18
FAHTHAI
STOPOVER
highlights
SONGKRAN (13
—
15 APRIL)
Songkran, one of the most important festivals
on the Buddhist calendar, is famous for its
water fights. There is a spiritual side beyond the
fun, as families prepare for the New Year by
tidying their homes and paying alms to monks
and the poor. When those duties are done,
adults and children take to the streets armed
with water pistols and buckets to drench their
friends and neighbours in a symbolic ritual
cleansing of the body.
PII MAI LAO (13
—
15 APRIL)
Like its Thai counterpart, Pii Mai is a three-
day New Year’s celebration that culminates in
Laotians soaking each other as part of a spirited
street party. Some people select white powder
or cream as their projectile of choice, as it
symbolises purity and renewal.
CHAUL CHNAM THMEY (14
—
16 APRIL)
In Cambodia, the solar New Year and coming
monsoon are welcomed with a slightly less
raucous three-day celebration. On the first two
days, Buddhists tidy up at home, donate money
and food to the poor, and visit temples to make
merit. The third day’s ritual cleansing generally
takes the form of washing the feet of one’s
elders in perfumed water.
HOLI (17
&
18 MARCH)
During the Hindu festival of Holi, fistfuls of
brightly coloured powder called
gulal
are lobbed
at friends and strangers and loaded into water
pistols, turning the streets into a riot of clashing
pigments. The festival welcomes spring and
celebrates the triumph of good over evil: Holi
embodies hope, optimism and forgiveness.
1 _
JUHU BEACH,
MUMBAI
Join in the colour-soaked
Holi mêlée at an all-day
party on Juhu Beach,
north of Mumbai. Beat
the heat with a dip in the
Arabian Sea or by sipping
a refreshing
thandai
, a
sweet mixture of milk
and almonds spiked
with cardamom and
saffron. Some of the gulal
pigments are indelible, so
you’d be well advised not
to wear your Sunday best.
2 _
CHIANG MAI
Seal your mobile phone
in a watertight bag
before you head out to
Thailand’s most famous
Songkran celebration on
the streets of Chiang Mai.
The festivities go on for
six days instead of three,
and some sections of the
city are closed to traffic,
creating a vibrant street-
party atmosphere.
3 _
LUANG
PRABANG
Pii Mai Lao celebrations
can last more than a week
in Laos’s cultural capital.
Highlights of the festival
include colourful street
parades and a beauty
pageant where Miss Lao
New Year is crowned.
Soak up
the fun
March and April are the hottest
months in India, Thailand,
Cambodia and Laos, which helps
explain why water plays a central
role inNewYear celebrations
Check out our
destination
guides on page
97. Bangkok
Airways has
regular flights to
Cambodia, Laos
and Mumbai
HOLI REVELRY
Spring petals are
thrown over a
woman dressed
as the consort of
Lord Krishna
P A N O R A M A
Make the
most of it
TEXT: ARWEN JOYCE; PHOTOS: KEVIN FRAYER/ASSOCIATED PRESS, REUTERS
Main
Event
