2020 in the rice paddies

[Peter Hendricks]

Dear friends,

As this crazy year is nearing its end it's time for an update from our
quiet life in the rice paddies. In fact, not a lot has happened here
and we haven't travelled anywhere this year, not even within Thailand.

So far, we have been very lucky here with the virus. Until about 2
weeks ago the total number of infections was under 4000. Then, 10
ladies decided to go and earn some money in Burma in a fancy "hotel".
They crossed the border illegally both ways, thereby avoiding the
compulsory 14-day quarantine. All 10 were infected and proceeded to
travel all over the country by bus and plane, spreading the virus as
they went. Meanwhile, some Burmese migrant workers working in a fresh
seafood market somehow got infected and now there are hundreds of
people infected. Several of the cities surrounding Bangkok are now
locked down. Amazing, how a handful of people acting selfishly can
affect a whole country.

Initially I was very sceptical about the dermatologist and his
"herbal" medicine that Su chose for her psoriasis treatment. It has
taken most of the year and cost a lot of money, but the result is
spectacular: it is completely gone, save for a few tiny spots under
her fingernails. Probably more importantly, though, her joints no
longer hurt. She now doesn't need to take the medicine any more. Su
has made amazing progress with her tree planting program. Some of the
Teak trees are already 4m tall! Pictures of this and a few other
tidbits can be seen here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/VDDGCUd4qeyL3FFR6
Her latest enterprise is a Thai cooking channel she started on youtube.

As always, remember to click the first picture to enlarge it. To
display my comments (if you actually want to read them...) you have to
click the Info icon in the top right corner, which opens the Info box
on the right. You can move through the pictures with the arrow keys on
your keyboard.

And that wraps it up for this year. We wish you all a happy Xmas and a
much better year 2021.

Kind regards,
Peter & Su.