Have you always wanted to attend a truly bizarre festival? Well, we have one that’s perfect! On the last Sunday of November, in a Thai town called Lopburi, a huge celebration is held to honour thousands of macaques.
Macaques are a type of monkey. A kind of cute, kind of terrifying little creature, who will more than likely jump on your shoulders, snatch your purse and steal your snacks.
Yet, despite the chaos they cause, locals and tourists join together to set up a lavish feast for the furry little critters. The feast is set up among the beautiful ruins of the Phra Prang Sam Yot temple, as it’s thought to bring good luck to the area and its people.
The festival
The ‘Monkey Buffet Festival’ usually begins with an opening ceremony that includes performances by dancers in monkey costumes.
Perhaps to signal to the monkeys the party is about to begin.
When the monkeys arrive, hosts remove sheets from the banquet tables, revealing brightly coloured mouthwatering fruits and veggies.
The monkeys are naturally curious and once they get over the initial shock and stage-fright of hundreds of people offering so much food to them, they get to work instantly, indulging almost two tonnes of offerings!
Respect for monkeys traces back at least 2,000 years to the epic tale of Rama, a divine prince, and his struggle to rescue his wife, Sita, from the clutches of a demon lord.
According to the tale, the monkey king Hanuman and his army helped rescue Sita. Since that time, monkeys have been appreciated as a sign of good luck and prosperity.
The annual festival is one way people mark their appreciation and show that it is possible for humans and animals to work in slightly inconvenient, yet, perfectly imperfect harmony.
Want to go?
If you’d like to attend and show your respects to the macaques, be sure to visit Thailand towards the end of November.
Lopburi is easy to get to from Bangkok. It’s about 150kms north-east of the city and is a convenient stopover on the northern railway line to Chiang Mai. The trains depart every hour and the two-hour journey provides for some pretty stunning scenery along the way.
Next year, the festival will be held on the 29th of November.
Click here for more info about the 2019 celebration!