As is true everywhere else in the world, the travel limitations that many countries still have in place severely limit the amount of visitors that this area can have. Most of our runs would normally consist of 80% locals and 20% visitors. Being a fan or member of the Hash House Harriers is a fantastic way to be immediately welcomed into a community that you just joined or are visiting but now that is simply not possible due to the fact that almost zero international flights are being allowed into Thailand and the ones that are allowed in are repatriation flights that come with a 14 day quarantine.
Since most of our members are not wealthy people, this expense is prohibitive so many of our male members who can be considered "snow birds" (people who come over here to escape the harsh winters of their home countries" had left Thailand before Covid began and now it remains unclear if and when they will be able to return.
In most cases these members are the male members of our Hash who are involved in relationships with local Thai women (it just kind of works that way.) The women are here on their own, and since the departure of the men-folk, the Bunny Hash, which previously didn't have much attendance has actually grown in numbers.
The absense of the dudes has actually been a bit of a blessing in disguise because normally these hashes have very low participation numbers since the women attend other events throughout the week and therefore don't feel terribly committed to do their own. Since they now constitute a big part of our overall numbers, they are actually seeing a big increase in attendance - which is great!
They do essentially the same thing that we do but their official color is pink, they always have much better food, and they tend to drink considerably less. Some might say that they have less fun because of this... i dunno, i have been on a few Bunny Hashes (which we technically are not supposed to attend) and they have just as much silliness and revelry as we do on the drunk hashes, they just spend less money and have lower levels of hangover.
The lady that is sitting on the ice in this picture is one of my favorite local Hashers. Her hash-name is "Burrito Butt." She got this name because she runs a Mexican restaurant and cooking school. Her business, just like anything that is geared towards tourism, has been absolutely ravaged by Covid and the complete elimination of outside visitors, yet she is still her usual loud and very funny self at the Hash events. I think that maybe the meetups are her outlet, her moment to leave her worries behind. She never bothers us with tales of woe but simply has a laugh, a beer, and a good time. She is also very loud and frequently gets put on the ice because she is chatting constantly.
While the reasons why the attendance at Bunny Hashes are increasing are less-than-desirable, it is still really nice to see that it is happening. The fun and good times continue even though at the moment a lot of people who are separated from their loved ones and having tough times financially can get together and have a good time.
