Loi Krathong

After crossing the boarder, I hopped on a mini-bus to Chiang Mai where I would be meeting up with Richy, some of his friends and a few other travelers I have met along the way. The reason for this gathering in Chiang Mai was Loi Krathong, a celebration of the 12th full moon on the lunar calender. "Loi" meaning, to float, and "Krathong," a small decorative raft the size of your hand, that is to float down the river. Its basically a mix between the Hindu holiday Deepavali and the Jewish Yom Kippor. The festival is supposed to be about sending flaming rice lanterns into the sky to symbolize giving life to the new year, as well as sending all the bad away with it. But has now become a chaotic gathering where the open flam lanterns of all colors and sizes are soaring by the hundreds through the sky, accompanied by thousands of drunk pyromaniacs setting off legal, and illegal fireworks all around you. We saw lanterns get stuck in trees, power lines, and even people.

My crew was well equipped with backpacks of beer and fireworks, as well as high spirits in honor of this special holiday. We made our way through the Tha Pae gate (a major square in the older part of the city) heading directly to the center of all the action, "the big bridge." On the big bridge we were funnelled into some seriously congested people traffic where everyone is sending up lanterns and setting off fireworks EVERYWHERE! While walking around and doing the same thing, we are constantly getting hit with debris from overhead fireworks and lanterns as well as the occasional burn on the back of the calves from the smaller fountain fireworks. By the end of the night almost everyone had sustained some kind of minor injury (myself included ,with burns up my left forearm). While watching the festival around me, I had the innovative idea to create a "super lantern." We began tying several lanterns together and sending them off into the sky. - right now as I write this post I am constantly flinching because there are tons of fireworks going off maybe 20ft behind me - The super lantern had its flaws that were to be fixed the next night because we had to keep moving to other bridges and sights. When I would finally get a chance to stand and admire what was going on around me, I was never without awe at the sight. The full moon fills the sky with light so that no stars are visible, only the orange twinkle of thousands of lanterns climbing into the night sky beyond the mountains.

Its been two nights of mayhem thus far and as fun as its been, I'm so ready for it to be over. The constant ducking and flinching is getting quite aggravating. Tonight I am going to participate in last and biggest night of the festival and wake early tomorrow for a 3 day trek along the Thai/Myanmar border.