Boun Ok Phansa Festival, Lao PDR

Boun Ok Phansa (Candlelight Festival)

This festival marks the end of Buddhist Lent, a period during which monks observe three months of fasting and seclusion. People visit local temples to make offerings and receive blessings. In Luang Prabang, a candlelight procession takes place in the evening, culminating at Wat Xieng Thong, where the candles are released onto the Mekong River in small boats made of banana leaves.