Loi Krathong 2561 BE/ 2018 CE

The Full Moon of November is the festival of Loi Krathong, where folks float little baskets on the rivers and waterways which are lit with a candle.  It is a family affair and children are a big part of it.  It heralds the end of the Rainy Season and (supposedly) the start of the drier Cool Season (although I’m still sweating my farang ass off in the still-lingering humidity!). 

During this last week along the street to the river they have been building rides for children, booths for selling loads of carnival stuff, and a stage at the river for a band with tables for revelers.  (During the political riots of 2010 and the Great Flood of 2011 this festival was locally absent; but now it’s back to normal and thriving.) 

This year I chose not to go out into the neighborhood under the moonlight.  The crowds are just too packed for my tastes, too many slow-moving crowded sidewalks with small kids.  The bands are not to my taste either, and it’s impossible to find a spot in which to view them anymore.  In the past I could view the band from the bridge, but the crowds are too dense now. 

So I watch the Full Moon in private, absorbing its tranquility. 

-Zenwind. 

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