LEK RACED DOWN the alley and scurried around the corner, dodging the noisy tuk-tuks that carried people through the crowded streets of Bangkok. When at last he pushed open the door of his parents’ restaurant, he could hardly catch his breath.
He ran into the kitchen, gasping in the scent of the lemon-grass soup that his grandmother, Ya, was stirring on the stove. He reached for a pile of banana leaves on the counter. If he hurried, he might have time to make his krathong before the celebration started.
Tonight was Loy Krathongthe Festival of the Floating Lanterns. All over Thailand, people would send out lighted candles
