Thailand
 
 
 
 
 
 
Tues 19th April

SONGKRAN DAY - THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT. We had decided that we were going to get wet today. So it was sandals, swimming shorts and sleeveless t-shirt.. We wandered up the street but had barely got out of our hotel before we got our first soaking, and our faces covered with a paste-like mixture. There were three main kinds of soaking, those with man made items such as water pistols, water guns and water pipes, a gentle sprinkling of water over the back of the neck, and a bowl full of water thrown over you. Needless to say we were the unwilling recipients of all three on more than one occasion. We were brave though, and managed to get to the safety of the shopping centre where we sat down for a while in the sun and dried off. Damp, though not soaking, we wandered round the air conditioned centre for a while before treating (?) ourselves to a KFC. We reasoned that as they had plastic seats they wouldnt mind us sitting in their restaurant. Then it was time to join in the celebrations so we braved it back across the road and received a few soakings before settling down in what we thought was the safety of a bar. The bars each were blaring out their own music and the bar girls were dancing at the end of the bars soaking each other and generally having a good time. It was like watching a wet t shirt competition where all the ladies, boys, and ladyboys (!) joined in. I only say that because one obvious ladyboy was strutting about with its jacket open baring all its falseness for the world to see. Never mind a water pistol, where's a real one when you need it. Sure enough though, we were soon the victims of a soaking again. But this time the swines had used ice cold water. That sent more than a shiver down my spine but luckily the beer numbed it somewhat. Worse news was to come as the clouds covered the sun and the temperature dropped. Still the party raged on, still the soakings came, and still the beer went down. Many an hour was passed having fun until we decided it was time to go back to the hotel where they were having their own party. Unfortunately it had started to rain so by the time we got back, the party had finished. We did manage to commandeer a water gun and some small buckets and a big barrel of water though so we took great pleasure in soaking passers by, be they on foot, on bike or on the back of a van. Beer continued to flow as freely as the water and we had great fun in the rain, just like being back in England! Here's us kids at play.
Time passed by and eventually I had had enough. Enough water and enough beer. Time for a hot shower and to get dry. It wasn't late but it felt it. Tim and Dave partied on a bit but there again they are younger than me!