BANGKOK – Thais of Chinese descent nationwide on Thursday flocked to the markets for Chinese New Year shopping to prepare food, fruits and other items for worshipping deities and ancestors.
The day before the Chinese New Year’s eve is for buying food offerings before family members gather to pay homage to gods and their ancestors.
Markets around the country were crowded with shoppers looking for mainstay items such as pork, poultries and oranges. Although prices of most items have not increased from last year’s, shoppers have spent less, vendors said.
On Friday, Chinese descendants will hold rituals to worship gods and their ancestors to welcome the Year of the Rat.
The Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is called Trut Chin in Thai. All essential traditions have been passed along for many decades since the first group of Chinese migrated to the kingdom in the Ayutthaya period.
