Last Sunday, Covid-19 curbs have been eased as 13 types of businesses were allowed to reopen after a month-long halt while four airlines resume domestic flights to 14 provinces since last Friday. Markets, public parks, food shops, barbershops, pet groomers and more resume operations under safety conditions, giving us back a sense of quasi-normalcy. The silver lining is that more businesses may be reopened if the daily tally of Covid-19 remains low (keeping fingers and toes crossed). In case you want to head out this weekend, you can look forwards to this.
1. While waiting for your queue at the barber's or salon, keep a safe distance from other customers. Not every barber chair will be used as the chairs also have to adhere to social distancing regulations, and so do the barbers. Gone are the days, you strutted into your favourite barbershop and demanded a seat. Now everyone is hi-so aka you have to make an appointment, yes even at the crummy hairdressers under the flyovers. Since salons have to limit the number of people at a given time, you can only get a hair cut, shampoo and blow dry. Guess the moustaches and beards will adorn your faces for longer. Ladies, the word for nails is now talons.
2. Eating out with friends and family with a transparent barrier between each other may not look as fun and it may ruin your food porn photography but you'd better get used to it. Like many restaurants, Penguin Eat Shabu isn't taking chances. You can come together but you'll have to sit across the same table diagonally from each other. The shabu chain accepts four rounds of customers each day and doesn't allow walk-ins (ultra high-end) for the time being. Besides the s-shaped barrier, the staff don masks and face shields while waiting on customers, too.
3. At the gates of any public park, the first thing that hits your face isn't a breath of fresh air -- it's a temperature gun. But you get that pretty much everywhere you go these days, like in this picture taken at Suan Rod Fai, one of 39 public parks in Bangkok that have reopened. You can enjoy the outdoors, jog and take a deep "filtered" breath (through your mask) but playgrounds, fitness areas and tennis courts inside these parks remain closed to avoid a gathering of people. Two people shouldn't share the same bench, too. Fear not, the grass is always greener.
(Photos: Bangkok Post Photographers)
4. When you drop off your Pomeranian for a pampering session at Pet Paradise Spa, you have to wear a mask and get your temperature checked first. The groomers are equipped with masks, face shields and gloves while attending to your pooch. So you don't have to disinfect them when you get home.
5. The Erawan Shrine at Ratchaprasong intersection is back in the business of worshipping from 6am-6pm. The female dancers, whom you can hire to appease Hindu god Brahma after your wish is granted, wear face shields as they perform a traditional Thai dance and are available from 8am-5pm. Their boss came up with the idea but they opted out of wearing face masks as it can ruin their beauty aesthetic.
