Year-end celebration of local Phuket life

PHUKET: Old Phuket Town will be strung with lights and festive decorations for the fourth annual ‘Local Life Festival’ on the last Sunday of December, giving Phuketians young and old, a taste of yesteryear.

From 6:30pm until 11pm on December 27, all are invited to wander through Soi Romanee and Thalang Road to take in the sights, sounds and smells of Phuket Old Town’s Sino-Portuguese-style architecture, street performances and food and drink stalls.

There are no ticket sales for this community event – entry is free of charge. The roads will be closed off to vehicles, and colorful lights and garlands will be strung overhead, allowing people to wander the ancient streets.

This year’s festival is an extra-special event as it will be the first time that the walkways will be clear of electricity poles and overhead power cables.

Work to bury the power lines along the roads has been underway for several months and is expected to be complete just in time for the Local Life Festival.

Old Phuket Foundation President Dr Prasit Koysiripong, said that without the worry of overhead wires obstructing performances, the event will be much more spectacular than previous years.

“It will be a very memorable evening. About 4,000 people are expected to attend and there will be an audio-visual show dramatically lighting up the surrounding buildings,” said Dr Prasit.

Stage acts will include live music, including jazz, and drama performances by local students and celebrities.

Internationally-acclaimed short film producer Dr Marut Lekpetch (‘No Ko Paksawin’) will be showing his short film Ngo kaki, which features the ancient archways of Old Phuket Town.

Dr Prasit said the purpose of the festival is to draw a cross section of people to the Old Town district so that expats and out-of-town visitors can mingle with the locals.

For more information, contact one of the following numbers: 081-7195 493, 081-5523790, 081-8920618, 086-2724466.

— Gazette Events