Poi Sang Long Festival

The early-April Poi Sang Long festival in Northern Thailand sees The Burmese Thai Yai/Shan people engage in a three-day ordination party for their young boys.

Before becoming novice monks, the boys from these peoples have their heads shaved by family members then are dressed up like princes of the past with dazzling headdresses and bright silk clothes. During the three days of the festival, these brilliant boys cannot touch the ground with their feet. The result is a three-day party during which time the boys spend most of their time on the shoulders of their relatives and older friends.

In Chiang Mai, Wat Pa Pao is the centre of the merrymaking and there, drums and gongs are omnipresent guiding the boys in an endless piggyback dance around the temple.