Sunday, January 30, 2022 and Monday, January 31, 2022

This is the day we leave for Thailand.
Yesterday we have been checked-in online
In the morning we pack everything, which had not been packed before. ll kinds of things are also suddenly added.
After a few times weighing, adding something, removing something else, think we are good with the weight of the luggage. We can bring 23 kg of checked luggage and 12 kg of carry-on luggage and according to our scale we are just below.

We want to be at Schiphol at 5 o'clock at the latest, and so our driver comes late for fifteen minutes. In the end we are at half past five at Schiphol.
We hand in our luggage immediately and collect our final boarding card. At the desk we find a very friendly lady, our suitcases turn out to be a little too heavy but there is nothing to be said. There is also not looked at our hand luggage. When asked, the lady tells that the plane is not half full and that the chair next to us is not occupied.
We have to be at the gate at seven o'clock, two hours before departure.

We drink something at Schiphol Plaza and then go through the scan and by customs, both without problems.
Then we look for a store where they sell spirits, we buy Cognac and Korenwijn for in the hotel because we don't know if we can get beer there.
We then go to the gate, it is a quarter past seven, and it appears that we must first pass a control, temperature is measured, a medical statement filled, and checked whether we have all the correct papers with us.
After that we can continue to the real gate, and we have to wait another 45 minutes until the boarding starts.
When we sit at our place and almost everyone has boarded it appears that the plane is indeed just for a third full.
Then it is announced that we have to wait for a few passengers, a minute or ten, but the pilot thinks that along the way that delay will be taken.
There is something else going on, he later tells, a few people are waiting at customs, they are not allowed to come along, and their baggage must be unloaded. Eventually we leave more than half an hour late.

The crew is very friendly and helpful, we are allowed to sit where we want and when the light goes out almost everyone in the plane has three or four seats available to be able to sleep lying.
That succeeds just a bit, lying is better than sitting, but the seats are not made to sleep very relaxed.

Despite the delay at the departure, we still arrive in Bangkok on time.
Getting off the plane goes fast, but there is already control of passports and tickets at the gate. We walk towards the exit and then we arrive at a huge row with blue seats. We must sit there and complete a statement about our health. It is all good, very good, organized.
The next step is the passport control. Here no rows of hundreds of people, we can immediately go to an official who looks at our papers again, and ultimately put stamps in passports, we can go through.
The luggage is already on the band, we can quickly go to customs where we can walk on as usual.

In the arrival hall we are looking for the driver who has to take us to the hotel in Pattaya. Here too, papers are checked again, we have to wait for a few minutes and then we can get in the car.
After more than an hour we are in Pattaya, at The Green Park Resort. There we get our first Corona test, a few things are explained, we must measure our temperature on a daily basis with the thermometers that we get. If the test result is known and negative, we can go to the terrace at the front desk every day for one hour. Hiking in the garden around the pool is unfortunately not allowed.
We can go to our room via the reception. Pia asks if we can order beer, but that is not possible. Once in the room, the receptionist calls, we can order beer, but that should not be said in public.

The room is neat, smaller than expected, and we miss a table. We can choose per day from three dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner, it is intended that we indicate as soon as possible what we want to eat the entire quarantine period. We'll see tomorrow. There is a magentron to warm up the food. And a kettle with instant coffee and bags of tea. And no plates, but one fork and one spoon.
And we have a terrace, with mosquitoes. But a nice view of a garden with lots of greenery, quite high trees and a large swimming pool.
Dinner is placed in front of the room door. It is not abundant, it is a Thai dish that is very adapted to Western tourists and therefore a bit bland.

Link: KLM.
Link: Schiphol.
Link: Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Link: Pattaya City.

Written on: 2022-02-01

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