Songkran

While we were in southern Thailand, the festival of Songkran or Thai New Year was going on. This is a multi-day event to celebrate the New Year based on the southeast Asian calendar. Water is thrown during this festival traditionally to symbolize cleaning and renewal and to show respect. Now it is done mostly for fun and big buckets or water guns are used. It is particulary nice to throw water since this is the hottest time of year in Thailand (the temparatures can get above 100 degrees!) A chalk paste is also rubbed on faces during this time as a blessing. Shawn and I were both blessed but did not get water dumped on us (I was kind of hoping to though!)