Phuket’s Vegetarian Festival
Special to Road Trips for Foodies
By Amari Phuket
Dating back as far as 1825, the Vegetarian Festival in which the Chinese community observes a vegetarian diet during the Chinese calendar’s ninth lunar month began with miners and opera troupes believing that a ‘pure’ lifestyle would enhance their connection with the gods.
Today, the tradition is celebrated throughout Thailand by both Chinese and non-Chinese communities alike with a number of festivities and special vegetarian dishes for all to enjoy.
In Phuket, Thailand, the whole town comes together in honor of this event with a procession through the streets to ‘Jui Tui’, the city’s most revered shrine. During the parade participants enact in sacrificial rituals including ‘fire-walking’, with the brave souls walking across burning coals barefoot, ‘bladed ladder climbs’, with performers crossing a ladder made of sharp iron blades and body impalements, each of these deeds represents a sacrifice, with the hopes of earning future protection from harm.
Aside from these religious rites, the festivities include music featuring the drums and other traditional instruments, dancing, fire crackers, rounding off with fireworks in the evenings and an abundance of Thailand’s famous street food featuring much-loved dishes served vegetarian style. Even more special, this year will see two ninth lunar months, occurring only every 100 years; the festival will be celebrated twice, from September 24 until October 2, 2014, and again from October 24 to November 1, 2014.
Amari Phuket Beachfront Resort & Spa has a special package for this event that includes a five-day, four-night stay, round-trip airport transfers, discounts on Breeze Spa treatments, laundry service, and food and beverage. Of course, during the Vegetarian Festival months special vegetarian dishes will be served as part of the breakfast buffet and will also be available to order throughout the day.
(Photo courtesy of Amari Phuket)