Thai new year celebrations: Water, elephants ... and more water

Tourism makes up about 12 percent of Thailand's economy. Its capital, Bangkok, was the most-visited city in the world in 2018, with more than 20 million people coming to enjoy its sights and culture. The Songkran festival is among the country's biggest attractions, drawing hundreds of thousands of tourists every year.

Thailand has one of the highest populations of captive elephants in the world, and they are considered the country's national animal. It is thus no wonder that they figure so largely at the Songkran festival. The animals are ridden through the streets, often spraying tourists and locals with water on their way. But before that, they have to put up with a make-up artist.

Here, humans and elephants show common enjoyment in playing with water. Elephant experts say that spraying water through their trunks is a natural way of playing for the animals. And it is one that fits the water-themed festival perfectly.

The festival is known for its colorfulness. Both Thais and foreigners often don floral shirts. Water pistols and goggles in a variety of hues are also a part of the necessary Songkran equipment. Not an event for the water-shy!

This elephant calf seems to be enjoying a dance with humans at the celebrations. But such tricks often come at the price of suffering for the animals; their handlers, or mahouts, sometimes use a sharp tool called a bullhook to train them.

Few people would really object to being targeted by a gun like this, at least in Thailand's warm climate. But monks and conservationists in Thailand have appealed to city dwellers not to waste too much water during Songkran amid a dry season that has badly affected some rural areas. Earlier this year, wildfires caused by dry conditions hit nine provinces.