The aroma from the wok drew us into Thai Garden.

Dao had been cooking a big load of freshly picked cashews with chili, we munched on them while drinking a Greenspot and chatting with Crazy Dave and Dutch Jeff.

Today saw the start of the Chinese New Year. It is on days like these that you clearly see how many Thai people have Chinese ancestors. A lot. Just walk around the market area of Paknam and you will see many of the smaller shops closed for the holiday. It is fair to say Chinese people are very hard workers and this is the only time you will see the shutters of these shops closed during the day. For many people in Thailand, this weekend was dominated with the sound of firecrackers. These are extremely loud and are supposed to scare off evil spirits. I would think they did a  pretty good job.

Being of Penang-Phuket Peranakan Chinese ancestry, Chinese New Year (CNY) or Trut Jeen is my family most significant celebration of the year.

Besides the firecrackers, the ‘ang pows’ (red packets), and the ‘sinfully’ rich food, it is also a time of prayers, merit-making, and more importantly the coming-together of the large extended family.

It all begins with the ritual cleaning of the house with lime and lemon leaves. This can start as early as one month before CNY. Rituals aside, it is not easy task #- house-painting, cleaning all the windows, scrubbing the floors etc etc.

Happy New Year everybody. I wish everybody the best wishes and hope this year will be great for everyone across the world. I know a lot of things haven't been in good graces lately but hopefully, from this day, it'll be a fresh start towards a bright future.