The original plan was to be in Bangkok for the Thai New Year but due to the riots and the general political unrest I have decided to skip BK for now after an advice from a local lady that Songkran (that is how the Buddhist New Year is called) celebrations will most likely be cancelled. So I stayed in Ayutthaya for the night instead and got up at five in the morning to witness the Songkran Buddhist ceremony of alms giving and water spraying by high monks. I participated so I should be healthy and merry for the rest of the year! Before the morning ceremony was over the 'real' Thai week-long celebration began - water fights on the streets all day long.. spraying or throwing buckets of water on innocent passer-bys on foot, motorcycle, cars, trucks, anything really. From the morning till the late evening. And the next day. And the next. And...
It is quite refreshing to be soaked by a bucket of ice cold water (they actually use large ice blocks to get the water temperature well down) in the midday heat. When you're riding a motorbike it is less fun and I witnessed a couple hitting the asphalt pretty hard. (Every year Songkran claims a few lives this way!) I however did not ride my bike until early next morning when most of the people were just getting ready for another day.
I have left Ayutthaya for Kachanburi on the famous River Kwai where I spent another two nights in a similar way. On the fourth morning however the 'fun' ceased to be fun and I got quite pissed off with some of the people when being hit full in the face after kindly requesting a little indifference. I might have shown someone a middle finger too (a westerner, so it's ok) which was due to the troubles with my bike that did not resolve themselves after two long days of motorcycle maintenance. Oh well..
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