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Aussie guys visit Cuba

June 22, 2020 by David Herd

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Aussie guys visit Cuba as part of their Central American adventure, then the Covid-19 virus started spreading around the world. Sadly this caused them to cancel the rest of their trip & fly back to Australia.

La Plaza bar & restaurant

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Michael Thornton, my brother Warren Herd, Doug Beattie & Chris Lockwood aka Dr Evil.

Tour Guide

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Narrow streets in Havana

3

One of many forced marches across town with full kit because the streets were too narrow for vans & buses to get to our accomodation.

The boys are bored silly.

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Waiting a couple of hours in a busy bus station did not excite us.

Vinales valley

Aussie guys visit Cuba

With the pincushion mountains in the background. The thatched roof building is a tobacco leaf drying shed.

A Cuban tractor.

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Having a cigar break?

Hey Chris check out the horses arse.

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Fuck off Dougie, your getting stranger than that other idiot you brought with you.

One of our tour guides

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Making friends with little porkey.

Cuban Schoolgirls

Aussie guys visit Cuba Walking along the sea wall that was built by Americans.

Beautiful old American cars

Aussie guys visit Cuba American cars were imported into Cuba for about 50 years, beginning near the early 20th century. After the Cuban Revolution, the U.S. embargo was erected and Castro banned the importation of American cars and mechanical parts. That’s why Cuba is the way it is today—essentially a living museum for classic cars.

Rickshaw & classic cars

Aussie guys visit Cuba Choose your transport in Havana, taxis, classic cars or rickshaws.

Maybe this is more your style

Aussie guys visit Cuba

It’s probably a Uber. 🙂

Our best meal in Havana

Aussie guys visit Cuba Lamb with Cuban sauce with rice & vegetables.

Desperately looking for a signal

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Panic is setting in, everyone is frantically trying to get a signal.

Is Warren taking the knee

Aussie guys visit Cuba False alarm, he is also looking for a signal. 🙂

A giant cock

Aussie guys visit Cuba Please give it a rest Kevin, it’s a bit early for your cock jokes.

The tour group

Aussie guys visit Cuba March 2020 in Vinales Valley Cuba.

Looking west from our hotel balcony

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Lamparilla St, in English it means night light or small lamp.

Our last night in Cuba

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Aussie guys visit Cuba

Hallelujah! Free at last, thank God almighty we are free at last.

Thanks for visiting the Aussie guys visit Cuba photo blog. Here is David Herd’s trip to Cuba in 2001.

Havana Cuba great city

Here is my favourite artist, Celia Cruz, was a Cuban singer and one of the most popular Latin artists of the 20th century. Cruz rose to fame in Cuba during the 1950s as a singer of guarachas, earning the nickname “La Guarachera de Cuba”. Wikipedia

That’s all folks

This gallery contains 2 photos

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya

March 10, 2020 by David Herd

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya which has resulted in a 44% drop in tourists in February 2020. Many Thai people find themselves without work so they have left Pattaya to return to their villages in the country. As you can see the beach is deserted at 8am on March 3rd 2020, only a few short months ago it was teeming with Chinese tourists.

This is how it was…

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya Seven days a week thousands of Chinese tourists would storm the beach to clamber aboard the boats to para-sail & visit Koh Larn island.

Typical over powered tourist boat

Coronavirus impacts PattayaOnly about 25% of the boats remain on Pattaya Beach, the rest are in moth balls. 🙂

Patrick is feeling lonely

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya Well known restaurateur Patrick Van Den Berghe finds himself alone on the beach, time for him to go back to his steakhouse & order some French oysters & lamb shanks. 🙂

Pattaya Beach never looked so good

Coronavirus impacts PattayaOf course my opinion is purely a selfish one, however there really is nothing to like about thousands of Chinese tourists inhabiting the beach. 🙂

“There is high chance that the country will be in a technical recession — contraction of the economy for two consecutive quarters,” said Anusorn Tamajai, director of Economic and Business Research Centre at Rangsit University.

The masked man cometh

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya I actually tried a mask, I hated it & lasted 1 hour, in fact it was because of pollution not the virus. 

Pattaya pollution

Coronavirus impacts PattayaThis was January 10 2020.

This was a typical Pattaya morning

Coronavirus impacts PattayaHundreds of buses would clog up beach road from 8 am seven days a week.

Waiting to pick up the tourists around mid day.

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya It’s fantastic now without these monsters taking over Beach Road.

Nothing like a peaceful Pattaya morning

Coronavirus impacts PattayaWell folks enjoy it while you can because at some stage in the future the dreaded Chinese tourists will return. 🙂

A beautiful Pattaya morning

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya March 8 2020 & a perfect day. See for yourself on my webcam, just follow THIS LINK. 

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya

Coronavirus impacts PattayaThis man & his dog are loving the peaceful atmosphere.

Desperate times in Pattaya

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya People queue in jomtien for a free meal outside Yupins. Twice a day. The queue goes past The Venue, past The Spring Onion, down the road, round the corner and today reached Dicks Cafe. 75% of working age people have lost their jobs in Pattaya. No savings, & no chance of getting any money over the next few months. Can’t pay their rent & 3000 are homeless. They can’t sleep on the beach without getting arrested. Can’t sleep in the parks (closed) and can’t sleep on the street (strict curfew after 10pm). Desperate, desperate times here for these poor people.

Here are the numbers as of March 10 2020

Coronavirus impacts PattayaThailand doesn’t feature in the high risk area.

April 15
Lets put it in perspective

Coronavirus impacts PattayaOne hell of a difference don’t you agree?

Thailand on march 11 2020 cancelled visa on arrival for 18 countries.

On Wednesday March 11th Donald Trump announced the United States would ban all travel from Europe for 30 days.

Thai Airways suspending all Italy flights to and from Italy following the Italian government’s decision to lock down the country to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

Thailand update September 11 2020

Coronavirus impacts PattayaThe figures are excellent, they may resume flights etc before Xmas.

Businesses close in Pattaya

Coronavirus impacts PattayaBurger King on 2nd Rd has closed it’s doors as well as 2 other branches, beach Rd & Central Fesival.

Coffee shop at the Bay

Coronavirus impacts PattayaAnother one bites the dust.

Closures in North Pattaya

Please follow THIS LINK.

It will take years to recover.

Covid booster jab

Coronavirus impacts Pattaya

It only took 35 minutes to get the booster at Royal Garden Plaza in Pattaya on January 6 2022.

Thanks for visiting my Coronavirus impacts Pattaya photo blog.

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 That’s all folks

1g Duck

 

 


Counter only started June 16 2020.

This gallery contains 1 photo.