Chiang Mai is a provincial capital in northern Thailand and a historically powerful city, made self-evident by the substantial remains of the massive brick walls and gates forming an almost perfect square around it. The part inside the walls is referred to as Old Chiang Mai, and is a cobble-paved, tree-lined town chock full of cafes and bookshops. It was a nice place to slow down for a few days, but as it (very coincidentally) worked out, I arrived right at the beginning of the Loi Krathong and Yi Peng festivals! Loi Krathong includes the famous ritual of placing a small, decorated raft in the river and letting it float away with hundreds of others. It represents letting go of all one’s problems and starting anew. Related is Yi Peng which includes the spectacular lantern Festival of Lights. The concept is very related, except instead of letting your problems float away downstream, you light them on fire in a paper lantern and send it floating up into the sky!

These two events really defined my stay in Chiang Mai. Loi Krathong was fun, but I was of course far from the only tourist there, and my river experience was in an area especially for the crowds of foreigners. It naturally made the experience feel a bit “unauthentic”, but I don’t blame them for wanting to separate those there for the photos from those who consider it a sacred and important Buddhist tradition! The lantern festival of Yi Peng actually exceeded my expectations. The entire city and miles and miles in all directions was aglow with people sending thousands and thousands of lanterns skyward. My pictures don’t do it justice. The sky was literally full of them- it was surreal. This time there were no special areas for tourists, so I bought some lanterns and joined the party.