The Lotus-Boat Water Festival
For sheer beauty, few Thai festivals can compare with Loy Kratong, held on the full-moon night of the 11th lunar month. Legend says this originated in the ancient capital of Sukhothai, when a lady of the royal court made the first krathong , a creation of deftly-folded banana leaves in the shape of a lotus bloom, adorned with flowers, incense sticks, and lighted candles, and set it adrift on a nearby river to pay homage to the water spirits.
Now the festival is celebrated throughout Thailand, with a wide variety of krathong ranging from simple small versions to enormously ornate ones, while the evening skies are ablaze with fireworks.
