The tales of a traveler

Celebrating SongKran in Thailand

christinedrage — Thu, 15 May 2014 01:00:00 GMT

Somehow, when this specific time of the year comes, the whole of Thailand transforms into a giant water fight between, kids, teens and grownups. No point in holding back your inner child when SongKran comes around!

We all bought water guns, preparing for the first fight on the Friday. It was no point in dressing up for going out that day, we were going to fight and wearing bikinis. The Party Street in Phuket is called Bangla Road, and that was our main target. Or at least all the people walking outside close to this area.

Me and my two Aussie roommates Chanelle and Chelsea were preparing for fight, but there was no way we could have been ready for this. We didn`t even have to go two meters outside of our apartment before people started shooting at us. And with three people on one scooter (that was usually how we did it since I was the only one with a scooter), we were soaking wet before we reached the party street.

It was the craziest night I have ever witnessed or been a part of, people everywhere shooting at each other with 3-4 water guns per person, drunk and wet people everywhere and Thai people throwing white painting at everybody that they could reach. Apparently painting someone with white painting on their forehead or face, is a way of blessing the year and their future in Thailand. So of course we ended up being completely soaked, drunk and full of painting that evening. How we got home is a mystery, but I woke up next to way to much McDonalds take-away!

Anyway, just wanted to share the story and some following pictures of that night!

Photos: Thailand

christinedrage — Thu, 15 May 2014 00:21:00 GMT

Khao Sok , Song Kran

Khao Sok

christinedrage — Thu, 15 May 2014 00:09:26 GMT

I will never be able to forget the day I we went on a company trip to this National Park called Khao Sok in Thailand. I lived in Phuket for four months and I have experienced a lot of beautiful Places, still nothing can compare to this one.

Khao Sok is a National Park for tourists that want to see the true beauty of Thailand up close. The king himself picked out the location, and it is possible to rent the Bungalows there for days or weeks. This is truly the perfect place to withdrawal to if you want to take a break from the everyday stress. The only way to get back and forth is by boat, and you feel completely cut off from society. It was like going back in time to a place where everything is simple, peaceful and intact with nature.

I will never forget the first impression I got when we rounded the last corner with the long tail boat. It had taken us approximately forty-five minutes to get there by boat from the harbour, and we were all sweating from the heat and excitement.

In front of us where fifteen big bungalows floating on the lakeside with only water and jungle surrounding the area. As we slowly closed up the space that was left between the quay and us, we were all rocking the boat in excitement. I was the third person to jump of the boat, and I could feel the laths moving as I stepped on to the pier. It was like no other place I‘d ever seen before. Everything was floating on the lake and we had to keep the balance when we were walking.

No matter in which direction we looked, there was water, jungle and small islands everywhere. We could borrow canoes to explore the area, and went out sightseeing on our own for hours. It was truly like living in a childhood dream.

When the sun went down and all the lights were turned off, we could see the night sky as clear as ever, covered by stars. We were lying on our backs for ages, talking about the stars meaning and the different symbols they made, just trying to get it all in.

We also went on a boat safari in the morning, went to visit a well hid Buddhist cave in one of the mountains and spent numerous of hours in the fresh beautiful water.

Khao Sok is the most beautiful place I‘ve visited this far and when people are talking about paradise, I close my eyes and let my imagination bring me back to the floating bungalows on the lake. I know this is a place I will og back to one day, and if you want to see Thailand for what it`s nature is worth, you should visit Khao Sok when you go there!