Trip Report: Loei Ghost Festival - Part 2

[fountainhall]

The day of the Parade itself is enveloped in a sort of madness. Many thousands jam into the village, all laughing, joking, oohing and aahing тАУ and having a great time. The village main street is closed off at both ends and so there is traffic chaos getting there if you leave it too late. Along with some others from the hotel (almost 2 kms away), we arrived around 9:00. By then the few bleachers along the route were all packed and lots of the participants were already in their places along the route. With little cloud cover and no rain overnight, it was very, very hot.

I felt really sorry for some of the kids in their ghost costumes at the very back. They had to sit or stand around for almost three hours before they could start to move. One villager set up a small stall outside his house to offer them refreshments. He beckoned me over, saying тАЬFree!тАЭ Much as I would have enjoyed it, I stayed back; the kids deserved it far more than I.

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr27.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr27.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr28.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr28.jpg.html)

Thankfully there were also free cold water bottles being handed out. I must have drunk a good three litres it was so hot. The whole day is pretty noisy. A lot of the floats had their own boom-boxes blaring out traditional music. There were far more floats than the day before, some simple, some with much more decoration, some attended by very handsome guys!

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr29.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr29.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr43.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr43.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr31.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr31.jpg.html)

One float even boasted a puppet skeleton band!

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr32.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr32.jpg.html)

The advertised start-time of 10:00 came and went in rather typical Thai fashion. 30 minutes later all eyes were raised upwards as six skydivers floated down over the village, landing expertly on the tiny parade ground.

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr33.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr33.jpg.html)

That was the signal to start тАУ or rather for the interminable speeches to start. Somewhere, several dignitaries had their say for all of twenty minutes with very few in the crowd taking any notice. Those taking part in the Parade took up their final positions and got ready to start. The volume then went up a few decibels. ItтАЩs not only the boom boxes on the floats; many of the тАШghostsтАЩ wear cowbells on their belts or trail tin cans behind them. I tried to stay in one spot but it was much more fun just to go with the flow. It was great for taking photos, although all had to be taken at ground level as there was nothing to clamber up on.

Although there were parade marshals to keep a kind of order, there was much more interaction between participants and spectators than I had expected. Groups of ghosts were interspersed with Thai traditional dancing and gangs of near naked-men beating bamboo poles on the ground, their bodies caked in mud to resemble their ancestors of old.

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr34.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr34.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr39.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr39.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr44.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr44.jpg.html)

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr37.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr37.jpg.html)

By mid-afternoon, most of the floats and marchers had reached the temple. There judging of the best in each costume and float category would take place. Nearby bamboo rockets were fired to encourage rain. Soon many of the guys were becoming the worse for wear after too many beers, but there was still a long evening of singing and celebrating ahead. For many, though, their participation was over and they walked back along the parade route carrying their headgear. It made me rather wish that more had been тАШheadlessтАЩ during the parade itself!!

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l597/fountainhall/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr51.jpg (http://s1125.photobucket.com/user/fountainhall/media/Loei_Ghost_Fest_lr51.jpg.html)

I chatted with a couple of Americans from Miami who had been here 2 years ago. They'd loved it so much theyтАЩd come back for a second visit. ItтАЩs a fabulous week-end. The Festival is totally unique and a really fun day. I cannot understand why more expats and tourists donтАЩt visit. Besides, Loei Province has a lot more to offer with several major National Parks and even a winery named Chateau Loei (although there is no evidence of any chateau nor tasting in the vineyards)!

I cannot understand why more expats and tourists donтАЩt visit.I think you answer your own question.
With little cloud cover and no rain overnight, it was very, very hot.
The whole day is pretty noisy.
That was the signal to start тАУ or rather for the interminable speeches to start.Apart from an eyeful of some very very attractive young men it sounds precisely the sort of event to avoid. It's exactly the sort of event I wouldn't attend in my own country.

[christianpfc]

"I cannot understand why more expats and tourists donтАЩt visit."

You need to know a few days, better weeks, in advance about the festival. Reports (on forums or in newspaper or on the internet) come after the festival, and over the year I forget (but I will make a timetable for festivals and other yearly events I want to go to). Lack of public transport is an issue for me.

[Surfcrest]

I try to keep the events around the country current on our front page. http://sawatdeenetwork.com/

Surfcrest

[Patanawet]

Thanks fountainhall; excellent reports.
I wish that I were more adventuresome.
Just what these boards are really for.
A pity that this board has no 'like' button.

[lego]

Nice reporting and great photos, fountainhall! I've been to Loei, but not for/during this festival; maybe I'll make it some time, too.

[dinagam]

"I cannot understand why more expats and tourists donтАЩt visit."

You need to know a few days, better weeks, in advance about the festival. Reports (on forums or in newspaper or on the internet) come after the festival, and over the year I forget (but I will make a timetable for festivals and other yearly events I want to go to). Lack of public transport is an issue for me.
Last year I stayed in Loei city during the festival. In the morning I took the mini bus(van aka rot tu) to Dan Sai and remained until nightfall.
As Dan Sai is located along the bus routes between Loei city and Phitsanulok, there are always long-distance buses plying these cities and beyond passing through Dan Sai. I managed to catch one early in the evening, although I had to stand the first few kilometers before some seated passengers disembarked along the way.
The local businesses on the main road should be able to point out the spot where the buses stop, although there's no definite timetables, but I was assured there are busses passing through in the evening. The buses from Phitsanulok and beyond pass through Dan Sai to get to Loei and Udonthani.
Anyway hotels in Loei city don't have surcharges during the festival.
Therefore day trips to attend the festival from Loei city can be an option, if you don't mind the commute along some circuitous routes. Many hotels to choose from in the city. Loei folks are cool and friendly :-)

[fountainhall]

it sounds precisely the sort of event to avoid. It's exactly the sort of event I wouldn't attend in my own country.
To each his own! Visiting local festivals around the region is one of the things I enjoy most about living in Asia, no matter that some have become more commercialised in recent years. The weather is not a major issue with me. In January two years ago I was in Harbin for the Ice & Snow Sculpture Festival. There the temperature ranged between -12C and -25C!


You need to know a few days, better weeks, in advance
Ideally months, I suggest - certainly if you want flights at decent prices and better hotels in each Festival location. But you can get to Loei from Bangkok by bus and, as dinagam points out, several bus services run through Dan Sai daily. Even on Festival day, they just detour around the village. Finding out the information is often more difficult than it shuold be. The Ubon Candle Festival is at the start of Buddhist Lent and so that is usually fixed way in advance. The date of the Loei Festival, though, is determined by 2 mediums (mor pii/р╕лр╕бр╕нр╕Ьр╕╡) who tend to take their time about the decision!

[firecat69]

I love your photos because they make all your travels come alive . You are missed at other places!!

[fountainhall]

Thank you firecat69 - I much appreciate your comment.

[Jellybean]

Thanks for posting your experiences at the Loei Ghost Festival over two threads fountainhall. I especially enjoyed the photographs and would echo the comments made by firecat69 and say your photographs make your reports тАШcome aliveтАЩ.

You ask why more expats or tourists donтАЩt visit these festivals. Well, I can only speak for myself and say I return to my condo in Bangkok between the months of October and April, preferring to spend the rest of my time back here in the UK. So IтАЩll never get to visit the ghost festival in person, but thanks to you, I can at least get a flavour of what I am missing.

[LoveThailand]

Thank you for a wonderful report, Fountain.
I hope to catch some festivals during my next visit.
Two Songkrans I was lucky to catch in Thailand are among my best travel experiences.