Songkran in Chiang Mai

Posted by Arda on June 24th, 2007 filed in Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand, Activities, Thai Culture, Thailand travel

By Andrew Bond

Fun, fun, riotous fun! That’s probably the defining character of a nation known for injecting enjoyment into almost everything it does. ‘Sanook’, as the Thais call it, should be part of everything, whether its singing karaoke, sharing somtam or celebrating Songkran with a solid splashing!

Good grief! How does one describe a 100,000 person water fight. Utter mayhem perhaps, a frenzied drenching of an entire city, even absolute delinquency comes to mind. This April, from 13th to the 15th, the intensity of the hot season will once again be broken with a week-long water battle that brings the country to halt and allows everyone, from weary old-timers to mischievous kids, to enjoy themselves. Work is abandoned, village children take to the roadsides with buckets of water and the city centres are beseiged by an army of foot soldiers armed with day-glo water-guns and no apparent mission other than to drench everyone around them. Tourists lucky enough to be in Thailand at the time usually agree that they have experienced nothing quite like it before, anywhere else.

But Songkran – the traditional New Year in the Thai Buddhist calendar – was never always like this. In the same way the Christmas wasn’t originally about chirpy carols, santa-suits and a shopping frenzy, Songkran has evolved commercially as Thailand has ‘grown up’ during the past thirty years. What was once a traditional gathering of families, spring cleaning and merit making has been turned into an all out water fight that is famous the world over. It all started from a traditional gesture of tipping small amounts of water onto the left shoulders of others and wishing them a happy new year, but a thorough drenching in the stifling tropical Asian heat is certainly far more ‘sanook’. Today’s Songkran is a riot of enjoyment.

And Chiang Mai is reputedly one of the best places in Thailand to experience it. Not only is the city centre ideally sized for the event, with a square mile of old-town lanes abundantly supplied by the waters of its ancient moat, but it’s one of the most relaxed of the Thai towns. The city also has a long legacy of traditions that provide more than just a water fight, and includes some fascinating Songkran ceremonies such as the sand chedi building competition, a Governor’s Parade which attracts a colourful array of hill tribe and village finery, plus several stage events and processions, such as Miss Songkran Chiang Mai and the lustrating of the Buddha. To appreciate what traditional Songkran was really like we look back through the earliest or childhood memories of some Chiang Mai residents. Tourist info on Chiangmai

Mariwan and Narongsat, a couple in their late thirties remembers the water fights were quite different twenty years ago. “There were much less cars then, we didn’t drive around with big buckets of water splashing everyone, and no congestions” Mariwan tells me. “And there were no farang then, just Thai people, anyway we stayed in the village in Hang dong and the splashing went on from 7th to 15th, now I think everyone goes into Chiang Mai and it’s only three days”. Indeed, the city has become famous in recent years and attracts a large influx of Bangkokians. The roads circumnavigating the moat become a virtual gridlock of people and cars from 10am through until 6pm and even the main artery routes feeding the old town are backed up. Many of the vehicles are pickup trucks full of friendly locals and large buckets of ice water. “ that is the worst these days”, says Narongsay with a laugh, “ the ice water really can hurt, we never used that in the old days”.

Today’s Songkran is a kaleidoscope of bright pinks, oranges and lime greens. Water pistols and cannons come in all shapes and sizes and are so disposable that they change hands several times during the chaos. Even the uninitiated visitor can pick up a whole arsenal of water artillery, and a cold beer for ‘dutch courage’, from the enterprising vendors everywhere and arm themselves to the teeth with everything from a tiny handgun to a massive pump-action staff complete with 10 litre backpack reservoir. But this is all a relatively new addition to the fun. Naronsay points out that when he was a kid they made do with plastic buckets and bamboo pumps. Ironically, these very ‘pump’ guns have changed little in design and remain one of the most effective drenching machines available. The leaks have been patched by modern injection-mould engineering and they are so powerful that they are now banned. Which of course means they are still widely available and only subject to occasional police confiscation, but they can and do knock people clear off their bikes – you have been warned!

Escaping the water is the biggest challenge. Prepared to be continually soaked for three days straight, as no one is spared. “I go home to visit my family and stay inside” says Om, a delicate accounts student. “It’s impossible to even go to the nearby 7-Eleven without some naughty child splashing me, really! I’ve had enough”.

If you want to avoid the water and get involved with the traditions then head for Wat Jet Lin and help the children building sand chedis.  Billed as the ‘largest sand stupa in the world’, the chedi(s) are reinforced with woven bamboo and decorated with the colourful tungs – vertical flags that represent different districts but in this case used to represent zodiac signs. This particular activity is great if you’re here with the kids. It’s surprisingly dry and a good place to leave the little tykes for the afternoon. Pichit, an eight year old school boy told me (in English!) all about his experiences last year, explaining how he and his friends built a chedi bigger than his dad and it took all day and then his friend Uan (nickname for ‘fatty’) accidentally fell on it and they all thought it very funny.

Harry, an expat who has lived here on and off for twenty years, tells me he never misses the ‘Girls riding Bicycles’ competition that takes place at Thapae gate on the first day. Nothing better expresses the elegance and old fashion appeal of Lanna ladies than a ‘peleton’ of beauties in their traditional outfits and gracefully cycling along with a famous borsang umbrella in their hand.  Other than that, he particularly mentions being dragged by his wife Noi, to their local village temple on Wan Nao (day-two ‘rest day’) where they make merit by releasing fish and sparrows. “It’s the same every year, nothing changes at the temples, year after year the old traditions are observed, it’s timeless” he tells me.

Another time-honoured parade is the lustrating of the Buddha, which proceeds through the city and down Thapae road on the first day, Wan Sangkhaan Luang (Day of ‘old year flowing away’). Khun Somchit, a tuk tuk driver, explains to me how much Thapae road has changed since he stood on the same corner near Wat Bupparam in  1982 when he first moved to Chiang Mai from Phayao. “There were many people, but less than this. And it’s still the same Buddha – the one from Phra Singh temple”. “Every year I come here to throw water to the Buddha, many people come every year to see this Buddha, maybe for good luck!”. He points out a few buildings that weren’t there back then, but says that this part of Songkran hasn’t changed much, just more modern clothes and cars. Thailand culture

I also spoke with ‘Ajarn’ (a friend whom I know by no other name) who is a cultural guide with the Sunday morning Chiang Mai cycling club. He says that these days Songkran is much more than before, and they now arrange special cultural events with folk singing, Lanna cultural performances, bai sri (flower arrangement) contests and traditional drumming at Wat Loke Molee and Wat Phra Singh. “They never used to have this as much, now is more organsied, I recommend this one to the tourist”, he says.

Khun Natida is perhaps a little old for a Thai version of paintball, but she was present last year on Wan Phaya Wan (day three – The Prince of Days) at the provincial parade to pay respects to the governor. “I come every year with my village” she explained. “every year for twenty years accept the year we took care of our new granddaughter”. “Yes, we are proud, we are from a village near Om Koi, do you know where that is? We left at 5am this morning to arrive here by 10.” Khun Natida was an elegant women in her Northern pencil-skirt with it’s distinctive orange and brown weave that identified the whole troupe of women from her district. With their parasols to shade the cruel sun, and banner announcing their village, the women patiently shuffled along the hot street enduring endless ‘squirts’ of water and maintaining their dignity while youth banged a enormous ceremonial drum. One of the men approached me offering me some Lao Khao - a fiery local spirit out of bottles with several pickled snakes inside. The procession went on for hours with an intrguing display of floats and people. This is the one time and place where you can avoid being water cannon fodder and experience the more sedate and respectful splashing of Songkran. Periodically old timers gently approached me and with a mischievous but friendly smile upturned a small silver cup of water over my shoulder. Now that’s how Songkran’s water activities once were!