Thailand to be lit up by candle festival

Buddhists in Thailand will be celebrating their annual candle festival at a historic temple this July.

Brits catching flights to Thailand this summer have been advised not to miss a major cultural festival, including candlelit processions and live music performances in Chiang Rai Province.

The Chiang Rai Candle Festival 2011 will take place on July 16th at Tung Park, Koam Chiangrai and Wat Phra Sing, with local communities turning out for a number of public events.

Contests will be held for the largest and most beautiful candles at several temples in the region, while there will also be live Lanna music performances.

One of the venues is the historic Buddhist temple of Wat Phra Sing, which is believed to be almost 4,000 years old.

The temple includes a historic image of the Buddha, Phra Buddha Si Hing, which was made in Sri Lanka nearly 3,000 years ago, before being moved to Thailand in the 4th century AD.

Chiang Rai is situated in the north of Thailand, nearly 800km from the capital of Bangkok.

Written by Alex Cochrane