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Sabai Sabai

SongKran !!!

Buddhist New Year Celebration

Chiang Mai, Thailand
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli
Note: These pictures were taken with a waterproof disposable camera. I would have been a fool to venture out into this with my digital camera.

It's two days before the official beginning of The New Year's SongKran Water Festival.
Water guns, buckets and back pack water supplies are for sale everywhere.

Everyone in the whole town joins into the fun.
Traffic is backed up all along the main roads adjacent to the klongs and water is retrieved from the klongs behind them. These moats surround the Ancient City of Chiang Mai.

Here's a closer look at locals retrieving water from the Klongs that run along side the Ancient City of Chiang Mai.
They claim they change the water before the festival to be sure it's clean...

Hey Mister with the camera....Don't mess with US! Grrrrr!

OK...How about a truce for a picture?
Notice the ammunition water pack on the girl in the upper left of the photo.
Water guns are attached by plastic tubing.

The streets are soaked and so are most of the people.
How much do you think that umbrella is helping the woman on the left?

No matter, the Thais always have a smile. Clean family fun!

It's Nuts out here! Everyone joins in. There is no protection, no escape!
It's a way to escape the heat and bring on the rainy season.

Oh wait! Akaisha finds protection but who's watching MY back?!!!

They were watching and waiting for me to turn around. Gotcha!
Sometimes there are LARGE ice blocks in the barrels of water. Makes for an icy splatter!

Older Farangs get involved, loading up their water guns from 'loading stations.'
There's that huge ice chunk in the bottom right hand bucket we mentioned before.

The Lucky Bar's finest. Thais and Falangs dancin' and carrying on.

Dancing teams gyrate to the pounding beat from huge stereo speakers. These teams switch every 10 minutes or so.

The Royal Thai Army also get into the festivities.
They make sure no one is hurt and things don't get too far out of hand. Respect and fun put together!

Look at the size of her "gun". She's ready to shoot!

Driving around in the soap suds, buckets full and ankle deep!

Billy amid the bubbles!

What cleaner fun could there be?

Streets are jammed packed with traffic of every sort.
The suds machine and the dancing girls are on the right, shops are on the left.

For 6 days this goes on. Nothing and no one stays dry!

Mom and the kids in the back, Dad's driving the truck. Another big ice chunk in the blue barrel. It's Family Fun!

Happy New Year!!!!!

A Drenched Billy and Akaisha continue to journal and photograph their world travels.

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