Holiday Time

Sawatdee ka! Happy New Year!

As some of you may not realize, February is a pretty holiday-full month. So to start off, some February holiday trivia for you (answers at the bottom of the email):

1. How many holidays are there in February?

2. What should you give your romantic partner on February 14th?

3. Which color should you wear on February 14, 2010?

4. How many New Years are there in Thailand?

I begin with Happy New Year! This weekend was the Chinese New Year celebration and there were plenty of festivities, especially in Chinatown (or Yaowarat). Over the weekend, the price of oranges skyrocketed (bring wealth and good luck, depending on the type), many people wore red (which is unusual), and the main road in Chinatown was closed for pedestrians to explore the food, displays, and shows (pictures attached). If it were not so hot during the day, I would have spent most of the day exploring. I realized in my last email, I boasted about being able to wear flip-flops and t-shirts... probably not the best idea considering the temperature will only rise in the coming months. April is apparently the warmest month of the year, with temperatures rising over 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit). But for now, while most of the US is covered with snow (I heard the other day that 49 of 50 states had measurable snow on the ground!), I am still basking in the warmth that, for now, I adore.



This month, I was able to explore a different side of Thailand, traveling southeast of Bangkok to Koh Samet, an island in the Gulf of Thailand. It's a popular destination with Bangkokians, because it's fairly close to the city but a peaceful respite from it. There are frequent buses to Ban Phe, the launching point for boats to the island, and it's easy to take the ferry or smaller chartered boats directly to the island. The beaches were beautiful, especially those that were slightly secluded from the larger resorts.

In late January I had some unexpected but welcome friends come stay in Bangkok. In a strange, this-really-IS-a-small-world series of events, I met up with my family friend's family friend's daughter and her friend. Don't worry about figuring out the connections! Her friend was brought to Bangkok because of a health condition, before being sent back home. Without knowing the friend's full name and just having a basic description of the daughter, I made my way to a local hospital to try to find them. As luck would have it, I did (to their surprise and mine!). While meeting them under such conditions was not the best, it was very nice to meet both of them and share some quality time in a Bangkok hospital.

I also had some visitors from Phnom Penh come over the holiday weekend (i.e., President's Day, because I work for the USG). I exhausted them with the grand Bangkok tour and frequent trips to American fast food restaurants. There are not many American chains in Phnom Penh, so they were craving some trans fats and cholesterol ;) Luckily, Bangkok can supply that, as well as an absurd number of malls, ranging from outdoor markets that just happen to be inside to the most luxurious malls I've ever seen.

I think that may be all of my updates and world trivia for today. There are lots of pictures  posted on Facebook and Flickr. I head to Koh Sarin this weekend for some snorkeling, then to Vietnam sometime in March or early April. In related news, my work (the reason I'm in Thailand) is going well. I submitted an abstract for the International AIDS conference in Vienna and hope to hear a positive response sometime in early April. I also almost definitely will be staying in Bangkok for another year (until October 2011). So, more time to plan visits and explore Southeast Asia with me!

Sawatdee ka,

Katie

1. Well, let's see... if you're in New Orleans, there's pretty much a holiday every day up until Mardi Gras, but most places are only closed on Lundi Gras and Mardi Gras, so we'll say two. If you're in Thailand, there's Chinese New Year, which goes on for about two weeks, but really the first three days are important, so we'll say three. If you're in the US, there's Washington's birthday and Lincoln's birthday, which used to be celebrated separately (see Holiday Inn starring Bing Crosby for highlights) but are now celebrated as President's Day (=1). And if you're in any country where Hallmark or the maker's of bird's nest beverage sell their wares, there's Valentine's Day (=1). And, let's not forget about Punxsutawney Phil, whose shadow predicts the next 6 weeks of weather in Pennsylvania for Groundhog Day. Who knew February was such a jolly month with 8 holidays?!

2. Bird's nest beverage, of course (you were thinking chocolate?). No, the delightful taste of a swallow spit will make him/her swoon.

3. Red! Not a trick question here... Red, the color of love; Red, the lucky color of the Chinese New Year. Just make sure not to wear it another day in Thailand, as it's also a political color.

4. Three - there's New Year according to the Gregorian calendar (so we are in 2010); there's the Chinese or Lunar New Year (Year of the Tiger); and there's the Thai New Year, or Songkran (in mid-April). If you are Vietnamese, you also celebrate Tet (which occurs around Chinese New Year).