First shot with my new camera: a Bangkok Christmas

This is the very first shot with my new camera, a Sony NEX 5T. I took it an hour or two after buying it from MBK, my favourite place for big shopping Bangkok. I'm not making any claims for its excellence or otherwise - it was shot on full auto, with little battery left, with me in a hurry - but I hope it marks the moment I left my beloved point-and-click behind and moved on to using a more flexible tool.

I had no idea until I travelled a bit in Asia that countries there would take to Christmas so enthusiastically (Christians notwithstanding). I know that in this case - as part of an extravagant display outside Bangkok's Siam Square (its biggest shopping area in a city known for shopping) - it's there largely for tourists.

But you'll find Christmas trees and other related paraphernalia all over countries like Thailand, Burma, Cambodia and Vietnam, each a little different from the other, inside and outside commercial areas.

Perhaps it's the easy iconography - the tree and lights, and the child-friendly Santa. Or perhaps it's just the same for Asians as it was for us when we celebrated Diwali; we're happy to celebrate a festival, and delighted to join in with those for whom its cultural significance runs deep.