Bangkok. 10-10-2010..

My self and my photo.

Thai Snack Eaten.

                                                                   Non Mai.
                                               

                    Non means worm in Thai and Mai means wood. This is a wood worm insect with a soft shell that's crispy after fried. Fry the non mai in a wok briefly, remove, add a light coating of Golden Mountain sauce and add Thai pepper powder. Eat as a snack alone, or with beer. Click image to see larger non mai pictures

Tak Ga Tan

This is a common grasshopper, it was known as a pest that damaged rice crops. Farmers discovered they could eat the insects as a tasty snack, so they gathered them up and sold them off to vendors who turned them into a popular snack nationwide. Fry them in a wok briefly, remove, add a light coating of Golden Mountain sauce and add Thai pepper powder. Eat as a snack alone, or with beer. Click image to see larger non pai pictures. 1.5" long

Jing Leed.

One of the most common insects for snacking, it's a cricket. Fry it in a wok briefly, remove, add a light coating of Golden Mountain sauce and add Thai pepper powder. Eat as a snack alone, or with beer. Click image to see larger Jing Leed pictures

Maeng Kee Noon.

Maeng Kee Noon. Similar to other Thai insects, fry the maeng kee noon in a wok briefly, remove, add a light coating of Golden Mountain sauce and add Thai pepper powder. Eat as a snack alone, or with beer. Click image to see larger Maeng Kee Noon pictures.

Maeng Da.

Maeng Da. This is by far the largest insect eaten as a snack. At about 3.5" long it's not something the average tourist to Thailand might munch between meals, but it is enjoyed by many locals as a snack, notably in the NE region.

As with other insects, fry it in a wok then season with a bit of Golden Mountain sauce and Thai pepper powder. The head and the shell directly behind the head is not eaten, as it is too hard. To eat whole, locals rip off the pincers and eat those, then rip the head and top section off and discard, eating the rest whole. Some people discard the wings, and others enjoy eating them.

Maengda essence is also made into namprik. Add a few drops of maengda essence in a mortar and pestle with namprik kapi becomes namprik maengda. Maengda has a distinct aroma that many find desirable, and no other insects have the same smell. Interesting fact: the female maengda has no smell. Female maengda are enjoyed for the eggs and the taste as a snack. Male maengda have the particular smell, and are used to make the special namprik (chile paste). If you pinch the body in the middle, bend it backward and smell the stomache area, you will know if the maengda is a male or female.

Also called maengda but having no resemblance, is "maengda talay". Maengda talay is the Thai horseshoe crab, found in the Gulf of Thailand and enjoyed as a delicacy

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Thai new year

Songkran is a Thai traditional New Year which starts on April 13 every year and lasts for 3 days. Songkran festival on April 13 is Maha Songkran Day or the day to mark the end of the old year, April 14 is Wan Nao which is the day after and April 15 is Wan Thaloeng Sok which the New Year begins. At this time, people from the rural areas who are working in the city usually return home to celebrate the festival. Thus, when the time come, Bangkok temporarily turns into a deserted city

Songkran is a Thai word which means "move" or "change place" as it is the day when the sun changes its position in the zodiac. It is also known as the "Water Festival" as people believe that water will wash away bad luck.

The Songkran tradition is recognized as a valuable custom for the Thai community, society and religions. The value for family is to provide the opportunity for family members to gather in order to express their respects to the elders by pouring scented water onto the hands of their parents and grandparents and to present them gifts including making merits to dedicate the result to their ancestors. The elders in return wish the youngsters good luck and prosperity.

The values for community is to provide the opportunity to create unity in the community such as to jointly acquire merits, to meet each other and to enjoy the entertaining events. And for the society value is to create concern upon environment with cooperation such as to clean houses, temples, public places and official buildings. Thais value the religion bye means of merits acquisition, offerings alms to monks, Dhamma Practice, listening to sermon and monks-bathing.

 

In the afternoon, after performing a bathing rite for Buddha images and the monks, the celebrants both young and old, joyfully splash water oon each other. The most-talked about celebration takes place in the northern province of Chiang Mai where Songkran is celebrated from April 13 to 15. During this period, people from all parts of the country flock there to enjoy the water festival, to watch the Miss Songkran Contest and the beautiful parades