The awarding ceremony of a beauty pageant for the Loy Krathong Festival was held in south Yunnan’s Xishangbanna Dai autonomous prefecture on Oct. 31.

Preliminary stages of the pageant have been going on for three months and the awarding was held at a scenic area near the Lancang River, which is called Mekong when flowing out of China.

Eight beauties were awarded for their talent shows that involve dance, singing, costumes, tea art and kindness. The Loy Krathong festivities came to an end on October 1 with light-releasing into the river and group dancing around a fire.

Loy Krathong is a Siamese festival celebrated annually throughout the Kingdom of Thailand and in nearby countries with visible Tai cultures.

Source: Xinhua; trans-editing by Wang Shixue