Chinese New Years

This is where you can dress up in old Chinese costumes, have your face made up, and get your picture taken.



The video for Chinese New Years with the fireworks, lion dance, Chinese opera, and rock and roll show is below in an earlier post. Here's more about the evening.

Yellow and red were the colors of the evening. Dragon dancers, firecrackers, beauty queens. The largest bami noodle stir fry in Thailand (about 20 feet in diameter with seven or eight chefs stir cooking it. My internet options aren’t quite clear yet, so I’m not sure if and when I can get some of the pictures and videos up. Chuck and his wife introduced us to various people, including their parents (not sure if his or hers). People talked to us everywhere. In line for noodles, a lady gave us two coupons for the noodles. Other people gave us sealed cups of water. Wherever we went people smiled graciously. The tourist association of Thailand had scores of
people out giving surveys to foreigners about visiting Korat for Chinese New Years and we got red envelopes with 1 baht in them when we finished. And then there was the traditional Chinese opera in a stage built into a large truck trailer, similar to what I remember from Kamphaengphet almost 40 years ago.
In fact the whole evening felt very comfortable and familiar. Being in a large evening festival with stalls of different kinds of delicious foods. There was one though that was basically cooked insects – worms, beetles, and I’m not sure what else.
I did eat beetle once long ago, but I couldn’t finish it. Though when I had it as a paste it was really good. Just when you can see what you’re eating it’s a bit disconcerting. As much as I really like Chinese opera, it was really difficult because at the other end of the square there was a rock n roll stage with speakers at full blast. And a video screen showing the musicians for those sitting further back.

Everything was easy and comfortable. People had told us that it was safe to walk at night here and we felt very safe. I have class tomorrow so time to quit for now.