Loy Krathong: Full Moon Festival

From the left, Ivan from San Diego, Josh from Nashville, and me, holding our krathongs.

Wednesday night I celebrated Loy Krathong, a Thai holiday where you send your worries and wishes out to the water and, with it, renew your karma! It's simple, sweet and felt really good to do! Although my Thai friends invited me to go with them, I could see they were busy at their restaurant and I wasn't sure how late I wanted to be up/out or when they'd be ready, plus it was raining on and off, so I took off with some friends, Ivan and George, to check it out down at Nai Harn beach.


A little bit about Loy Krathong from a site that knows way more about it than me:

As the full moon of the twelfth lunar month (usually in mid-November) lights up the night sky, throughout the Thai kingdom, hundreds of thousands of ornately-decorated krathong or traditional banana leaf floats are set adrift in rivers and waterways in a spell-binding ritual called "Loi Krathong" - the 'festival of lights". This is one of the Kingdom's oldest and best-preserved traditions.

Krathong floats in the shape of lotus blossoms are most popular and are made from materials easily found in each locality. Loi Krathong customs and traditions reflect local beliefs and cultural evolution and interesting regional variations can be seen. In Tak province, the banana-leaf floats are replaced by coconut shells which are threaded together and launched simultaneously so they appear as long chains of hundreds of glittering lights on the Ping River, hence the origin of its name, "Loi Krathong Sai".

There are various accounts about the origins of Loi Krathong. However given the river-based culture that forms the foundation of the traditional Thai way of life, it is widely believed that these are offerings made to Mae Khongkha - Mother of Waters in an act of appeasement. Many also believe that by setting adrift the krathong, one symbollically casts away one's grief, misery and ill-fortunes. Coins are also placed in the krathong as offerings. For the romantic at heart and young couples, Loi Krathong is the time to make wishes for happiness together and success in love.

At dusk, as the full moon begins to rise, the Krathong is decorated with fresh flowers and the candles and incense sticks are placed in the Krathong. The float is then taken to a waterway where the candle and incense sticks are lit and the Krathong set adrift. The floats are carried downstream by the gentle current, candlelight flickering in the wind.

You put like a strand or two of hair, a part of a fingernail and/or a bit of

money in your Krathong. Ivan chewing off a fingernail....hilarious!

Here's me at the end of the pier, trying to light my Krathong.

There is incense and a candle on each one.

Success, even though none of them stayed lit!






It went out, here's Ivan trying to help me.






Me getting ready to set my worries and wishes adrift!

Thar she goes!

The night is kind of a carnival. Here are some (bad) random pictures from the evening as well . . . .

Krathoys sailing off . . . unlit & under an overcast but at least not raining anymore sky.

A ride.

Descending to the pier to set off our Krathoys

Kids on a ride!



A dart game where you win stuffed animals. Pretty standard.

JoJo and Noi making banana leaf/tree Krathons earlier in the day,

Yib hanging out in the background.......