Dawn in Phuket: Hungry Ghost Festival 2011 Phuket, Thailand. เทศกาลพ้อต่อ ภูเก็ต ๒๕๕๔

เทศกาลพ้อต่อ จัดตั้งแต่วันขึ้น 15 ค่ำ เดือน 7 ตามปฏิทินจันทรคติจีน (ตรงกับเดือน 9 ปฏิทินจันทรคติไทย)

Updates: Hungry Ghost Festival 2012 and 2013

เทศกาลพ้อต่อ ภูเก็ต ๒๕๕๕ / ๒๕๕๖

The Hungry Ghost Festival is known in Phuket as Tessagarn Por Dtor.

For the period of the 7th lunar month in the Chinese calendar (9th month in the Thai calendar) the spirits of the family ancestors are believed to return to earth. On the 15th day of the 7th lunar month a special feast is made as an offering to the spirits including whole pig, fruit, cakes and the special red turtles (Ang Ku) believed to bring longevity and wealth to the family.The festival ends 15 days after the feast, on the last day of the 7th lunar month, when the spirits return to heaven.

The third floor car park at Phuket's Fresh Food Market has been closed for two days to make way for the Por Dtor Festival or Hungry Ghost Festival.

This ancient festival has many names, เทศกาลอุลลัมพน Oonlampon ซีโกวโจ่ย Si Guo Joy และ ประเพณีพ้อต่อ but nowadays is popularly called Ngan Por Dtor. The local people will make alters at their houses and at local temples in order to make offerings of food and drink to the returning spirits of their ancestors. It is a similar belief to the Latin 'Day of the Dead' Halloween and similar also to the ninth month festival in the ancient Aztec calendar. These festivals are happy occasions when followers feel happy because they are reunited with their love ones. During the Por Dtor festival offerings are also made to spirits of people who have no living relatives. During the period that the spirits return family elders will often not let their children go outside after dark in fear that the spirits will take their spirits back to heaven. During the festival the most important God is Dtai Seu Eiya Gong ไต่สื่อเอี๋ยก๊ง, a novice of Mae Guan Im who has the duty of stopping spirits coming from hell stealing the offerings.

The locals came to worship and make offerings of food to keep the Hungry Ghosts happy!

It certainly was a big feast, with whole pigs, cakes, fruit and the famous turtle cakes that are supposed to bring good luck. I started wishing that I was a Hungry Ghost too, there were so many good things to eat!

Many of the turtles will come from Kengtin's, a traditional Phuket cake shop.

Small turtles are called Ang Ku (อังกู้), large turtles are called Dtua Ku (ตั่วกู้)

This carved water melon was a real eye catcher! Not the usual style of Thai fruit carving!

Outside a street festival was in full swing with stalls selling food, clothes and other things. Stages were set up to keep the atmosphere lively with dancers and singers performing all night to keep the ghosts away!