It’s REALLY hot here in Chiang Mai. We’re in the hottest season of the year in Thailand; tonight my thermometer in our room reads 90 degrees w/ 39% humidity. It can be a bit much…oh west Texas dry heat, how I miss you! Thankfully though, the Thai New Year just so happened to be last week.
The entire country celebrates with a water festival that lasts for 3-4 days! So from Tuesday (although most kids couldn’t resist a Monday off from school) through Thursday, everywhere we went outside, we had to be prepared to get wet!
Here’s how my brother Matt describes our brothers’ Songkran experience in Pak Chong:
Here’s
how it works: All eight of us guys (and sometime a bunch more), pile
into the back of a pickup truck. We grab all of the squirt guns, water
pails, and at least one large trash can or bin we have previously
purchased. Make sure everything is loaded with water and then head out
to the middle of town. First thing you do once you’ve made it in town
is stop by a person who is selling large chunks of ice and proceed to
buy at least two. Stir the large can or bin that contains the water
and ice and then drive slowly down the main strip squirting, throwing
water, and jumping in and out of the bed of the pickup. The street is
so congested that the vehicles just crawl along while people are
throwing water everywhere and laughing. All along the way there are
stations where people are filling back up on water and buying ice. The
Thai people also like to come up to you and gently smear a mixture of
flower and food coloring (and sometimes incense oil) on your face.
After a few hours of this you get pretty tired, but it has been quite
the experience and a lot of fun.
This month our days are spent helping the staff at Wongen Kafe, just across the street from Chiang Mai University. The owner (and our host here), Emmi Khanthana, has opened this cafe as a place where customers (like university students) can come to practice their English conversation skills, enjoy some amazing smoothies and also have the chance to begin to know the humble Christian staff members. When we’re not serving brownies and smoothies, we’re using time to pray, worship, sing to the Lord and then go over to campus for lunch and to make new friends.
Leigh @ Wongen Kafe
For Songkran, we prepared thousands of little baggies with candies and tiny cards from Wongen. So while the cafe was closed for the New Year holiday, we took to the wet streets to pass out goodies and spread the word.
pics that Tiffany took of Songkran…it looks like crazy fun right?!?!
Happy Thai New Year, hehe….I think we should do this in America this summer…who’s up for a water fight when I get back?!
