• By GROVE
  • | Jan 06, 2017

Join the Luck Club

Start your Chinese New Year morning with blessings from the gods at Wat Mangkon Kamalawat, also known as the Dragon Temple (Mangkorn Rd. Open daily 6am-6pm). At Bangkok’s most important Chinese temple, you’ll find statues of nearly 60 Chinese gods. The most popular is Tai Suay Eia or Cai Shen, the god of wealth or god of fortune. This year, it’s believed especially important for people born in the years of the rabbit, rat and horse to ward of bad fortune. You can buy worship sets from the temple at B100 each. 
 

Give to the Poor

Next, take a stroll over to Plab Pla Chai Road to another shrine, Tai Hong Kong Shrine (Pubplachai Rd. Open daily 6am-6pm). This is where the Por Tek Tung Foundation began, a charity which takes donations to buy coffins for the poor. It’s believed that doing so will reduce your misfortune and bring luck your way. Some people even go to the extreme of worshipping at nine shrines in one day, as the Thai word for nine, kao, is akin to the word kaona, meaning progress. 
 
Hua Seng Hong

Eat for Good Luck

When it comes to lunch, eating on Chinese New Year is about more than just food. You have to choose dishes made with ingredients that are filled with meaning. Noodles, for example, are meant to bring you long life. We recommend checking out old-school Teochew restaurants like Tang Jai Yoo (85-89 Soi Yaowapanich, Yaowarat Road, opposite Hua Seng Heng Gold shop, 02-224-2167, 02-224-2172. Open daily 11am-2pm, 5-10pm) and Yim Yim (or Jim Jim) restaurant (89 Padsai Rd.,  behind Hua Seng Hong gold shop. Open daily 11am-2pm, 5pm-10pm). Both serve fine suckling pig and egg noodles with braised goose feet—lucky (and delicious) food criteria for this year. If you find both of them shut, Hua Seng Hong (371-373 Yaowarat Rd., 02-222-7053. Open daily 9am-1am) is a 40-year-old eating spot guaranteed to be open every day, just like The Canton House (530 Yaowarat Rd., 092-249-8299. Open daily 11am-10pm), where they serve a mix of Thai and Chinese dishes. 
 
Wat Traimitr Wittayaram

Rediscover Chinatown’s Golden History

In the afternoon, hide from the sun in the air-con comfort of temple-slash-museum Wat Traimitr Wittayaram (661 Charoenkrung Rd. Open Tue-Sun 8am-5pm. Free entry for Thais and B100 for foreigners). This sacred space isn’t just home to the world’s largest golden Buddha image but also houses the Yaowarat Chinatown Heritage Centre on the second floor. Make your way from the ground floor to the top to learn the full history of Yaowarat as well as the inspiring stories of Phra Phuttha Maha Suwana Patimakon, aka the Golden Buddha, and the Chinese ancestors who helped found Thailand’s fortune. 
 
Lor
 
Double Dogs

Make Time for Sweets

Now it’s time for afternoon treats. Cool yourself down with a delicious bowl of coconut milk ice dessert at Lod Chong Singapore (680-682, Charoenkrung T-junction (Yaek Mhor Mee), Charoenkrung Rd., 02-221-5794. Open daily 11am-10pm), or head to the 70-year-old grocery store Lor Yaowaraj (388 Yaowarat Rd., 02-622-4083, 02-622-4034), where you’ll find super-refreshing Kiintim ice-cream saticks out front. If you’re more for afternoon tea, Double Dogs (406 Yaowarat Rd., 086-329-3075. Open daily 1-10pm) focuses on traditional Japanese and Chinese specialties. 
 
The Gate of Chinatown

Leave with Good Fortune

End your day at the Gate of Chinatown, a giant red gate right at the start of Yaowarat Road that is considered the road’s dragon head. It was built to celebrate the 60th anniversary celebrations of King Bhumibol Adulyadej's accession to the throne in 2006. The gate’s location and construction followed feng shui rules, so every one of its elements is imbued with meaning, from the lion couple statues said to bring prosperity, to the golden plates built to absorb power from the gods. 
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