A splashing good time

SONGKRAN HAS arrived and as ever, there’s plenty to do during the holidays. Below are some venues and services that promise to bring happiness and make life just that little bit more convenient.

Celebrate the traditional way
Get set for a colourful Thai new year as the Tourism Authority of Thailand brings its “Songkran Splendours: Amazing Songkran 2017” to Bangkok.
Running at Benjasiri Park today and tomorrow, the festival in divided into four zones, each with demonstrations of culture and cuisine. The first zone is where visitors can pay respect to the Buddha image and experience the ceremony in which respect is paid to elders through the pouring of water onto their hands by younger family members. There will also be workshops on making scented water and flowers.

At Bangkok’s Benjasiri Park, various cultural performances and traditional arts from the country’s four regions are on view.

The next zone focuses on the myths and culture associated with Songkran in each of Thailand’s regions such as Pee Mai Muang in the North and Boon Duen Ha in the Northeast region. The third zone is where delicacies from all regions of Thailand can be tried, including summer favourite khao chae – steamed rice in jasmine-scented iced water served with savoury accompaniments.
The event’s main stage in the last zone will feature shows by various artists, Thai blind boxing and a Miss Amazing Songkran International Beauty Contest. For information about the different Songkran Splendours and festivals taking place in the rest of Thailand, visit www.TATNews.org.
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration also hosts Songkran celebrations at Khon Muang Plaza in front of City Hall until Saturday, with a focus on traditional culture. The highlights include today’s procession of the sacred Phra Buddha Sihing image from the National Museum through the streets of old Bangkok to the plaza's temporary shrine.
People will have a chance to pay their respects to the image before it is brought back to the museum on Saturday. The city will also arrange a morning alms-giving ceremony involving 191 Buddhist monks tomorrow as well as a traditional ritual in which young people pay their respects to the elderly and ask for their blessing.

Staying dry and cool 
If the summer heat is a put-off, stay cool in Bangkok’s shopping malls and enjoy the activities being organised to keep you entertained and dry. 
Siam Paragon in downtown Bangkok, has “Songkran Wonderland 2017” where visitors can pay their respects to nine ancient Buddha statues associated with Thailand’s gracious Kings, which are on loan from the National Museum, before going on to enjoy contemporary Thai music, witness a loincloth fashion show presented by top Korean male models and indulge in a unique food festival. The event continues until Sunday at Parc Paragon and Hall of Fame.

 

At Siam Paragon, visitors can pay their respects to nine ancient Buddha statues on loan from the National Museum.
The Culture Ministry together with the Fine Arts Department, and the Department of Cultural Promotion add to tradition with the exhibition “Thai-Style Songkran: Efficient Use of Water. Save Every Life” reminding Thais and foreigners alike of the need to conserve water.
Central malls nationwide are hosting a range of activities including free concerts and foam parties.
Terminal 21 on Bangkok’s Soi Asoke takes visitors back to the good old days with a retro style decor and Thai traditional dance, khon and puppet performances.
Until April 19, visitors will have an opportunity to sprinkle water on a Buddha image and shop at old-style markets. 
Paradise Park Shopping Centre on Srinakarin Road celebrates Thai New Year with “Buddha Bhucha Maha Songkran Festival” until Sunday. You are invited to pray for blessings and sprinkle water onto nine replicated prominent Buddha images in Thailand such as Praya Sri Suthiyo Nakarat from Kham Chanok Forest and Ong Thep Thanjai from Myanmar. Traditional Thai cuisine along with recreational and entertainment activities are also featured.

Songkran on the sand 

If you’re planning to go to the South, some of the big names in electronic music will be performing at the Paradise Island Festival being presented by London-based Soundcrash on Koh Samui on Saturday and Sunday.
The music and arts festival right on Chaweng Noi Beach promises plenty of splashing accompanied by music from top bands and DJs from around the world. The line-up includes hip-hop royalty the Pharcyde, drum-and-bass pioneers Goldie and LTJ Bukem, Krafty Kuts, Maribou State and DJ Kentaro.
The event also features boat parties and classes in yoga, tai chi and Thai cookery. The eco-conscious Paradise Island Festival provides a great alternative to the full-moon parties popular among the islands, with its added focus on art and responsible tourism that involves working closely with the local community on projects such as reforestation. 
The festival on Chaweng Noi Beach will run from noon to 2am on Saturday and Sunday. Admission costs Bt2,800. Get more details and tickets at www.ParadiseIslandFestival.com.

Koh Samui hosts the Paradise Island Festival with electronic music and arts.

Bangkok’s Sukhumvit Soi 23 shows off its “beach” as neighbourhood destinations Craft, Whisgars, Slanted Taco and Little Wine Bar welcome the festival with a beach vibe from tomorrow until Saturday, daily from 2pm to late.
Street performers, DJs and bands will entertain amid a flow of refreshing wines and cool craft beers from around the world. Craft will boast a “Lost Coast Tap Take-over” with reduced prices on Downtown Brown, Great White, Tangerine, Winterbraun, Alleycat, Arrgh, Sharkinator and 8 Stout. Whisgars will offer creative cocktails and Little Wine Bar will have more than a little wine. As for food, there’ll be great Mexican dishes from Slanted Taco.
“The Free Man Show” will keep eyes popping with jugglers, fire dancers, daring acrobatics and magician Sagar. The music comes courtesy of the Fab Four tomorrow, the Vintagers on Friday and Yamin on Saturday. There’s no charge for joining the fun. Find out more at www.CraftBangkok.com.

Now there’s an app for Songkran fun too 
There’s even a smartphone application for the fun-filled fest to help you to navigate the routes where Songkran festivals are held. GlobeTech, provider of the Nostra Map Thailand location content for smartphones and tablets, recently unveiled a new layer to its maps. It shows updated information and recommendations on tourist attractions worth visiting during the festival.
The data include more than 35 water-splashing events across the country, complete with navigation guidance. Among the destinations are Wat Phra Chetuphon, Wat Arun, the Maha Raj pier, the Yodphiman River Walk, Phra Pradeang in Samut Prakan, the140-year-old Lanna house in Chiang Mai, Phang Nga Road on Phuket, Khao Chae Road in Phetchaburi, and Khao Hang Road in Sakhon Nakhon.

You can stay dry at home and order your favourite foods via smartphone thanks to the delivery app Lalamove.

If you don’t want to go far away from Bangkok, the Songkran tradition at Phra Pradaeng in Samut Prakan is very different to those found in the rest of Thailand. The celebrations here take place a little later, on April 21-23. There will be a range of cultural activities taking place including a spectacular floral procession, a parade of the local Mon people in their colourful traditional outfits, folk plays and cultural performances.
You can download the map for free at http://map.nostramap.com/download, compatible for iOS and Android.  

No need to starve at home
You definitely need something to eat, but there are thousands of people in the street throwing water around. Fortunately there’s an alternative “solution” when it comes to being hungry during the Songkran festival. Pick up your smartphone and hit the food-delivery app.
Hong Kong-based on-demand delivery app Lalamove is among the choices to please hungry customers who want to stay dry and dine on non-soggy food at home during Songkran.
Lalamove Purchase Service enables customers to order consumer goods or food, with the driver paying for items and being reimbursed on delivery. You can place an order of up to Bt1,000 in total value, meaning that, with Lalamove those who want to eat well yet avoid venturing out to a restaurant or go shopping can do so.
A simple tick to request a free “Food Delivery Box”, found under “Additional Service” ensures door-to-door deliveries arrive via Lalamove bikes with a specially designed box that keeps all the contents dry. And that’s another must for any delivery through Bangkok’s wet Songkran streets.