Xmas---New Year

Post by **kiwi P** » Tue Oct 24, 2006 10:12 pm

Ok Ladies and Gents..i know the Thai's don't celebrate Christmas as such,but how does the New Year celebrations go..Going to be in H.H at this time..Can some body recommend where we should go or be..
Recommendtions appreciated..

Peace Out....

Post by **BaaBaa.** » Tue Oct 24, 2006 10:50 pm

Thais dont officially celebrate new year the same time as us Farangs either Kiwi.
Thailand celebrates Songkran in the middle of April.
Im sure everybody will still tell you where to get extremely drunk on the 31st Dec though.

Post by **PJG** » Tue Oct 24, 2006 11:01 pm

You must be Joking New Year is a long holiday in Thailand and celebrated with gusto by Thai people. Avoid travelling anywhere by road as it is mayhem with lots of fatalities due to drunkeness and general poor driving. Cann't recall the death toll last year but it was high. Make sure you have your accommodation booked as half of Bangkok decend on HH that week-end.

Songran is the Thai Buddist New Year which is also celebrated with gusto and lots of water.

Post by **richard** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 12:11 am

kiwi P

There are lots of places that celebrate Christmas whether it be a Christmas eve meal and bash or a Christmas day meal and bash

As for New year!!! HH goes bananas and for the Chinese NY too. As for Songkran......... They go nuts

Post by **kiwi P** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 10:27 pm

richard wrote:kiwi P

There are lots of places that celebrate Christmas whether it be a Christmas eve meal and bash or a Christmas day meal and bash

As for New year!!! HH goes bananas and for the Chinese NY too. As for Songkran......... They go nuts

Sounds all GOOD..AFTER 9 visit's to L.O.S. including this one,will be my first time celebrating Xmas/New Year there am looking forward to it..
Just awaiting conformation on the accommodation side of it..

Peace Out..

Post by **Guess** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 4:08 am

I think Baabaa must have got drunk over the Christmas period and slept through new year.

Christmas is a religious festival and not catered for as Christianity has no foothold in Thailand. However most Farang resorts and hotels will lay something on. Also many bars will organise something for a day or two. For most if us though it is business as usual. On a commercial basis though the Thais are catching on and decorations, cards and other Christmassy things become available.

As for New Year (International 31/12 - 1/01, which is one of four celebrated in Thailand) it is mayhem and has been celebrated here for years. There are different things in different areas. The best one for me was the firework display on the Mekong in Nong Khai. There is at least one day holiday for this event.

Post by **BaaBaa.** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 3:13 pm

Yes Guess, I know everywhere celebrates both christmas and newyear,
I was just stating to Kiwi P, after he said Thais dont celebrate christmas "as such", that its not actually official Thai (Buddhist) new year "as such".
I wasnt suggesting he'll be roaming the streets of Hua Hin looking for someone to have a drink with.

Ive never spent Christmas or New year in Hua Hin before but will be doing so this year and im looking forward to it.

Post by **PeteC** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 4:45 pm

Guess wrote: As for New Year (International 31/12 - 1/01, which is one of four celebrated in Thailand)

OK Guess, I haven't had any beer yet today so my mind is fuzzy.

Jan. 1 New Year, Chinese New Year, Songkran and what is #4.....Davali? Pete

Post by **kiwi P** » Thu Oct 26, 2006 11:00 pm

prcscct wrote:
Guess wrote: As for New Year (International 31/12 - 1/01, which is one of four celebrated in Thailand)
OK Guess, I haven't had any beer yet today so my mind is fuzzy. Jan. 1 New Year, Chinese New Year, Songkran and what is #4.....Davali? Pete

Is a Guess here but is it the Kings Birthday.....

Well i hope to catch up with some of you guy's and have a few Heinies or 2 .......Last Time spent alot of time drinking at the Blue Elephant,but alot could be said bout the service,is a good place to drink and watch the world go past tho..Accommodation has been confirmed......

Peace Out..

Post by **Bamboo Grove** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 10:00 am

The Indians celebrate their new year in November if I remember correctly but this is not a celebration outside the Indian society here. The traditional Thai New Year (I'm not sure which one was first Songkran or this Prokatimas/Athikamas New Year) isi n November/December but this one is not celebrated any more.

THAI CHANTARAKATI CALENDAR (Lunar Calendar)

Chantarakati is the way to keep dates by using the Moon's orbital
cycle around the Earth. Each cycle is 29 days, 12 hours, 44
minutes. Chantarakati month is therefore 30 days or 29 days
alternately for the whole year.

Each month begins on Wan Kuen Nueng Kham (first day of the waxing
moon). Wan Kuen Sib Ha Kham (day of the full moon) is the middle
of the month. Wan Dub is last day of the month which is either
Wan Ram 15 Kham or Wan Ram 14 Kham depending on whether that
month has 30 or 29 days.

Because each month is 30 or 29 days long, the Lunar-year days
will be shorter by about 12 days than the actual time the Earth
circles the Sun. To be synchronous with the seasonal changes,
every two or three years another month is added to Duen Pad (the
Eighth month) and called Duen Pad Lung (the latter Eighth month).
Such year with two Duen Pads is called ATHIKAMAS.

The Chantarakati months are named from one to twelve: ai (one),
yi (two), sam (three), si (four), ha (five), hok (six), jed
(seven), pad (eight), kao (nine), sib (ten), sib-ed (eleven),
sib-song (twelve). The first month on Prokatimas year (ordinary
year) falls in November but in Athikamas year (year with two Duen
Pad's) it falls in December.

Chantarakati date is stated by the moon-position/lunar-month-
name/year-name, for example: Kuen Sib Kham/Duen Sib-ed/Pi Mamia
Cho Sok which is 7th October B.E. 2497. If the day is not
provided, finding the day in this dating system requires a
calendar table.

Furthermore, to compensate for the still missing days, every 4 or
5 years another day is added to Duen Jed (the Seventh Month)
to make it a 30-day month. This added day is called ATHIKAWARA
and cannot occur on Athikamas year.

Post by **Guess** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 1:14 pm

prcscct wrote:
Guess wrote: As for New Year (International 31/12 - 1/01, which is one of four celebrated in Thailand)
OK Guess, I haven't had any beer yet today so my mind is fuzzy. Jan. 1 New Year, Chinese New Year, Songkran and what is #4.....Davali? Pete

Bit of a cheat really Pete but Loi Kratong which is the lunar new year is a national Thgai holiday. Dawali is celebrated in parts of Thailand and so is Maal Hijra (Islam) but neither are national holidays here.

Post by **Guess** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 1:29 pm

BaaBaa. wrote:Thais dont officially celebrate new year the same time as us Farangs either Kiwi.
Thailand celebrates Songkran in the middle of April.

This gets more confusing. I will try a different approach. Christmas is hardly noiticed here but new year (Dec 31/Jan1) is mega.

As for BG's stuff. The description ties up with the Islamic new year. I believe all these lunar base new year festivals originate from pre Sumerian Fertile Crescent civilisations. At that time all objects in the sky were thought to revolve around the centre of the universe which was of course Earth. The moon was easily the best object to study without the aid of lenses and screens and it was believed that the two had a a direct relationship anyway.

Without checking though I thought that Songkran was a solar based date which has now been standardised like Jan 1 to a fixed date of April 13th. I could be wrong on that one though.

Post by **BaaBaa.** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 2:19 pm

Thats why I didnt put the 13th.
I just know the celebrations are 13th-15th.
Mai bpen rai.

Post by **BaaBaa.** » Fri Oct 27, 2006 2:29 pm

You are right about the solar based date Guess.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songkran

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