BangkokReady

Absolutely, if you have that choice. Many foreigners and Thais living in Thailand do not.

Not all foreigners have a choice, nor do Thais who don't want to be soaked while they go about their daily business. Songkran happens all over Thailand. It is not isolated to Pattaya.

"The defiant will be punished for their actions!" Wow! You're so chilled out, positive and in harmony with nature!

Because you don't really understand what you're reading? Can you explain how I might be "the pot calling the kettle black"?

Yep. Why?

Are you suggesting that I am in any way claiming that what the Turk did was OK?

Just as there will always be people who feel the need to insult people who have different experiences or opinions to them. ????‍♂️

Well, you engaged with me and continue to do so. You can stop replying any time. This would be a wonderful analogy, if it reflected the truth of Songkran. You can go on pretending that Songkran is only as you describe it, even when others say their experience is different. I doubt anyone could tell you otherwise. It's clear that the truth of what actually happens means little to you. I guess when the truth conflicts with what you need to believe in order to "live in harmony", you cannot accept it and anyone who disagrees must be labelled a "misery". ????‍♂️

Probably, but what does that have to do with anything?

People who share different experiences of life to you. By being negative, refusing to accept the possibility of them experiencing life differently to you, by needing to pretend other people are a particular way in order to not have to listen to what they say, is evidence of a negative attitude. You have no idea whether I am miserable or not. The fact that you feel the need to label me as miserable, that you need to pretend that I am miserable, in order to engage with what I am saying, shows that you do not live a life of harmony. A better way, is to accept the fact that you might be wrong.

You. You're claiming that Songkran is good based on your personal experience of it and ignoring the fact that other people have completely different experiences to you. It has nothing to do with being miserable. It's about ignoring the truth because you don't like it. What does this even mean? I'm saying that not everyone gets a light spray of water during Songkran, some get a bucket of water over them. This has nothing to do with you not being me.

Still have the religious festival. Still have organised water fights. Stop the people in random places throwing water at people just going about their day who don't want to be soaked. Plenty of Thai people don't like the last part, they're just a lot more quiet about it than foreigners are.

You clearly don't, as is demonstrated by your attitude. You pretend to live in harmony with Thais, then you lie and insult others when faced with anything negative about them. Or stay indoors then moan about it online, as many Thais do!

As in my other reply, you don't know how everyone experiences Songkran. You can insult and shame people for not wanting to be soaked with water as they go about their day. You can lie and pretend that the things people complain about don't happen. But we know the truth. Your experience is not the experience had by everyone. The fact that you cannot accept that and instead have to insult people says a lot about you and your attitude to Thailand, Thai people and other foreigners.

What you don't understand is not everyone can stay indoors for three days straight, nor should they have to. If your choice is to either stay indoors or leave the country, that isn't realistic, therefore you don't have a choice whether you "attend" or not.

But you must realise that you aren't the only person in the world, right? Other people exists and have different experiences. Just because you happened to only experience a light spray of water, doesn't mean that is everyone's experience. What I mean is, someone saying "I don't like Songkran" because when they went out they got a bucket of water thrown over them and they then had to go home and change, is very different from you saying "I actually don't mind it, you should try it, you might have fun" after being lightly sprayed by water. Try to realise that your experience of the world (or Songkran) is not necessarily the same as other people's.

Don't go where? Outside? I disagree. People should be able to choose whether they get plashed with water or not. I realise that this is the perspective you view things from, but you have to be aware that the people you communicate with may see things in a slightly more nuance way.

No one would be at fault in this scenario. That's your opinion and you're free to express it. I think people should have the right to choose not to be soaked if they wish, but personally I would simply prepare myself for the eventuality of being hit by water.

Anybody's eyes. You can think it's stupid or you can think it's the best thing ever. Up to you. Sure, some people like it. Some people don't. I advise staying indoors through Songkran, to avoid selfish people that don't care about whether you want to take part or not. If you're a tourist and your holiday happens to be during Songkran, I'm not sure that is practical. How do you "willingly attend" something that happens everywhere anyway?

Clearly not. Please read the comments you reply to before replying.

It's not the same at all. The tomato festival (which actually takes place in Spain) involves one fight that lasts for an hour in the town square. It isn't days long and people only get pelted with tomatoes if they willingly attend. Agreed, but what does this have to do with describing the tradition as stupid?

????

A nice idea, but I can't imagine many Thai people stopping to think about how a foreigner might feel about being pelted with water before doing so. It would be interesting to see a Thailand where it happened though. "Maybe we should think about how foreign people feel about things that to us seem fun but to them might feel like assault." It might make the place a bit boring and less cheerful. An annoying thing to happen, but not a proportionate response from the Turk. Perhaps both Thais and foreigners alike need to be reminded of what will happen in the festival and how different people will feel differently about it.

It's tough for Thai people to go from a high level of subsidisation protecting them from price/cost rises for decades to normal annual increases, but some things have to come to an end.

Constantly for 40 years, or once 40 years ago?