This year’s theme was the “Songkran Festival”, or water festival, held every year in Thailand from the 13th to the 15th of April. Celebrations included the building of a Sand Pagoda, particularly representative in Thai culture that when the faithful visit the temple, the grains of sand that have adhered to their shoes are taken away from it. In Buddhism, this is seen as sin. Therefore, the sand must be returned to build a new temple each year to restore a good karma.

Dance performances were accompanied by Pong Lang music, a special instrument from the northeast of Thailand, along with sport performances that included Muaythai (Thai boxing) and the traditional fight show with swords and sticks. To embrace Thai culture even more, Ban Seansuk eV organized a raffle for participants, with the possibility to win a package price that included flights and accommodation from Germany to Bangkok.

German-Thai relations date back to 1907, when King Chulalongkorn fell ill and travelled to Homburg in search for a cure. Out of gratitude, he dismantled a temple in Bangkok and gifted it to the German town. Because parts of the temple were sent individually, some went missing and the inauguration ceremony took place in 1914, in the presence of Prince Mahidol of Siam. King Chulalongkorn, who eager to see the building completed unfortunately died before construction was finished. His gift, however, laid the foundations of what became a close friendship between Thailand and Bad Homburg.

• - http://www.amazing-thailand-bad-homburg.de/en/
• - https://www.bad-homburg.de/kultur/festivals/Amazing_Thailand.php
• - https://www.bad-homburg-tourismus.de/events/eventsuche-showid38415.htm