loi krathong is a festival celebrated annually throughout Thailand and Loi Krathong takes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. In the Western calendar this usually falls in November. The name could be translated as "to float a basket", and comes from the tradition of making krathong,which are then floated on a river. Government offices, corporations and other organizations launch large decorated krathongs. There are competitions for the best such krathong. A beauty contest is a regular feature and fireworks have become common in recent years.