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Pattaya celebrates Songkran with tradition, blessings and water fights
Festival pumps 3 billion baht into local economy
Sattahip Vittayakhom
School won the sand sculpture competition at Ban Saen.
Staff Reporters
Pattaya presented a diverse Songkran festival between April 13 and 19,
ranging from traditional observances such as bathing Buddha images and
offering alms to monks, through to parades for tourists and, of course,
the inevitable water battles.
Many organizations, from both government and private sectors, staged
traditional Songkran activities. At Pattaya District Office, city
employees sprinkled water over the hands of Mayor Niran
Watthanasartsathorn and his deputies and members of Pattaya City
Council, and asked them for blessings for the New Year. After the
ceremony, the city employees, temporary employees and government
department heads totaling more than 1,000 in all threw water over each
other, pasted each other with wet powder, and held a parade.
Central Festival Center organized a Wan Lai ceremony for which Deputy
Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh gave the opening speech and Pol Col Somnuk
Changate, superintendent of Pattaya Municipal Police and Pol Lt Col
Somchai Pongsai, traffic police inspector were also present. Many local
residents attended along with the crowds of tourists to see the
performance of local arts like dancing to the long drums.
Pattaya Mail Publishing Co Ltd organized a water sprinkling ceremony so
employees could request blessings from elders. Peter Malhotra, managing
director of the company gave blessings to all employees, wishing them
good health, happiness at work, and loving each other as family. The
ceremony was simple and full of warmth in the style of the Pattaya Mail
family.
The Garden Cliff Resort and Spa organized a Songkran water sprinkling
ceremony with many elders attending to give blessings to employees, with
owner’s representative Viboon Prakobgosoan and executive assistant
manager Thomas Koh in attendance. After the sprinkling of water on the
elders the employees enjoyed a water fight.
Dusit Resort held a Songkran Night as a treat for guests who were
staying at the hotel during Songkran, which helped to show visitors the
beautiful Thai traditions. The activities included dancing to the long
drums and a Phu Tai dance and other activities.
At Diana Group, managing director Sopin Thappajug organized a water
sprinkling ceremony which was honored by the presence of many elders
such as Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh, managing director of Pattaya Mail
Publishing Co Ltd Peter Malhotra, and assistant director of the Tourism
Authority of Thailand Central Region 3 Office Akkrawit Thapasit, who
bestowed blessings upon the employees of Diana Group.
Meanwhile, tourists enjoying the Songkran festival in Pattaya and its
environs injected an estimated 3 billion baht into the local economy.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand Central Region Zone 3 office estimated
that more than 1 million tourists visited Pattaya City and Chonburi
province over the period April 13-19, and that this would add up to
revenue of 3 billion baht, as many visitors spent several days here.
Police attempted to enforce the rules regarding the banning of water
cannons, but some vendors still managed to sell them to the visitors.
Police and volunteers did their best to keep order without spoiling the
fun.
Pol. Col. Somnuek Changate
pours lustral water on an image of Lord Buddha.
Mayor Niran performs the
Rod Nam Dam Hua ceremony as Buddhist monks give him their blessings.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit
Ekasingh joins in the fun at Pattaya City Hall.
Residents pour lustral
water in the hands of the city elders and receive blessings.
Tony Malhotra and all
staffs of Pattaya Mail pour lustral water on Khun Peter Malhotra, MD of
Pattaya Mail to take blessing in Songkran Day
Diana Group staffs pour
lustral water on Khun Sopin Thappajug, MD of Diana Group in Songkran Day
Free beauty treatments,
courtesy of Songkran Day.
Jomtien Beach also became
a water war zone.
Happy to join in the fun
and games on Songkran Day!
The day of the powdered
zombies.
Not very scary, but hey,
at least it’s something to fight back with.
A city official uses a
large hose to spray celebrants at Pattaya City Hall.
A refreshing face wash
after having been plastered with white powder.
This was one day that
three girls without helmets on a motorbike was allowed.
Masks of (in)famous people
were also on sale everywhere.
Even this municipal
officer couldn’t escape getting some Songkran cheer.
Sales of water canons were
thriving on Songkran day.
Rabam Klong Yao (Long Drum
Dance) added color to the sights and sounds of Songkran.
Under attack from all
sides, yet loving it.
A traditional Songkran for Emerson Electric, with a safety message
Employees performing a
Buddha image bathing rite.
Emerson Electric (Thailand) held a ceremony at the
company plant on April 13 to welcome in the Thai New Year.
In the late afternoon, Emerson employees led by Aldrin Uy, materials and
logistics manager and Sakda Dangvilailuk, manager for Thailand, gathered
together in the office area to express their respects to Tom Zofkie,
Thailand operations director. Each employee poured scented water onto
his hands and presented him with jasmine garlands. In turn, Tom wished
colleagues and subordinates good luck and prosperity in the coming year.
 Scented
water decorated with flowers used in the ceremony.
The Emerson safety committee staged a “Drive Safely and No Drinking”
campaign in April. Eight trucks were specially decorated and driven
around the plant, there was a parade, and the committee organized a
Safety Q&A Games, which was held in the canteen. The safety committee
also distributed snacks to every employee with a “Don’t Drink and Drive”
sticker on the package.
Staff held a Buddha image bathing rites ceremony as part of the Songkran
tradition and to ask for blessings and prosperity for Emerson and its
people.
Tom doesn’t seem to mind
being whitened with scented powder by the ladies of Emerson
Staff lined up to give Tom
Zofkie a pour of blessings
British Chamber members end up in hospital
Dr. Iain Corness
The April event for the British Chamber of Commerce Thailand (BCCT) on
the Eastern Seaboard was held in a new and different venue, with the
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital playing hosts for the BCCT members networking
evening. Not only was this a new venue, but some of the BCCT group left
with the opportunity of actually improving their health during May, with
three lucky members winning a free check-up package from the hospital,
drawn by Vice Chairman Graham Macdonald. Jimmy Howard puffed his way to
the front to collect his winning package, saying breathlessly, “I don’t
really need this!”
The BCCT group was welcomed by the Deputy Director Dr. Jakapan
Bhongsattiern who expressed the hospital’s delight in having the BCCT on
the premises, and encouraged everyone to enjoy themselves and sample the
‘health-giving’ wines and snacks!
Around the conference room on the 10th floor of the Beauty Center,
overseen by Assistant Director Kamjorn Suryasin, the hospital had set up
small displays, where the BCCT members could have their blood pressures,
body fat, and vision screening done, as well as getting advice from the
lovely nurses on their health and the options open to them to improve
their wellbeing. The message really seemed to hit home for many of the
BCCT members who took away brochures and information on the various
check-up packages available through the hospital.
Asian University has become a force in the local scene, with many of the
staff attending, including Dr. Marie Therese Claes, dean of the Faculty
of Business and the effervescent Dr. Salam Hoshang, while their
associate dean, Dr. Astrid Kainzbauer was seen in deep confab with the
hospital’s Dr. Jakapan, which will see some of Asian University’s
overseas adult students coming to the hospital to see how medical
tourism is handled by the hospital sections concerned.
Frequent visitor to the Eastern Seaboard and sometime football player,
Peter Mewes, spoke on Pattaya Mail on TV about his new legal and
commercial consultancy, called the London Consultancy Company, filling
another need and niche in the armamentarium of the successful expat
businessmen in Thailand.
The AA Insurance team continues to grow, with ex-Pattaya Mail staffer
Brendan Richards sporting his new AA Insurance Brokerage business cards.
Despite the AA team members not being in their matching T-shirts this
time, it was good to see the delightful Khun Tippawan holding animated
conversations with the BCCT members. Principals Peter Smith and Malcolm
Scorer were also seen to be smiling benignly by the end of the evening
(perhaps it was the wine), with Malcolm also in deep discourse with the
Bangkok Pattaya nurses regarding a weight loss program. Or that’s what
he said afterwards!
Another Bangkok member of the BCCT who has ‘seen the light’ was Russell
Winn, the MD of TMTG Thailand, the corporate education specialists, who
was proudly informing everyone that he had just bought a condominium in
Jomtien.
Executive Director Greg Watkins was also very pleased with the
attendance, and was enthusiastic about the different venue, showing that
the BCCT was much more than just an organization which frequented pubs!
The next Eastern Seaboard meeting will be in May, and details will be
available through the Pattaya Mail.
Graham Joyce (right),
GMSPG director of York Industrial (Thailand) Co., Let., and Darren
Hindle (left) from AA Insurance
(L to R) Peter Stirling,
managing partner of Milan Crosse Partners Ltd., Keith Wilson, managing
director of Water Engineered Technologies (Thailand) Ltd., and James
Falla, director, Asian Operations, general manager, TSST Rayong of TRW
Automotive
(L to R) Malcolm Scorer,
chairman and CEO of Watermark Capital Management Ltd., Eoin Quirke,
project manager of Foster Wheeler and Ken Sly, principal of Trail
International School
(L to R) BPH Deputy
Director Dr. Jakapan Bhongsattiern, BCCT Vice Chairman Graham Macdonald
and Simon Park, plant general manager of Global Fleet Sales
(L to R) Paul Wilkinson,
GM Eastern Seaboard of Four Winds International Moving, Jitra Wongjuan,
administration of AA Insurance, and Kevin Fisher, manager Far East
Region of Cranes and Equipment Ltd., Europe-Middle East-Asia
Stuart Saunders from AA
Insurance and Pattaya Mail’s Sue K
(L to R) Reina Rances, BPH
event coordinator, Peter Cummins and Neil Maniquiz, marketing executive
International Marketing and Communications Division of Bangkok-Pattaya
Hospital
(L to R) Tirachart
Charuvastra, consultant of Sukhothai Associates Inter Law Co., Ltd.,
Binny of Haveli Restaurant, and Malcolm Istedd, director of mortgages
and investments for Credenda Associates
Darren Hindle (left) and
Stuart Saunders from AA Insurance
(L to R) BCCT Vice
Chairman Graham Macdonald, BCCT Executive Director Greg Watkins,
Pichitra Niphondkit, corporate account manager of Crown Relocations, and
Simon Matthews, C. Eng., general manager of Manpower
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