Songkran Festival and the Water-Splashing Revelry of Thailand

Khao San Road water wars. This photo only courtesy of www.water-festival.com.

Hose your daddy? This photo only courtesy of James L. Stanfield of www.nationalgeographic.com.

In a few days time, I shall fly back to Bangkok, my transit (well, it’s 2 ½ days) to a new country, one that I have never visited before. Little did I know that this little trip – that I booked 8 months ago - will be one eventful journey! My plane lands as Thailand sits in the feverish revelry of the Songkran Festival – the Water Festival celebrated by Buddhists the world over. During this festival, believers are encouraged some few things: merit-making, donate food to the monks, visit the elders, cleansing of the spirit as well as the body and the surroundings (this is when Thais do their spring cleaning as well). As a consequence of all these, a water-splashing ceremony is being practiced. It should be interesting, right? The precepts involve sacred water soaked with fragrances called Nam Ob - not just any available water, and the body painting – with talc or soft chalk solutions – called Din Saw Phong!

However, this frolicky water-logged ceremony has evolved into a mad revelry where people turn this rite into rabid water fights! It used to be just cups poured down your back. Now, kids buy water guns. Adults save up for water sprays. Others turn their water hoses into ammunitions for any one. In the Philippines, the feast day of San Juan has turned a single day into this wet ceremony. I am not such a fan of it, but I am not against it either – as long as I don’t become a recipient of this revelry. It is my prerogative not to get soaked, thank you very much! But everyone else is free to do what they want as long as they leave me alone. Since that isn’t possible every time, I avoid going to San Juan on those days!

Little did I realize I will be where this mad festival is happening at an even more frenetic, pulse-pounding scene than San Juan’s! In Chiang Mai, the Songkran is celebrated with a lot of gusto. It will run for days without letting up. Bangkok will be at its quietest since most Bangkokians return to their provinces to celebrate Songkran with their family. Local transport will be minimal, and traffic will be at its mildest. This signals the Thai-Buddhist New Year. However, the area of Khao San Road (KSR)– the city’s backpacker ghetto – becomes the epicenter of this water-splashing ceremony. This year, Songkran will officially run from April 12 to 15.

Wet wet wet. This photo only courtesy of www.thailandscubatours.co.uk.

Here is my predicament. My guesthouse – which I paid already – is located in soi Rambuttri, which is a major subdivision of Khao San Road! When the world shatters into splashes of summer water, I will be right at its core!

It was a big blunder on my part to have missed this, but it is staring right in front of me. I just don’t want my stuff wet. If I had a week in Bangkok, fine! I may even join and go soak someone. But I’ll be flying within 48 hours and I don’t want to be drying my stuff while in Bangkok – instead of roaming and seeing places!

A situation like this has caused vehicular accidents and even death during the Songkran. Splashing water on moving vehicles has been outlawed. This photo only courtesy of www.tourismthailand.org.

So – I posted a message at some travel discussion board. Maybe – just maybe – this water-splashing would have died down on the 15th, since everything starts on the 12th, right? Tough! Here are the interesting replies straight from the world wide web – a virtual Eye in the Sky!

Read on as I weep:

Captain Bob:

On the 15th it will be a water war zone on Khao San Road and adjacent Soi Rambutri. Walking down these roads, you'd get totally soaked. Since you know where you're staying, get a taxi from the airport straight there and keep the doors locked. Same if you want to go shopping (MBK, Siam Discovery/Paragon) metered taxi and lock the doors. Can't comment accurately if your daytrip will be going (Nakhon Pathom - floating markets?) but anywhere with lots of tourists and a water source could be a soaker. The activity will probably extend to the 16th as well. Wrap your passport/phone/camera in plastic and get ready to duck. Sawatdee Pii Mai!

Cubiclefever:

HA HA! I wish I was going to be there for that, I'm going in May. it seems like such a fun thing - all the photos and videos ive seen all the people look so happy and exited. would probably be a nice way to adjust to the heat too, someone dousing you with water every 5 minutes.

Westwood:
We arrived one Songkran but our taxi couldnt get near Soi Rambuttri so we had no choice but to get out and walk. The young Thais were respectful if we held up our hands and shook our heads but its the Europeans who have no qualms about drenching all and sundry, packs and all.

Scorpio_guy33:

I think you're already toast, you just don't know it.

Billybart:
It is worse on Khao San than in any other part of the city.

Westwood:

They only had to look at us to know we werent young and after a drenching.

Thaibeachlovers:

You will not be able to get a taxi to the hotel door for the crowds. I thought Pattaya was bad, but it's nothing on KSR. Assuming you arrive in the day time, either stay in the airport till late at night, or get crushed, wet and covered in white powder.If you want your pack to stay dry, put it in a rubbish bin liner. You will not stay dry. Re: "The young Thais were respectful if we held up our hands and shook our heads" LOL. The Thais are into it just as much as farangs, if not more.You will get wet anywhere during the day. Young Thai kids lie in ambush everywhere.

Ribblerat:

Hmmmmm. Have a dry set of dud's and t-shirt handy your going to sadly get soaked, just have fun and stop been such a grinch, as other posters have said just keep passport camera and MP3 player in a good zip locked plastic bag and enjoy the festivities,it's only once a year...

(Charming guy, this ribblerat, isn't he? LOL)

Will I get soaked at the Songkran? It will probably be a tricky thing, but I will know in a few days.

Water Festival. This photo only courtesy of www.tourismthailand.org.

Fast Facts:

Buddhists within the region celebrate the same Water Festival. In Myanmar, it is the Thingyan Festival from April 13 to 16, 2009. April 17 is the Burmese New Year. In Cambodia, it is called the Chaul Chnam where transport is at a stand still for 1 to 2 weeks. I know this. I got stuck in Siem Reap last 2007 – so instead of taking the bus back to Phnom Penh then back to Saigon for my connecting flight to Hanoi, I had to take the plane from the Siem Reap International Airport instead. In Laos, it is called the Pimal. Several other neighboring places celebrate this “water festival” like the Tamils of India. Most of these events are celebrated in the middle of the scorching summer!

Painting of talc or soft chalk - din saw phong - should have the permission of the recipeints. This photo only courtesy of www.bangkok.com.

Humans and beasts alike. This photo only courtesy of www.tourismthailand.org.

Water anyone? This photo only courtesy of www.water-festival.com.

Get messy with us. This photo only courtesy of www.water-festival.com.

Here are photos during my actual Songkran experience:

http://eye-in-the-blue-sky.blogspot.com/2009/07/what-songkran-festival-was-like.html

Accommodations in Hanoi, Bangkok and Chiang Mai

When backpacking, finding the perfect accommodation to fit your budget, personal requirements or state of comfort is a tricky business. I am not a picky traveler but there are certain requirements I have to fulfill if I were to be happy with where I will be staying. They have to be affordable. Not necessarily cheap.

“Cheap” connotes grubby establishments that smell, paints chipping off the walls, bathrooms that grow an abundance of mildew, poor ventilation, mediocre security, dust mites from the pillows, musty smelling bed sheets, dark corridors and a generalized second-rate neighborhood. These are what I try to avoid. I need to be comfortable.

I need a place which can somehow help me with my travel arrangements, reserve me a taxi cab, offer suggestions to my itinerary. Little things that, in the whole scheme of things, may make my crossings faster and easier. I prefer air conditioned guesthouses, with good electrical sockets for my camera and cell phone to charge with. I put a premium on cleanliness and comfort. I have to feel safe. And I need a place I can comfortably lay my head down at night. I walk so much when I travel, so I really need to rest well at night so I can recharge well for another hectic day tomorrow. I need clean bathrooms; somewhere I can – hehe – read my Lonely Planet in for 30 minutes without feeling like I need to get out of the bathroom. If they seem like I require a 5-star hotel from my aforementioned manifesto, you’d be so wrong with such assumptions. During my last travel February and March 2008, I stayed in the following hotels, guesthouses and pension houses. The following places were "picked" differently. Some were from online or travel book recommendations which I was able to reserve early. Some were out of necessity. Some were from a previous travel. This entry is my tribute to these establishments which took care of me.

New World Lodge Hotel - 2 Samsen Rd Banglumphu Prana, Bangkok, Thailand - 10200. Located in the heart of backpacker's area, Banglamphu, New World is a few block's walk from the hustle and bustle of the traveling pack, quite hidden from the frenzy. It is located beside the river (though i did not see the riverside from the entrance or from my room). Newly renovated, this hotel is actually a far cry from the guesthouses that congest in the area. Its high-rise building, its elegant foyer, the homey restaurant (Sara) - all these separate this hotel from the rest of the accommodations. It IS a hotel! For a 2-bed airconditioned room with breakfast, the damage was B1,600. I was supposed to stay elsewhere but I could NOT get any rooms in one of the budget guesthouses at Soi Rambuttri. Not a single darn room! So I had to get this one, which is 2-3x more expensive than my original choices. But really now! B1,600 isn't bad! It also has an in-house taxi that you can hire for your airport transfer - for a charge of B300, which is way way cheaper than negotiating for one on your own.

The disadvantage of staying at the Khao San Road-Soi Rambuttri area is its distance from most of the shopping malls and tourist attractions. The advantage - feeling the vibe of a decadent, eclectic mix of tourists from all over the world. This area is a virtual sea of different nationalities.
Most taxi rides from the airport would cost you between B250 to B400, depending on traffic. Tips are optional. A 30-baht tip for the airport ride would suffice.

The receiving room - lounge area near the check-in counter.

Sumptuous breakfast buffet, rate-inclusive at the New World Lodge Hotel, Bangkok.

My 2-bed room at the 5th floor

Pattaya Centre Hotel. If you're planning for an overnighter in Sin City Pattaya, this is a good alternative. Located along a sidestreet in the city center, it's a stone's throw from the baywalk. Google for their rates.

Euro Luxury Pavillion Hotel - 122/23-26 Soi Somprasongruam, Rajrarop Road, Pratunam, Between Baiyoke 1 and Baiyoke 2, Bangkok, Thailand, Tel. no. (662)02-656-3013-14-15.

I found this little hotel out of necessity. I arrived in Bangkok without any reservations and decided to go straight to First House Hotel (which is popular with Pinoy tourists). Unfortunately, the hotel was fully booked... so, I had no place to go in the wee hours of the morning. I walked the dark alleys, and through the sinewy bowels of Pratunam. Near 7-11, I saw a little street that had signs of this hotel. I was my lucky discovery.

In the morning, I didn't realize that I was at a prime location - right in the heart of Pratunam. From the main road of Rajprarop, it is a few strides from Indra Regent Hotel and the Baiyoke Towers. This is shopping central.

Unfortunately for Euro Luxury Pavillion, their establishment isn't an easy find. Most other tourists would stay away from this area. It has a neighborhood of Africans, Arabs and Indians. But despite appearances, it is a very safe place. A tip in finding the place: Look for 7-11. Right across it, is a soi (a side street)! That's where you will find Euro Pavillion!

If you are not picky with your neighborhood, Euro Luxury is a great place. With just 800 baht, I'm surprised this place doesn't get fully booked most of the time I am there. My room had a huge bed. There is a disconcerting smell of incense that lingers. The windows are covered by a thick velvety cloth. The bathroom is spacious - probably a third the size of the room - and clean and dry with new fixtures! Its major advantage is its very central location in Pratunam. I doubt if I could find another respectable place as inexpensive as this one. There are a couple of internet cafes nearby. Narula, the hotel manager, was accommodating. I was just grateful to have found the place at 3 AM!

Tung Tram Hotel. A very popular family-run guesthouse in the heart of the Hoan Kiem Lake District (google it for address and contact numbers), this 16-room hotel is my home in Hanoi.

The people manning the place are always polite and helpful. The hotel is located at a quiet street. Just across the hotel is a temple. I always stay at room 201, 2nd floor - air conditioned, with clean bathroom, and 2 beds. The other empty bed is usually where my luggage sits. At $12-15 a night, staying at Tung Tram is a coup. Teyet, the girl at the counter (who's now married and has been replaced with an equally kind lady), will help with all your travel needs (plane, bus, train tickets, etc.) For my next trip this June, I emailed them early and got no answer. I knew why. I saw their email inbox when I was there. They had an unbelievable backlog of several months! They are unable to constantly check on their reservations that's why travelfish has been receiving complains.

I emailed them again, and finally got a reply confirming my reservations within 2 days! They do reply when they can but it seems impossible to reply to every mail that gets through. My first email reservation last year was through travelfish, and I didn't have any problem. Tung Trang also offers an airport pick-up service ($13) which I would highly recommend! It's safer than chancing on the several scams that permeate arrivals in Hanoi!

My 2-bed aircon room at the Tung Trang Hotel!

Lamphu House. An oasis in the heart of Banglamphu, Lamphu House is a well-placed garden guesthouse, quite hidden from the teeming crowd of Soi Rambuttri. A tip on finding it: the entrance is just beside 7-11 of Soi Rambuttri. My aircon room was 900 baht, with 2 huge beds and a veranda. This felt like a luxury room. A single bed fan room is just 350 baht. All guests would have to pay a refundable 100 baht (for the card key).

The disadvantage: one needs to reserved at least 2 months before your arrival in Bangkok. This guesthouse is almost always full! Upon my arrival in Bangkok (I first stayed at the Euro Luxury Villa hotel), I gave them a ring and I was asked to visit them and pay for my onward-travel reservations. (I had a Bangkok-Yangon-Chiangmai itinerary.) This practice was tedious and defeats the purpose of reservations if you have to go to them first just to pay in advance!

One more theing, they DO NOT accept credit cards! I love the laidback atmosphere of Lamphu, very relaxing! Google for their website.

The view from my veranda at the Lamphu House.

My other unoccupied bed in my room!

My bed - at the Lamphu House! I love the elegant interiors, the wooden floor, the veranda, and huge bathroom!

The restaurant at the Lamphu House!

CM Blue House, Chiang Mai, North Thailand. This guesthouse has nothing but good reviews. I chanced upon this guesthouse from my London-based Malaysian friend Irene. Run by 2 Americans, this amazing place is tranquil- your home away from home! The check-in counter is available (before 7PM) for your questions. They have complimentary maps upon check in. I got a fan room for 350 baht per day. You don't need an AC in cool Chiangmai.

Located in a quiet street from Moon Muang's backpacker area (the street beside the day market), the Blue House has a self-service restaurant, and will arrange for hilltribe treks. Google for their website.

CM Blue House - 30/1 Moonmuang Road. Soi 6. Chiangmai 50200Thailand Tel : 05-341-8511-2Int'L : 66-53-418511-2.

CM Blue House's 2nd floor veranda.

My 2-bed room at CM Blue house.

Umbrella-lantern adorning the ceiling, making the room too dimly-lit for a decent reading! I would sit at the bathroom reading my Lonely Planet.



This is the Eye in the Sky!

Hanoi, Chiang mai, a Golden Mount and Hurting Myself

Dreamy lake. One morning, I woke up to a fogbound Hanoi. I sat down a bench facing the tortoise castle by the lake and waited for the fog to clear, eating custard apple (atis) half the size of my head - fleshy and mouth-watering! A local passerby stopped and "begged" for the other atis sitting beside me. I refused and shook my head. I was hungry.



For those who actually read entries in this blog, I’ve been “trying” to update February and March (2008) entries with lots of (finally!) photos and text entries. Here are a few more photos.

A monk trying to catch their late-afternoon prayers. Moments after, I could hear the monks' chants booming all over the temple grounds - like some distant incongruous haunting spell. Chiangmai, North Thailand.

A monk helps out in installing a blue linoleum floor at the top deck of Wat Saket (The Golden Mount), one of my favorite spots in Bangkok. A good hike up the tower will rewarded you with the magnificent view of Bangkok.

Hurting myself. Upon arrival in Chiangmai, I tried to catch a bus (bus # 41) - instead of a taxi or a sangtheaw - infront of the Chiangmai International Airport. It had been 15 minutes already and it felt like I wasn't going anywhere. I stood with my pushcart, when suddenly, an idea came to me! I started asking at the passing bus where they were headed! Moon Muang (the main backpacker's area) maybe? The conductor nodded, and I jumped and jerked like a lunatic, as though a train was leaving me! Then I BUMPED my hand hard against the handle of the cart! OUCH! That really hurt. I tried not to wince, picked up my 15kg bag at lightning speed, then boarded onto the bus (no.11), standing proud like Captain America.

THAT was so excruciatingly painful! And I sported the ecchymosis for 5 days. I'd look at it on a daily basis, observing the subtle color changes until it gradually normalized. Spoils of war, rite of passage to Chiangmai!

This is the Eye in the Sky!

Surreal Chiang Mai

For several days now, I have witnessed a fascinating sight in the early mornings of Chiang Mai. At about 6AM up to 7, I would sit by the roadside bench and watch as, gradually, buddhist monks, walking barefoot, dressed in their saffron robes and carrying their silver bowls and a lotus flower, do their rounds - collecting alms ("donations") from the locals then blessing them in return. It is such a surreal sight to behold. They wouldnt even have to ask. The locals who need their blessings will just hand them their stuff: gifts, fruits, cooked rice, etc. Though this happens in Bangkok too, the practice goes practically unnoticed in the big city.

At an interactive program in one of the wats called monk chat, I was informed the collected gifts would be taken back to the temples. Though the monks may consume a portion of these gifts, a huge chunk of the bounty has to be shared to the whole congregation. I guess this isn't such a farfetched practice in comparison to the Catholic church's practice. The difference is that ours can't be bothered making the rounds in his community. ;->

This is the Eye in the Sky.

In a few week's time...

I will be in another hectic trip. I have recently renewed my passport (which turned out to be a harrowing experience) and I have so far visited the DFA 3x just for a renewal (can you believe that?). Since i was a child, I have never set foot at the DFA. It was always through a travel agent. Now I gag at the thought of ever visiting the DFA again ... and those darn scourge of our lives - the "fixers"- may they rot in hell! Oops sorry. Got carried away. ;-) (P.S. The next photos are courtesy of some sites on Myanmar.)

On a more personal note, I have noticed that this blogsite has had a good number of hits in just less than a month. I started this blogsite last week of October, just a few weeks after my arrival from the mind-blowing Siem Reap and Phnom Penh of Cambodia; and Hanoi and Saigon in Vietnam. I had the intentions of documenting my solo travel in Vietnam and Cambodia, as well as sharing my travels to help other Filipino travelers with the little details that would help the anxious wanderlust. I didn't really care much if i had readership, although I did invite all my friends to visit this site to share my adventures with them as early as November. This will somehow serve as a journal. Besides, the pics look better when posted here than on an album, I dunno why?!!




Last December - during the holiday respite nearing the recent New Year - I decided to employ a "counter" to somehow document the number of hits. I was awed by the number of hits!!! I honestly didn't think anyone would "visit" besides my friends (I don't think I have THAT MUCH friends who would keep visiting too.) To my surprise, in a span of less than a month, this site actually got almost 500 hits! Deduct my visits (which is once every 3 days or so), it still is a good number for just a span of a month. In fact, just from yesterday, I have had a spectacular 34 hits/"visits" within 24 hours.

In relation to this, if any of you gets to visit this site, please do say hello, and tell me what's on your mind. Would be nice to have a friendly living being making their presence felt. If you have been to an amazing place that needs to be shared, I'd gladly feature it here so we can share them with others. I would appreciate details and tips that would be "useful" to other travellers. As you have noticed, this blog-site is also picture-heavy so I would encourage you to share those photos. I can't promise to post all of them, but I'll pick my favorites.

Lastly, I will be visiting several places in Thailand again (I've been there several times) but the more notable visit would be that of Myanmar (Burma). I just saw Stallone's "John Rambo" (the 4th incarnation) set in Myanmar, which "demonized" the country's situation. Of course I understand that dictatorship runs this country, but it can't be that bad. Either way, I will find out! (As a footnote, go watch "John Rambo", the action is amazing! And Stallone is back!!! Soooo back!)

The itinerary in Myanmar will be pretty exciting: Yangon (the former capital - I recently read that it's Naypyidaw now, some 300 kms from Yangon), Bagan (my most anticipated), Mandalay and Mount Popa. If Cambodia's Angkor boasts of some 50 temples or so, Bagan has an astounding 4,400 temples!!! And I am fraught with excitement!

If any of you has been to Myanmar, I would appreciate any tips! I am posting herewith some photos I saw from my surfing.

And yeah, do say hi!

These last 3 photos were taken from a well documented backpacking all over Asia, especially of Myanmar. Please visit the site if you enjoy GREAT PHOTOS and a prolific retelling of a travelogue: http://willthedutch.blogspot.com/