It has been a while since I write here. I have been shifting my priorities a bit. Writing blog is hard to get an audience, so I started a YouTube channel instead. Here is my first travel video about a New Year celebration at a Thai temple in Houston.

In Thailand, we have two new years. Songkran in April and the new year in January like everyone else. This one in January is not as fun and wet as Songkran, but we still celebrate it regardless.We like to start off a new year by making good karma so good things will come from it later. Most people do this by giving alms to the monks.

At Wat Buddhavas, the day starts with Buddhist chanting and sermons in the main hall. Some people stay at the temple to keep the eight precepts. That’s why they are wearing all white. After the chanting, people gathers to give alms to the monks. Since the new year is a major event, the line of people is very long. People gives all kind of things from dried instant noodle to fresh salads to the monks.

After the monk started eating, the people can pick up the foods and eat too. These foods are all free. If your new year resolution is to lose weight, these free and tasty Thai foods will not help you. I mean, I can say no to free junk foods. But it’s much harder to say no to free authentic Thai foods. You can also buy foods too. Here is Thai Fried Mussel, or Hoi Tod. It is a very rare dish to find in the US. It is similar to omelet but with better taste and more calorie.

What I like about a festival in Wat Buddhavas like this are the foods. There is all kind of rare and authentic Thai foods available. Most Thai restaurants in Houston do not make these dishes. Even if they do, they don’t make them for Thai people. So they are not authentic.

On top of all the foods, there is live Thai traditional music. Wat Buddhavas has a Sunday school program for this. The classes are nearly free and open to everyone who wishes to study Thai culture.