Red Lotus Sea Festival, Thailand

The Thai know it as “Talay Bua Deang”, but tourists call it the Red Lotus Sea, a body of water in Udon Thani that explodes in pink during the cooler months, thanks to the lotuses that bloom at the beginning of the year. Lotus flowers blanket the water; local boatmen carve narrow channels through the pink petals to let small boats pass through. The Red Lotus Sea Festival is celebrated in the middle of January at the temple of Wat Bandiem next to the lake, just as the pink buds reach their full bloom. (TATNews)