Pattaya residents who made their livings from the sea have turned to the land during the coronavirus crisis.
Boat crews, beach chair vendors, jet-ski hawkers and others who cashed in on tourists’ desire for watersports have turned to agriculture and trading to make ends meet while Thailand closed to the world to quash the Covid-19 outbreak.
Sarawut Pomthong is one of many who have known nothing else in life than the beach. His family long has been involved with renting beach umbrellas and jet skis or arranging speedboat trips. Now, with beaches closed and tourists vanished, he has scrambled to find other work.
He left the business on Cozy Beach and went to his wife’s hometown of Ubon Ratana in Khon Kaen Province to work on the farm and fix machinery. But he hopes tourism will return soon and he can return to Pattaya.
In the interim, Sarawut said he tries to think positively and stay encouraged.
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