It was almost mid-November (time is going by so fast), and that means one thing: Yee Peng. Chiang Mai is known for its lantern festival, named Yee Peng. It is a unique festival in northern Thailand which is celebrated on the full moon of the 12th month of the Thai lunar calendar, this is usually November. The “Festival of Lights” was adapted from Brahmin origins and has neat connections with the ancient Lanna Kingdom. It was originally celebrated as a stand-alone event to mark the end of the monsoon season (a lot of rain between June and October/ November) and the beginning of the cool season.
Locations to celebrate
There are many locations where you can celebrate this festival. In the days before the festival, locals started building the lanterns, candleholders, statues etc. Have a look around the Three Kings Monument, Thapae Gate and the Old Town moat area before and on the day of the festival. But you must make sure 1 thing: go to the Ping River at some point, Narawat Bridge to be precise. This is the location to light up your lantern or place your ‘krathong’ in the Ping River.
Most locals and visitors usually start at the Three Kings Monument, through the Thapae Gate, straight to the bridge. But if you don’t want to be a part of the hustle, be sure to check out a rooftop bar or take a tranquil stroll down the candlelit lanes. Local houses and temples decorate their entrances with flowers, candles and coconut leaves. The act of making or donating ‘khom loy’ (lantern) and ‘krathong’ (floating flower offerings) is significant in Buddhist culture as it represents moving away from darkness and into the light.
Khom Loy and Krathong
There is no need to but lanterns in advance. On a festival without corona, there are usually plenty of vendors selling them on the street during the festival. The bigger the lantern, the easier to launch. They are approximately 50-100 bath per lantern. Be careful with the lantern, because the paper is very thin! Some people write messages or wishes on the lanterns, ask the vendors for a marker which you can use. Make the lantern ready for launch by digging your fingers into the wax circle coil to rough it up. In this way, the wax coil is easier to light. Make sure to be in a group of people, because it is difficult to launch it on your own. All set? Make your wish and release the lantern.
The krathongs are sold close to the river on both sides of the Narawat Bridge. Locals often put a small monetary donation on the Krathongs, but this isn’t required. It is not a difficult procedure with the krathongs. Light the incense, light the candles, make a wish and release it onto the river.
This year’s Yee Peng
Obviously, this year’s festival is different than any other Yee Peng festival. I (we) had a lot of doubt going to Chiang Mai, because there was a long period of unsureness if the festival would continue or not. All because of this virus. A week before the festival, it was annually announced that the festival would continue, at least we were in Bangkok already, so we only needed to book a flight of 1.5 hours.
The day before the festival we already visited the Three Kings Monument, which was a beautiful square by day but a magical square by night. The next day we decided to go to the Thapae Gate. When we arrived there, there was a line of 200 meters of people who wanted to enter the Gate. Luckily, we met someone along the way a few weeks ago, who was standing at the entrance, so we could skip the queue. Didn’t feel good, but yea, we are not going to wait 30 minutes to get in.
After the temperature check and QR-code signing in, we entered. Too many lanterns, we didn’t know where to look. It felt so good, it felt so beautiful, it felt so magical, much more magical then the Monument. There were three times as many yellow lanterns. There were giant decorations with shiny colors and remote moving peacocks and elephants. When were done here, we started walking to the Bridge to see lanterns. At 8 pm everyone was about to light up their lantern. We got there in time, but no lanterns. Three or four in the sky, but this wasn’t the lantern festival we expected.
We got to the other side of the bridge to grab some food, afterwards we saw this lantern vendor. We were like, ‘let us move away from darkness, into the light’ and we joined the queue. When we waited 10 minutes it was our turn, 5 lanterns please. A friend of mine got his one, and then the party and our hope in a lantern ended. The police took the lantern out of my friends’ hands and took everything from the vendor. Then we were thinking it might have been illegal to sell and light up lanterns this year’s Yee Peng, also because it was the only vendor we saw that night. So, I bought a ‘krathong’, lighten the candle, lighten the incense, made a wish and placed it on the river. Felt very special.
After all, the Lantern Festival was a very good experience. It was not what we hoped for, but the locals made the best of it with delicious foods, beautiful decorations, beautiful festival-clothing, special performances and interesting ‘krathongs’ which they make in front of you. Furthermore, with your friends around you, you can have a great time, if you make it great yourself.
