Loi Krathong

I think Loi Krathong pretty much replaced my Thanksgiving this year. Okay, that's not exactly true--I did specifically go out on Thanksgiving and had fried chicken, sticky rice, and a Kit-Kat bar (which was as close to turkey, mashed potatoes, and pecan pie as I could get in Doembang). Loi Krathong, however, was just the next week, and felt rather more like a holiday since everyone around me was celebrating it, too.

For those who don't want to go off and do their own research about it: Loi Krathong is a traditional Thai holiday that's celebrated on a full moon and is kind of like a day of thanksgiving and atonement. It involves giving thanks to the rivers (or other bodies of water) for giving life, and apologizing for polluting them. Thais make little decorative rafts out of banana leaves and flowers, with incense and candles on top, and float them down the river--making a wish as they're launched. The rafts are called krathong. This is one that was given to me by one of the other teachers at my school:

This year the holiday fell on a Wednesday and I didn't have the day off work, which was a little surprising to me--Loi Krathong was one of the more major holidays I'd heard about before coming, so I half-way expected I'd have the day off to travel. I'll admit, I was kind of disappointed I didn't have the opportunity to go to Chiang Mai in the north, where, according to all the tourist resources, they have a really beautiful festival called Yi Peng involving floating lanterns. (I'm far enough away from Chiang Mai that I'd need two days just to have time to get there and back, let alone see anything.)

Sometimes, of course, little disappointments like that become fabulous opportunities. Two of the other English teachers from my school, Payow and Ed, took me to the festival held at one of the temples in Doembang. So instead of dealing with crowds of tourists, I got the authentic, small-town festival experience. I was the only farang there, and felt like I was stared at the entire time, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the evening to the fullest. There was food, Thai music and traditional Thai dance performances (some of the students from the school were among the performers), kids performing on unicycles, a grandmother/granddaughter contest, and firecrackers. There was also open dancing later, which, after being asked three times if I wanted to join in, I felt I couldn't really refuse--and it turned out to be quite fun. Below are the performers from my school, looking gorgeous and graceful:

I of course got the opportunity to make a wish and float my krathong down the river from the dock, and although I lit the incense, there was unfortunately too much wind to bother with the candle. According to Thai superstition, if your krathong stays close to the shore after you launch it, it means your beloved is nearby. Ed says mine must be in Doembang, because it took some splashing to get my krathong out into the river. Also, to my surprise and delight, the Yi Peng festival seems to have penetrated Doembang, because I did get to float a lantern off into the sky. Mine wasn't even one of the ones that got caught in a tree and brought the smallest fire engine I've ever seen to join the festivities. So, happy thoughts for the coming year, sent by sky and by river. I'm sure it will at least be an eventful year!