WITH THE Chinese New Year celebrations done and dusted for another year, the people of Pattani turned their attention last weekend to the southern city’s annual festival honouring the highly revered goddess Lim Ko Niao.

Young pilgrims show their spirit in the sacred fire walking ceremony.

The festival, which started last Saturday and drew to a close yesterday, saw the Chinese descendants of the town turn the sacred Leng Chu Kiang grounds and Chinatown on Anuro Road into a lively entertainment venue. Thousands of local residents as well as tourists both Thai and from neighbouring Malaysia answered present for the festival, the highlights of which include a sedan-chair procession, the carrying of ancient deities to the river for bathing and walking through fire. On the sidelines, an outdoor theatre offers an interesting programme of cultural shows like Chinese opera, the southern shadow play and a Nora dance to pay homage to the deities while the walking street bustles with vendors selling local delicacies and souvenirs.

“This celebration reflects our identity and the diversity of our history and religious beliefs. Pattani has long been a multicultural community, where Thai Buddhists, Chinese and Muslims have learnt to live together in harmony. The economy is still driven by tourism and this festival is telling the outside world that Pattani is alive and well and different from what is seen on the news,” says assistant professor Noppadol Tippyarat, dean of the faculty of fine and applied arts at Prince of Songkhla University.

The pilgrims continue the procession by swimming across the Pattani River. 

Legend has it that Lim Ko Niao crossed the South China Sea from China to Pattani to bring her brother back home to be with their dying mother. The young man, Lim To Kiam, declined her request, preferring to stay in Pattani because he had married a daughter of Phraya Tani and converted to Islam. Lim Ko Niao was frustrated by her brother’s refusal and ended up hanging herself from a cashew nut tree. The villagers later carved a wooden statue and built a shrine next to Masjid Kerisik to remember her life.

In 1879, Luang Cheen Kananurak refurbished the Leng Chu Kiang Shrine and moved Chao Mae Lim Ko Niao to her new home. The shrine was originally built to honour the goddess medical doctor known as Zhou Shi Gong.

On the 14th day of the first month according to the Chinese calendar, the divine rituals begin with the goddess Lim Ko Niao procession. Only men are allowed to carry the red wood palanquin enshrined with an original figure of the goddess and her presence is supposed to bring residents fortune and prosperity.

The highlight is a grand procession of Chinese deities on the full moon of the first month, 15 days after the Chinese New Year. At midnight, Chinese men, young and old, gather at the Leng Chu Kiang Shrine and perform a ceremony to ask the goddess when they can start and how to arrange the line.

On 14th day of the first month, the more than 400-year-old statue of the goddess Lim Ko Niao is brought out from the Leng Chu Kiang Shrine and carried around the town. 

Featuring 18 statues of deities in the Leng Chu Kiang Shrine, plus seven others from local residences in the neighbourhood, this year’s procession began at 4.15am and was led by four original and imitation statues of the goddess Medical Doctor and goddess Lim Ko Niao, followed by goddess Tubtim, goddess Tiger, goddess Guan Yin, goddess Guan Yu and the fortune goddess.

“There’s no evidence that allows us to trace the beginning of this celebration. We don’t know when it started or who initiated it, but it has become a beautiful tradition handed down from generation to generation,” says 74-year-old Sathorn Kanjanasim, who serves as a committee member of Leng Chu Kiang Shrine.

“Pattani pioneered the tradition of the holy deity procession and this is now held in both Yala and Narathiwat. The difference here is that we don’t allow a medium to join the ceremony.”

After roaming around the town, the procession reached the Dechanuchit Bridge and the young men showed their respect for the goddesses by carrying all 25 statues across the Pattani River. It was deep and not easy to swim while carrying a statue but the men were cheered on in their task by Muslim villagers standing alongside Thai and Chinese pilgrims.

Late in the afternoon, the visitors moved to the ceremonial ground in front of the Shrine to find the best spot to watch the breathtaking fire walking ceremony. My friend and I climbed up to the roof deck, hoping our vantage point would allow us to capture stunning photos.

 Local residents set up an altar table to welcome the deity procession, while a million firecrackers are burnt to celebrate. 

“We believe that the water brings out the inauspicious elements from the statues when they are soaked in the river and that the fire walking ceremony burns wickedness,” Sathorn explains.

“I’ve been part of the deity procession for 40 years. We need to observe religious precepts for three to nine days before performing a fire walking ceremony to purify our minds.”

Surrounded by red fencing and off limits to women, the fire path is set up with charcoal, rice, coconut leaf stalks, salt and paper talismans. The deity procession continued to the entrance of the ceremonial ground where the hundreds of barefoot men were blessed with holy water before stepping into the fire.

Teerasak Kwansurat decided to take part in the fire walking ceremony when he was 19 at a friend’s invitation.

“I was born in Pattani and I first served as a volunteer for the Leng Chu Kiang Shrine. The fire walking ceremony is a way for a man to prove his maturity,” Teerasak, 32 says.

“After I saw other people walking on fire, I found myself wondering how hot it really was. I decided to find out for myself and prayed to Chao Mae Lim Ko Niao. If I came out of it safely, I would swear off beef for a life. And from the first steps, I never felt the heat of the fire. The streets are hotter. I stay focused on every step and I observe the religious precepts for three to nine days before the ceremony. It’s an individual belief.”

Carriers of the status meet to walk round the ceremonial ground three times while in a meditative state. 

My media friend Chainarong Kitinartintranee also joined the ceremony though he didn’t fare quite so well: he ended up with a burn on his foot.

“Not everyone that can participate in this auspicious ceremony, so I was quick to accept Teerasak’s invitation. I didn’t feel the fire was hot. But I walked on the black charcoal and that’s when I got burnt,” he says.

“At first, I found the palanquin was heavy but the atmosphere gave me power and strength. The senior members encouraged us and urged us to keep focused and everything went smoothly.”

The ceremony wrapped just before 6 when the procession entered the shrine. The statues were dressed in new costumes and jewellery, while the pilgrims offered fruits and joss paper to ask for fortune, success and good health in the Year of the Pig.

FANNING BELIEF

>> The Leng Chu Kiang Shrine is located at 63, Anoru Road, Pattani.

>> Find out more details at http://www.Facebook.com/LimKoNeaw.pn.

SEVENTY EIGHT percent of Thai travellers say their motivation to travel is to “go to places my friends have not been” when they were asked about travel motivation, according to new research conducted by Booking.com.

The survey also reveals how nationality is likely to impact travel style. For most nationalities, the top motivation to travel is straightforward: to get some downtime. Thais are no exception, with 89 per cent of Thai travellers saying that “giving myself time to relax” is one of the reasons why they go on holiday. This makes it the top travel motivation to all nationalities with the exception of the Danish and the French, who cite “being free to act how I feel” as their top motivation to travel.

However, when comparing top travel motivations between nationalities, it is clear that travellers from different corners of the world have different preferences. Thais seem most easily tempted by nostalgia (77 per cent of Thai travellers want to “rediscover past good times”), Chinese and Taiwanese travellers attach relatively high importance to “experiencing a simpler lifestyle (respectively 83 per cent and 76 per cent) and Japanese, German and Hong Kong travellers simply want to “get away from the demands at home”.

Finally, for some travellers, travel is a question of social status: particularly among Indonesians (75 percent), Indians (75 percent), Thais (78 percent), and Filipinos.

Most global disagreement is on the subject of adventure tourism. Russian travellers say they like to spend their off-time “finding thrills and excitement”, while Dutch and German travellers rate this on average the lowest.

For Thai travellers, the top five motivations are “give myself time to relax”, “taking time to mentally unwind”, “being free to act how I feel”, “being physically active”, and “experiences I couldn’t have at home”.

Destinations also vary according to nationality. Most global travellers select destinations based on categories such as “personal safety” and “cleanliness”, but there are plenty of nationalities that prioritise “natural beauty” or “tasty local food”. Top five factors Thai travellers take into considerations when choosing a destination are “personal safety”, “clean”, “tasty local food/cuisine”, “outstanding natural scenery”, and “an exotic atmosphere”.

Travel behaviour is also heavily influenced by what is easy to reach. This may be why Indian travellers make up the majority of Bhutan bookers, Argentinean travellers are the most seen customers in Paraguay and the South Koreans are the biggest fans of Guam. If you look at the countries that Thais travel to relatively often, it is clear that they know how to appreciate their country and the neighbours. The 10 of the most favoured destinations for Thai travellers in 2018 are Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Japan, Macao, Vietnam and Maldives.

The research was commissioned by Booking.com and independently conducted among a sample of 53,492 respondents across 31 countries from the US, the UK, Spain and France to Australia, India and South Korea. In order to participate in this survey, respondents had to be 18 years of age or older, had to have travelled at least once in the past 12 months and be either the primary decision maker or involved in the decision making of their travel. The survey was taken online and took place between October 16 to November 12, 2018.

It’s not so much fear of flying over open water that puts bums on the seats of ferryboats to get from Surat Thani to Koh Samui and back. It’s all about the bloody convenience and, well sure, the vastly cheaper fare.

Seatran Ferry, which has been in business for 30 years – not counting a brief hiatus that ended in 2002 – gets its passengers from Donsak Pier in Surat Thani to Nathon Pier on Samui Island in 120 minutes. Its boats are chugging back and forth every day from 5am to 7.30pm.

Up to 600 people and 80 vehicles can fit on the ferry. Passengers pay Bt150 each and another Bt400 to Bt470 if they have a vehicle, the rate varying with vehicle size.

Note that you cannot take your car to Samui on a plane – unless you’re very rich or very well connected.

“Ferryboat services are being used more and more by Thai and foreign tourists,” says Seatran general manager Benjawan Tanphaibul.

“There’s a rumour about a new concessionaire who’s going to jump-start the business, but it isn’t easy because of the huge investment and high maintenance costs involved.

“Sustaining our business requires continual improvements in service, with many fine experiences, as well as maintenance. We have our own shipyard with inspections and maintenance checks every two years,” she says.

One of the “fine experiences” Benjawan refers to is an auspicious pre-cruise van drive to Wat Donsak, home to the world’s largest statue of revered monk Luang Phor Thuat (1582-1682).

On boarding the ferry, passengers tend to spread out according to personal preference. Some take up positions at the stern to enjoy the views of the Gulf and the islands. Others grab a seat indoors to read or chat or take a nap. I was in a group holding “frequent traveller” cards and we had our own private space.

Boredom doesn’t seem to be a factor on the journey, not with a coffeeshop, a well-stocked mini-mart and a place to get your feet massaged for 45 minutes for Bt300.

“Our passengers can feel safe because we have all the basic equipment, such as lifejackets and life rafts,” says Benjawan. “We’re registered as a ‘coastal ship’ so we don’t need to have dinghies. It’s only a 34-kilometre crossing, so rescue vessels could reach us quickly if there were an emergency.”

On arrival on Koh Samui, we ride another van up into the hills, to the Fair House Beach Resort & Hotel. There’s a stop along the way at Lad Koh Viewpoint, between Chaweng and Lamai beaches. It offers a wonderful vista, making you appreciate the island’s incredible natural beauty.

A walk down to the beach and a hop across rocks being attacked by tumultuous waves affords more great photos. We make plans to return the next day and catch what promises to be a stunning sunrise.

Waking early the next morning, we’re ready for another ferry ride, this one on the high-speed, 200-passenger Seatran Discovery from Samui’s Bangrak Pier to Koh Phangan. The ride, naturally popular with revellers headed to the monthly full-moon parties on Rin Beach, takes 30 minutes and costs Bt350.

From there you can get to Koh Tao on yet another ferry, but that trip takes up to three hours.

Koh Phangan has another attraction that surely tops a rave party. Than Sadet Waterfall National Park is so named – it means “he visited” – because the visitor was King Rama V, who came in 1889 to see the waterfall. He was impressed enough to have the royal monogram inscribed prominently on a rock, where it still can be seen.

And then there’s the Yang Na Yai tree with a circumference of 14.6 metres a height of 53.5 metres. A sign erected by the Department of Rural Roads in 2013 puts the tree’s age at about 400 years.

Our jaws were still slack when we reached Mae Haad Beach in time for low tide, when it’s possible to walk over to little Koh Ma on sand that’s “ocean floor” the rest of the day.

Apart from the “separated sea”, visitors come for the beautiful white sand of the beach itself, the sunsets viewed over Koh Ma and some of the best snorkelling and diving on Koh Phangan.

Foreigners swimming in the clear waters off the beach could be seen from the Koh Raham Restaurant & Beach Bar perched on a small rocky outcrop, a nice spot for a coffee break.

Back on Samui, time was rewardingly spent at the Phra Yai Market near Nathon Pier and the Bophut Fisherman’s Village, a walking street packed with tourists struggling to decide what to buy and where to eat. There’s a lot on offer.

At Hinta Hinyai you hear the story of an elderly couple killed in a storm during a sea journey. There’s a shrine to Guan Yu, the Chinese god of war who espoused not just bravery and courage but also honesty, loyalty, gratitude and ethical behaviour.

And at the restaurant Wang Sarai there is a to-die-for dish among the Hainanese treats called moo kho, which got its name from a technique in food preservation but now, happily, is another memory to be preserved.

Off on a sea cruise

There are three ways to book passage on the Seatran Ferry. Get a membership card so you can use the Call Centre (077 950 559). Otherwise, visit the Seatran Ferry Office or go online to http://www.SeatranFerry.com.