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Lucky charm, red envelope with gold yuanbao/ ingots and lucky bamboo. The red envelopes are called Lai Shi or also Hong Bao. The red envelopes normally contain money and are given by parents or married couples to their children, siblings and unmarried people. The symbolic meaning is to wish for good fortune and wealth in the new year, at times it might be used to pay off debt, though it is not to be compared to the western style of giving money to allow someone ‘to buy something nice’; vending along the street, China Town, Bangkok

Photographer:Valeska Gehrmann
© 2008:Valeska Gehrmann at nationsonline.org