ter a stream of obscenities.  Her phone was one of the early victims of the annual Songkran festival, a three-day new year carnival during which everyone suffers the indignity of being doused with water by everyone else. And of course there are coincidental victims, like the young lady’s iPhone, which no doubt she will be anxious to replace and quite possibly upgrade at the same time – a clear win for Apple. For retailers across the board in Thailand, Songkran is an opportunity akin to Christmas in the West. Thais spend big during Songkran, and many are on the move, leaving the cities to go back and celebrate the new year with their families in the provinces. So although the spending is still concentrated in the usual big city retail venues, like downtown Bangkok, it gets distributed a little bit around the country, too. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) estimates that the Songkran festival this year will generate 13.5 billion baht in spending (about $586 million) from domestic trips, easily bettering the level of 2019. This year, after three years of sombre celebrations in which people were either outright forbidden or strongly discouraged by government order to heave water at each other, Thais have got their revenge in a big way. The Center for Economic and Business Forecasting at the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce forecasts that retail spending during Songkran this year will be up more than 17 per cent over last year and add more than half a percentage point to the country’s economic growth. Selling more than water cannons The increase in spending falls into the three major categories: first, of course, food and beverage (including both alcohol and bottled water) spending increases. The increase will benefit food-for-home retailers and cafes, restaurants and food stalls.  Second, there is the paraphernalia around the watery rituals that doesn’t rank highly on a scale of environmental friendliness: plastic toy water guns that are up to a metre long and a landfill’s nightmare, and protective articles such as eyewear, sealable plastic bags to carry phones and wallets, and colourful clothes. And don’t forget white powder and chalk, which are used to smear faces and are a compulsory part of the whole defilement ritual. Third, retailers leverage the occasion to offer promotions on a whole slew of seasonal items, such as air conditioners, fans, small swimming pools, barbecues and camping accessories. For example, Lotus’s, one of Thailand’s largest hypermarket and supermarket retailers, with more than 2,600 stores, launched a “Summer Fun Campaign” through 19 April, offering promotions on more than 1,400 products. Meanwhile, Tops, a vast supermarket chain operated by Central Retail, lured shoppers with its own batch of promotions under the marketing moniker ‘Tropical Summer Campaign’. International arrivals boost Songkran spending Thai nationals are not the only target market for retailers during Songkran. International arrivals are up significantly on last year, and not only do they celebrate hard, they are also less aware of the need to waterproof their valuables, a reality that the phone, wallet and handbag retailers can exploit. Arrivals from overseas topped 2.2 million in December, and have held steady above 2 million a month since then. The government had planned for 6 million arrivals in the first quarter and that target was easily beaten, with 6.15 million visitors. The Tourism Council of Thailand predicts that at least 30 million tourists will visit Thailand by year’s end and spend 1.5 trillion baht. TAT expects 305,000 foreign tourists for Songkran week alone, spending just over 5 billion baht. That still isn’t anywhere near 2019’s level but it’s a good ramping up from dismal numbers in the past three years. Water, water everywhere The Songkran water-throwing goes on for three days, sometimes more. There is no escape from it except for staying home and barring the door. Driving or walking down the narrow streets, one is soon drenched by fusillades from either side, issuing from hoses, buckets, bottles and water guns. Women dancing to ear-splitting industrial synth music jump onto chairs at kerbside, beer bottles in one hand and water hoses in the other, spraying their ammunition at passing cars and motorbikes. While I was sitting in a restaurant typing up this story, a youngster appeared with a green and yellow plastic water gun half a metre or more long, giving all the patrons a good spray. The restaurant was packed with Aussies because it was the beginning of an AFL football round, and there was a big game on. My laptop wasn’t spared but luckily I got the lid down in time. How silly of me to think that a restaurant was a safe haven from the craziness. Meanwhile, I wonder what happened to the phone belonging to the lady who followed me into the condo building. I had suggested to her that she immerse it in a bowl of rice for a couple of days. I meant dry rice of course, but she looked at me quizzically, making me suspect later that she thought she had to cook the rice first. Thais do strange things during Songkran, so you never know.