Thingyan

We celebrated Myanmar New Year – Thingyan – Water Festival in Myanmar this year. Thingyan is one big water fight - lasting for about 5 days. It’s super fun to start with because the weather is so so so hot here in April that you just want to cool down with water, but after a day or so the novelty of being soaked through every time you go anywhere wears a bit thin.

Ant’s sister and her boyfriend were visiting. I suspect they may think all Myanmars are crazy dancing in the streets alcoholics… but this party atmosphere only really happens during Thingyan.

We headed out to see some of the big pandals (stages) erected about the town. Each stage plays (very) loud music and you can pay to go up on the stage and hose water on anyone and anything passing. Many people hire trucks and stand around in the back of them drinking, throwing (sometimes icy) water at people, and dancing like crazy when they go past the pandals. Ant was armed with his “super soaker”, which was fairly ineffective against the might of the various fire hydrants aimed at us. The main pandals are located next to Yangon’s lakes with generators constantly running, pumping (murky) lake water up to the pandals… best to keep your mouth closed…

  

When we got home we played with the neighbourhood children, which was much tamer and involved throwing small buckets of water over each other… and the unfortunate passing car… or cyclist…