Ready for royal barge procession for the King

After nine months of preparations, the country looks set for the royal barge procession, an extravaganza event on the Chao Phraya River, on Friday.

The Navy was ready for the event and everything was prepared, Capt Paithoon Panyasin, secretary to the committee organising the ceremony, said. All details were checked to ensure perfection, he added.

Navy chief Adm Surasak Rounroengrom will lead all oarsmen and officials to pay respect to the barges at the royal barge docks on Friday morning.

The royal barge procession is part of the khatin merit-making ceremony and a prelude to the celebrations of His Majesty the King's 85th birthday on Dec 5.

It will be the 17th royal barge procession during the reign of His Majesty, and the first one in five years.

The last time was on Nov 5, 2007 when His Royal Highness Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, who represented the King, boarded the Suphannahongse royal barge for the royal kathin ceremony at Wat Arun Ratchawararam, or the Temple of Dawn.

This time the Crown Prince also will preside over the event on the King's behalf to present robes to monks at the temple.

The last time His Majesty travelled on Suphannahongsa to present royal kathin robes to monks at the temple was on Nov 4, 1999.

The royal barge procession this year is made up of about 2,200 oarsmen and 52 barges, with the highlight on Suphannahongsa, the Narai Song Suban King Rama IX, the Anantanagaraj and the Anekajatibhujonga.

"It is the navy's greatest honour to be given responsibility for organising the royal ceremony,'' Adm Aphiwat Sriwatthana, who heads the committee, said.

The one-hour ceremony begins at 3pm at Vasukree pier at the temple. The river from the King Rama VIII and Memorial bridges will be closed from 1pm to 6pm.

The best areas for spectators to watch the historic event are Rama VIII park on the Thon Buri side, Santi Chaiprakarn Park on Phra Athit Road, the old Thon Buri railway station near Siriraj Hospital, Tha Thien opposite the temple and Thammasat University's Tha Prachan campus.

The oarsmen have spent months in training, including nine rehearsals from Sept 21, plus two full-dress rehearsals on Nov 2 and last Tuesday.

The government set aside a budget of about 200 million baht to renovate the fleet and repair traditional-style costumes and make new ones for the oarsmen.