The Prap Ho Monument before the old city hall (now a museum and cultural center) memorialises the dead of the
Haw wars. Nong Khai has become a popular destination during the
Buddhist Lent festival when mysterious balls of light, or
Naga fireballs, rise from the
Mekong River. The balls resemble an orange sun. They rise out of the river approximately and disappear after three to five seconds. Although the fireballs can be seen at other times, most Thais travel to see them during the full moon in October when the incidence of them is considered to be much higher. Nong Khai's main sight is
Sala Keoku (alternatively spelled as
Sala Kaew Ku, also known as
Wat Khaek), a park of colossal sculptures, some over 20 m tall. The park is the handiwork of the mystic
Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat, who bought the land in 1978 when he was exiled from his native Laos, where he had built a similar park in Vientiane in the 1950s. Synthesizing
Buddhist and
Hinduist ideologies, Buddhas, many-armed goddesses, a seven-headed
Naga snake, and various human-animal hybrids dominate the site. Notable figures from twentieth century Buddhist history have lived in Nong Khai – the world renowned Buddhist scholar and leading meditation teacher
Ajahn Sumedho was ordained in Wat Sisaket in Nong Khai. File:Nai Mueang, Mueang Nong Khai District, Nong Khai, Thailand - panoramio (2).jpg|Streets of Nong Khai, provincial capital of Nong Khai Province. File:Nong Khai Aquarium.jpg|Nong Khai Aquarium File:Phrathat Nong Khai.JPG|Phrathat Nong Khai ==Climate==