CHINESE NEW YEAR IN THAILAND
B y C h i c c o L e u n g
O N E S T U D E N T ' S P E R S P E C T I V E O N T R A V E L L I N G O U T S I D E O F H O N G K O N G F O R T H E L U N A R N E W Y E A R
I certainly did not expect that an aesthetically bright , warm city like Bangkok would celebrate their own type of winter this Lunar New Year . This type of winter being the country ' s depressive mood after the tragic passing away of their beloved king . However , this grand city intertwined both mourning and joyful greetings for the New Year in an impressively natural way . Throughout this short New Year ' s journey , I have seen and begun to appreciate the way in which Bangkok has strived for a balance between portraying foreign cultures and its own . I will also add that this was my first out-of-China journey with family , and not to mention with , not one , but both of my over-80-year old grandmothers , whose common protests have always been " no long walks !”
The first images that came into our sight after landing were some black banners informing visitors about the passing of the king and his former life . We were almost beginning to wonder if mourning would be all that we see in the New Year . At this point , myself alongside both of my grannies had begun to raise
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