Phi Ta Khon

If you talk about a parade that people dress up and walking around town. You may think of Mardi Gras in New Orleans or world famous Carnival in Brazil. Did you know, in Thailand has a little carnival ourselves as well? People may not throw beats at you in this parade but this parade will guarantee an excitement for you guy as much as the others.


Phi Ta Khon or Ghost festival the word “Phi Ta Khon” is a play that participants will build a mask that look scary and colorful. They will wear them with outfit and parade around the local merit ceremony. Phi Ta Khon or ghost festival will only have at the festival that take place around March and July. The parade will have it around 3 days and exactly date will be determine by town’s mediums. The parade is only take place in Dan Sai district, Loey province.


Type of Phi Ta Khon
Phi Ta Khon Yai the body is molded from a large bamboo frame, then wrapping it with a cloth or paper. The size will be larger than average human size about two times bigger. The costume will be decor as male and female with scrap materials obtained locally. The male and female costume will decorate and show its private part. There is an old believe the human genital represents abundance. The costume is not a prank or impudence of those who participated in any way.
Each year, only 1 couple of Phi Ta Khon Yai will join the parade. Person who chosen to be Phi Ta Khon Yai, must be allow from town’s medium. The couple who got chosen will have to participate in the parade every year or at least 3 years on the roll.


Phi Ta Khon Lek this is the play for the children, everyone either young or old can participate in this play. However, most participants are male due to the play involve with lots of acrobat. The participant will dress up as a ghost or monster with a very large mask. The costume of Phi Ta Khon usually have the head part or mask that make with the sticky rice steamer or local call “Huat” which the bottom of the steamer look like a tip of the hat and the face is decorate with the coconut branch. The costume will decorate with color and local stuff like animal bones or horns.

Phi Ta Khon festival will take place about 3 days, first day will be the religion ceremony then the rest will have a parade. Phi Ta Khon Festival is a tradition practiced for a long time to become the province's identity. After the parade the people who wearing costume at the parade require to take all the costume off and throw it in the river, they not allow to bring the costume back at the house. It believes to throw and leave the adversity and bad things away. Nowadays, Phi Ta Khon festival become a traditional that can generate income in tourism to the province and also is a tradition of folklore as well. This tradition preserved for younger generations to watch and learn the culture.


As always, please share your experience with us. We would love to hear about your awesome journey. Just to remind you, my team and I just create a brand new group page on Facebook name “backpacker” you guys can use this group page as a meet up center and information exchange of traveling or just to looking for friends while you are traveling abroad. Join us and explore your adventure spirit. “Keep on Traveling”
Photo Credit:  tourismthailand

Pasta House: Si Lom Soi 19

I’m back again, this time I will do something different than talk about traveling places. Let dine in and talk about street food in Thailand. Street food in our term is the place to eat that not in the famous review website. The place is famous by their taste that will promote itself and become popular among Thai people.

The place that I proudly introduce to you is called “Pasta House” This is the pizza and pasta place that fusion Thai style in to it. The food here from the first glance, you may see a typical pizza and pasta place but don’t judge the book by the cover, just yet. The food has a kick of that flavor in to it. If you are looking for original Italian style or American pizza you at the wrong place. Beside, you already tried these pastas and pizzas from your country, it probably better (trust me it better haha) Why not try something different, this is why Magnifier Thailand would like to introduce this restaurant to you and hope you will have a chance to try it.
I’m in the hurry because I cannot wait for you guys to hear about this place and I will talk about how to find this place later.


First, everyone love salad and it a beginning course to most of us. The salad that my friends and I always get is a Caesar Salad. The fresh cos lettuce with their intense flavor of Caesar dressing mix with Parmesan Cheese and cannot miss the magical bacon bits and crunchy croutons. My mouth is watering talk about this, haha. It not healthy but hey, I suggest this because it good.


 Next dish is the pasta, this place offer you, very delicious pasta with unbelievable affordable price. It cost you only $2-3 per dish. Yea that better than a Big Mac I’m sure (no offence). Don’t intimidate by the cheap price because that quality bundle with the kick ass taste, I’m telling ya. The pasta noodle is boiled to perfect not too hard or too mushy, it just about right, my Italian friend would call it “Al Dente”. Personally, some fancy Italian restaurant in Thailand cannot even compete with them. Pasta House offers many selection of pasta such as Fusilli, Penne, or Macaroni.


 My recommend dish is “Spaghetti olio aglio” Oh boy; this menu is off the chart! You guy will really have to visit this place and try it. This pasta dish is look so simple, yet punch it with the complex delicious goodness. A spaghetti with parsley and olive oil with the spicy kick of dried chili, one thing I can say to you right now, Ummmmm. You can order it plain just the pasta with olive oil and dried chili or you can ask them to put a bacon in the dish to enhance the taste as well. (After all everyone love bacon, right?)
Another pasta dish that you probably find it only in Thailand is the “Spaghetti Pad Cha” this is the local Thai food fusion with Italian dish. The pasta noodle stir fried with fresh seafood mix it with exotic spices and herbs like finger root, fresh peppercorn, basil, and fresh chili. Warning, this dish is quite spicy so if you cannot tolerance spicy as good like me, make sure you ask them to tone down the spicy level. They also offer the general dish like carbonara spaghetti in case some of you just want something simple.


I should be a shame to talk about Pasta but forget to mention pizza. I tell ya, this Pasta joint make a mean pizza as much as their pasta dish. Their pizza size is about 10 inches the dough is very crispy on the crust but it perfetto at the middle dish. Their signature pizza is “Pizza Bacon with Basil Leaf” This is not your typical Margherita pizza, it has some spice and bacon adds in to create good combination between Asia sense and Italian heritage. There are many more menu items you can choose but my team and I pick this Pizza to be the most recommend pizza for you to try because it taste good and the unique character that you may not find it somewhere else. Oh, I forget to mention, they ground their black pepper fresh daily. So you can guarantee fresh ingredients from the main dish to your condiments.

Flying a Kite in Isan (Northeastern Thailand)

Mae Hong Son province, the City of Three Mists

Mae Hong Son Province

     New Year just pasted but the cold weather is still lingering around us, especially the East coast of the U.S. For Thai people around the city, we enjoy the temperature drop, indeed. The cold weather makes me want to talk about some place that will be suitable for the weather like this. Let go north and soak up the atmosphere of the fog bed at sun rise in the morning. The province I want to take you guys to, is Mae Hong Son province. Mae Hong Son, located northern part of Thailand that has many outstanding features such as the terrain and variety of people from different ethnic groups. The interesting statistic about Mae Hong Son province are province that sparsely populated in the country, its racked fifth in less populated areas in Thailand. Mae Hong Son province is also known as the City of Three Mists due to the mountain and complex terrain; make the fog cover the area most of the year.

What do they have in the City of Three Mists?

     The City of Three Mists, I think they not overstated to call Mae Hong Son that.  The city located in the valley and surrounded by mountains stretched along with Thanon Thong Chai Range and Daen Lao Range. With Pai river pass through the province, Mae Hong Son also has forest that is considering the most fertile in the country. Fog in the summer is a fog from the wild fire which happening every year. Fog in the raining season is from the rain combine with cold weather in the morning or evening then Whala! Stunting view. Lastly, indeed the fog in winter, this is the real deal, the fog is so thick and in the morning dew will turn to little ice. These make most of photography want to come here and capture the scenery from this magical place.      Mae Hong Son province has many visiting spots especially the natural attractions. Mae Hong Son province has three attractions that consider being Unseen Thailand.

• Kaeo Komon Cave forest park, Mae La Noi district
• Phu Klon Country Club, Mae Hong Son district
• Tham Lot cave, Pang Mapha district

Moreover, Pai is considering the most romantic district in Thailand. The place also become a famous location for many movies and series from Thailand as well Beside Pai there is another place call (Pang Oung) if you go there in the morning you can see the mist floating on the surface gliding the sunlight. It considers one of the calmest and beautiful places you ever see. Other attractions you can find in Mea Hong Son province such as Tham Pla – Namtok Pha Suea Natianal Park, Thung Bua Tong  (Mexican sunflower), Doi Mae Ho, Namtok Mae Surin National Park, Phu Chee Per and many more. I may get into detail of each place for next blog but for now I will just touch base on Mae Hong Son province.      The cultural and tradition from local people in Mae Hong Son province has been passed on from generation to generation of Thai Yai or Shan, a traditional tribe from Mae Hong Son province. If you visit Mae Hong Son, you can still see the traditional lifestyle. Their house will mostly build from wood, it either single floor or two floors, build with a basement raise up high. Most of them still have traditional outfit. With all the old traditional is still preserved and hardly get lost in time. It makes many tourists fall in love at this little peaceful province. Trust me, if you from a busy city, Mea Hong Son, will slow your time down like a good wizard put a good spell on you.

How to get there?

     By car, Mae Hong Son was considered a secret and remote city in the tourist eyes, because, there was the only Highway 108 that will go to Mae Hong Son province. The high way cut through many districts of Chiang Mai province. The road is steep with total distant of 349 kilometers or about 217 miles. The road considers dangerous and need an experience drive to drive through this road because of the sharp curve and turn. Local people said the total curves of this highway are about 1,864 curves. The tradeoff for this dangerous road is the side view that so beautiful, that make passengers fall in love with this place even more but the driver may hate to drive up here again. It a love hate relationship, I’m sure some of you may understand, lol. Nowadays, Mae Hong Son province has an additional highway added which s Highway 1095. This highway will still pass through Chiang Mai province but it will take a different route. The highway will be only about 245 kilometers or about 152 miles. This can save you guys sometime if anyone of you interesting to drive up here.    
     Bus you guys can take a bus from bus terminal, in this case if you start your trip from Bangkok, there are several options. First, you can just take a bus from Bangkok straight to Mea Hong Son province or, you can take a bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai province then from here you can choose to take an air condition van up there or the bus (no air condition) or a minibus to Mea Hong Son. My recommendation to you, take a bus to Chiang Mai then find your way up to Mea Hong Son province. That way, you can enjoy the view and absorb the entire atmosphere around you and if you lucky, the driver may stop at a little shack so you can buy some local fruits there as well.
     Plane, if you want to go there quick and spend most time there, plane is another option you can choose. However, I believe, there is no direct flight from Bangkok to Mea Hong Son. You have to fly from Bangkok to Chiang Mai then connect the flight to Mea Hong Son. The cold weather at Mea Hong Son province but the magnificent scenery help set your mood and you know, it a great idea if you want to spend time with your love one on Valentine day at Mea Hong Son. I recommend every one of you visit this place at least once. Lastly, whoever went there or planning to go there, if you have pictures and story to share, even the question about the place. Please please please… let me, Curious Cat and my Magnifier Thailand know about. We would LOVE to hear from you guys. I will see you on next blog, happy traveling!
 
 

Thailand International Balloon Festival

"The International Balloon Fiesta" will have the event on February 2016 at Singha Park, Chiang Rai province. For more detail please go to www.singhapark.com

"The International Balloon Festival International Heritage" at Payap University Chiang Mai province on March 4 – 5th 2016. There is ticket admission in this event. 

Chinese New Year at Yaowarat Road Bangkok Thailand

What you can do on Chinese New Year Festival at Chinatown Bangkok (Yaowarat)

Photo Credit:  tourismthailand