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Loy Krathong in Pattaya 2015


duke007

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The last time I was in Pattaya for Loy Krathong was in 2012 where I spent the evening on Jomtien Beach with my lovely companion,

 

I will be in Pattaya again this year on the Wednesday 25th November and wondered where some of you guys go for this Festival, where are the best places to visit and the best times to go?

 

Im sure Lita will have her girls all dressed up in Traditional Thai dress so I think that will be a must visit pour moi though I need to take it easy this night as I have an appointment with TV Screen somewhere (probably Witherspoons) at 02-45am Thursday morning to watch my beloved Man United play PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League, that is the plan anyway and we all know everything can go to tits-up in Pat-ta-ya  :biggrin:

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Dongtan Beach in Jontiem is a great spot for a romantic ol' devil like you Dave .

 

Its a lot quieter than Pattaya and obviously the beach is far nicer , all the daytime deckchair vendors stay open for drinks and many have BBQ's it has a real nice relaxed vibe to it .

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Dongtan Beach in Jontiem is a great spot for a romantic ol' devil like you Dave .

 

Its a lot quieter than Pattaya and obviously the beach is far nicer , all the daytime deckchair vendors stay open for drinks and many have BBQ's it has a real nice relaxed vibe to it .

 

Never knew that mate.  I'll have to give it a try some year.  It sounds right up my street.

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I will be in Pattaya again this year on the Wednesday 25th November and wondered where some of you guys go for this Festival, where are the best places to visit and the best times to go?

 

 

 

What I've done in recent years is to pick up my teerak after work and float our boat at Bali Hai pier.    Since she is on a variable schedule we done this at various times of the night.

 

Traffic is a real mess that night but walking is no problem.

 

If you're at Lita's then I'll certainly stop in Dave.

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Loy Krathong coincides with my trip every couple years.  My nights have always been pretty much the same as any other, except for the LBs being dressed in the traditional wear, which I love. So I'd probably be checking out Lita's and LaBamba as well.  And Jim's suggestion of Jomtien sounds like a nice relaxing and enjoyable day. 

 

Two years ago I spent the night boozing it up at the GG gogos with SLBT before watching them launch krathong and light lanterns like the good third wheel I am.  A romantic I am not, but it's always a good laugh watching the girls in high heels navigate the floating pier.

 

My most memorable experience was spending the day on a forced route march with Big Tel over to the Sanctuary of Truth...nearly passed out from heat exhaustion and required immediate medication at the PBG.  I probably wouldn't recommended it to others as the way spend Loy Krathong.  But it was very memorable.   :biggrin:

 

I'm surprised I haven't been approached to write a cultural guide to Loy Krathong yet.

 

 

 

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Hi Hoot,  let me know when you put that cultural guide out, I want a copy and make sure you pack some good hiking boots for this trip too  :biggrin: .    :drinks:

 

I'll make sure they are on my packing list, and by the sounds of it I'll probably need to add a few more trips to the gym before my departure as well.  :biggrin:   

 

 I still haven't booked my hotels yet, I need to get my butt in gear.   

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I had previously been in Thailand for Loi Krathong a couple of times.  The first time I was in BKK, and being a callow youth (or at least callow) I didn’t see it as anything but something adding more fesitveness to the usual festivities.  The second time I was in Phuket and saw that is a nice event, and would be fun to partake in with a sweetie.  Tuck that thought away in the memory bank.

 

Last year luck would have it that I would be in Pattaya during Loi Krathong.  Sweetie was happy. “Now I go Loi Krathong with boyfriend!”  Indeed, all her workmates were working on having a boyfriend to spend Loi Krathong with.  (“Boyfriend”?  Hey, the whole illusions and delusions thing cuts both ways.  We have ours, our sweeties have theirs.)
 

Sweetie was justifiably proud of her krathong.  It had two essential attributes – it was seaworthy and it was pink.  Being an ardent diver, I was not too keen on its styrofoam base destined to add waste to the ocean.  But, you learn over the years in such instances to just smile and not say a word.  Besides, the waters of Pattaya are crap (literally), and even if they weren’t the diving would still be mediocre.
 

We joined the Loi Krathong throng on the beach across from Central Festival.  Determined that her krathong would boldly go where no krathong has gone before to carry its blessings and good wishes, sweetie doffed her shoes and ushered her krathong out into the water.  As she did she noticed there were young boys out in the water taking money from the krathongs!  Sweetie admonished them to keep their grubby little paws of her krathong, and she stayed out there a while to make sure they did.
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After that we decided to stroll down Beach Road in the direction of Walking Street.  But, the crowd was so thick on the sidewalk we found that it was easier to make our way down the beach on the beach.  Lots of hot air lanterns were being set off (again more waste for the ocean…).  I was surprised when sweetie said that she had never launched a lantern.  Well, needless to say, we had to rectify that situation.
 

All around us people were making all sorts of rookie errors in trying to get their lanterns airborne.  Not holding it upright to keep it from catching fire, thinking that pushing it upward will help it climb, and letting it go too early; in launching a lantern, as in so many other things in life, it is important not to prematurely release.
 

At approximately 1 meter in height and with a diameter of about half a meter, the cylindrical lantern has a volume of some 0.2 square meters.  That’s a lot of air to heat to a few degrees above an already sweltering ambient temperature using just the small paraffin-infused pressed sawdust fuel pellet whose thermal output is not that great. 
 

Time is your friend, my friend.  Just keep the lantern upright and monitor the surface temperature of the tissue paper.  It can actually get quite hot before a rapid combustion event takes place, so don’t be a pansy and panic.  It will take a few minutes.  Just when all onlookers are gasping in amazement at the lift that can be generated if you heat the air in the lantern as much as possible, let it go.  A heroic launch of epic proportions will immediately ensue.  (Ours is the bright one in the top center of the pic.  Sweetie was determined to keep an eye on it until it was out of sight.)
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After sending our lantern into the upper atmosphere, we continued down the beach. Walking Street was packed, and since neither sweetie nor I are big fans of Walking Street anyway, we looked around for somewhere else to have a drink.  Because I hadn’t been in the vicinity of Walking Street in a while I had forgotten about Pattaya Beer Garden just outside the entrance to Walking Street. I had been there a few times in the past to enjoy a drink over the water.  So, that’s where we went.  Sweetie is not much of a drinker, but likes girly drinks.  Since she likes Malibu coconut rum I figured she would like Pina Coladas.  And boy did she!  “It taste like milkshake!”  After a couple of drinks we ventured away from the crowds for a late night dinner at one of the Isaan-style BBQ places.  A nice night for sure.
 

Alas, this year Loi Krathong falls in between business trips taking me through LOS.  But, most definitely, if you can spend Loi Krathong with a special someone, do so.  Maybe use it as an occasion to have your first LT.  Who knows?  It might change your life!

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  • 2 months later...

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Wednesday night is Loy Krathong.

 

When my teerak finishes work which will be late we will probably walk over to Wat Chai to launch our krathong.  Maybe Bali Hai but after a long work day we'll probably keep it simple.  Hopefully will catch up with some of you before midnight.

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