Thousands of devotees took part in the colourful parades with ornately decorated boats to mark the end of Buddhist lent in Thailand on Monday (October 14).<br /><br />Floats decorated with artwork and dancers in traditional costumes were at an event in Songkhla in the south of the country.<br /><br />Brightly decorated 'land boats' were used to recreate how Buddha supposed to travel from heaven to the earth to collect donations from followers.<br /><br />Drum sticks were delivered along a zip line in a basket of firecrackers to signal the start of festivities. <br /><br />The Buddhist lent period lasts for three months from mid-July until mid-October. <br /><br />Provincial governor Somsak Thantiseranee said: "It was a pleasure to host a traditional festival and get so much attention. It shows our beliefs have not been forgotten.''<br /><br />In the neighbouring province of Trang, followers held a similar festival.<br /><br />Ornately decorated Buddhist longboats paraded along the road with locals dancing in traditional style.<br /><br />The Trang provincial office stated that there were a total of 78 boats built from 78 different temples for the event.<br /><br />The parade of Buddhist land boats, known as Chak Phra, is a traditional belief in the southern region that the boat is a vehicle that Buddha used to take from heaven to the earth to receive donations. <br /><br />Buddhist followers made donations on the last day of the lent period.
