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  1. #1
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    Isaan 'Bun Fai' party

    When you think of Bang Bun Fai or the Isaan rocket festival, you probably envisage the largest of all the rocket festivals, held in neighbouring Yasothon. Bun Fai is celebrated throughout Isaan and Laos, and there is more to it than the displaying and letting off of rockets. Depending on the town or Province, festivities occur mid to late June in our calendar, or more relevantly early rainy season in theirs.

    It is in fact an animist/ pagan fertility festival, and well predates Buddhism- as soon becomes obvious to all but the most unobservant observer! The essential rains are coming, the hard work of planting about to begin- but now it is time to party, make merit, and hope for a good rainy season. The atmosphere is bawdy. Celebrations don't just happen at town or district level- there are private parties too.

    Wiki- These festivals are presumed to have evolved from pre-Buddhist fertility rites held to celebrate and encourage the coming of the rains, from before the 9th Century discovery of black powder. It may also be said that Lao culture is not lacking in earthy, bawdy themes, with rockets festivals the most sexually oriented and bawdy of the lot. Coming immediately prior to the planting season, the festivals offer an excellent chance to make merry before the hard work begins;
    Rocket Festival - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    So lets make merry with the locals- todays event is a local private party, and while rockets are let off regularly through the day, they are not the main attraction. Today is about Cocks.




    Cockfighting, did you say?





    Well, yes. And no.



  2. #2
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    Mine host is clearly a cut above, a man of local refinement. A Bar, no less.





    I swear this damn thing is following me around-




    Meanwhile, cocks are fighting.






    Of course, with my simple 'point n shoot' camera, the action shots are blurred-







    It's all nice and informal, as it should be. Most of the women pay no attention at all to the cockfighting- they've got important gossip to catch up with. The blokes, well some come and go like me, others are there for the cockfighting.






  3. #3
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    Isaan cockfighting

    Well the animal rights advocates are probably up in arms, so I'll just explain something about Isaan cockfighting, or at least Ubon style.

    Firstly, the fighting cocks do not wear 'scythes'- these sort of fights are short and usually fatal, as in the Filipines. In contrast, local fights are more protracted affairs- lots of circling and necking going on, bursts of activity. The birds are visibly tiring as the fight drags on, and most fights make the time limit-



    At which point the fight is stopped, and the winner judged. Other fights finish when one cock 'throws in the towel'- basically flops down flat and plays dead. Fighting cocks here are recyclable- they go for many fights, certainly the good ones (the bad ones are delicious). So they have to be maintained, and on hand is an impromptu Vet-





    Post fight, their combs often need a stitch or two.





    The mood appears to be contagious- these two local amateurs volunteer for a stoush, no need for a ring-





    Not that the animal rights crowd won't still be up in arms, so we'll end up with an action shot.





    Last edited by sabang; 27-06-2010 at 10:55 AM.

  4. #4
    Thailand Expat superman's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by sabang
    When you think of Bang Bun Fai
    Did you mean 'Bun Bang Fai' ?

  5. #5
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    Proud owners




















    Last edited by sabang; 27-06-2010 at 10:45 AM.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by superman View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by sabang
    When you think of Bang Bun Fai
    Did you mean 'Bun Bang Fai' ?
    Did I, Oh well. Luckily it's just called 'bun fai' around here anyway.

  7. #7
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    Cute Baby Shots









    But this baby is in the arms of Bacchus -











    A down to earth sort of place is Isaan.

  8. #8
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    Got any action shots of the wooden cocks being test driven?

  9. #9
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    What's the time limit on a fight Sabang?

    Unfortunately I get to see several fights a day as my neighbour has bundles of chickens all over the place and they do like a good ruck...can last for well over an hour until the loser eventually dies of what I'd imagine to be exhaustion..but if I see a pair fighting I'll normally break it up...with a shovel...

  10. #10
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    Real Thailand.

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by somtamslap
    What's the time limit on a fight Sabang?
    Twenty minutes. Probably two out of three went the distance, the remainder one of the cocks threw in the towel, rooster style. Some tired old cocks around, but no major injuries that I could see.

    This cock just kept following me around though- and whenever I turned around to 'confront' it, it turned away. I was getting paranoid. Maybe it thought I was after it's burd?




    Mrs sabs auntie kept following me around with her cocks too .





    It was a good day out. They know how to party here, but it takes some getting used to the times they party- which can basically be any time of day or night. If a cow is killed for a next day celebration, the party might kick off at midnight. Other parties kick off at dawn, but mow lam concerts often don't start until after 9pm. You can certainly tell this isn't a '9 to 5' type working culture. This one kicked off around 8am- quite civilized really.
    Last edited by sabang; 27-06-2010 at 04:36 PM.

  12. #12
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    Excellent photos and story sabang.

    But no rocket pictures?

  13. #13
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    Only tiddlers being let off that day- 10 or 20 baht type rockets.

    I didn't make it to a 'big' rocket launching do- there are loads around, in just about every decent size town, but not on the scale of Yasothon. Even the Japs come over and compete- they've got some sort of rocket festival too. Definitely on my agenda, but not this year.

  14. #14
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    I thought Cambodia was starting an invasion here (Sa Kaeo) no one told me there'd be rockets, Sunday afternoon out quietly weeding amonst the eualyptus when war broke out. Briefly, but seemed to be seriously big rockets.

    Good pics! Plenty of cock-fighting round here, not 'to the death' I was more interested in the owners egging (pun!) their roosters on, giving them a pre-match talk . . .

  15. #15
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    There are some seriously big rockets indeed, considering how lo-tech they are- bamboo tubes and all that. Our closest neighbour in one direction is a 'rocketman' (in fact thats his new nickname- I can never remember their real names), and this year he built a kickass special which he proudly took to one of the more sizable local Rocket festivals, a town called Tan Sum.

    It fizzled.

    Cheating a bit (not my fot), heres an example-



    Notice the muddy people- when theres mud about (ie usually- but not this drought year) the blokes like to roll around in a mud pool. It's all very pagan- I suppose the equivalent in our culture are the traditional Mayday celebrations, the way they used to be. Freud would have loved it here.

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Agent_Smith
    Excellent photos and story sabang. But no rocket pictures?
    Apparently, there is a shortage of them this year. Not sure why.












  17. #17
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    I was told by my better half there is another festival in Surin over the past couple of days. Was it a Boon Bang Fai like in Suwannaphum in June?

    I attended the one in June and it was great, we had an amazing time and it was good to meet alot of great people.

  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Agent_Smith View Post
    Excellent photos and story sabang.

    But no rocket pictures?
    ok have a few of mine instead..

    Loading up the plastic water pipe...(most of them where pissed and smoking)




    One On The Launching Contraption...



    And Take Off....

  19. #19
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    ^ Brilliant, thanks .
    Where was this?

  20. #20
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    It was In Umpher Phen, Udon Thani.

  21. #21
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    YOU DON'T LET THEM LAUNCH THOSE THINGS WITH A FEW DRINKIES UNDER THE BELT I HOPE.

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    Not only are most under the influence of the Lao-Khao some seem to be smoking Krong Thips at the same time....all part of the flavour.

  23. #23
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    Where did the rocket land?

  24. #24
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    Went to Yasathon several years ago, was a great if extremely noisy experience.

    In the build up to the main rocket launch which was a bit out of town they had noise making (singing) contests down the main drag in town there were banks of huge speakers stacked three or four high on both sides of the road with small stages for the bands the noise could be heard more than a KM away, this went on for a couple of nights.

    They had a decorated rocket parade the day before the main event with prizes for the best dressed rocket, a lot of work had gone into them and there were some great entries.

    On the day of the main rocket launch they let off the small rockets first and working up through the sizes till the last were the real big stuff that dear leader Kim would be proud of. There was special scaffolding built to launch the big ones some of which took 8 or 10 men to carry.

    Anyone whoes rocket fizzled was grabbed and chucked in a mud puddle specially provided for the purpose.

    There were 2 yanks there with an armed escort complete with AK, sidearm and large knife, the 2 had strings of wooden penis's slung round their necks, caused a lot of mirth among the natives.

    I wandered down the main drag where all the speakers were early the next morning and came across a large Thai lady dragging an obviously inebriated skinny Thai man down the road by his shirt.

    A great time.

  25. #25
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    It landed 7 years ago mate

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