The rocket festival is a uniquely-Thai celebration. It takes place annually over 2 days in May in a region called Yasothon in Isaan – the northeast of Thailand. This is an ancient tradition where rockets are fired into the sky as offerings to the gods in hope that there will be plenty of rain during the coming rice planting season. Nowadays, there is also a competition between neighboring villages as to who can build the rocket that stays in the air the longest and the festival is also associated with a lot of fun!
The rockets are fired into the sky from a wooden structure that acts as a launch pad. The rockets themselves are huge – it takes 5 or 6 men to carry one and secure it. The thrill and excitement you feel watching them fire into the sky is worth the journey alone! If any rocket fails to ignite then the team who built it is carried to the nearest mud pool and thrown in as ‘punishment’, but it’s all in good spirits.
There’s also a parade dancing competition and each village enters as a team. Each team performs a dance to the sound of their village musical band and around 50 dancers from 3 generations take part so everyone in the community is involved. The dancers follow a route and make 4 to 5 stops along the way to perform the dance to a different set of judges. At the final stop the band join in the dancing and everyone goes a little crazy – including the crowd! It’s great fun to watch and listen and be a part of the festival. If you’re ever in Thailand around this time then I’d recommend you make the trip.
Hope you enjoy the photos and videos!
Jeab.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ga6BCUIekk]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OP8VflUdu8A]
