WuhanVagabond

1 hour ago, moontang said:

https://www.bangkokpattayahospital.com/en/hospital-news-en/packages-promotions-en/item/2740-covid19-screening-test-en.html

 

But, it is 3800 for the test.   And that does seem like a bargain for Bangkok Hospital, wherever, as they are known for being pricey by local standards... as in more like Bumrungrad than any government hospital. 

Thanks for the link. Yeah, agreed. Very very unlikely to test positive here, but if I thought I'd been potentially exposed, this would be the best option I've heard of if not symptomatic (yet, if ever). Then again... most would prefer to self quarantine than be in a hospital for 14 days given the low mortality rate.

One thing, the link doesn't say anything about a certificate of any kind. Knowing places like this, I imagine a certificate that an airline will accept will be an additional charge. Can obviously sort it with a phone call query. 

3 minutes ago, moontang said:

I saw 3300 in Patts, but they did say you would get a 14 day quarantine and treatment for 30,000 all included.  A risk of going to a private hospital would be potentially high costs for a positive.. even asymptomatic.. Although, noticed one was email results only, which makes sense.. but an email might not suffice with the airlines, but then again, they aren't immigration. 

Yeah, what a nightmare that would be--- going for an flight test and testing positive! Curious where this 30,000 inclusive deal is? Sounds like the best case scenario if one were to test positive (unlikely) in terms of cost. Test positive in a hospital and you're definitely not looking at only 30,000...

Trump administration had the date as January 26th- but Biden threw out pretty much everything Trump did via executive order. The new announcement a few days ago by the Biden administration regarding international arrivals was proposing a Wuhan virus test to enter, but it's currently a directive to explore feasibility vs a new order. So, seemingly, nothing is actually in place now.... BUT... the CDC apparently didn't watch the Biden presser, nor read teh executive order... so it remains a requirement. Good to see our self-proclaimed saviors/new regime is well oiled.

I have to fly soon and, while most medical tests are cheaper in Pattaya, I've yet to find anything to compete with the 2700 baht price above. 

Figure people want to know the what to expect, so I'll wrap this up...

Trip back today was easy and, as someone who lives relatively close to Jomtien Immigration, it's not bad at all. Arrived at the entry desk, gave her my number, she had a box of passports next to her paperclipped to their respective numbers and... I was finished in 10 seconds.

So, yeah, if the alternative were waiting at immigration for an hour + once, vs 2 trips that take less than a minute each, I'll take the latter. 

8 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Perhaps the officer to sign off on the extension was not in the office or available.

They have people return the next day for long stay extensions on a regular basis.

That's possible- but the girl acted as if this was the way it works. She saw that BKK immigration did the previous extension and commented that I had to do the same thing in BKK when I was puzzled by the need to return and asked if it was possible to wait and take care of it today.  Perhaps she was being disingenuous as a means of avoiding telling me they couldn't do it today.

As an addition to the OP for anyone wondering...

She never entered my information into the computer. In fact, she never even looked at the info page of my passport- she only looked at the under consideration stamp. The whole thing from start to finish was over in under a minute.

Went back to Jomtien today after my 14 day "under consideration" waiting period. Girl at the entry desk looks at my stamp, asks for the passport copies, hands me a number and tells me I'll get my passport back tomorrow. huh? I haven't read anything about this. She acted as if it's SOP for a long time. Even in BKK, they cap wasting your time at 2 trips- with my previous under consideration trip there literally lasting less than 3 minutes from walking thru the door to getting my stamped passport back. Yet Jomtien, which was close to empty today, needs a day with my passport to do something that takes under a minute?!?

Extra trip aside, I just HATE being separated from my passport- especially for no reason whatsoever.

41 minutes ago, Leaver said:

 

This issue has come up before. 

 

As a foreigner, if you feel ill, and do the right thing by going to get tested, if you have it, you could end up with a huge bill at the end of 2 weeks in hospital, even if you do not progress to life threatening covid, needing ICU.

 

End result will probably be foreigners not seek medical treatment until they are extremely ill, possibly spreading the disease for the previous 10 days.  

Yeah, agree. That's also the case for Thais as well (not seeking treatment unless actually sick), except for the cost dynamic.

I could manage to incur the cost, but I know many here who could not- and that's an obvious issue. Also, many of us live in small spaces and often with a gf/significant other, so self isolation is a bit difficult to pull off in any meaningful way if one is looking at it realistically. 

Obviously every case is different and costs, as such, will vary greatly. That said, do we have any data points, in terms of total cost incurred,  of foreigners who were hospitalized before? I imagine even a perfectly well positive test gets the full nine yards for 14 days or something similar...

3 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

The spread of colds and flu has drastically reduced, I for one have felt better the last 10 months than previous years, less things about. 

 

YouTube will show you different symptoms of cold, flu, Covid

And the Mayo clinic and any other respected medical provider's website will stress that there is a lot of overlap and it's difficult to tell unless you have a tell tale symptom like loss of taste and smell. 

I always run a fever when I get sick. I've seen sick people sneezing and coughing throughout the year when there were no reported cases in Thailand. People still get sick from other things, regardless of what the powers that be want the people to believe/fear. Still, if you got a fever tomorrow with kinda normal cold symptoms, would you dilly or would you feel compelled to go get tested?

I'd be inclined to go get tested. But I certainly want to know beforehand what to expect when they do a temp scan and I already know it's above 37.5!

22 minutes ago, HashBrownHarry said:

Although i agree with what you say will happen it does not make for a very effective lockdown....

Kinda my thinking too. I do tend to think they're going to be more aggressive this time if the lockdown signaled in the Bangkok Post and Pattaya Mail occurs.

Wondering how this type of situation got handled when Pattaya got locked down in the Spring? Any data points? Some people must have ended up on the wrong side of the lockdown...

Bangkok Post is among those reporting that the recommendation for tomorrow will be that 3 provinces, including Chon Buri, are completely locked down with no in and out (without government approval) for at least 28 days.

As I may have the need to leave Thailand due to some events back home (still up in the air as of now), I am loathe to get stranded in Pattaya with no way out. However, I got the ridiculous "under consideration" stamp that Jomtien gives everyone; so I need to go back to get my stamp in a week or I'll be in an overstay situation. I know from experience that no other immigration office will extend- they'll tell me to go back to Jomtien or leave Thailand.

Hoping they close Immigration under a lockdown and have an amnesty type announcement, but I can't really count on that...

1 hour ago, ThailandRyan said:

Still waiting for Monday the 4ths update after everyone has returned home from the extensive holiday travels.  Hopefully they will have come to their senses and decided on doing the right thing as they did before in light of the new strains that have entered the country.  I know many people do not want the closure of anything while others want a lockdown.  How can you play the middle is the question the Governments and provinces need to look at so that they can keep people safe while still allowing some semblance of freedom.  Monday morning I am sure the BTS Skytrains and MRT trains will be packed as people make their way back to work.

Just curious... does "doing the right thing as they did before" include keeping those packed BTS and MRT trains running?!? Because if things are well and truly dire enough to warrant a curfew (or effective curfew, since everything has to close at 10pm), then wouldn't the #1 public super spreader activity (packed transit cars) need to close also?

I can't buy a new microwave at Big C, but office workers in BKK can go to work as normal every day on mass transit, sit in cubicles, sit together and eat and then ride the same mass transit home (as they did before). But, because those activities are not at night, they are somehow immune to this virus that, ummm.... what- sleeps during the day and doesn't infect people under the protection of business attire?

Nonsensical arbitrary rules and enforcement...

I think we're soon to be restricted from movement. Seems tomorrow may be the last easy day to go elsewhere. I was stuck in BKK the last curfew and that won't be happening again. So it's here, Phuket, Chiang Mai or Udon. Trying to decide where I'll be able to live the closest to normal for the next 2 months or more.

That said, with this being local transmissions, and people from overseas subject to the quarantine, I don't think (hope) they will close the airports again to international travel. Suddenly the US may be a better option for a few months than here...

3 hours ago, Nout said:

Disinfectant eliminates bacteria and viruses. Disinfectant is used in both domestic households and hospitals.

Have you seen the comical street "disinfecting"? If anyone views this as anything more than a dog and pony show for appearances, then they're not.... well, use your common sense- any time I say anything promoting logic I get reported and slapped...

Disinfecting under hospital conditions hasn't been able to stop MRSA and the like- making hospitals one of the deadliest places a person can visit. If they can't disinfect a controlled, limited space, they know damn well the street 'disinfecting' is folly at best, a way to enrich buddies who get the disinfecting contract at worst/most likely. 

7 hours ago, Leaver said:

You obviously miss the bigger picture.

 

Thailand has the extended family model.  The 18 year old Thai girl goes to work at 7/11 and gets infected by an irresponsible and self entitled person such as yourself.  She then goes home to mama, papa and her grandparents.  You end up killing the grandparents, not the 18 year old, but hey, as long as you got your bottle of sangsom.  

Got it... only self centered homicidal-ish maniacs go to 7-11. 

So, now do the same exercise of grandparent death with the Big C employee, the grab driver and the other drivers who can bring you food or necessities. I'll assume the noble social justice solution is to, as we said in the Army, DIP (die in place). No food, no medicine, no nothing. To do anything, to go ANYWHERE is akin to shooting your glock into a crowd. Perhaps it'll start a virtue signaling trend on twitter where bios can list the last day you consumed food- sacrificing yourself to save the human race.

ps... gran and gramps stand a far better chance in a visit from the granddaughter than they do on Thai roads...

6 hours ago, dukeandduke said:

 

"The US is one of the most stringent and compliant masked-up areas" is one of the funniest things I've read all week. Thanks for the much-needed laugh!

You didn't comprehend what I said- so enjoy your laugh. I said.... the comparison between heavily compliant and locked down areas vs areas with NO mask mandates that are NOT locked down... look at the data. Masks aren't doing s---. THAT is my point. I wish they were. At this point, anyone remotely paying attention who thinks a mask will protect them from acquiring the virus is, well, not even remotely paying attention. Can it help?... probably, maybe, kinda... but many times, not.

19 hours ago, wensiensheng said:

But probably spends less than 10 mins inside and 7-11 seems to be a masked up zone?

There's a fair amount of data from a pretty large European (Dutch, IIRC) study showing masks are pretty ineffective. There's also a LOT of anecdotal evidence to back that up (most stringent and compliant masked up areas in US/Europe seeing massive surges). It's also rather comical how masks are being worn in 7 by all, and how often masks are down amongst employees until someone enters- as if the air expelled prior to me walking in was somehow ok!

IMHO masks create a false sense of security. For those in a risk category, this is doing them no favours. My (elderly with underlying conditions) mom is in a bad area right now and, masks or not, I don't want her anywhere near anybody right now. 

I thought the covid extension was only for people initially "trapped" here when the airports closed. Will they really give him a 60 day CCP virus extension when they see he just entered the country???

5 minutes ago, ChrisKC said:

I came back from a week around Krabi, two weeks ago. I had stays in Ao Nang, Railay and Ko Lanta.

I actually had  booked a resort in Phi Phi that was accepted by them but two days after, they cancelled it, citing Covid. So I didn't go there but learned while in Krabi that the place was dead as dead!

For my wife and I we had a great time, though wishing there were just a few more people about and a little more lively at the resorts that had fewer than a few guests. At one resort where they had 153 rooms,  we were the only ones and three swimming pools to choose from. All the beaches were pristine, the sea was wonderful, but no people at all!  Nearly everything closed up, in some cases looking like "given up"

I think wherever you go, you may be struggling to find all the things you might expect under normal circumstances.

 

We had flights from Chiang Mai to Krabi, half full going, about two thirds on return but less than B6000 all in for the two of us. Resorts had anything up to 80% reductions from normal and booked through Agoda,

 

The people with some kind of business still open were cheerful and we had better than great service!

 

I give you one example of "service". we bought some beer and a few other things in the 7-11 but the bag was quite heavy. One of the girls in there asked where we were staying, it was about 500 meters up a hill. Without hesitation, she offered to take us up there on her motorbike and wouldn't accept a tip when we got there! Sometimes, "Thainess" can be quite charming!

 

If anyone wants peace and quiet and inexpensive, now and for some time, I guess, you might take advantage!

 

Thanks so much Chris for the detailed reply. Cheers.

Thanks for the replies.

Didn't really contemplate the weather aspect. I know it rains a lot in Phuket. I didn't consider the impact on the sea being stirred up and wiping out the clear water. Would that also be the case in the surrounding islands, or are some somewhat protected due to geography?

1 minute ago, Old Croc said:

Pkuket

Phuket Province isn't shut down, nor is the capital Phuket City.

Perhaps you are talking about the tourist oriented town of Patong which is currently very quiet because of the ban on international visitors?

Yeah, poorly titled by me. I should have specified the tourist/hotel areas around Patong. Koh Phi Phi, etc.

She's never been to Phuket. Never seen clear water or snorkeled, and she really wants to- but also doesn't want to be bored senseless for 5 days. She also enjoys markets and, ofc, Thai food stalls to explore (she prefers street food or food at Thai markets).  I've read posts & send news that Phuket is a ghost town with 90%+ shut down. Accurate as of today? Bangkok has certainly (and increasingly) seen a lot more life over the past month. 

We've narrowed it to Phuket/Krabi or Hua Hin. Hua Hin is good except, of course, the water sucks for snorkeling. Can go 5 1/2 hours RT to Koh Talu for a day, but not ideal. Everything else in Hua Hin likely ticks all the other boxes because it's a Thai getaway area and quite busy on the weekends. 

We're in Bangkok now. Ease of getting to the location is a factor and also having good quality hotels that aren't crazy expensive (the high end hotels in premium isolated dive/snorkeling areas are still expensive).  

Thanks for any input. 

4 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Go to immigration and have your stamp to the 22nd changed to November 30th. You should do it as soon as possible.

Then in November you will be able to a apply for a 60 day extension.

Where? This is not the case in Jomtien, nor MTT from some reports (1 of which you responded to today in the MTT thread). They are giving the under consideration stamp instead AND charging people who paid 1900 in September.

I actually got my unused VOA extended in September to the 26th in CM and really have no idea what to expect when I show up at MTT this week...