Halloween and Loy Krathong

This past weekend was jam packed as it was both Halloween and the kick off of the Loy Krathong festival. Here's a little of what I did:

Saturday night, Jim and his family (May and Jake) invited me to Jake's taekwondo Halloween party. This was the first ever and the kids were very excited! There were pirates, princesses, voodoo men and more! Many, if not all, have never dressed up for Halloween so it was very fun watching them run around in costume and light off fireworks (apparently to scare off all evil spirits that may be lurking around). Other than Jim, who has now been a resident here for 9 years, I was the only foreigner. I had a true Thai experience. We ate, drank, sang karaoke, lit lanterns and stayed out far past my bed time.



Sunday morning came way too soon, but I was excited for what was ahead. Jim and his family invited me along to sight see around the Chiang Mai area. We visited Doi Suthep which is a temple on top of a mountain. Here we lit candles and incense for good luck, found out what my Buddha was (the laying down Buddha) and received an ancient Chinese prophecy. We then hiked to a waterfall which was incredible in itself, went to a hot spring where you could buy eggs to boil and eat (no joke - very cool!), ate countless delicious meals and headed back into town for the Loy Krathong parade and for the Sunday night market in my neighborhood. I have never seen so much food or people in my life!



The following night I met up with a friend from back home and visited nearby temples that were decorated in colorful lanterns and lights for the festival. We walked to the river where people were lighting/letting go of krathongs (little boats made of banana leaves) and lanterns. The night's clear sky was filled with millions of lit lanterns floating in the air and it was truly breathtaking. Pictures do not give it justice.

For those interested, Google "Loy Krathong" for further details on this festival.

Over all it was an amazing weekend and I cannot thank Jim and May enough for the kindness they showered upon me. They made my week in Chiang Mai one I will never forget! I cannot wait to visit them again in either December or April :)