Before 2004, when Vietnam had not yet banned sky lanterns, when I was a little child, I recall following my elder brothers and sisters to release lanterns on New Year's Eve. Because the lantern was handmade, it was quite huge, with a large wick, and the fire burned brightly. We were also allowed to make smaller ones and burn them for fun. Releasing sky lanterns in Vietnam doesn't have any great meaning, it's simply a way to make the days before Tet more fascinating. When lighting the lanterns, each child holds on with one hand as if they were helping something before letting go and allowing the light fly up. The Yi Peng or Yee Peng Lantern Festival in Chiang Mai is different. This is a part of the spiritual culture of the ancient Lanna country in northern Thailand. On the full moon of December, people in this region hold a Buddha relic worship ceremony to receive blessings. Releasing sky lanterns symbolizes the desire to eliminate bad luck and misfortune from life. In addition, it also has the meaning of sending wishes to Buddha's relics. My lantern contains only one word, 'An,' which symbolizes peace. To understand the meaning of this word 'An', you must have experienced many 'experiences - enlightenments' throughout your life. I'm not sure I experienced and enlightened much, but it was just enough to understand the meaning of the word 'An'. So the word 'An' was what I wished for and wrote on the sky lantern that day. ---- Cre: Hoang Minh Duc