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7 Days in Hell

7 Days in Hell

Editor;
Pattaya is a beautiful, exciting playground by the sea. But for 7 plus days a year it turns into a watery hell that sees more accidents and deaths than any other time of the year. Pattaya many years ago following the lead of Phuket & Chang Mai, created the Pattaya Songkran on the 19th with the intention of drawing more tourists’ trade and thereby in theory more revenue. This has become a nightmare which no one living in or visiting Pattaya between the 13th through the 19th can escape. If you happen to run a business in this fare city, then you can attest to the fact that this drives people away for that period. City hall or the governor of Chonburi needs to address this problem ASAP.
Anyone that does not have to be in Pattaya for that week-plus of Hell gets out and stays away until it is safe to come back. This includes any tourist that has been here for Songkran or has had word from other travelers of the week of mayhem. This whole event is ruined by Pattaya hooligans that clearly just love making trouble. The door is left wide open for every idiot in this city to make Pattaya a living Hell for Over a week. It ruins this special celebration that began as a ritual of wishing your elder as well other friends and family good health and luck for the New Year, by blessing them with small amounts of water on their shoulders and foreheads. Ok it grew into a water festival where people joyfully throw water on each other and having fun. What has happened in Pattaya is it has been taken to a level that is no longer fun, but merely a nuisance that is not only dangerous but a blemish on Pattaya’s reputation, and is a heavy drain on what is a tourist driven economy.
The question is “how does it get fixed now?” I wish you all a very safe and Happy New Year and Songkran celebration.
Respectfully yours,
A concerned businessman & resident in Pattaya

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