Forlorn annual Pattaya Vegetarian Festival

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Gaybutton
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Forlorn annual Pattaya Vegetarian Festival

Post by Gaybutton »

Every year Pattaya hosts a Vegetarian Festival - yellow banners all over town and on individual booths selling vegetarian specialties. There is always a parade and gigantic pots of fried rice and other delicacies given free to all comers along Pattaya Beach. Mom-and-Pop booths are set up all over town, selling their own vegetarian specialties. It goes on for about a week.

That is - until this year. The festival has started, but you probably wouldn't even notice it if you didn't know about it. No yellow banners. No parade. Hardly any vegetarian food booths set up anywhere. No huge food giveaways.

It is so lackluster this year that even the news media is saying nothing about it. The Pattaya Mail article below is the only publicity I've seen about it at all this year and that article doesn't exactly stimulate much excitement.

Of course, if you haven't already figured it out, it is almost entirely called off this year due to Covid. It's sad. It's like the 4th of July without fireworks or Christmas without Santa Claus. It's there, but the fun is gone.
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Pattaya Vegetarian Festival starts with no parade, takeout only

By Pattaya Mail

October 7, 2021

The Sawang Boriboon Thammasathan Foundation kicked off a Pattaya Vegetarian Festival like no other, with no alms house, no parade and no food booths to prevent an outbreak of Covid-19.

Foundation President Wisit Chaowalitnittithum and rescue unit chief Prasit Thongthitcharoen hoisted a lantern up a flagpole Oct. 5 to invite the Chinese god Sei Tee Ti to the festival, a tradition for the festival, which this year runs through Oct. 14.

In a nod to coronavirus restrictions, the usual Chinese lion and dragon parade and dances were canceled, the incense ceremony was snuffed out and the food booths were closed.

Chinese donut chef Jae Tat was there, however, offering veggie donuts for 20 baht per box. Also for sale were takeaway boxes of pad Thai and pad siew at reasonable prices.

https://www.pattayamail.com/news/pattay ... nly-374622
Jun

Re: Forlorn annual Pattaya Vegetarian Festival

Post by Jun »

The options for THAI vegetarian food in Pattaya are rather limited.

There's rather a good one on the road behind Home Pro
A rather bland one in Terminal 21 Food Court
One near Nakluea Market
One in Jomtien, near where the road got washed away
All the 4 options above cost about 40~50 baht for a meal. Of these, only the one in Terminal 21 is open in the evening.

The only THAI vegetarian food place I know of in South Pattaya is 5 Star. I usually part with over 300 baht here. It's not 6 times better, but does open in the evening.
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Re: Forlorn annual Pattaya Vegetarian Festival

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Jun wrote: Thu Oct 07, 2021 8:54 pm The only THAI vegetarian food place I know of in South Pattaya is 5 Star.
That is a regular restaurant that has been there for many years - on the corner of Pattaya Tai and Third Road. But this food festival is usually composed of free give-aways along Pattaya Beach along with dozens of mom-and-pop specialty booths set up all over town. After the festival ends, most of those disappear or go back to selling whatever they usually sell.

Of course, you don't need a festival to find plenty of vegetarian food in Thailand. It is available virtually everywhere, festival or not. They make a festival out of it to attract tourists, both foreign and domestic. The locals certainly know where to find all the vegetarian food they want, any time they want. But because of Covid there simply are not enough tourists to support anything special, so it is a festival in name only.

Unfortunately this year's festival, because of Covid, is a total dud.
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Re: Forlorn annual Pattaya Vegetarian Festival

Post by Gaybutton »

The Vegetarian Festival has ended. Did anyone really notice it was happening in the first place?

That's the way things are right now in Thailand, folks.
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