During the month of October, restaurants, shops, supermarkets, and street vendors begin displaying a yellow and red flag that looks something like this:
This means that the food sold there is "Je", or appropriate to eat during the nine day Vegetarian festival! The flag may look like it says 17 (that's what I thought for the longest time), but it actually is the word "Je" written in Thai (เจ) stylized to look like Chinese writing.
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| a supermarket in Bangkok ready for the festival |
It's not just a vegetarian festival, though that's how it is normally translated. Actually, it's closer to vegan. During this time, participants abstain from eating meat, poultry, seafood, any animal products (eggs, milk, etc), or any strong vegetables or spices (garlic, onion, chives, and more).
Even the minimarts get in on it! The neighborhood 7-11 is offering tons of Je options, including substitute meat products.
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