2014 Songkran FAQ (long)

[tropo]

Positively SPOT ON! I had a friend die last year from jerks throwing ice water. She died taking evasive action and was hit by a pick up. I'm getting out of town again this year.

This will be referenced by SixPack in next year's edition.

[MJCM]

^ this should be added in this years edition. !!!

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

Edited March 2, 2014 by MJCM

[Hippos]

Great read. Thanks.

[tomyumchai]

anyone got any info on riding a bike down to koh chang for the 10 days? i need to get the hell out of town and if anyone rubs grinding paste into my £60 helmet visor then ill be forced to do things that wont end well for me and the agressors......

[JSixpack]

^ this should be added in this years edition. !!!

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

Yes. If the mods will open the post for editing, I'll stick it in. Otherwise it'll definitely be in there next year!

[tropo]

^ this should be added in this years edition. !!!

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

Yes. If the mods will open the post for editing, I'll stick it in. Otherwise it'll definitely be in there next year!

Am I the only one who is skeptical about the authenticity of that story? Sure we know it can happen, but it is presented in a very casual way.

[lakecross]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

[tropo]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

You probably didn't read the OP.

He's covered your type already and explained quite clearly the purpose of this thread. If you enjoy being Songkraned for 10 days in a row, then make your own thread about how wonderful you think Songkran time is and how to enjoy it to the fullest, with constant thoughts about how bad life was for you back at home. (I'm obviously not in the same boat as you as I enjoyed my life back at home just as much as I enjoy it here - maybe more). Comparisons to back-at-home don't count much for people who have lived here for many years and call this their new home.

This thread was designed to help people who hate Songkran and a way to let off some steam.

Go away! Let us whinge in peace.

[lakecross]

I read the OP and commented on it. You can't forbid people from posting who don't agree with your opinion. This isn't North Korea.

[tropo]

I read the OP and commented on it. You can't forbid people from posting who don't agree with your opinion. This isn't North Korea.

LOL. You just told us to lighten up. Perhaps you should too.

[bobo42]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

Freedom or anarchy? While I agree with your basic sentiment toward the nanny state to a great degree, I beleive that advocating for most songkran "bad behaviour" would be more an advocation of anarchy. How far should the cutoff line between freedom and anarchy go? What if I excercised my "freedom" by shooting dead anyone who threw water at me? You would certainly think that that behaviour should not be tolerated, right? Many of us simply beleive that songkran pushes that line way too close to anarchy, and away from a more reasonable state of freedom.

[JSixpack]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

Already covered.

"Have YOU had a motorbike accident yet? No? Well, how about your posting a liability insurance bond first to pay for my hospital bills, just in case. No?"

Q: But it's just a lil' inconvenience, heh, heh.

Q: f u dnt lk Songkran, u dnt lk pty & tIlnd!

[Ihatenoiseinthailand]

What about people putting acid In water?

[tropo]

Many of us simply beleive that songkran pushes that line way too close to anarchy, and away from a more reasonable state of freedom.

More than a belief actually. It's a fact that most long-stayers have witnessed and experienced first hand during Songkran.

I wonder how the "please lighten up" poster would react if he was cruising down a side alley on his bike late at night during Songkran, after shopping for groceries, only to be assaulted by a bucket of ice water.

There's one thing taking a day off and joining the "fun" when becoming wet is expected, but quite another when sadistic ***holes go out of their way to make life for others as uncomfortable as possible and expect to get away with it.

In the case above the Thai ice water thrower did not get away with it. The guy on the bike got off and dunked the Thai guy's head in his own container of ice water. He was very upset over this, but he had no right to be. Was it a smart thing to do? No, most definitely not, but sometimes when you're attacked you don't think before you react.

I make an effort to stay away from the reveling not only to stay dry, but to stay out of trouble. The above incident happened near midnight on a quiet side alley well before the 19th. I was making a huge effort to stay away from water throwing.

[JSixpack]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

And the Thai permanent residents who also hate the 10 days of Songkran? Most do, you know.

[Keesters]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

Many have died or been seriously injured as a result of Songkran. Tell their families that it was a part of Thailand's price for freedom.

[tropo]

This thread has gone very quiet.

Less than a month to go now....

[tropo]

anyone got any info on riding a bike down to koh chang for the 10 days? i need to get the hell out of town and if anyone rubs grinding paste into my £60 helmet visor then ill be forced to do things that wont end well for me and the agressors......

There is another way to cope. Stay in Pattaya and buy a 150 baht helmet to use for the duration. Limit your trip out of the house if you're scared to ride with a hat instead of a real helmet.

[MrWorldwide]

I miss central Patts, for all its madness, but I wont miss Songkran one little bit. The Thais are welcome to it

[WinnieTheKhwai]

This thread has gone very quiet.

Less than a month to go now....

Yeah. Personally, I can't wait!

Counting the days down like I used to in the run up to Christmas.

(Won't celebrate it in Pattaya as it kind of sucks there, but I think it's the only Songkran topic running currently. )

[MrWorldwide]

Winnie, I think you have a point - wouldn't it have been better to have a central Songkran 2014 thread for everyone ?

[JSixpack]

Winnie, I think you have a point - wouldn't it have been better to have a central Songkran 2014 thread for everyone ?

No. Pattaya's Songkran deserves its own thread and you see how long the OP is already. Songkran is celebrated differently in different areas--all over Thailand. And there's just not much to say about most of them. I suppose you're welcome to start a Songkran Everywhere But Pattaya topic in the General forum if you wish.

[Phil Conners]

Be nice if Phil Conners will put up a helpful Google Map again this year of the hotspots.

Certainly - here you go: http://goo.gl/uWR7jz

However, as I also mentioned last year, this is just an empty map, without your input it is not going to be very useful. I will try to update it as I can, but as I am very busy with private projects at this time it would be a great help if anyone wants to volunteer as collaborators. Feel free to send me a PM.

[MrWorldwide]

Winnie, I think you have a point - wouldn't it have been better to have a central Songkran 2014 thread for everyone ?

No. Pattaya's Songkran deserves its own thread and you see how long the OP is already. Songkran is celebrated differently in different areas--all over Thailand. And there's just not much to say about most of them. I suppose you're welcome to start a Songkran Everywhere But Pattaya topic in the General forum if you wish.

Fair enough - I'll get on it.

[lakecross]

Some of you guys really need to lighten up. Think of how boring life back home is, how dull and monotonous and full of bureaucracy and red tape it is. How everything is prosecutable. Everybody hates the nanny state, or should hate it; you aren't free.

This is the other side of the scale, admittedly, but there are too many timid and overly-sensitive posters on here. A few accidents and infections are a small price to pay for freedom.

Freedom or anarchy? While I agree with your basic sentiment toward the nanny state to a great degree, I beleive that advocating for most songkran "bad behaviour" would be more an advocation of anarchy. How far should the cutoff line between freedom and anarchy go? What if I excercised my "freedom" by shooting dead anyone who threw water at me? You would certainly think that that behaviour should not be tolerated, right? Many of us simply beleive that songkran pushes that line way too close to anarchy, and away from a more reasonable state of freedom.

Shooting somebody can't in any way be considered playful messing about. Throwing some water on somebody can. It's the necessity of accountability some people seem to demand that annoys me.

[lakecross]

I wonder how the "please lighten up" poster would react if he was cruising down a side alley on his bike late at night during Songkran, after shopping for groceries, only to be assaulted by a bucket of ice water.

By your tone I'm guessing you're suggesting I'd be annoyed. I wouldn't at all, probably the opposite. It's possibly just personal preference, I find life is very boring in countries without these sort of abnormal events, traditions, customs. Maybe I'm over-accustomed to the mundanities of life. Or maybe you're boring.

Possibly comes down to age, maybe I'll be as miserable as some of you guys some day.

[MrWorldwide]

Possibly comes down to age, maybe I'll be as miserable as some of you guys some day.

IME, it comes with post count - get out while you still can, son

[JSixpack]

I wonder how the "please lighten up" poster would react if he was cruising down a side alley on his bike late at night during Songkran, after shopping for groceries, only to be assaulted by a bucket of ice water.

By your tone I'm guessing you're suggesting I'd be annoyed. I wouldn't at all, probably the opposite. It's possibly just personal preference, I find life is very boring in countries without these sort of abnormal events, traditions, customs. Maybe I'm over-accustomed to the mundanities of life. Or maybe you're boring.

Possibly comes down to age, maybe I'll be as miserable as some of you guys some day.

Already addressed & answered in the FAQ:

Q: f u dnt lk sngkrn ur a stick-in-the-mud.

Q: i luv my tats & pty sngkrn!

Go read the FAQ and stop trolling and wasting time.

You still haven't addressed the contradiction that Thai residents of PTY also don't like Songkran for 10 days. So it's not a matter of being bored with life abroad and there's no reason whatsoever to expect any resident of PTY to enjoy a Songkran of 10 days here.

Name-calling won't cut it, either. See the FAQ.

[tropo]

I wonder how the "please lighten up" poster would react if he was cruising down a side alley on his bike late at night during Songkran, after shopping for groceries, only to be assaulted by a bucket of ice water.

By your tone I'm guessing you're suggesting I'd be annoyed. I wouldn't at all, probably the opposite. It's possibly just personal preference, I find life is very boring in countries without these sort of abnormal events, traditions, customs. Maybe I'm over-accustomed to the mundanities of life. Or maybe you're boring.

Possibly comes down to age, maybe I'll be as miserable as some of you guys some day.

I'd bet money if you were in my situation, cruising down a side alley after 10pm, well before Songkran day when most people were not throwing water, with your shopping, you would be annoyed.

It's easy to sit in front of your keyboard and act like a hero. Sorry dude, I don't buy it.

If you need water thrown on you to alleviate your boredom in life, you must be an extremely boring person, or a person with huge personal issues.

Yes, we get it. The streets are crowded with people like you over the Songkran week, so you're not the only one....

Water throwing for 10 days in a row is extremely boring to most normal people. I feel that people who consider this fun (for 10 days) have mental deficiencies. Yes, for a day or two maybe, if you haven't got anything better to do, but for a week and a half???

You're implying that you're still young, so you could use that as your defense - you still behave like a child.

1 Corinthians 13:11

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.

Edited March 19, 2014 by tropo

[WinnieTheKhwai]

We get 4 days in Chiang Mai, that's just about right. Especially as I can't keep at it properly for four days straight.. need to take a breather at least one of those days. (These days the downtime day is also the kid's day. That's when daddy behaves himself, and makes sure the kids celebrate safely and appropriately. )

And yes, in Pattaya it's all over the place. I actually think Chonburi should stop this madness of trying to do the festival at a different time from everywhere else. All it does is create confusion and annoyance, drags it out needlessly and there's never really a single day when everyone is committed. Not to mention that they don't stop at night, which is also annoying. And then finally there's the Farang (and some Thai) hooliganism factor, where people just lose all common sense.

Edited March 19, 2014 by WinnieTheKhwai