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Once again the month started with a New Year celebration - this time the Chinese New Year. As Thai land has a  sizeable Chinese population and as many Thai people are of Chinese descent, this is a major event here.
A street carnival was held in Walking Street involving acrobats, jugglers, and various costume dancers, not to mention a giant multi-headed serpent which spat fire and water at the assembled company.
In traditional fashion the party concluded with an enormous firework display which being Chinese the emphasis was more on noise than spectacle, the result being that anyone in the near vicinity had their hearing seriously impaired for some time afterwards.
On the domestic front, the recliner chair duly arrived and has proved a real boon in making the condo a pleasant place to live in.
 Also in the process of making the condo somewhere I would be happy to spend time in and thus reduce the temptation to go out on the town all the time, was the purchase of a suitable hi-fi/home cinema system.
Whilst not in the same league as the one I had back in the UK (no big screen, just using the inherited large TV), it has nevertheless proved a very satisfactory substitute and certainly more suitable for my more limited surroundings.
Mid month saw two major social events. Firstly we had one of the periodic Wine Club Gourmet Dinners at the Royal Cliff Hotel - this one being an Italian Winemaker’s Gala event featuring a selection of wines from this major European  producing country, accompanied by a multi course meal also of Italian cuisine.
A couple of days later, to be precise Valentine’s day, another glamour event was held at the Horseshoe Point Resort and Country Club. This was organised by the local Lions Club and featured a display of precision horse dressage by the riders at the resort, followed by another superb dinner.
To keep all this eating in check, I continued to attend the Expats club keep fit class 3 mornings a week and had also added a Monday afternoon activity of going running with the local Hash House Harriers, although as this event was usually followed by drinking copious amounts of beer and then finishing off at a bar serving a free meal, its health giving properties were somewhat in dispute.
To view any of the above photos in full size, just click on it.
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