Troubled

Didn't have much of a Songkran this year, and mostly stayed home to avoid clashes between anti-government "red-shirt" protesters and army troops at different points in the city. Unlike before, the situation feels more dangerous. As we teeter on anarchy, both sides claim to be proponents and protectors of democracy.

After protests subsided, an ominous silence lingered, only to be disrupted by an assassination attempt on a prominent "yellow-shirt" leader. The state of emergency has yet to be lifted, and there are accusations of unknown third parties behind some of the violence. At this point, things are so fluid that no one knows what will happen next.

On the bright side, we ventured out for dinner one evening, and the adjacent soi was filled with new year revelers having a blast, splashing water everywhere. It was a breezy night, and locusts buzzed noisily in the trees. On the micro-level, life goes on...