The start of the festival is a fast and purification period, when meat and alcohol are forbidden. The purification is made by asceticism and self torture. The nine days begin with believers’ parades. The participants wear white cloths and pray to their gods for safe holiday period.
On the evening between the sixth and the seventh day, lot of hot cinder congeries can be seen all around with excited believers that run on it. On the next day (the seventh) the believers climb on ladders made of knifes’ blades that injure the believers’ feet which are already burned from the previous evening.
During the festival, accommodation may be scarce owing to higher demands , therefore it is advisable to check accommodation prices and make reservations ahead of time.
The climaxes of the festival are parades that are held all over the city where the celebrators stab big iron spits into their cheeks. This is the way to purification according to Phuket’s residents who carry on the tradition since 1825.
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