Before the monkeys gorge themselves into calorie rich comas, they thank the people by brawling, fornicating on the tabletops and screeching. The town of Lopburi has good reasons for going to such lengths for these misbehaving primates having to do with Hindu lore that says these Macaques are blessed descendants that must be honored, of a great warrior monkey.
Most people believe the real reason for the Monkey Buffet Festival is that tourist authorities want you to visit Lopburi. A man by the name of Yongyuth Kitwattananusont is the one responsible for the idea of having a Monkey Buffet Festival back in 1989. With the sponsorship and assistance of Thailand’s Tourism Authority, the festival attracts thousands of visitors and tourist per year mainly to see how he will try to outdo himself. One year, he stuffed his self into a monkey suit and arrived at the festival in a parachute. The plan for this November is to up the year’s offerings by over 4,000 kilograms of food.
Yongyuth promises that every year he will continue “enticing tourist…especially the foreigners that show interest year after year.” Lopburi is also the site of Hindu temples built in the 10th century by the Khmer dynasty with the main temple that resembles architecture from Cambodia’s Angkor Wat. The temple is also the headquarters of the Macaques where they roam its grounds without thought. It is believed that Lopburi was originally founded by Hanuman who was an anthropomorphic monkey who helped the Ramayana rescue his bride from a demon with 10 heads. One reason for the Monkey Buffet festival is that todays monkeys are suppose to be direct descendants of the Hanuman bloodline.