Lunar New Year, Viertnam's Tet - second part

Large open trucks transport troops of young acrobats, dressed in dragon costumes, for impromptu performances on the streets of Ho Chi Minh City.

  

I'm not sure what this is all about but these guys risk their necks and really put on a show.  Not sure if my photos make it clear but many of the dragon dances are performed with one guy standing on another's shoulders.  They hustle through there acrobatic routines then haul each other back into the bed of the transport truck and are off.   

Nguyen Hue street in downtown Saigon is transformed into a stylised, Vietnamese country side setting for the New Year.  Many women dress up in traditional ao dai's, as in the above photo, for the occation.

so what's up in Bangkok now - protests, protests

An M-79 grenade fired into a battalion, injuring 2 soldiers


BANGKOK: -- Two soldiers were injured on Monday after an M-79 grenade was fired into an army battalion opposite National Broadcast Television (NBT) station near the Victory Monument. The soldiers were now being treated at the Phra Mongkul Hospital.
-- The Nation 2010-03-15

Lets see, wondering how you know the kind of grenade that blows up in front of you and why it didn't do more damage?  Though I'm glad it didn't take any lives, it just seems a might strange.


Red shirts threaten to deface Government House with their own blood


BANGKOK: -- Natthawut Saikua, a red-shirt leader, announced at 1:40 pm Monday threatened to pour 1 million cc of blood of 100,000 red-shirt people around the Government House.

Natthawut said the red-shirt people would collect their blood and pour the blood at every gate of the Government House at 6pm.
-- The Nation 2010-03-15

I'm wondering about this report also, think its lacking context.  Just seems to portray the red shirts as crazes, which they ain't.

Sorry though still no first hand information on the goings on in Bangkok  from Victor,  I'm thinking kidnapped.  But not to worry about Victor  - I'm sure the Thai lady or ladies, like Vietnamese and Cambodian ones will bring him back minus the camera money a little tired but looking very relaxed.