When you hear the words “vegetarian festival,” you probably don’t think of a parade of people walking through the streets, shoving large, painful items through their faces. That’s exactly what happens every year in the Phuket Province of Thailand during the country’s annual Vegetarian Festival. If you think it sounds pretty freaky, just wait until you see these pictures. Some of these are a pretty shocking.
Welcome to the festival! These must be some of the toughest vegetarians in the world.
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The festival lasts nine days every year until November 1st. This is actually the second vegetarian festival to take place this year.
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During those nine days, people abstain from meat as a way to promote good health.
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Sadly, the exact origins of the festival are lost to the ages.
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However, it’s commonly believed that the festival was imported from mainland China by a traveling Chinese opera group.
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I’m not really sure what sticking things through your face has to do with being a vegetarian, but it looks kind of cool, right?
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So far there is no word of anyone being seriously injured by this year’s festivities.
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2011 was a different story though. That year, 74 people were injured and one person died.
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So if you’re headed to Thailand for the festival, make sure to be careful if you’re going to participate.
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This one is giving me the willies.
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Do any of these temporary piercings leave a scar?
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I’m impressed that these people aren’t passing out from the pain of having things stuck through their faces.
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Wow. I wonder how long it took for this guy to stick all of those needles through his mouth.
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At least he looks like he’s having fun? Maybe?
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H/T: Huffington Post
I was planning on visiting Thailand someday, but this is really freaky. Maybe I’ll just have to make sure I visit when the Vegetarian Festival isn’t going on.
