#LoyKrathong and Candle Festival

LoyKrathong Day

Highlight Spot: Along the Chao phranya River banks

One of the most beautiful festivals that take place in Thailand is the one for Loy Krathong. This is celebrated on the full moon in October 31, 2020. The word Loy means to float, and a Krathong is a banana leaf cup. People place a candle and incense sticks in their Krathongs and then float them on a local river or pond. As they push away their Krathong, they ask for forgiveness in polluting the waterways and also for good luck in the coming months.

The festival probably originated in India as a Hindo festival similar to Deepavali as thanksgiving to the deity of Ganges with floating lanterns for giving life throughout the year. According to the writings of H.M. King Rama IV in 1863, the originally Brahmanical festival was adapted by Buddhists in Thailand as a ceremony to honour the original Buddha, Siddhartha Guatama. Apart from venerating the Buddha with light (the candle on the raft), the act of floating away the candle raft is symbolic of letting go of all one's grudges, anger and defilements, so that one can start life afresh on a better foot. People will also cut their fingernails and hair and add them to the raft as a symbol of letting go of the bad part of oneself. Many

   

    Thai belive that floating a krathong will create good luck, and they do it to

honor and thank the Goddess of Water, Phra Mae Khongkha. The beauty contests that accompany the festival are known as "Noppamas Queen Contests". According to legend, Noppamas was a consort of the Sukothai King Loethai (14th century) and she was the first to float decorated krathongs. The Loy Krathong festival is also associated with the start of vegetable carving. The Thai tradition of Loy Krathong started off in Sukhothai, but is now celebrated throughout Thailand, with the festivities in Chiang Mai and Ayutthaya being particularly well known. In Chiang Mai Loi Krathong is also known as "Yi Peng". Every year thousands of people assemble to float the banana-leaf krathong onto the waterways of the city, honouring the Gooddess of Water. A multitude of Lanna-style sky lanterns (khom fai) are also launched into the air where they resemble large flocks of giant fluorescent jellyfish gracefully floating by through the skies. These are believed to help rid the locals of troubles and are also taken to decorate houses and streets. Kelantan also has the same celebration, especially in the Tumpat area. The ministry in charge of tourism in Malaysia recognises it as an attraction for tourist. Many people visit the celebration each year. (www.wikipedia.org) This year is October 31, 2020.

    

                                  The lamp on Loy Krathong Day                  

                                  Credit Photo:bangkokpost.com

    Loy Krathong is an ancient traditional that first originated in Sukhothai, the first Thai capital. It is appropriate to hold this memorable festival in the charged atmosphere of the ruins of this ancient city. Krathong are floated on the river to take away bad luck. This full-moon-wide. In Bangkok, Krathong with lighted candles can be seen from the banks of the rivers and canals. 

Tropping of the Colours   

     Their Majesties the king and Queen preside over this impressive event held each year in the Royal Plaza near the equestrian statue of King Chulalongkorn. Dressed in colourful uniforms, amid great pomp and ceremony, members of the elite Royal Guards swear allegiance to the King and march past members of the Royal Family.

#Thai Handicrafts

Thai Handicrafts Thai Antiquies

Bangkok, located in the centre of the country, is also an excellent stepping-off point for visiting other parts of Thailand. Although the measured pace of old Siam is now a thing of the past, the country's rich cultural and natural heritage still survies. Accommodation in the city cover a variety to price ranges, but all offer high standard of service presented by friendly staffs. The city probably has the highes concentation of luxury hotels in the world. Today, hotels and shopping venues offer amazing bargains, following the depreciation of Thai baht currency in 1997. And for those in search of bargains, Bangkok has excellent example of Thai Handicrafts, Thai Antiquies, painting, T-shirt in fashion accessories high-grade Thai silks and quality jewellery. Our section on Amazing Shopping directs you to some of the best spots in the city for bargain-hunting.

#Bangkok, Thailand

 Bangkok

Bangkok is the capital and most populous city Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep. The  city occupies 1,568.7 square kilometres (605.7 sq mi) in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated population of 10,539 million as of 2020, 15.3 percent of the country's population. Over fourtenn million people (22.2 percent) live within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region at the 2010 census, making Bangkok an extreme primate city, dwarfing Thailand's other urban centres in both size and importance to national economy.

Bangkok traces its roots to a small trading post during the Ayutthaya kingdom in the 15th century, which eventually grew and became the site of two capital cities. Thonburi in 1768 and Rattanakosin in 1782. Bangkok was at the heart of the modernization of Siam, later rename to Thailand, during the late-19th century, as the century faced pressures from the West, The city was at the centre of Thailand 's political struggles throughout the 20th century, as the century abolished absolute monarchy, adopted constitutional rule, and underwent numerous cups and several uprisings. The city grew rapidly during the 1960s through the 1980s and now experts a significant impact on Thailand's politics, economy, education, media and modern society.

The Asian investment boom in the 1980s and 1990s led many multinational corporations to locate their regional headquarters in Bangkok. The city is now a regional force in finance and business. It is an international hub for transport and health care, and has emerged as centre for arts, fashion, and entertainment. The city is know for street life and cultural landmarks, as well as its red-light districts. The Grand Palace and Buddhist temples including Wat Arun and Wat Pho stand in contrast with other tourist attractions such as the nightlife scenes of Khaosan Road and Patpong, Bangkok is among the world's top tourist destinations and has been named the world's most visited city consistently in several international rankings.

Bangkok's rapid growth coupled with little urban planning has resulted in a haphazard cityscape and inadequate infrastructure. An inadequate road network, despite and extensive expressway network, together with substantial private car usage, have led to chronic and crippling traffic congestion, which caused severe air pollution in the 1990s. The city has since turned to public transport in an attempt to solve the problem. Five rapid transit lines are now in operation. with more systems under construction or planned by the national government and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, but congestion still remains a prevalent issue.

History

The history of Bangkok dates at least back to the early 15th century, when it was a village on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River, under the rule of Ayutthaya, Because of its strategic location near the mouth of the river, the town gradually increased in importance. Bangkok initially served a customs outpost with forts on both sides of the river, and was the site of siege in 1688 in which the French were expelled from Siam. After the fall of Ayutthaya to the Burmese Empire in 1767, the newly crowned King Taksin established has capital at the town, which became the base of the Thonburi Kingdom, In 1782, King Phutthayotfa Chulalok (Rama I) succeeded Taksin, move the capital to the eastern bank's Rattanakosin Island, thus founding the Rattanakosin Kingdom. The City Pillar was crected on 21 Aprill 1782, which is regarded as the date of foundation of the present city.

Bangkok's economy gradually expanded through international trade, first with China, then with Western merchants returning in the early-to-mid 19th century. As the capital, Bangkok was the centre of Siam's modernization as it faced pressure form Western powers in the late-19th century. The reigns of King Mongkut (Rama IV, 1851-1868) and Chulalongkorn (Rama V, 1868-1910) saw the introduction of the steam engine, printing press, rail transport and utilities infrastructure in the city,as well as formal education and healthcare. Bangkok became the centre stage for power struggles between the military and political elite as the country abolished absolute monarchy in 1932.  

As Thailand allied with Japan in World War II, Bangkok was subject to Allied bombing, but rapidly grew in the post-war period as a result of US aid and government-sponsored investment. Bangkok's role as a US military R&R destination boosted its tourism industry. Disproportionate urban develop led to increasing income inequalities and migration from rural area into Bangkok, its population surged from 1.8 million to 3 million in 1960.

                                Credit Photo: posttoday.com

Administration of the city was first formalized by King Chulalongkorn in 1906, with the establishment of Monthon Krung Thep Phra Maha Nakhon (มณฑลกรุงเทพพระมหานคร) as a national subdivision. In 1945, the monthon was split into several provinces, the administrative boundaries of which have since further changed. The city in its current from was created in 1972 with the formation of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), following the merger of Phra Nakhon Province on the eastern bank of the Chao Phraya River and Thonburi Province on the west during the previous year.