Mrs T and I decided to cut short our 4 month stay in Thailand by a month and return to the UK, so last week we used the excellent travel agent in the Emporium Bangkok to find a flight for us asap. (Better price than online btw) and18 hours later we were on our way home. Thai airways to Heathrow and then after a 2 hour stopover it was BA to Leeds, out of the tiny airport in 10 minutes and a couple of hours later we were firmly ensconced back at Taxexile Towers.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire? Who knows.
These are unusual times, but I would not want to be a foreigner in Thailand during a health crisis such as this, having to deal with curfews, restrictions, immigration and of course the possibility of health care.
Things in the UK are pretty calm, today is the first day of the big lockdown, but food and even toilet paper is plentiful, takeaway deliveries from local chippies, italians, indians, etc. are available and easy to obtain, we are like everyone else here self isolating and the empty streets and lack of traffic make a refreshing change. We did a food shop yesterday and it was bizarre to see people actually obeying the social distancing advice, but nobody except mrs.t and I were wearing masks and gloves. We are both relieved to be back, got out just in time I think, my wife will miss her family over the next few months, normally they visit us during the summer, but I doubt if that will happen this year.
All the other long stay foreigners in our condo left within a week of us leaving, and the condos gym, pool and sauna were declared no go areas. I gather Hua Hin in general is slowly going into hibernation with restaurants and malls closing down and now I read the Generalissimo is declaring a state of emergency.
Interesting times.
Who got dill all up off the sofa, taking pics of cheap household appliances?
You'll be paying for a private hospital, the same as in Thailand I'd imagine with the NHS stretched to it's limits.
I would have chose the UK over Thailand though too when you look at how Thailand are just shutting down certain Cities and creating mass exoduses through laying workers off and still allowing anyone with a certificate in although aren't the UK still letting people in? Thailand would have bullshitted all its figures too.
We shall see soon enough. But I think you've made a wise choice. You have certainly chosen the best country out of the two for the Weather over the next 6 months. Shame you can't get out to enjoy it
With the Lao borders closed, almost all the tourists and Chinese have buggered off from Luang Prabang. It's like a ghost town, with massage and bars ordered closed. Most restaurants are also closed. The main supermarket is open (thank heavens). Amazingly, of the remaining 'western' tourists and expats, almost all are not wearing any mask, gloves or keeping a decent distance. Complete bunch of twats. The supermarket gets you to sanitise your hands at their entry door. They should also tell anyone without a mask, 'no mask, not coming in...).
My online teaching continues just fine. Between lessons, I'm sorting out a new ham radio antenna. Yesterday, I dropped my mast through the neighbour's concrete tile roof (oops!), but I think he was out and didn't hear the sound, nor see the rain of shattered tiles!
Groping women when you're old is fine - everyone thinks you're senile
Easily passed-off as some ghost.
Mention lottery numbers while you're at it.
Funnily enough things are getting back to normal here. We've been under social distancing, lockdown, shops bars restaurants closed for about six weeks now. The weekend before the one just gone the parks and beaches opened, though to get in you have your temperature taken and must wear a mask. The supermarkets have been open but most other businesses shut, now slowly starting to open one by one. The deserted streets of a month ago are slowly coming back to life and there's even talk of the schools opening. They've been doing online learning so far. We still have to get temperatures taken at the compound gate before being allowed in and people from other compounds aren't allowed in and visa versa. Deliveries have to be met at the gate.
“If we stop testing right now we’d have very few cases, if any.” Donald J Trump.
I understand that private hospitals will hand over their facilities to the NHS if necessary. I doubt that there is a health care system in the world capable of dealing with hundreds of thousands of intensive care patients if it truly takes off. Best to hunker down, quarantine yourself and hope it burns itself out sooner rather than later.You'll be paying for a private hospital, the same as in Thailand I'd imagine with the NHS stretched to it's limits.
Well, my luck is following me to the beautiful Philippines.....
I started teaching online last weekend and have gotten a few repeat students that are enjoying my attempt to teach them English. A customer base, so to speak.
Well, the workspace company that I'm renting a place with decent internet from tells me on Monday, the entire island (Negros) is going on lockdown on Monday, meaning I won't be able to teach/earn money/get away from the wife for the next two weeks.
This was announced today. Only supermarkets, pharmacies and banks will be open. On my way home, the lines entering the supermarkets along my way were stupendiously long.
Thank fook I've got a bum gun!
We're going to do our panic buying on Friday, mostly canned and boxed goods and the like. I'm guessing the local fruit and veg sellers will still be open.
"I was a good student. I comprehend very well, OK, better than I think almost anybody," - President Trump comparing his legal knowledge to a Federal judge.
Local boys in brown informed all and sundry that we have a curfew starting tomorrow until late April.
Everything of interest shut including two best coffee shops in town.
Thai cancelled my return flights to OZ so i guess i am here for the duration now.
The nearest restaurant to my house is an Indian cuisine place. I've just negotiated daily takeaways of wobbly food and poppadoms every evening for the next 2 weeks...
My mum got a letter this morning in the UK telling her she's in one of the "at risk" groups and has to stay indoors. She's a heavy smoker with lung problems, so it wasn't any great surprise for her.
^ hope she stays safe Hal, she is high risk.
Well someone is brave....seems i may get some vouchers. Now if they are anything like other airlines i got vouchers from they won't be worth the effort involved.
Thai Airways suspends its flights
https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/1885595/thai-airways-suspends-its-flights
Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) will suspend several international flights in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
From Wednesday, the national carrier will tempararily stop services to Hong Kong, Taipei, Tokyo (Narita and Haneda), Osaka, Nagoya, Seoul, Phnom Penh, Vientiane, Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Yangon, Singapore, Jakarta, Denpasar, Kunming, Xiamen, Chengdu, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Karachi, Kathmandu, Lahore, Dhaka, Islamabad, and Colombo.
THAI Smile, its subdidiary, will take over domestic flights to Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Krabi provinces.
From Friday, THAI will suspend its flights to Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth.
From April 1, it will cancel most of its flights to Europe — London, Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels, Copenhagen, Oslo, Moscow and Stockholm.
THAI previously suspended flights to Sendai, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Busan, Manila, Kuala Lumpur, Rome, Milan, Vienna, New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Muscat, Dubai, and Auckland.
Passengers holding THAI and THAI Smile code-share flights air tickets issued before March 25 may convert unused tickets to travel vouchers, valid for one year, without fee and surcharges.
Eligible tickets must be for travel from March 25 to May 31 this year on Asian routes, and from April 1 to May 31 on European, Australian and New Zealand routes.
Royal Orchid Plus members with award tickets for travel from March 25 to May 31 may fully re-credit mileages or change the travel dates without any fee or charge, with expired miles extended until Sept 30.
THAI still operates cargo service on some routes and will operate charter flights if there are stranded passengers or requested by government agencies.
Really thought you were gonna root the dog for a while there, especially when the durex play came out.
I'm guessing there was no peanut butter in the fridge?
I'm more amazed how you rest the beer on the arm of your sofa.
If he's self isolating then why is the toilet seat down and the bowl so fucking clean?
^Armstrong's Mrs has obviously asked Syb to recommend a good CCTV installer so she can keep an eye on him, i lost count of the cameras.
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