Out To Play

Finally, the last day of Songkran.

Pui, Pot, and I went over to Stan's and Mem's, and then from there I took Pot over to Bob's Bar-Be-Que to take part in Songkran. His restaurant sits at the intersection of Pattaya South and Third Roads and is a hub of Songkran festivities.

I said before that I can't stand Songkran... and that's true because of (a) the carnage, (b) the inconvenience, and (c) the length.

The 40,000 accidents that occur in Songkran is actually a number that is off by a factor of 10 or so, since those are only the accidents that are reported to the police. For every accident that requires the police's attention, there are 10 accidents where the victims get up, wipe off the blood, pick up their motorcycle, and drive away. Hell: I saw 3 accidents today, where motorcyclists got caught looking at people throwing water at them instead of where they were going. Blam. Fortunately, the speed of driving during Songkran is a lot slower, so the accidents are mostly skinned knees and palms.

Pattaya is a "Songkran destination" for Thai people, and Songkran happens on different days throughout the country, so Pattaya begins celebrating on the first day that Songkran is celebrated anywhere in the country, and finishes celebrating on the last day. Thus, this year, there were 8 days of Songkran in Pattaya.

Well, if you are in the mood (which I was today), Songkran can be a lot of fun. The big club across from Bob's had put out a DJ and they were playing dance music, and there was a crowd of maybe 200 people dancing in the streets, throwing water, and having a good time. A steady flow pickup trucks in the street filled with water throwers ensured that there was always a target for throwing water at, and always someone throwing water back.

I supplied Pot with one of Bob's water pistols, and got him to do some firing at some of the other (older) kids, but when they fired back at him, they were always aiming strong streams of water straight for his face, and Pot couldn't master his own weapon well enough to make a showing, and lost interest rather quickly.

Bob put out some hotdogs and chili, and Pot and I had lunch and watched the revelers. After that, it was back to Stan's house to pick up Pui, and then home for a shower.