Valdez Family Advisory

This post is for our family and friends back home.

You have probably heard or read in the news about Bangkok's current situation. It's true that our city has been placed in a state of emergency because the protests have turned violent. According to the news, the Prime Minister has no plans of stepping down so it looks like these protestors are not going away anytime soon.

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I was able to chat with my mom and my brother-in-law, Eric, last night because they were worried about us so I assured them that we are fine. The news might paint a scary picture for all of you back home, but you shouldn't worry about us. We are doing ok. Thankfully, our apartment is far from any government office so no sight of any protests or rallies here.

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Oakwood issued an advisory to its residents and they are doing everything to ensure our safety. As an added measure, we were given a few reminders to keep us on the safe side:

1. Avoid government offices or places of confrontation -- unless these government offices are selling shoes and bags at 80% off, I'm not going near them even on a regular day.
2. Do not form groups of more than five (5) persons -- even if we bring our driver with us, we are still one person short of being a suspicious group.
3. Refrain from wearing yellow or red -- good thing I don't have much of these in my closet!

Okay, I'm trying to be funny just to show you that we're fine, but this is not really the best time for that. We hope and pray that this will soon be resolved and that no one else will get hurt.

NSIS called off classes today, so Aly and I will be staying at home all day. Richard went to work, but his office is far from any protest areas so he's safe. I promised my mom last night that I won't go to the mall and I'm keeping my word.