Bangkok's Songkran: Water Fights at Siam Square
After moving to the guesthouse I'd be staying at in Bangkok, I waited for the friends I was going to Songkran with. They were the younger cousins of K, a friend I had made earlier in Chiang Mai. Songkran is a holiday period in Thailand similar to the Lunar New Year in Korea, so everyone goes on vacation. People usually head to resorts, but since they had a baby, they said they went to the beach.
After waiting a bit at the guesthouse, I got a message on Line. There were three of them in total, all relatives and college students. We exchanged quick greetings and headed straight to Siam to enjoy Songkran. To properly enjoy the festival, you have to go to the designated areas set by the city of Bangkok. I didn't have that information, but my friends looked it up and told me the events were at Siam and Khaosan Road. We decided to hit up Siam during the day.
Even on the way to Siam, people were already splashing water at each other. The entire city was completely soaked, as if it had just rained. The closer we got to Siam, the larger the crowds became, until we reached the main road where cars were completely blocked off and everyone was just blasting water. We each grabbed our weapons, filled them up, threw on our sunglasses, and roamed the streets of Siam.
Friends praying before joining the Songkran festival. If you visit Bangkok, taking a moment to pray is a great experience to try.
We wandered around the streets for a bit, but you can't fight on an empty stomach, right? So we ducked into a little restaurant in an alley to grab a bite.
The portions were a bit small, so we just went inside a mall to grab some snacks. As a heads-up, you have to empty out all your water before going indoors. They set up huge buckets by the doors so you can dump your water out before heading inside.
Most of what I shot at the Songkran festival was video, so I uploaded it all to YouTube. The videos are much more realistic and fun. To just briefly describe it in writing: if you splash water on a random passerby, they just smile and splash you right back. Kids and adults alike all excitedly join in the water fights. If you're wondering where to travel with young kids, I highly recommend coming to Songkran with your family in April. I think it's the only country and time of year where kids can playfully splash water everywhere and everyone just laughs it off. Getting hit with cool water under the blazing Bangkok sun, you'll eventually find yourself shivering and trying to escape indoors. During this period, people will even splash water onto tuk-tuks and buses, so it's best to just wear a swimsuit everywhere and avoid carrying any non-waterproof electronics. Also, the water-splashing events only happen in the Bangkok area; other regions don't splash water and host different festivals instead, so you shouldn't just go around splashing water anywhere else.