Naga Fireball Festival

Every October in Nong Khai, there is a festival held along the Mekong River. Street vendors open their stands with delicious skewers and sweet drinks, carnival games and prize stands pop up, and guest houses are packed to full capacity. People come from all over and sit patiently along the river in hopes to see the elusive fireballs spring up from the water and into the sky. Legend has it that the fireballs are offerings from the naga (serpent) to the Lord Buddha in the heavens.

We sat patiently by the river for about an hour or so. There were a lot of fireworks and we watched cool boats pass by. But unfortunately, we didn't see a legendary fireball... Apparently, Sam's aunt saw 7 fireballs earlier in the evening, but we were at the house napping or playing cards... You snooze, you lose... I guess there's always next time!

We decided to leave the riverside to head into town, where we went to a small carnival on the street. We played games and rode on a ferris wheel, and of course bought some more street food. Ana won this game where you throw a basket over various food items, and if the basket lands over the item, you win it. Apparently, this game is supposed to be really difficult, but she was able to win a bag of hot dog flavored chips.

 

I was obviously excited with my ticket to ride the ferris wheel. But it actually ended up being slightly frightening... (1) Because a cricket jumped on my head once we entered our little cage, which resulted in 2 girls screaming at the top of their lungs; and (2) Carnival ferris wheels are always just kinda scary... Creaky... Old... Who knows how they still work.

As we were walking, we also ran into an elephant!

I could hardly believe it and followed it with my camera, and then proceeded to buy some sort of vegetable so I could feed it. Only afterward did I have flashbacks of watching Dumbo and subsequently felt sorry for the poor thing =( Dear baby elephant, I apologize for supporting your captivity...

I love these random nights we have! So much fun!