Glorious mis-Leader had a couple of indoor campaign rallies here a couple days ago, so I expect our cases will get a bump over the next few weeks.
Too bad, as the trend was going down and the governor was considering a lifting of the ban on bars, which is vital to Las Vegas style reverie.
With all major events and conventions cancelled through early Spring, I expect my city will face some lean times not seen since the 2008 meltdown.
to get back on topic,
I have been forced to close guesthouse as no falang.
it hurts that i actually have to contribute to the everyday expenses we incur, instead of business paying it.
long term prospect is not good as our little town is suffering.
a few others guesthouses have closed or in process of closing, long term restaurants are closing.
i got caught out as i came home for the MotoGP races in Buri Ram with a friend from OZ just before the world died, we had our flights cancelled, he raced to airport and was lucky to snag another flight, Me on the other hand thought " Nah she'll be right" and couldn't get back to work till this month, no real biggie as work in Australia has dried up and you cannot travel interstate.
My short term prospects of getting home to Thailand to see wifey and the dogs are looking fairly bloody grimm as the Australian Government seems to be not helping the average Aussie punter at all, and the different states not allowing interstate travel doesn't help situation.
I flew into Sydney to start work on a long term project, Western Australia is always my preferred place of employment due to the availability of FIFO ( fly in fly out) work which allows me to go home at the end of each swing, but I aint allowed to go back to WA.
So overall this COVOID thingy has screwed up my life utterly in the short term.
we will just carry on and see what happens.
Moose.
^ all you can do is remain positive mate!
For me I would normally be on the road meeting with potential global customers and these travel restrictions are very frustrating.
That means concentrating on the Thai market and being innovative regarding the markets you concentrate on presenting the product to.
All in all I remain positive.
How has coronavirus affected you?
Directly it has only changed my visitation vacations to the USA. Basically, disrupted my plans of visiting every other year. No thoughts, desire or intentions to travel until corona is gone. So, it’s quite possibly I’ll never make it back to the States. Absolutely no loss. Made the trip far too many times. 24+ hour travel sucks. Able to maintain contact with the family via phone and iPad so, no real loss not being able to face-to-face with hugs.
On a financial level it hasn’t negatively impacted me. It has positively impacted me in receiving USD $2.4k automatically deposited in our US checking account (economic stimulus) plus Thai credits to our water and electric bills. Not really much but our massive water bill of THB 200/mo. was cut in half for three months and our electric bill of about THB 3k/mo. was reduced by about THB 500 for three months.
Probably, but not documentable, our food costs have probably decreased as vendors charge a bit less for their goods. Their customers have less money. Consequentially they’ll charge a bit less to maintain equitable sales.
From the USA, mother is fine. Complains about face masks and restrictions but nothing other than inconvenience. Sister used to commute to New York City for the big bucks. Now, they set up her apartment with fax and telecommunications services. Now she works from home doing video conferencing. She is quite pleased working from home with the no commute. Her only complaint is her gym is closed. It is quite feasible they will never return to working in New York City. No rental of office space cost and they’ve already bit the bullet on office equipment. Their customer base is OK with the current status quo.
My daughter’s work is in a medical supply company. From her they have seen an increase in business – more work.
Buddy of mine in Oz is concerned. He works for one of the big energy supply companies. The first round of layoffs was 10% of workforce. Recently announced 20% reduction to occur before end-of-year.
Large extended family in Thailand has seen some impact. A few layoffs, that will actually be permanent loss of jobs. They are looking but not really finding much replacement work. The couple that have accept reduced wages. Family resort in Lamphun, only gets Thai customers. Saw a fall off of customers for a couple of months but is now seeing some return. They haven’t reduced price and have no intention to. Have a nephew who works for a hotel that used to have a very large customer base of Chinese tourist groups. Used to get 3-5 buses of Chinese group tourists in Bangkok. They have reduced staff and reduced prices. They are holding their own with a small but stable amount of customers. His guestimate is they are operating at about 25% capacity – pretty damn good considering they used to live off the Chinese tour groups which are gone.
Have had a few family members request loans which I am easily able to accommodate. They will attempt to pay me back. Certain it’ll take years. On the overall there is a serious reduction in disposable income among the Thai community. The economic damage of closed borders is raising its ugly head.
We, speaking of the world, are in for a long, long, long recovery and it is doubtful we will return to the pasts peak while I am alive.
Always a mixture of issues. No pro side, only the con side of travel. Used to get 24 hour travel by plane. Bangkok to East Coast USA. Probably looking at 30+ hours once travel routes are restored.
The only reason to return to the USA in to visit my mother. She is 90+ years old and slipping both physically and mentally. All arrangements for her demise have been arranged, and legally documented. I have an elder law group watching over her who will take care of everything when she passes. She is the only reason to return to the USA. And, if I do return for a visit she may not be cognizant.
Valid reasons for sure. It's good that you've made your decision that Thailand is the place without too much emotional attachment to your 'original' home.
Difficult times to be sure.
Is it possible to adapt the guesthouse business to local tourists? I ask because a Thai friend who runs a cheap homestay in the general area of Kam Chanote Temple has seen things get busy again after a short quiet period. Another friend who has a beautiful spot on the Kwai river is planning to tidy up a spare small building because he says that Thai familieis are now paying top rates on AirBnB around his area. Many poorer people are definitely hurting, the better off Thais are still spending.
Covid appears to be closing its net...
Colleague in next office is off because his wife has covid. He tested negative on Monday and will test again next Monday.
Colleague in my office has been off all week because his children have colds and need to be tested before he can return to work.
I felt happier and safer when I was in Isaan. It's not worth going back with a forced fortnight quarantine in BKK. In my house would have been okay.
Medical issues and the COVID travel restrictions have put me behind about 15 months now.
Knowing things will be changing and opening up soon will allow me to get home.
Patience.
Not much we can do about our situations, is there. Just wait.
Well Covid isn’t a problem for me.
No community transmission here.
But it has had an effect.
GovCo keeps giving me money.
I’m earning the same as usual and I tell them but they send me more money.
The piper will have to be paid sometime.
We have been Taking any Thai Customers we can get, the only problem is that we only get Customers when there is a holiday in Bangkok as we are located in a Thai based tourist town.
When there is a long weekend we do well, unfortunately they are few and far between.
So i work in OZ and when the world returns to sanity, if ever, i will start commuting again.
Hopefully before my dogs forget who i am.
Colleague sent e-mail confirming he has Covid on Friday. Close call for the whole department to self isolate but colleague went into isolation just in time. I can see work going back to home office and limited shift work again very soon.
The other problem is no-one can be sure whether they have a cold, flu, or covid without doing a test as soon as symptoms appear. It is causing havoc with project deadlines. Had a guy come over from the UK; phoned in to say he had a cough but no fever when he woke up and they wouldn't let him in; sent back to UK instead.
I can see this continuing until at least March next year...
Not sure where this belongs so if not here, mods please move.
Epic Failure: Thailand Delays Special Tourist Visa Indefinitely 48 Hrs Before First Tourists Arrive – No Refunds!
Another absolutely ridiculous failure coming out of Thailand as the government has decided to “delay” the starting date of their new Special Tourist Visa just 48 hours before the first tourists were due to arrive.
Even more stunning: The government is brazen enough to stand up and say there will be no refunds as per the terms and conditions of the program – sorry, not sorry!
Thing were already going way to smoothly for Thai standards and it was really just a matter of time before the proverbial manure hit the fan which pretty much sums up what happened once again.
..much more below..
Epic Failure: Thailand Delays Special Tourist Visa Indefinitely 48 Hrs Before First Tourists Arrive – No Refunds! | LoyaltyLobby
"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect,"
I run a Real Estate company in Bangkok. Business is slow, but we managed to get through this quite ok till now.
It's a good thing all tourists are rich and can just laugh off the money they lost, yeah?
Positives...
Brought my family closer together.
Loads of cycle rides I wouldn't have ordinarily done.
Dogs happy
DIY'd the house to fook.
Paid to be at home.
Saved some money.
Negatives...
Miss the extreme craic and banter at work.
Hammered the liver and kidneys with grog.
No foreign holidays.
Shalom
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