BusyB

I don't know where you are but the latest Line video contact I had (last week) with someone who was on Hua Hin beach, the place was deserted no vendors ... don't know what the situation is elsewhere. Anyway there are plenty of other places. to eat everywhere ... it ain't a deal breaker, but as Jack45 said - the place is different, and that on top of the changes I've seen since my first trip 18 years ago, when there was still a whiff of the 'old times' around.

I see what you mean and do understand. I am quite braced for the place being t o t a l l y different, and suspect it'll require some adaptation. A couple of long-term friends in LOS have warned me and it's quite obvious when you can't even get a seafood pad thai on the beach and a foot massage for desert. But at least the beach is still there. And a couple of friends. The food, the weather, and a few other constants will also still be there. Having thought about this a short while though, I also think Cambodia will be swamped with all the travelers who can't be bothered with Thai Pass this year. So it could easily get a little crowded. If I was a UK/EU travel agent I'd be pushing it like mad. I normally avoid prognoses (and those who purvey them) but I'd wager that if that happens then Thai Pass will be history by January, especially with the low number of arriving infected travellers.

Very true ... but for those of us who are missing the SEA lifestyle and can afford to hang for a couple of months next door whilst the Thais untwist their y-fronts, then this is the best news I've seen in a couple of years ... Never thought I'd ever want to say 'thanks' to Hun Sen.

I just wanted to be unemployed ...

I'm not a fan of his, but at the very least it means he took the same shots he was pushing to the people - didn't get ahold of mRNA vax via a backdoor ... praise where praise is due ...

I thought the tongue stretching my left cheek to its limits was obvious enough ;D But it's often hard to see on these threads ...

When I was lining up a visit from a Thai girlfriend to Germany I had to show health insurance for her whole stay and sign a chit saying I'd be responsible for all costs she incurred if she stepped out of line. Something like that anyway - but they wouldn't let her in without knowing someone was going to cover for her. That was about 2005.

And on top of that we change with age and suddenly things don't jive the way they did, and suddenly we notice things we never did before, and and ... Life is change, and adapting is a great strategy ... I've had a whale of a time wherever I was, except for a couple of years of self-imposed misery when I lost sight of my compass. And that was the time I blamed everyone else 555

Uncertainty and impermanence are basic buddhist tenets ;D

That's why I always have that in euros on me when I arrive now ... They had begun turning several people back as I recall before the pandemic.

This guy is a lawyer and refers to 'retirement visas', which we all know is the incorrect term.

'Cogent' ?

This of course is the big worry ...

What a shame. Flew biz BKK-FRA 2013 and was delighted. Also flew biz domestically when they had the A330 with proper biz class seats - also great value for money. I'd avoid them now because of their apparent record when it came to responding to flight cancellations when the pandemic hit. And also because LH had to chase them up to get my miles accredited back then. Their 'admin' seems to be rather 'lax'.

It happens from time to time after heavy rain, and the Thais come in droves to collect the stranded fish.

Last time that happened when I was there a lot of the fish stayed rotting on the beach, and the breeze carried the stench across the whole city for days 555

Art often needs subsidizing and Chula is staggeringly rich.. It's just another example of people who know the price of everything and the value of nothing.

The first time in my whole life I saw the Milky Way was trekking in the hills near CM on my first SEA trip. I was 47 and out walking in the dark with another trekkee. There was no light pollution, it was pitch black. But the starlight was enough. It was stunning and awesome. And to top it off a shooting star streaked halfway across the sky and broke up into three bits ... I almost thought I could hear it go 'pop', but obviously I couldn't. Amazing, recommendable to anyone and I aim to see it again.

And that's why it's the job of both ...

Yeah, you really do have to ask what the real motivations for this Thailand Pass/COE malarky really are. It patently obviously has nothing to do with disease control. The sandboxes have shown in practical and large numbers that foreign tourists/returnees are not spreading the plague. The latest figures (10 infected) prove it in larger numbers. So what are they (really) still insisting on it for?

And I think I read recently that a court had ruled dual pricing in hospitals entirely legit.

Exactly what I was thinking ...

Plausible, but I also think they want to cash in on all the digital nomad income taxes ...

That sounds fine. But I can't think of a country anywhere that does that. Maybe you know a couple? Why should Thailand set up a 'Ministry for Foreigner Health Insurance' just to serve spoiled first world brats who can't be bothered to look after themselves, who are ostensibly fleeing 'the nanny state' yet want their travels to be nannied? People who travel should be responsible enough to ensure they have the necessary cover. My vote's with RocketDog.

True, but that's what it says on the label so no point complaining - you either buy it or go elsewhere. I don't have a problem buying it because I know what I'm getting. No illusions.