Loi Kratong, continued

It, in fact, never seems to end...  I'm sure my hearing has been permanently damaged as a result of this week.  This holiday that began with such a beautiful and peaceful display of lantern launching last Saturday has transformed into a fireworks free-for-all unlike anything I have ever encountered.  Last night was the peak of the festival - we went down to the old city to see a parade of bedecked Thais and extravagant floats, all bearing flowers and lanterns and adorned with flashing gold.  The procession wound down to the river where I think every occupant of Chiang Mai gathered to launch their offerings, little floats made from what I think a slice of a young banana trunk, wrapped in banana leaves, then decorated with leaves and flowers, and bearing incense and candles.   The idea being, that you send all of your bad luck away in a lantern, and then send your offerings down the river to get good luck.  

I'm not sure what the fireworks represent, but there sure were  a lot of them - shot from every corner, window, bridge, boat, etc.  Not just sparklers, but roman candles four, five, six feet tall, and proper canister fireworks shooting giant explosions into the air, the magnitude of fireworks we would expect only at a professional display, but being shot off by amateurs all over the city, making travel, and even just existence, quite hazardous.  It is not uncommon for these larger displays to fail to reach their proper height, so large explosions are at heights below the tops of buildings in some cases, and the dripping sparks sometimes reach back down to the ground.  There are ear shattering pops and bangs all around, and sparks flying over your heads almost constantly.  Viewing the city from the height or our host's balcony, it looks as if it is under invasion, lanterns rising from all sides, and flashes and sparks whirring around and exploding in between.  Beautiful, to be sure, but a bit too chaotic to be truly enjoyed.  I can't imagine anything even close to this being allowed in the US, and I really can't understand how more people aren't injured, or more fires set.

So, a treat to have been able to participate in this very Chiang Mai holiday, but much relieved that it has passed without determent to person.