so we headed back to Bangkok for a couple days where the Thai New Year was still being celebrated in form of the WATER FESTIVAL or "Songkran Festival" which is the Sanskrit word to move or change.
The year according to the Thai people is 2554 (after Buddha). The celebrations were absolutely mental in Bangkok---during the water festival everyone throws heaps of water and soaks each other with water in whatever way possible. Giant water-guns were being sold everywhere and every single person out of the tens of thousands around Khao San road were absolutely saturated! It was a mad party on the streets with booming music and people dancing on stages. It was absolutely impossible to avoid getting soaked ourselves or painted up with a flour-like paste that the locals of all ages were spreading on everyone. They were all very friendly about it and it was great craic although we looked like monsters out of a horror movie by the end of the night!
This went on for at least 3 or 4 days and nights and every morning the street cleaners would be out trying to tidy up and wash away the remnants of the party from the night before--a very filthy time to be in Bangkok I must say! There were also street parades with big floats and giant blow-up dragons--very cool. We spent one day immersing ourselves in the celebrations (well, not as immersed as some) and another day we went to the big shopping center in Bangkok which was crazy. It had such amazing things but I was looking forward to making a few purchases without having to barter like mad for it; however, even the stores started off with items being way over-priced so they could negotiate down like a market setting. I must say I'm exhausted of bartering now, I can't wait to get things for the price they really are! We also saw a movie in the cinema at the center where before it began, everyone stood up and did a salute to the King of Thailand while a song played and clippings and videos of his life were on the big screen for about 5 minutes--very interesting!
The year according to the Thai people is 2554 (after Buddha). The celebrations were absolutely mental in Bangkok---during the water festival everyone throws heaps of water and soaks each other with water in whatever way possible. Giant water-guns were being sold everywhere and every single person out of the tens of thousands around Khao San road were absolutely saturated! It was a mad party on the streets with booming music and people dancing on stages. It was absolutely impossible to avoid getting soaked ourselves or painted up with a flour-like paste that the locals of all ages were spreading on everyone. They were all very friendly about it and it was great craic although we looked like monsters out of a horror movie by the end of the night!
This went on for at least 3 or 4 days and nights and every morning the street cleaners would be out trying to tidy up and wash away the remnants of the party from the night before--a very filthy time to be in Bangkok I must say! There were also street parades with big floats and giant blow-up dragons--very cool. We spent one day immersing ourselves in the celebrations (well, not as immersed as some) and another day we went to the big shopping center in Bangkok which was crazy. It had such amazing things but I was looking forward to making a few purchases without having to barter like mad for it; however, even the stores started off with items being way over-priced so they could negotiate down like a market setting. I must say I'm exhausted of bartering now, I can't wait to get things for the price they really are! We also saw a movie in the cinema at the center where before it began, everyone stood up and did a salute to the King of Thailand while a song played and clippings and videos of his life were on the big screen for about 5 minutes--very interesting!
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| Des just about to get shot! |
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| The after-math |
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| Flour-paste face |
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| Clean-up the next day |
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