Bangkok Reports

[QUOTE=Plan77;2648395]Thanks for sharing the information. I do think a mini tsunami is coming.
The bigger question is. When will we see a return to 50% pre-pandemic normalcy?
3 months from now or 6 or even more?[/QUOTE]My fear is that Omicron will especially hit the countries with low vaccination rates very hard.
In Thailand 65% of the people is fully vaccinated, which is not a bad rate but it's not really good either.
So it's hard to say what will happen, but I think it's very well possible that their hospitals will be overwhelmed with patients.

During the Delta wave in Thailand you would hear of a wide ranging amount of Thai people with Delta. It hit the low income communities hard and the labor camps as well as some working girls.

The Omicorn wave has infected so many working girls over the last 2 weeks that I have lost count. I think it I would know of 20 working girls with covid now. The Farang / Bar girl scene in Phuket, Pattaya and now Lower Sukhumwit must have a 25% positivity rate IE 1 in 4 people in the area have omicron.

I am sure it will spread to the entire community in the next few weeks too.

At first I was quite disappointed that I was not able to go to Thailand after a hiatus of almost two years. This occurred due to my procrastination in arranging the necessary approvals from Thai Visa to travel to Thailand. My delay was due to a concern that Omicron would spread rapidly and that curfews and other onerous restrictions would return. It seems that Bangkok and the country is on the precipice of another health crisis, perhaps more than others in the past two years. I currently have expats friend there who arrived in mid December. After a brief period of euphoria, they seem to be confronting the same rapid spread of Covid that you mentioned. One friend said he would not go to Soi 7 as it's a cesspool of Covid cases, while Soi Cowboy mandatory testing invites you to a potential hospital stay.

I saw an article in the Pattaya newspaper that the empty hotels there are suggesting they use their facilities for temporary hospital MASH type units — at farangs own cost, of course, for those with symptoms or not. Needless to say, tourists and ex pats are rejecting this idea en masse. In many cases, the health insurance (companies) you were compelled to purchase are refusing to pay for your hospital / hotel if you are asymptomatic. But it appears, hotels are more than happy to gouge their life bread for a temporary fix of revenue.

[QUOTE=MaxBkk;2648700]During the Delta wave in Thailand you would hear of a wide ranging amount of Thai people with Delta. It hit the low income communities hard and the labor camps as well as some working girls.

The Omicorn wave has infected so many working girls over the last 2 weeks that I have lost count. I think it I would know of 20 working girls with covid now. The Farang / Bar girl scene in Phuket, Pattaya and now Lower Sukhumwit must have a 25% positivity rate IE 1 in 4 people in the area have omicron.

I am sure it will spread to the entire community in the next few weeks too.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=RonnieMonger;2648682]The antigen test kits in Bangkok (nose swab or spit-tubes) are widely and cheaply available. They are also now producing quicker results. Between 10 and 20 minutes for pos / neg result.

If you have a few regular FLs or BGs who are out of work maybe meet up with a couple of beer in a hotel room, test each other, enjoy your drinks while waiting and, if all good, then get down to business.[/QUOTE]Omicron spreads even through masks as entire flights are reported positive many times nowadays. All passengers were negative before boarding the flight.

[URL]https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/173-more-passengers-who-arrived-in-amritsar-from-rome-test-covid-19-positive-101641556029910.html[/URL]

[URL]https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/high-drama-at-amritsar-airport-after-125-passengers-of-italy-amritsar-flight-test-positive-for-covid-358821[/URL]

Soi 7 bars opened today after a couple of days closure. They were medium busy.

Nana plaza outdoor bar was rather quiet today and talent was low.

[QUOTE=Visal;2648822]Omicron spreads even through masks as entire flights are reported positive many times nowadays. All passengers were negative before boarding the flight.

[URL]https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/173-more-passengers-who-arrived-in-amritsar-from-rome-test-covid-19-positive-101641556029910.html[/URL]

[URL]https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/high-drama-at-amritsar-airport-after-125-passengers-of-italy-amritsar-flight-test-positive-for-covid-358821[/URL][/QUOTE]The testing agency has been fired and it seems after retest they were negative. Don't panic masls are very effective.

[QUOTE=SST66;2648921]The testing agency has been fired and it seems after retest they were negative. Don't panic masls are very effective.[/QUOTE]Supposedly only N95 masks are effective against Omicron. Most people don't have access to N95 masks or don't want to pay for them when you can get 10-50 "medical" masks for the price of one N95 mask. Guys in Thailand have seen what the girls wear. It's like a piece of origami paper. Do they even sell true N95 masks in Bangkok or Pattaya? If so, where and how much are they?

As for planes, every time they serve food or coffee everyone whips off their masks for an extended period of time.

[QUOTE=BananaBoi;2649156]Supposedly only N95 masks are effective against Omicron. Most people don't have access to N95 masks or don't want to pay for them when you can get 10-50 "medical" masks for the price of one N95 mask. Guys in Thailand have seen what the girls wear. It's like a piece of origami paper. Do they even sell true N95 masks in Bangkok or Pattaya? If so, where and how much are they?

As for planes, every time they serve food or coffee everyone whips off their masks for an extended period of time.[/QUOTE]They sell the chinese equivalent KN95 masks at Boots, Watsons etc 40 or 50 baht. There is a half decent and comfortable 3 M brand that they carry. I buy them for myself and girlfriend becuase as you said straight medical masks offer protection for like 5 minutes when coming into contact with an infected person.

[QUOTE=MaxBkk;2649213]They sell the chinese equivalent KN95 masks at Boots, Watsons etc 40 or 50 baht. [/QUOTE]AFAIK KN95 masks do not go through stringent testing like N95 masks do and the KN95 tests are out of China(?). Maybe unjust but I trust KN95 like I would trust Sinovac vs. AZ or Sinopharm vs Moderna / Pfizer.

Can't believe guys risk hospitalization to go to a bar that has no girls. I only see guys! 15,080 baht seems like a really expensive beer to me.

Coincidentally, I had MSNBC News on when it came to a discussion of N95 vs. KN95. The MD who did the review by far favored the N95 over the KN95, though I thought he said the KN95 was from South Korea. Nevertheless, he strongly recommended using the N95 over others.

[QUOTE=BananaBoi;2649223]AFAIK KN95 masks do not go through stringent testing like N95 masks do and the KN95 tests are out of China(?). Maybe unjust but I trust KN95 like I would trust Sinovac vs. AZ or Sinopharm vs Moderna / Pfizer.[/QUOTE]

So, are the bars in Bangkok really closing at 9 pm?

[QUOTE=Explorer8939;2649390]So, are the bars in Bangkok really closing at 9 pm?[/QUOTE]Yes they are.

[QUOTE=Explorer8939;2649390]So, are the bars in Bangkok really closing at 9 pm?[/QUOTE]Some turn down their lights and won't allow new customers to enter after 9 pm or so while the remaining customers finish their drinks. Others, the ones a bit less visible from main streets like Sukhumvit Road, might stay open hours longer.

[QUOTE=Tomasb;2649237]Coincidentally, I had MSNBC News on when it came to a discussion of N95 vs. KN95. The MD who did the review by far favored the N95 over the KN95, though I thought he said the KN95 was from South Korea. Nevertheless, he strongly recommended using the N95 over others.[/QUOTE]Many countries have equivalents to N95 masks, which is a USA standard. They are all more or less the same standard when purchased from reputable places where you can be confident that they are what the lable says they are.

In Thailand KN95 masks purchased from boots or watsons should be of a similar standard to a retail N95 mask purchased from a reputable US outlet. I would have little confidence if you purchased a KN95 from a street vendor in Thailand.

KN95 Is the chinese standard.

KF94 I believe is Korea.

FFP2 UK.

One further point. A retail N95 or KN95 is not the same as a specifically fitted equivalent medical mask. In a medical environment the mask is fitted to the face and they actually test it within a special small cubicle by flowing air through it with various substances. If the person in the cubicle can smell any of the substances, it means air is leaking into the mask and they adjust or refit it until it is perfectly sealed and nothing can be smelt.

Most people that you see in public with KN95 or N95 masks wear them hanging all over the place so potentially contaminated air is getting in the sides or top. It is questional how much protection this is providing.

I personally wear a decent KN95 from boots and make sure it fits well. I am vaccinated and not overly concerned if I contract covid, but would prefer not to if possible. I also do not want to be responsible for infecting other people if I get infected.

The whole mask debate is just stupid to me. If someone had a cold and they came up and coughed or sneezed all over you, you would be pissed off and probably say "turn away when you cough or at least put your hand over your mouth when coughing" . Wearing a mask is just the same, I don't want to breath / cough / sneeze over someone if I am potentially infected.