Water Festival - Koh Sdach, International
Koh Sdach, International
This Saturday marked the start of the three day long Water Festival here in Cambodia. Alongside the Khmer New Year, this is one of the largest festivals in the country. Usually marked by longboat races in Phnom Penh (canceled this year due to the large amount of deaths in the north as a result of the raining season), this holiday is chance for the locals to celebrate the end of the rainy season and give thanks to the gods for the rain that grows the rice. Here on Koh Sdach, the Water Festival is celebrated with lots of food, drink, karaoke, and boat rides. There were many more people on Koh Sdach this weekend as a result of the holiday as well, mainly students returning home for the holidays (making me nostalgic for Thanksgiving). Last night was by far one of the coolest experiences I've ever had. Around 9 pm, we locked up the house and headed over to the other side of the island to the Mein Chey Pier. We weren't really sure what we would find over there, but we were told that was where the main celebration was. It took us nearly twice as long as usual to get there as we were stopped by many of our local friends (now in much more "talkative" state) and students from the school whom we saw in that day's science lesson. As it turns out, on Sunday as part of the festival, prayer boats with a single candle and incense are sent out to sea. The boats are made from coconut husks and flowers in a variety of shapes. On the horizon were the pale glow of the boats that had made it across the break. Music was everywhere, incense in the air, children running all around. This truly was a celebration that I won't soon forget. We sat