Travel Tips

I have been in Thailand before when this uniquely Thai festival has taken place but haven't participated. Having the opportunity once again, I decided to take a more active role. Hat Yai maybe isn't the best place to witness the spectacle but that's where I happened to be. It occurs on the night of a full moon some time in November when small 'krathongs', made from banana leaves are floated on a suitable expanse of water. In Hat Yai this happens to be at the Wat Hat Yai Nai temple.

The krathongs contain flowers, incense and a candle. Before setting it afloat it is customary to clip off a small piece of fingernail and a piece of your hair which is put into the krathong along with a coin. I need to find out more but it seems like the Thais offer a few prayers and possibly make a wish before their krathong sets sail. That's what I did anyway

Here I am with my Loi Krathong hosts having arrived at Wat Hat Yai Nai and having just completed the fingernail/hair clipping procedures.

Prior to the festival you see a lot of people on the streets selling ready-made krathongs. Prices of course vary. I was quoted up to 150 Baht and eventually settled on a suitable vessel for 80 Baht. At Wat Hat Yai Nai they were being sold for as low as 15 Baht. Some people make their own. Last time I was in Thailand there was a big campaign encouraging people to use biodegradable materials and not polystyrene which causes environmental problems.

A prayer is offered before setting the krathong afloat.

Me just after liberating my krathong to the water.

A sea of krathongs. It is a nice sight, no doubt a lot more impressive elsewhere, but I enjoyed my first time at the festival in lowly Hat Yai.

What is it about Thailand that makes me do things I would never normally do? I had asked at the hotel reception where to go for the festival. The girl told me and then suggested I go along with her and her friends. No problem there. When they collected me it transpired that the mode of transport for 5 of us was on 2 motorbikes. I am never keen on riding motorbikes in Thailand but would have felt a bit of a wimp refusing to go, so, against my better judgment and the advice I give others, I hopped on.

Going there, I was one of 3 passengers on one bike. This is a very common sight in Thailand (even 4 or 5 on one bike) but a new experience for me. On the way back it was just me and the driver, a manic 16 year-old girl who laughed and giggled every time I yelled when a car came too close to us. The sight and sound of 40 or 50 motorbikes roaring away when the lights change is something I have witnessed many times in Thailand but this was the first time I'd been on one of the bikes and I have to say that it was quite exhilarating. However, I have no plans to make this a regular habit as I have just heard too many horror stories in Thailand about motorbike accidents in the past. Even during the evening I was talking to one of the girls and we got on to small talk about families. It turned out that her 19 year-old brother had been killed on a motorbike the previous year. This wasn't the first time in Thailand I have spoken to someone who has been directly affected by a motorbike fatality or serious injury.