We got a rather strange phone call from Roong's boss the other day. It's Loy kratong time here in Thailand. This is the festival where everyone gathers by the river to float little boats filled with incense, candles, and flowers, that drift away and take all the bad things that happened in the past year away.
Anyway, Kong called and said that there was a contest to choose the Loy kratong queen, and did we know any young ladies that he could enter as the Nong Bua representative. We asked our oldest daughter, Palmy, if she was interested. She said yes, and jumped on the next mini-bus home. The poor girl spent 9 hours at the beauty parlor getting fitted for her costume, makeup, and god only knows what else done to her. She weathered it all like a real trooper though. She didn't win the grand prize, but she was a vision of Thai beauty in her traditional costume, and had a great time doing it.
Oh, Pookie, the little girl in the photo is one of my students. Her older sister (the cow) was not only one of the other contestants, but she won (uber cow). Once I got her to understand why I was there, and who Palmy was, she responded by sticking her tongue out at me the entire time Palmy was speaking or dancing. I hope she won't have to much trouble explaining to her parents how her grade went from an A to a D overnight. Must be that Thai magic I hear so much about. Haaa!
