Labour Section of the Royal Thai Embassy in Seoul planned to hold a Songkran Festival on April 14 from 9am – 6pm at a park in Ansan city.
The Royal Thai Embassy in South Korea, Ministry of Labour and Ansan Municipality planned to jointly hold the festival, which was expected to be attended by several distinguish guests from both government and private sectors from Thailand and South Korea as well as about 3,000 Thai workers.
The event would feature Songkran parade, remembering ceremony, “Song Nam Phra” ceremony, “Rod Nam Dum Hua” ceremony, shows, and miss Songkran beauty contest. It was also held to celebrate the 86th anniversary of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej this year.
There would 8 parades during the festival consisting of a parade of songkran festival signs, a parade of “Thailand” signs, a Thai percussion instruments parade, a parade of 13 “Toong” — the traditional Lanna-style flags — , an umbrella parade of 40 men, a parade of Buddha statute, a Thai drum parade of 30 men and a parade of Thai workers.
After the “Song Nam Phra” ceremony, participants would jointly sing the “sadudee maharacha” song to celebrate the 86th anniversary of HM the King. Then, there would be opening ceremonies of sepak takraw and miss Songkran beauty contests.
The Songkran Festival, or Thailand’s New Year, this year began on April 13 and run through April 15. It is a family holidays where people jointly clean their house and temples before heading back to their hometown to pay respect to their elders and ancestors.
The “Song Nam Phra” ceremony has been passed from generation to generation. During the festival, there are also joyful water-splashing activities, liked by both Thai and foreigners. It is the biggest and the most joyful festival in Thailand.
