Patong - The Wake

[xylophone]

I went out last night with a couple of friends, just to get one last view of Bangla and environs before the Closure Edict came into force.

 

There were not as many people out as I thought there would be, however I don't think this closure notice became common knowledge until very late.

 

We went to Suzie Wong's and sat with a group of about six girls, whom we all knew from our many visits, and they were most perplexed because they didn't know what they were going to do now! Some of them wanted to go back home but what with restrictions and them having next to no money, it was damn near impossible for them, and they had no idea what was next in store.

 

I gave one of them a thousand baht to be able to at least try to get back home or put towards some living expenses, and my friend did likewise for another one, but we are not wealthy people and what with that and already having given quite a few other girls we know some money to get by with, if one is not careful, the bank balance soon becomes depleted.

 

Some of the girls were desperate and we all noticed that, and the flower lady who has pestered me every time I've been out, and won't go away, was at it again and this time I managed to say no, but thinking back perhaps I should have given her some money.

 

The bars were told to close at 12 o'clock midnight and sure enough at about that time the police came round to tell everybody to drink up and go home, which we did.

 

The only bright spot for the evening was that our favourite Italian restaurant, Salute, will be staying open and can serve alcohol, provided the social distancing measures are enforced, so it will probably get a few visits in the next couple of weeks.

 

Talking about people being desperate and falling on hard times, reminded me that a friend of mine, Dave Wilson, who with his wife runs the "Halfway Inn" restaurant and bar, is collecting on behalf of the Myanmar refugees who are coming across the Thai border, and welcomes all sorts of items from clothes to soap, to food to toothbrushes etc, and his page can be found on Facebook, Phuket New Era Expats group.

 

Anyway after reflecting on last night and how people must be struggling, today I had hunt around and managed to find a couple of very large plastic sacks that I filled with clothes I haven't worn for a while, cans of food, T-shirts, shoes and anything else surplus to my requirements and delivered them to Dave today, and they will be sent up North within the next couple of days.

 

If the readers of this thread, who are based in Phuket, find it in their hearts to do likewise, then it would be a huge boost for these poor people who are in dire straits.

 

There will be a lot of heartache and pain out there at the moment and my heart goes out to those poor people who are struggling to live, exist even.

Edited April 9, 2021 by xylophone

[zzzzz]

not sure how he will get anything to the refugees that are allowed into Thailand, ( not all are and many seem to be stuck in NO mans land or even forced back)  as even aid agencies are NOT allowed contact with them..

 

more info on their plight

https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/karen-refugees-flee-repeated-myanmar-military-airstrikes-thailand.html

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/hundreds-flee-military-to-thailand-myanmar-border-region/ar-BB1eYaDf

 

 

Edited April 9, 2021 by zzzzz

[Agusts]

I read bars are closed till 18 Apr, only illuzion disco is closed for two weeks from today - they have been bad boys...! ???? 

 

To be fair discos can have a lot larger number of people in them than a bar, so more danger of super-spreading the virus....

 

[Susco]

41 minutes ago, Agusts said:

I read bars are closed till 18 Apr, only illuzion disco is closed for two weeks from today - they have been bad boys...!

 

I think all bars are closed in Patong. at least the 3 people I know running a bar there are.

[Agusts]

1 hour ago, Susco said:

 

I think all bars are closed in Patong. at least the 3 people I know running a bar there are.

 

Of course they are, in all of Phuket not just Patong..., I was just mentioning the re-opening planned date, it's 9 days for bars, 14 days for illuzion and the other two big venues ...

[xylophone]

13 hours ago, zzzzz said:

not sure how he will get anything to the refugees that are allowed into Thailand, ( not all are and many seem to be stuck in NO mans land or even forced back)  as even aid agencies are NOT allowed contact with them..

 

more info on their plight

https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/karen-refugees-flee-repeated-myanmar-military-airstrikes-thailand.html

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/hundreds-flee-military-to-thailand-myanmar-border-region/ar-BB1eYaDf

 

 

Apparently the Thai Red Cross have been helping those stuck in camps etc, and he sends donations and the occasional truckload of donated goods to their location on the border.

[Henryford]

I think there will be an explosion of cases after Songkran with everyone travelling all over the country. So i think there may be more lockdowns/closures to come.

[billythehat]

4 hours ago, Henryford said:

I think there will be an explosion of cases after Songkran with everyone travelling all over the country. So i think there may be more lockdowns/closures to come.

Sir, a reasonable assumption but the situation in Lalaland could be more complicated as reliable data pertaining to actual vaccine roll-out and death figures are fudged to suit a political agenda. The media everywhere can/do influence the way of populist thinking of the majority of the great unwashed to sell copy. If there is an improvement in the figures and there are any signs of the story losing momentum, they will rush to find a way to whip up the fear and hysteria again to keep the train rolling and sell more copy, truth or lies.

 

A Thai friend of many years was giving me her opinion on the vaccination. She is an intelligent professional person with a good job in Bangkok. I told her that I had the jab and was she having hers. She said that she’d read in the news that there could be very bad side effects from the jab and that she was happy just to wear a mask. Good grief, I mused, but I knew any attempts to point out certain other facts would fall on deaf ears. Herd mentality versus herd vaccination…hmmmm, a proverbial rock and a hard place.

 

Meanwhile, here in UK almost 32 million vaccine doses have been given and I know many that have already had the 2nd jab. A few interesting related notes here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-56663969

 

From 12/04/2021 there will be a relaxing of lockdown rules in England that will mean the re-opening of what was considered non-essential businesses (Pubs, restaurants etc.) but distancing rules still in place. Good news for the traders that have managed to avoid slipping under the waves and losing their businesses. How this relaxation will affect those in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland I don’t know as all the news today is mainly on the death of the Queen’s husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. 73 years married – got to be up there with the record length. 
 

[Henryford]

15 hours ago, billythehat said:

Sir, a reasonable assumption but the situation in Lalaland could be more complicated as reliable data pertaining to actual vaccine roll-out and death figures are fudged to suit a political agenda. The media everywhere can/do influence the way of populist thinking of the majority of the great unwashed to sell copy. If there is an improvement in the figures and there are any signs of the story losing momentum, they will rush to find a way to whip up the fear and hysteria again to keep the train rolling and sell more copy, truth or lies.

 

A Thai friend of many years was giving me her opinion on the vaccination. She is an intelligent professional person with a good job in Bangkok. I told her that I had the jab and was she having hers. She said that she’d read in the news that there could be very bad side effects from the jab and that she was happy just to wear a mask. Good grief, I mused, but I knew any attempts to point out certain other facts would fall on deaf ears. Herd mentality versus herd vaccination…hmmmm, a proverbial rock and a hard place.

 

Meanwhile, here in UK almost 32 million vaccine doses have been given and I know many that have already had the 2nd jab. A few interesting related notes here:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-56663969

 

From 12/04/2021 there will be a relaxing of lockdown rules in England that will mean the re-opening of what was considered non-essential businesses (Pubs, restaurants etc.) but distancing rules still in place. Good news for the traders that have managed to avoid slipping under the waves and losing their businesses. How this relaxation will affect those in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland I don’t know as all the news today is mainly on the death of the Queen’s husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. 73 years married – got to be up there with the record length. 
 

 

I think a reasonable decision for someone in Thailand. If you believe the Government's figures! 90 deaths is nothing statisically and most of those would have been old or with underlying heath problems. For a young healthy person in Thailand the risk of a Covid death is tiny. Less than the risk of getting on your motorbike to ride to 7/11.

[xylophone]

Well it still looks like July 1 is a goer, and I'm sure the folks who issue the statistics, will make it so!

 

It would seem as though there is some activity out and about at the moment, and certainly in Nanai Road that is the case.

 

The Halfway Inn, "resto pub" opened up after moving from its previous place behind the boxing stadium in the old car park off Sansabai, and I have a great deal of respect for Dave and Nan, so I must call in there shortly, but difficult because I don't eat cooked breakfasts and it seems that they are focusing on those at the moment, and very tempting they look too.

 

Right opposite their location there used to be a single building which was split in half, whereby one half was a massage parlour and the other half was a sort of restaurant/eating place.

 

Well the building has seen many changes, with the massage parlour closing and then becoming a restaurant, before that closed and it went back to a massage parlour, whereas the eating place next door closed and opened up again as............an eating place!

 

I believe the lady owner died recently, and everything was closed down and cleared out, however now a builder has started putting in a bar, which encompasses both places, so it's big enough by far, but it is right next to another pub/bar, so time will tell whether it will be a success or not.

 

Not only that, further south in Nanai, just on the bend almost opposite the Italian restaurant near the Chang Residences hotel (closed for a long time now) what was the old Fatboys Bar is now being remodelled into another bar of some description!

 

And further north, just past Quenchers, and on the same side, a bar which had moved from the previously named Champs Bar, into a bar in front of Belle Cose guesthouse, has been partly gutted and it looks like some work is going on there to fit it out into ??????

 

So there is activity and I can only assume it is because of the impending opening of Patong to the world's nightlife and entertainment seekers, so some folks are once again seeking their fortune – – yeah right!

[HighPriority]

I can only hope that someone comes to spread some joy (cash)

[xylophone]

On 5/20/2021 at 6:21 PM, HighPriority said:

I can only hope that someone comes to spread some joy (cash)

Well the powers that be are certainly hoping so, and the July 1 "opening" along with the Navy docking in Patong (or is it Phuket?) will bolster their hopes, although the days when Bangla was flooded with semen seamen are long gone, however it conjures up thoughts of hordes of ladyboys lining Bangla saying, "hello sailor"!

 

There are some optimists out there, because there are currently five bars undergoing construction/renovation in Nanai Road alone, and a long-time friend and her business partner have opened a small massage shop, where another one failed just months ago, and next to that someone is opening a tea and coffee shop, where a bar previously failed.

 

Other small business owners whom I know, are struggling badly and are looking to the horizon for hope, although from all I keep reading, which changes from day to day, the numbers originally anticipated have fallen quite markedly.

 

I sincerely hope that the optimism of the owners of the new establishments opening up, is repaid, as Patong could really do with it.

[HighPriority]

I guess until masses of locals and visitors alike are immunised it’s going to be slim pickings.

I’ve had 1 jab, my Thai wife doesn’t seem interested though… I reminded her that she won’t be able to go back without it… I’ve got a bit more work to do there I think.

At present we have no plans to come over, but a family illness would change that pretty darn quick I’d imagine.

Which is why I want her fully immunised so as she’s ready to go.

Edited June 15, 2021 by HighPriority

[Kopitiam]

1 hour ago, HighPriority said:

I guess until masses of locals and visitors alike are immunised it’s going to be slim pickings.

I’ve had 1 jab, my Thai wife doesn’t seem interested though… I reminded her that she won’t be able to go back without it… I’ve got a bit more work to do there I think.

At present we have no plans to come over, but a family illness would change that pretty darn quick I’d imagine.

Which is why I want her fully immunised so as she’s ready to go.

Completing your 2 jabs does not mean you are immune to COVID-19.  It means when infected after your jabs, you are less likely to be seriously ill or die.  The trend now is most countries are asking visitors flying in to be vaccinated.  Even that they are still asking for negative PCR test results before flying.  Undergo quarantine on arrival and be tested again before you are free to travel around the country.

[HighPriority]

2 minutes ago, Kopitiam said:

Completing your 2 jabs does not mean you are immune to COVID-19.  It means when infected after your jabs, you are less likely to be seriously ill or die.  The trend now is most countries are asking visitors flying in to be vaccinated.  Even that they are still asking for negative PCR test results before flying.  Undergo quarantine on arrival and be tested again before you are free to travel around the country.

Yes, let’s swap out immunised for vaccinated.

I think once we are looking at 80%+ vaccination rates of locals and tourists international travel will be slightly less onerous.

[Kopitiam]

1 hour ago, HighPriority said:

Yes, let’s swap out immunised for vaccinated.

I think once we are looking at 80%+ vaccination rates of locals and tourists international travel will be slightly less onerous.

I don't mean to criticise.  But using the right term is important to avoid misinformation.  Just like renewing an extension of stay and not renewing a visa.

[schlog]

Welcome sandboxlers to patong.

Saw some the last days on beach road. Each time maybe 5-10 sandboxlers outnumbered by 100 taxi, tuktuk and minibus bloodsuckers. 

 

Yesterday saw how a sandboxler learned it the hard way that no traffic rules excist in patong since 15 months while he was hit by a car on his rented wave. Only patong residents know the new normal driving rules in patong.

 

Sandboxlers living a dagerous life here. Once again a big chance was missed to regulate the taxi, minibus, tuktuk and the traffic rules in the last 15 month. But it's obvious that the boys in power like always only care for the quick baht and don't waste a thought about next week. TiT.

[redwood1]

10 hours ago, schlog said:

Welcome sandboxlers to patong.

Saw some the last days on beach road. Each time maybe 5-10 sandboxlers outnumbered by 100 taxi, tuktuk and minibus bloodsuckers. 

 

Yesterday saw how a sandboxler learned it the hard way that no traffic rules excist in patong since 15 months while he was hit by a car on his rented wave. Only patong residents know the new normal driving rules in patong.

 

Sandboxlers living a dagerous life here. Once again a big chance was missed to regulate the taxi, minibus, tuktuk and the traffic rules in the last 15 month. But it's obvious that the boys in power like always only care for the quick baht and don't waste a thought about next week. TiT.

 

To be honest those in power certainly have heard about Phuket's taxi and traffic woes 1,000s and 1,000s of times in the last 20 years... There have been countless news stories of taxi drivers behaving badly...

 

The only reason  to not change things is they like the taxi and traffic situation just the way it has been for the last 20 years......There can be no other explanation....

Edited July 6, 2021 by redwood1

[xylophone]

16 hours ago, redwood1 said:

The only reason  to not change things is they like the taxi and traffic situation just the way it has been for the last 20 years......There can be no other explanation....

Sarcasm detected (well I hope that's the case) because the vast majority of expats who have lived here for a while know exactly why nothing has changed, and it has to do with money and its flow pattern – – enough said.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 11/2/2020 at 5:41 PM, xylophone said:

It's also relevant to remember that before the virus hit, business was falling off quite markedly in the likes of Patong, as it was no longer seen as offering value for money, or to put it more candidly, a rip-off place, and many bars were shut and abandoned due to lack of business.

 

So I suppose one could argue that Patong was getting its "just desserts" anyway, and then the virus hit and the place has been devastated, and as for its returning to normal in one or two years, well if it hasn't changed its M.O. in that time, then it will still be seen as a place where tourists will be ripped off, and other destinations will have sprung up which will attract the tourist dollar and will offer a value for money holiday experience.

One could substitute Pattaya for Phuket and just as relevant. Not just those 2 places, but IMO most tourist places in LOS have made no effort to be attractive for new visitors and have relied on those that return many times, or the tourist demographic that will accept shoddy environment.

 

If it fails now they, IMO, have only themselves to blame.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 6/15/2021 at 4:49 PM, xylophone said:

Well the powers that be are certainly hoping so, and the July 1 "opening" along with the Navy docking in Patong (or is it Phuket?) will bolster their hopes, although the days when Bangla was flooded with semen seamen are long gone, however it conjures up thoughts of hordes of ladyboys lining Bangla saying, "hello sailor"!

 

There are some optimists out there, because there are currently five bars undergoing construction/renovation in Nanai Road alone, and a long-time friend and her business partner have opened a small massage shop, where another one failed just months ago, and next to that someone is opening a tea and coffee shop, where a bar previously failed.

 

Other small business owners whom I know, are struggling badly and are looking to the horizon for hope, although from all I keep reading, which changes from day to day, the numbers originally anticipated have fallen quite markedly.

 

I sincerely hope that the optimism of the owners of the new establishments opening up, is repaid, as Patong could really do with it.

IMO, for what it's worth, places like Patong and Pattaya need to fail utterly, and be completely reborn as something better. Unfortunately I doubt it will happen- when Phi Phi was destroyed by the tsunami they just rebuilt the same <deleted> but IMO even worse than before.

IMO it's just not Thainess to learn from disaster and create something better from the ashes, ie it worked before, so it should work again. Pity, as it used to be great before greed took over and the smile departed.

 

For example, when I see other SEA countries on the tv news, their infrastructure seems far and away superior to the third rate infrastructure I see in LOS eg the Pattaya beach promenade is IMO rubbish. Even little Phrao has a better lakeside promenade.

[Agusts]

A lot more activities in Patong today and last few days, more souvenir shops opened, more of massage and salons and restaurants and so on, also some bars opened, but shhhhh...., don't tell anyone...555...!

 

The beach is very lively today , and last night had a few people mingling about at a few restaurants now bars along the beach. The Bangla road entertainment venues are still closed as far as I know, I think they operate under their own association and can't go ahead and open individually...

 

And I saw today a lot more men in brown also loitering around looking for a victim....lol, come on, can't take a joke...555...!

 

Let's just hope their is no outbreak to put a stop to it all, maybe more will open soon with official order hopefully and we go back to how it was "last" year ....! ! ! 

 

[stuarty]

2 hours ago, Agusts said:

A lot more activities in Patong today and last few days, more souvenir shops opened, more of massage and salons and restaurants and so on, also some bars opened, but shhhhh...., don't tell anyone...555...!

 

The beach is very lively today , and last night had a few people mingling about at a few restaurants now bars along the beach. The Bangla road entertainment venues are still closed as far as I know, I think they operate under their own association and can't go ahead and open individually...

 

And I saw today a lot more men in brown also loitering around looking for a victim....lol, come on, can't take a joke...555...!

 

Let's just hope their is no outbreak to put a stop to it all, maybe more will open soon with official order hopefully and we go back to how it was "last" year ....! ! ! 

 

But the taxi mafia again want 1000 and nobody has sorted that? Goodbye....

[Agusts]

2 hours ago, stuarty said:

But the taxi mafia again want 1000 and nobody has sorted that? Goodbye....

Sorry, no idea, never used a mafia taxi in 10 years here, only use meter taxi to go and back from airport a couple of times a year, and thats not a big deal...

If not renting a bike or car here in Phuket you're handicapped and at the mercy of tuk tuks...., not sure about moto-taxi prices now, for nearby short trips they are fine and I don't think that expensive , maybe 60b (under $2)...

 

[uli65]

21 hours ago, Agusts said:

A lot more activities in Patong today and last few days, more souvenir shops opened, more of massage and salons and restaurants and so on, also some bars opened, but shhhhh...., don't tell anyone...555...!

 

The beach is very lively today , and last night had a few people mingling about at a few restaurants now bars along the beach. The Bangla road entertainment venues are still closed as far as I know, I think they operate under their own association and can't go ahead and open individually...

 

And I saw today a lot more men in brown also loitering around looking for a victim....lol, come on, can't take a joke...555...!

 

Let's just hope their is no outbreak to put a stop to it all, maybe more will open soon with official order hopefully and we go back to how it was "last" year ....! ! ! 

 

what do you mean with men in brown?? some clowns checking people wearing the mask??

[LivinginKata]

1 hour ago, uli65 said:

what do you mean with men in brown?? some clowns checking people wearing the mask??

 

Boys in Brown, BiB,  Police ...

[xylophone]

23 hours ago, Agusts said:

A lot more activities in Patong today and last few days, more souvenir shops opened, more of massage and salons and restaurants and so on, also some bars opened, but shhhhh...., don't tell anyone...555...!

 

The beach is very lively today , and last night had a few people mingling about at a few restaurants now bars along the beach. The Bangla road entertainment venues are still closed as far as I know, I think they operate under their own association and can't go ahead and open individually...

Perhaps we are living in parallel universes Agusts, because yesterday and today I went along Beach Road and the surrounds and the place was nearly dead.

 

There would have been no more than a couple of handfuls of people on the beach, and by that I mean the whole length of the beach, and sure enough a couple of massage parlours had opened, as had a couple of small shops, but the reality is that over 95% of the shops and restaurants along that road and around it, are closed!

 

There have been a few more bars open up in Nanai Road, but as a poster on the Patong Facebook page (Dave) has noted, that is because the bars which were just off Soi Sansabai, have now been demolished, including the famous "Hippy Road Bar". Also I notice that the Offshore Bar has popped up again in Nanai, where it once was, and I've noticed a few barstools occupied in it and a few other bars (just a few I may add) although it is beyond me why anyone would come here to sit on a bar stool from midday to closing time, which I have observed on many occasions.

 

Not sure whether the words "optimism" and "stupidity" mean the same thing in the Thai language, because there are some little bars and café's which have opened up in Nanai, which haven't seen a customer as yet, and the outlook for those looks grim. That is a shame because one which has been "refurbished" and opened as, "Dars Burgers" has had quite a bit of money spent on it by the looks of things, but I doubt whether anybody has been in it to sample one of the burgers yet.

 

On the subject of new bars, a new one has been built (again) on the road side of the Makro building after the old one suffered from just about no customers whatsoever and closed. Would be interested to see how long that lasts (again).

 

The only thing that would get Patong buzzing again would be if Bangla were to open up, because that would bring in the punters, not only to the bars, but to the restaurants there and thereabouts, but that seems a long way off at the moment, but one can only hope.

 

In the meantime the place, the bars and the shopping areas are about as inviting as a trip to the Gaza Strip.

 

PS. have noticed a few more girls around the place, obviously looking for "the love of their life/ATM".

[zzzzz]

https://web.facebook.com/nicholas.ponniah/videos/999420827471733

 

It actually looks nice

Edited July 18, 2021 by zzzzz

[xylophone]

I had to go and do my 90 day report today, so it meant another trip along Beach Road, as well as Rat-u-thid and Jungceylon so I was able to have a good look around.

 

More people on the beach area than yesterday, but in total, perhaps 30 or so, although there were a few people walking around, but again no more than a handful.

 

A few more places have opened up, but not many, although I did see a bar, which was formerly a restaurant, having two people sat in it, and a couple of the bars in the Blue Dolphin area were open, entertaining two customers in total. I also saw a couple more massage shops open, although I would have to say that their takings would have been equivalent to that of a former Western movie star, Slim Pickens (sorry about that, just couldn't resist it). 

 

What I did see in Big C was about 10 people sitting round the little food area, most of whom were Arabic in nature judging by their size and looks, as well as a European family of three and what could have been a couple of folks from upcountry.

 

Not going to set the world alight, but it's a start, and there were a few more people milling around in Big C, but not in any numbers, and they probably won't be travelling far, sadly for the new little places that have opened up in Nanai Road.
 

[Mai mee]

Agreed, It's a start... What I really have really noticed is the speed with which the dirty tub-tuks have showed up, all within a weeks time, now clogging "my" formerly deserted Beach Road. The number of tub-tuks probably exceeds the number of foreign visitors by a factor of 2or3 to 1.... They all came crawling out from under their damp rocks as if somebody sounded the trumpets... hope they all starve.

 

Also seeing a noticeable increase in the number of BiB's. They must be hungry too.

Edited July 19, 2021 by Mai mee