Time flies and I cannot yet believe that I will be leaving Thailand this Friday to go back to my home country. When I arrived 2½ years ago I felt immediately very welcome and although I had read and heard a lot about the famous Thai friendliness it was so much more than what I had anticipated in my wildest dreams. And not to forget the very yummy Thai food which I fell in love with immediately and which I was priviledged to enjoy every day at our fantastic canteen, the best Thai restaurant in Bangkok.
On a professional level I learned a lot about the sometimes very challenging but nevertheless interesting market and healthcare environment in this country which continues to have a significant impact on our pharma business. Together as a team we celebrated many successes but also mastered several challenges, the most significant one probably being the bad flood in 2011 when as many as 60% of our colleagues had to evacuate from their homes and our office was closed for almost 3 weeks. It is this spirit of helping each other and being part of a bigger "family" which has continuously impressed me and makes this organization very strong and successful.
I would like to thank each and everyone of you for your support and for providing me insights into the market, our business and the "Thai way of life". I really learned a lot from you! I would also like to thank you for the many heartwarming farewell parties, gifts and words of appreciation and encouragement adding to the many nice memories I already have.
I look forward to staying in touch with you and perhaps even welcoming some of you in Berlin. You will definitely be my guest and I even promise to cook some Thai food for you (since I learned that good food is probably one of the most important things for Thais). I also promise to continue to practice my Thai language skills as much as I can although I must confess this is one of the challenges I have not yet fully mastered…
I wish you and your families all the best and will keep all of you in my heart♥!