Halloween & High Season – Trick Or Treat?
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As Halloween approaches, I find myself asking the inevitable question, where did the year go? Yet again the months have flown by amid the wacky world of the Go-Go Guru. Here in Thailand, we are hopefully on the doorstep of the high season. Usually, Halloween (31/10/2011) is a marker for the imminent arrival of the high season, but following misleading media reports (yet again), unnecessary damage has been done to Thailand’s tourist industry. I fear that a number of people may have already cancelled their holidays.
Farang residents have told me that their families are calling them and asking if they are drowning. WTF?! Those of us in downtown Bangkok and Pattaya are baffled; we are all dry and certainly not wading chest-high in flood water! I’ve been hitting the go-go bars in Nana Plaza, Patpong and Soi Cowboy regularly all month and I’ve barely seen any rain, let alone any flooding here.
Let’s hope that this devastating monsoon season in Southeast Asia is coming to an end. In particular, Thailand has been hit hard with the worst flooding in some provinces for 50 years. The death toll has sadly risen to over 300. For certain areas it will take at least six months to repair the damage and to recover from this disaster. Mother Nature can be an evil bitch when she wants to be! However, the flooding is in specific areas and certainly not across the whole of Thailand. And therefore, like soldiers we endeavour to march on relentlessly.
It is understandable that a number of businesses (including worried bar and hotel owners) that rely upon tourism are not very optimistic about this forthcoming high season. What remains to be seen is how quickly the flooding subsides and how lucrative this tourist season will be.
Dusk Till Dawn is a new addition to my blog, whereby I will feature regular Thailand nightlife articles. Thanks for your continued loyal support. I hope you find my website informative and enjoyable. Cheers!