Tourists visit Hat Yai to join Thailand's vegetarian festival

SONGKHLA, THAILAND, October 14 (TNA) - Crowds of tourists, both Thais and foreigners particularly those from neighbouring Malaysia and Singapore, are visiting Hat Yai, Thailand’s southern business hub in Songkhla province, to participate in the 10-day annual Vegetarian Festival, which official starts on October 15, although prices of vegetarian food products, namely fresh vegetables, on the domestic market have soared. The atmosphere in Hat Yai has become lively after the arrival of the local and foreign tourists with Chinese origin to join in the annual vegetarian festival. In Thailand's northeastern UbonRatchathani province bordering Laos, people are also seen buying cooked vegetarian food, but their prices remain unchanged from last year’s vegetarian festival. Similarly, a number of Thais of Chinese origin are seen visiting the popular LengNei Yee Chinese Temple, also known as WatMangkornKamalawat, situated in Bangkok’s Chinatown area to make prayers and worship gods at the temple. The temple, now decorated with beautiful yellow lights, has announced that praying ceremony will start at 7pm every night during the vegetarian festival, urging people to dress in white while attending the ceremony. Traffic in the area is now very heavy, as a number of people also visit the Chinatown's main market to buy vegetables for cooking at their home. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Commerce admitted that vegetarian food prices on the domestic market have risen significantly than the corresponding period last year. Many people opt not to consume meat since October 14, one day before the festival officially starts. (TNA)