Songkran

So I was excited!  since the 11th, people had staked out strategic spots
along all but the smallest roads.  They were armed with buckets, hoses, and
water guns, and would douse any passing moterist with water!  In the half
kilometer to the grocery store, I got water thrown at me three times!  But
starting on the 13th, all would break loose....

Thursday the 13th dawned clear and hot -  perfect weather for songkran!  The
kids and I  skipped school for the day, but there was no sleeping in!  We
were all up bright and early preparing to join the crowds of water-throwing
people.  The top/canopy of the truck had been removed, so we now had full
access to the passing people... and they to us.  There were 10 of us in our
group.  The wilsons, me, and 5 thai friends.  The guys rolled two 50 gallon
drums into the back of the truck and we filled them with water.  We then
gathered all the buckets and dippers we could find.  Of course these
preperations were by no means carried out in a business like manner, and by
the time we were ready to go, we were all more wet than dry.  After a prayer
and a quick group photo, we were off!

Duang was our driver, but the rest of us were crowded into the back of the
truck.  As we zipped down the super highway (freeway) we battled other
truckfulls of people also headed to the epicenter of songkran - the old
chiang mai moat.  Before we got to the moat though, we stopped and bought
two HUGE blocks of ice.  they barely fit into the drums.  That's right, we
were going to douse everyone with icy water!  Duang eased the truck onto the
three (sometimes 4) lane, one way, moat road, and we were immediatly
surrounded, and soaked, with flying water.

We gamely joined in the fray, tossing icy water at surrounding trucks,
motercycles, and pedestrians, and enjoying their shocked looks as the water
hit them.  I'm sure they enjoyed our looks too as their icy water hit us!  I
got more than my share of water being a ferang (westerner) and a girl.  I'd
hear someone shout, "ferang!" and I'd have to brace myself for water hitting
me from what seemed like 16 different directions.  And there were those thai
guys that would come grinning up to the truck - which was barely creeping
along due to traffic - and pour icy water over my head!  how nice of
them.... It seemed like I'd barely get the water wiped out of my eyes when
I'd have to do it again! My poor face even got sore from continually wipeing
water from it.

The road was packed with trucks, motercycles, and thousands of people.  
There was literally no empty pavement anywhere!  Looking the lenght of the
moat all I could see was a sea of people... and a sea of water-flying in
every direction.  Then another bucket of water slapped my face and there was
no more looking.

The moat is set out in a square shape, and we'd barely gone around 2 sides
and had had to refill our barels several times.  When they got low, we'd
form a bucket brigade amid flying water, and refill them from the moat.  As
we drove along, our truck got more and more crowded - we kept picking up
friends.  They'd see us and hop on.  So after a while I had to sit on the
roof of the truck.  This was good in some ways, in that I was above
everyone's heads and could throw water easier.  but it did also make me a
prominant target...

At 1pm we headed to the inside of the moat, where all the venders were set
up, to eat lunch.  All the waterfighting was on the outside of the moat, so
we could eat our lunch realitvly dry and with free entertainment across the
moat.  Soon we were back into it, but soon the veteran sonkran fighters were
ready to head home.  Me being the newbie, was not.  So I Joined my friend
Yui on the streets.

She and I fought through the crowds, and I discovered that it was a whole
different water fight from the ground.  With only a small bucket of water,
one had to conserve unless you wanted to be constantly running back and
forth to the moat.  That is unless you wanted to join a "gang."  So Yui and
I did.  these "gangs" stake out spots along the street, have their own
barrels of ice water, and work together to keep water in supply, and get
passing people wet.  The "gang" we joined had several ferang guys in it,
which was a big plus for Yui.   Hey, any of you single guys out there want
to date a really cute thai girl who speaks good english?? lol  
Unfortunatly there was this really annoying drunk thai guy who kept dousing
us with the icy water.  onece is ok, but 10 times is enough.  So we headed
off.

All to soon it was time to head home.  Yui's group - students from Methang
where we go to church - dropped me off at home.  I was cold, dirty, my hands
and feet looked like prunes, and I had a fantastic sunburn.  But I had had a
blast!  If any of you visit thailand, make sure you come in the middle of
april for songkran!  Anyone want to help me start Songkran in the US?  God
bless - Sha