Phuket: More stranded foreigners using free food service

[webfact]

Phuket: More stranded foreigners using free food service

 

Picture: Spring News

 

Reporters from Spring News caught up with a Thai man who was at the center of a big online story.

 

Kittikhun had given an omelette and rice to a foreign man. In no time the plate was wolfed down and another foreign couple were sitting down at the soup kitchen in Patong opposite the Royal Paradise Hotel and Spa. 

 

The original customer said he was still hungry so Kittikhun went back in the kitchen and rustled up three more omelettes. 

 

Picture: Spring News

 

The food for that session (he works the 11 am and 4 pm shifts) hadn't arrived yet so he had to improvise. 

 

The food is being provided by a local philanthropist and there are a small army of volunteers. 

 

Picture: Spring News

 

The tourist police dropped by and promised to find and provide assistance to the tourists that were in difficulty after the online story went viral.

 

Now Kittikhun said that more and more tourists have heard about the free food and are making a beeline for the soup kitchen. 

 

The organizers have even gone so far as to come up with a "non-spicy" Western style menu. 

 

Kittikhun said he had put himself in the Westerners' shoes - it can't be much fun stuck like this in a foreign land. 

 

Source: Spring News

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2020-04-14

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

 

[PJPom]

Let us just step back for a minute and forget our TV prejudices against almost everyone and say well done to those who are actually helping. 

[marko kok prong]

Dashed good effort by the chap,well done.

[Cricky]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Kittikhun had given an omelette and rice to a foreign man

I am seeing Russians here in Pattaya lining up for free food. 

Why? 

 

The banks are not shut. 

Why not send some Rubles to Thailand. 

Western Union 

Atm's are all working. 

Ask friends or relatives to send you money. 

 

 

No need to be taking free food, leave it for the Thais. 

These poor Thai people have nothing. 

[sammieuk1]

Well done all involved a huge amount of displaced people all around the world caught out by the speed cancellations no refunds and now low funds  ????

[SoilSpoil]

4 hours ago, VYCM said:

I am seeing Russians here in Pattaya lining up for free food. 

Why? 

 

The banks are not shut. 

Why not send some Rubles to Thailand. 

Western Union 

Atm's are all working. 

Ask friends or relatives to send you money. 

 

 

No need to be taking free food, leave it for the Thais. 

These poor Thai people have nothing. 

And let stranded foreigners without money starve. Nice of you.

[martinhp]

6 hours ago, PJPom said:

Let us just step back for a minute and forget our TV prejudices against almost everyone and say well done to those who are actually helping. 

It's true and a good example off the thais are not same as there government 

Thanks for these people 

[Redline]

7 hours ago, PJPom said:

Let us just step back for a minute and forget our TV prejudices against almost everyone and say well done to those who are actually helping. 

I don’t say it often, but this guy is helping everyone, and not for his own benefit or fame-he deserves credit for putting himself in other’s shoes

Edited April 14, 2020 by Redline

[cardinalblue]

One learns young to have emergency funds of 3-4 months equivalent to your lifestyle needs (not wants)...

 

no sympathy for tourists or people living check to check (don’t buy mobile or cars or other toys)....

 

hard to imagine taking a vacation and not having Enough/access to funds for staying longer like 3 weeks and resorting to a free food line....

 

feed ‘em to the elephants...

[EricTh]

The jobless Thai people need these free food more than the tourists.

 

If tourists have money to travel this far, they should be able to buy food which is cheap anyway in Thailand

 

Thai people don't have enough savings so don't take advantage of their generosity. Some tourists even dare to ask for second or third servings in one session. 

 

I just read a post in Bangkokpost that a lot of Thai people are protesting that they cannot even get a 5000 baht aid from the government.

Edited April 14, 2020 by EricTh

[Ron jeremy]

7 hours ago, VYCM said:

I am seeing Russians here in Pattaya lining up for free food. 

Why? 

 

The banks are not shut. 

Why not send some Rubles to Thailand. 

Western Union 

Atm's are all working. 

Ask friends or relatives to send you money. 

 

 

No need to be taking free food, leave it for the Thais. 

These poor Thai people have nothing. 

What about the flight that just left for Russia? They missed the plane?

6 weeks ago governments told their citizens to come home.

so if they were running low on money, why did they stay.?

no pity from me.

if they have no money, why travel?

i worked a job several years ago, native canadian carpenters were going to the soup kitchen for lunch. Tradesman making $35 an hour were going for free food, taking it away from those in need. Sad.

 

Edited April 14, 2020 by Ron jeremy

[toast1]

Really?
Why would foreigners starve?
How did they get here in the first place, do they not have return tickets?

No savings, no family, no friends who can help out?
How would they have eaten if there were no virus, they were all working and earning a living in Thailand?
No.

 

Exactly right, give food away for free, people will take it.

 

It should be for Thais only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 14, 2020 by toast1

[herwin1234]

9 minutes ago, toast1 said:

Really?
Why would foreigners starve?
How did they get here in the first place, do they not have return tickets?

No savings, no family, no friends who can help out?
How would they have eaten if there were no virus, they were all working and earning a living in Thailand?
No.

 

Exactly right, give food away for free, people will take it.

 

It should be for Thais only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thais give a helping hand and a free meal to ppl in need while the forum farang cant let go of his Eternal Negativity and refuses to even try to understand how it must feel for foreigners to be stranded in a foreign country....

An act of kindness a free meal a smile, wow, you are actually advocating that foreigners shouldnt receive that. What luch that the Thais are so completely different than . GOOD NEWS, you can still learn to become a nice person, just study the Thais...

[Caldera]

I appreciate that Thais go out of their way to help stranded foreigners. That will be remembered.

 

But considering that there's a lot of hardship among Thais as well, I think stranded foreigners should try very hard to get funds transferred from family or friends back home. Accepting handouts from locals really should be the very last resort.

[BritManToo]

43 minutes ago, toast1 said:

How did they get here in the first place, do they not have return tickets?

They cancelled all the flights.

I was in Cambodia when they cancelled my return flight to Thailand, no help from Air Asia at all.

I went to the airport and managed to convince them to let me on their last flight out.

Most of the others in the hotel didn't even try and do anything, probably still there.

[Ron jeremy]

7 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

They cancelled all the flights.

I was in Cambodia when they cancelled my return flight to Thailand, no help from Air Asia at all.

I went to the airport and managed to convince them to let me on their last flight out.

Most of the others in the hotel didn't even try and do anything, probably still there.

Same same here, but I went and bought a return ticket home, got a credit from my original ticket.

my friends that did nothing are still there complaining, locked in their rooms now. No need to panic, everything is ok they said.

No sympathy from me.

[samsensam]

 

hummm... these 'stranded' tourists are people who came to thailand when the world situation was looking grim and then did not take the opportunity to return home when advised to do so, anyone who wanted to return to their home country had ample opportunity to do so.

 

do these 'stranded' tourists' not have any money in their bank accounts? atm cards? credit cards? friend or family who will send them money?

 

helping those in need is admirable but i would prefer their efforts focused on those who are genuinely in need, and not people who chose to be on an extended holiday.

[Genmai]

Well, I'll be. It certainly looks like my previous suspicions that this was a fake PR story are being proven wrong here and if that's the case then for that I'm definitely happy. I will sleep well knowing there are some people out there who care for farangs' welfare. Thanks guys ????

Hopefully these broke-ass shirtless backpackers will remember kindness and return the favor should the roles ever be reversed.

[Psimbo]

I've noticed an increased number of not so poor people taking advantage of this service recently. Big C and 7-11 workers were in a line the other day and one married woman I know was there in her designer clothes accepting a box of very nice food when she should have been fobbed off.

 

Whilst the generosity of this guy cannot be faulted (personally if someone asked for a second helping I would have told them to wait until others had had a first helping) one has to wonder what state these people's finances are in and why they are here without cash when flights have been repatriating others.

 

Maybe the immigration clampdowns of the past were the right thing to do as being in a foreign country without funds is not right. I think the people who may have been trying to live here under the radar are finally starting to surface.

[lee b]

Helping anyone during this period is a nice thing to do, forget about nationality, people from all walks of life are struggling at the moment and there is nothing they can do about.

 

Reading some posts above could be true, some people could take advanrage of this without the real need of it. But people who are really in need will be thankful for it.

[Scott]

Troll post reported and removed.  

 

[Tropposurfer]

I’m sure some of these falang folks are hard up. I also am willing to bet that some of these soup kitchen arrivees have money and funds too.

I’m with the folks here who have said; little sympathy for folks who’ve stayed here way past a sensible date.

Plenty of warning to get outa here.

Going on holidays without enough to cover penalties for changing flights in an emergency, emergency funds for extra taxi fares etc, no decent travel insurance (a common topic on TV), don’t get that dog to hunt.

I don’t swallow that these folks have such meagre resources, or are so alone in the world, or have such poor families that they can’t get some bucks dropped into their accounts for food!

[Damrongsak]

I wonder if some see the free food and think it looks and smells better than the stuff from a street cart seller down the block.  Point at what you want, chow down and no haggling on price.

 

I do commend the Thai guy for not discriminating against farangs, though they should have more $ resources than many locals.  

[DrDave]

6 hours ago, Psimbo said:

<snip> ... I think the people who may have been trying to live here under the radar are finally starting to surface.

I think the above pretty much sums it up.

Genuine tourists would have had a plan or itinerary that could be changed as needed, sufficient funds,  and most likely a ticket to leave Thailand before their permission to stay had expired.

[SoilSpoil]

Lot of soulless people here. So let Thais stranded in Japan or Europe starve as well then, because they could afford the airfare before they got stuck. This is a global crisis, people are stuck and not everyone has months of savings. 

 

Is the alcohol ban responsible for these harsh comments. Withdrawal can be though.

[EricTh]

10 hours ago, Caldera said:

 

 

But considering that there's a lot of hardship among Thais as well, I think stranded foreigners should try very hard to get funds transferred from family or friends back home. Accepting handouts from locals really should be the very last resort.

I thought a while back that Thai government require each 'tourist' to have at least 20,000 baht. This should be enough for at least two months if they don't go to massage places.

 

Unless these people have been moonlighting on teaching English at private schools.

 

 

[Caldera]

3 hours ago, EricTh said:

I thought a while back that Thai government require each 'tourist' to have at least 20,000 baht. This should be enough for at least two months if they don't go to massage places.

 

Unless these people have been moonlighting on teaching English at private schools.

I can see how it can happen even to a bona fide tourist. Blown their holiday money while things were still okay, ready to fly back but their flight got cancelled. Some even booked another flight only to have that cancelled as well, still waiting for refunds.

 

That said, however, international bank transfers work just fine. Instead of becoming a burden to the locals, some affected tourists should - in my opinion - try harder to get funds sent from family or friends back home.

 

[Tarukhtah]

According to the info I read, these "stranded" tourists account for around 3k people. Please, do NOT put everyone in the same basket. There might be very different cases and particular situations. My gut feeling tells me that 90% of them are tourists that could have gone out but were ok to get "stranded". Still, there is 10% (i.e. 300 people) who might have really got stuck because of multiple various situations that we cannot judge in this forum without knowing them.

 

What if a tourists arrived when there were no restrictions, got injured in the hospital and was not discharged till restrictions on travel appeared? What if a tourist was robbed back in his home country or lost his ebanking credentials, or his credit card is lost and cannot get a new one? There is a myriad of situations that for some of those tourists might apply, and not all of them are just hippy travelers that decided to get stranded in Phuket and enjoy free resources. Although as you guys, I believe that amounts for most of them. BUT NOT ALL.

One case I know: A tourist came in before restrictions, once he wanted to go out his flights were cancelled. Sure he will get a refund but that will take a while. Back home his mother passed away at the very same time. He needed to pay for the funeral, and the tuition of his sister because she was living on the salary of the mum, but the bank accounts in that country get locked down automatically after a person passes away and until the heritage things are sorted out. So he needed to put down a big amount of cash. And right now his home country does not allow him back in. All in all, sure there would be like a complicated way to sort out things and get back home. But is not like he is here for the fun. 

[Cricky]

2 minutes ago, Tarukhtah said:

According to the info I read, these "stranded" tourists account for around 3k people. Please, do NOT put everyone in the same basket. There might be very different cases and particular situations. My gut feeling tells me that 90% of them are tourists that could have gone out but were ok to get "stranded". Still, there is 10% (i.e. 300 people) who might have really got stuck because of multiple various situations that we cannot judge in this forum without knowing them.

 

What if a tourists arrived when there were no restrictions, got injured in the hospital and was not discharged till restrictions on travel appeared? What if a tourist was robbed back in his home country or lost his ebanking credentials, or his credit card is lost and cannot get a new one? There is a myriad of situations that for some of those tourists might apply, and not all of them are just hippy travelers that decided to get stranded in Phuket and enjoy free resources. Although as you guys, I believe that amounts for most of them. BUT NOT ALL.

One case I know: A tourist came in before restrictions, once he wanted to go out his flights were cancelled. Sure he will get a refund but that will take a while. Back home his mother passed away at the very same time. He needed to pay for the funeral, and the tuition of his sister because she was living on the salary of the mum, but the bank accounts in that country get locked down automatically after a person passes away and until the heritage things are sorted out. So he needed to put down a big amount of cash. And right now his home country does not allow him back in. All in all, sure there would be like a complicated way to sort out things and get back home. But is not like he is here for the fun. 

Lots of creative writing here, gut feelings etc 

 

At the end of the day Nothing is stopping them from asking family, friends to send them money. 

Western Union, banks, Atm's all operational. 

 

I arrived here in 2002 and one clear change to Thailand is the lowlife that appears here. Yes back in the day you'd see the occasional filthy begging foreigner but these days they're everywhere. 

 

I understand at times why we now see Thai people broadcasting their anger towards us foreigners. 

 

Thai people generally don't save, they don't have assets they can sell, no superannuation or pension fund they can cash in. 

 

Leave their bloody free food alone. 

They have nothing. 

[Tarukhtah]

Unfortunately I am not that a of creative person. So usually I talk from own past real experiences. Other than that, I do not put 100% of people in the same bags.