Pump action squirt guns still popular
The amazing array of water guns available in Bangkok's Sam Pheng area remain popular among people looking forward to the coming Songkran Festival and, as usual, everyone has ignored a ban on "air-pressured" guns.
Police and city administrators have imposed many restrictions this year including a ban on water mixed with talcum and dyes, spaghetti-strap tank tops, and pick-up trucks carrying revellers into Khao San Road - to ensure "safety and order". Safety measures also include a ban on using or selling high-pressure water guns - by far the most popular "weapon" of choice on Khao San Road. And Sam Pheng is where people go to buy them - for Bt10 to Bt600 each. Vendor Pimpaporn Sripeng, 50, said she shifted from selling dolls to water guns from March 10 to April 16 every year for the past decade. Most customers were retailers who bought in bulk to later re-sell to revellers. This year's best-selling model is a 2,000cc "space-style" squirter at Bt200. It was "better built" than other models, noted Pimpaporn, who sells up to 150 a day. Many people continued to buy air-pressured water guns despite the ban, she said, insisting that the kind she sold were of weaker pressure and not dangerous. The Nation
|
