[SkateDC] Thai New Year Festival (4/12/09) [Off Topic]

[George Marinkovich]

Three announcements:  
Thai Festival in Maryland(4/12/09), 
Thai Festival in Virginia (4/19/09), and 
Thai Restaurant Week (4/13/09 - 4/19/09).

The Earth having successfully completed another orbit
around the Sun, it's Songkran time again.  Come and 
experience a little slice of Thailand in Maryland.  
The weather for next Sunday (4/12/09) looks good.

Before and after next Sunday's skates...

Celebrate the Thai New Year Festival (Songkran) on 
Sunday, April 12, 2009, from 8:30am to 3:30pm 
(those are the official times, it actually starts 
earlier and continues later) at:

Wat Thai DC 
13440 Layhill Road
Silver Spring, MD  20906
301.871.8660
 
There is no entrance fee and a free shuttle is 
provided from the Glenmont (Red Line) Metro Station.
Google Map Directions:
http://tinyurl.com/copoee

Delicious Thai food, drink, and various goods (CDs, 
DVDs, clothing, furniture, dwarf Kaffir lime trees, 
etc.) can be purchased from a multitude of vendors.  
Free Thai music and dancing are featured.

Here's the announcement at the Thai Wat DC site:
http://www.watthaidc.org/ which as usual is not 
especially informative.  Frankly they have no 
problem attracting big crowds to this festival without 
doing any English language advertising.

Schedule (only approximate since it's based on last 
year's schedule)

7:00am  Offer Breakfast to the monks
8:30am   Pouring of lustral water to honor the Buddha Image/
             Food and merchandise stands open
10:00am  Religious ceremony
10:30am  Offering food for the monks, Monks give blessing
1:30pm   Pouring of lustral water to honor the monks/
             Thai Dance and Music Show
3:30pm   Food and merchandise stands close (food can still be
had up until around 5pm)

Even if you are not taking the Metro, I suggest you use 
the free parking at the Glenmont Metro Station (corner of 
Georgia Ave. and Layhill Rd.) and take the free yellow 
(Barrie School) buses that will shuttle people between the 
Glenmont Metro Station and Thai Wat DC.  Please don't park
in the neighborhood surrounding Wat Thai.  The shuttles are
fairly efficient, and more importantly, parking at the metro
station helps keep relations good between Wat Thai and their
neighbors.

You can purchase food whenever you want during the entire 
festival.  It wouldn't be a Thai festival without food.

Glenmont Metro Station neighborhood map:
http://www.stationmasters.com/System_Map/GLENMONT/glenmont.html

Some pictures taken (not by me) at a previous year's Songkran:
http://songkran2006.blogspot.com/

Description of 2005's festival (not written by me):
http://tinyurl.com/3bactj
http://tinyurl.com/2d3g8a
http://tinyurl.com/34ztuw
______________________________

Thai Festival in Virginia (4/19/09):
http://www.watyarn.com/calendarevents.html

On Sunday, April 19th, 2009 the Songkran Festival will be held 
at Wat Yarnna Rangsee Buddhist Monastery.  Please come and join
us.  The ceremony will begin at 10:00 am.
 
Wat Yarnna Rangsee Buddhist Monastery
21950 Shaw Road     
Sterling, Virginia 20164-9318 USA.
Tel. 703-406-8290, 703-406-2509 
Google Map Directions:  http://tinyurl.com/ddngc4
______________________________

Thai Restaurant Week (4/13/09 - 4/19/09):
Washington Post: http://tinyurl.com/deuvk5

Thai Embassy info: http://tinyurl.com/c8h4fp
______________________________

Thanks for your indulgence,
George Marinkovich