Every year, during its driest period, Thais celebrate in the coolest way possible – by splashing water on each other.
The Songkran festival, Thailand’s traditional New Year celebration, fixed on April 13 to 15, Â coincides with the country’s hot season, and while it is traditionally a spiritual ritual as a way to give good tidings to elders and family, today’s Songkran is more of a nation-wide water fight involving Thais and tourists alike.
And while there’s no other place like Thailand to celebrate Songkran, Singapore’s unofficial Little Thailand in an old shopping centre in Beach Road is one place to get as close to the wet wildness and fun of the Thai New Year.
With Singapore’s official Songkran celebrations slated to go dry in a bid to conserve water amid a prolonged dry spell in the country, Little Thailand’s unofficial Songkran celebrations should offer some excitement.
For the uninitiated who have yet to celebrate the Thai New Year at Golden Mile Complex, let alone Songkran, it’s no walk in the park.
Celebrations at the shopping centre usually last two days and is at its peak on a Sunday, when most of the workers have their day off. Hundreds will turn up with bottles, pails and water guns in a bid to soak and get soaked. Children will attempt to pour water from the upper levels on passers-by, so look up and beware if you’re not in the mood for a soaking.
Here are a few tips to enjoy the water festival indoors without spoiling the fun for yourself and everyone else.
1. Play nice. Water guns are not traditional, but they certainly are fun. Get yourself one but the common courtesy is that you don’t aim for people’s faces. You wouldn’t like a Super Soaker CPS 2000 blasting point-blank to your face, so be kind. Aim for the body, smile and say sawatdi pi mai (Happy New Year in Thai, though it’s more traditionally used for the January 1 New Year. But it’s still cool.)
2. Protect yo’self. So what if you’re up for a re-contract and upgrade on your data plan with a new phone. Protect your phone and other valuables in zip-lock bags or army utility pouches. If you’re at a Songkran festival, you’d be dumb to get annoyed for getting water splashed on you. It’d be like going to a designated smoking room and complaining about second-hand smoke.
3. Dress right. It’s a water festival, but this is indoors. The shopping centre’s flooring is mad slippery when wet, and we saw two old men slip and three kids slam their heads hard on the floor last year. And if you’re a woman, avoid white. It’s a water festival. Obvs!
4. Enough is enough. A splash here, a spray there. That’s cool and all. But don’t be obnoxious and splash people while they’re eating. Avoid splashing the elderly and when you’ve hit someone with your Super Soaker and they don’t look like they need more of it, stop. Don’t be a moron. Use your common sense and EQ.
Here’s a look back at Songkran 2013 in Singapore’s Golden Mile Complex.
