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it looks that as 1st step government decided to open country to non-bar frequenting tourists first giving others 2 1/2 months to sober up

I took your advice and watched episode 1, not much action yet as It's too early but worth watching already for the sake of yummy and colorful Thai food although they did not cook chicken with cashew nuts yet

Fercho's is still open and thriving from the new location in the Bliss Suite hotel in Los Angeles barrio on Carrera 45 (a few blocks from the previous location). From the street you will see the sign and the entrance is directly below. The best way to contact them is through WhatsApp. If you message them on WhatsApp they will provide location and pictures of the full roster of boys available. Fercho's Masajes +57 312 2717925 Cra 45 #55-41 Medellin

too bad they did not utilize time last year when there were almost no flights

Seems like this is a better choice with much less headache for anyone wanted to travel to south east asia. Usd90 insurance (20 days) and only a rapid test on arrival. No sha+ one night quarantine, no cambodia pass.

I suppose it's age....but I find myself frequently panicking about my upcoming trip, although it's more than three months away. Two years of separation from my boyfriend has taken its toll and I need desperately to make a success of this visit before travelling is too much for me. This is why every detail has been covered in detail and why erroneous reports of complications (like the Covid stipulation in my insurance) are so annoying. I've decided that I'll apply for the Pass in January. I have the necessary documentation already.

Credit: Richard Barrow Twitter site

There's no shortage of helpful--and not so helpful--information out there on how to succeed in getting your Thai Pass successfully completed. Richard Barrow today posted that one of the reasons that some get instant approval for their vaccination certificate if they come from one of the 30 countries who share a PKI key (tools used to create and manage public keys for encryption, which is a common method of securing data transfers on the internet. PKI is built into all web browsers used today, and it helps secure public internet traffic). =============================== Border runs to return? Land borders are still closed to tourists. However, with the reopening of Cambodia, and hints that Thailand will re-open their land borders to more people, visa runs might be a possibility again. This, together with #ThailandReopening, might mean the end of the “visa amnesty”. Credit: Richard Barrow Twitter site

Now that would make too much sense to do it then

Obviously people do manage to get their first-time retirement visa, but I don't know how it works or what people have to do if they don't already hold a Thai bank account. Maybe it has to be done through one of the visa agents. Maybe they can also help to open a Thai bank account. Can't hurt to try. I've never used a visa agent, but I do know in Pattaya Mots-Services is reliable, reasonably priced, and honest. One of the services they provide according to their web site is "OPEN THAI BANK ACCOUNT" When you read the details, their fee is 3500 baht and they can do it even if you have only a tourist visa. See: https://www.mots-services.com/ One thing is clear - things involving Thai bank accounts and retirement visas are not getting any easier. I wish I could provide better advice, but this is the best I can do.

Without wanting to jinx it, it looks like I am traveling (frantic crossing of fingers and toes, touching wood and sacrificing chickens). I got the AXA insurance. The hospital from which I got my booster had never seen a yellow international vaccine card before but willingly completed it for all my shots and I submitted scans of both it and the regular card to the Thailand Pass system. My Thailand Pass arrived within a few days of my application. My hotel turned out to be SHA+ and very efficient once I contacted them. The quarantine deal basically costs the same as using the hotel car to meet you at the airport, so I am making a stylish return in a Benz. I have an appointment with my tailor who is hilariously enthusiastic. A customer!!! He sent pics of every swatch of shirt fabric in existence. The final brick-in-the-wall is Bangkok Guy’s vaccination. He is not one of the 70% of vaccinated Bangkok residents for a very Bangkok Guy type of reason. He has been doing comparison Shopping for vaccines and announced via Line “I get vaccine Moderna”. I decided to investigate the reality of this decision and found both Bumrungard and Sukumvit hospitals have Moderna. Bumrungard’s website offers a Moderna gift certificate. I called both hospitals – both answered efficiently – and found the reality was more in the marketing than in fulfilling Bangkok Guys decision. First round is taken. Can get second round, first quarter 2022. I told Bangkok Guy this and suggested that he would probably need to be vaccinated before we could take a planned flight – maybe Astrazenica would do until he can get Moderna? A very fast response “I’m going to vaccinate Astrazenica”. Hopefully he does and once I am out of the overnight quarantine we will go to Bumrungard and get him a Moderna gift certificate.

Richard Barrow published the following numbers for top 10 “countries of origin” for people flying to Thailand from 1-14 November. The figures do not distinguish how many entered under COE and those arriving on Thai Pass. 1 USA 7,999 2 UAE 7,935 3 Germany 5,648 4 United Kingdom 2,706 5 Japan 2,530 6 France 1,953 7 Russia 1,875 8 South Korea 1,729 9 Israel 1,532 10 Switzerland 1,507

From Yahoo News Did You Know All the 'Mean Girls' Guys Are Gay Now? mean-girls-Rajiv-Surendra There's no doubt that 2004 comedy Mean Girls defined a generation. Seventeen years after its release, the film is still quoted and meme'd to this day, cementing it as a staple of pop culture. And while it's certainly become a part of gay canon, a movie that impacted nearly every LGBTQ+ person of a certain age, did you know that the main three male characters in the film have all come out as gay? That news has gone viral over at Buzzfeed, who compiled the coming outs of each Mean Girls actor earlier this week. Since then, Franzese has been an important voice for LGBTQ+ rights and appeared on queer shows like Looking and RuPaul's Drag Race. Jonathan Bennett, who stole our hearts as the teen heartthrob Aaron Samuels, was reportedly outed by Julianne Hough later in 2014. He didn't come out as gay himself until 2017. Bennett has been embraced by the community and is currently married to his partner, Jaymes Vaughan. He even reprised his role as Aaron Samuels for a quick cameo in Ariana Grande's "thank u, next" music video. Following the success of Mean Girls, he moved to Munich, Germany. "What was easy for me is that I moved to a completely foreign country. I had complete anonymity there, which I think helped me come to terms with doing what I wanted. I didn’t need to be worried about what everyone else thought." We're so grateful to all the cast for making Mean Girls even gayer than it already was! https://news.yahoo.com/did-know-mean-girls-guys-181141066.html Daniel Franzese, who played Damian in the film, came out as gay in 2014.

Hell no....that was the worst experience I have had in Rio and a total waste of time....Way out of the way and the guys are very local....The place was disgusting...

I agree but another turn off is the closure of entertainment venues till mid of January ( and in my opinion it will be longer than that because the current Thai government is determined to change the Thai int'l image to family friendly destination) I love Thailand and pay many visits over the past twenty years but the current situation and restrictions is making me wonder if it is still the land of smiles I used to love and cherish ?

Strictly Come Dancing viewers were moved to “tears” on Saturday (6 November), after a “spellbinding” and sensual rumba from Johannes Radebe and John Whaite. The show’s first-ever male same-sex dance partners performed the rumba to “Shape of My Heart” by Sting, and came in third, scoring 35 points out of a possible 40. Viewers were overwhelmed with emotion after the performance, and many revealed that they had broken down in tears. One wrote: “In tears watching Johannes and John. I bloomin’ hate the rhumba but the fact that two gay men are dancing this together on prime time Saturday night BBC is everything.” Lib Dem councillor Mathew Hulbert added: “Tears. Couldn’t take my eyes off John and Johannes during that dance. Beautiful. “They may not know just how much seeing them dance together means to so many.” While Whaite and Radebe having been blowing fans away since they first stepped onto the Strictly dance floor in September, many declared that the rumba was their best performance yet because of its sensuality and raw emotion.

From Channel News Asia Thailand’s Kotchakorn makes mark at global climate change talks The rooftop garden of Thammasat University is the largest in Asia. (Photo: Land Process) GLASGOW: David Attenborough was in the middle of arguably one of his most important public calls to action. To more than 100 world leaders, on the biggest stage at the opening of global climate change talks in Glasgow, he called on delegates to rewrite the human story in the face of a monumental challenge. As he paused, for a moment, another face appeared onscreen with a decidedly different accent. “Can we fix the climate problem in one generation? My answer would be yes. We have to,” said Kotchakorn Voraakhom. The video excerpt was from an interview Kotchakorn had done in the lead up to COP26, a short film in a YouTube series sharing the voice of the people on the frontline of climate change. Kotachakorn was last year named a United Nations Global Climate Action Award winner for her transformative work building innovative landscape solutions for urban resilience in Bangkok. That recognition gave rise to her attending COP26 in the UK, which began on Nov 1. Given the logistical difficulties, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the apparent limited access to the conference from attendees from the Global South, she admitted that she felt fortunate to even be there. The 40-year-old’s work has made an impact in Bangkok, where she founded her urban design firm, Landprocess. She has been a leading voice promoting functional green spaces in Bangkok’s new developments and converted spaces. Her sights have been set on sustainable green infrastructure that makes the city more liveable, walkable, and suitable for its future and new uncertainties to come. At a campus for Thammasat University, Kotchakorn’s designs have given birth to Asia’s biggest rooftop garden, a place with incredible aesthetics and true function. The 22,000 sq m space recreates a rice terrace, includes micro-watersheds from its cascading roof and has expansive areas for students to grow organic vegetables and herbs. It has aesthetics but more critically, purpose. Opened in 2017, Chulalongkorn Centenary Park is a critical piece of functional architecture that reduces inundation risk in the city during periods of heavy rain, by collecting, treating, and holding millions of litres of water, reducing pressure on sewage infrastructure. Bangkok is one of the world’s most vulnerable cities to climate change impacts. The megacity is slowly sinking, just as sea levels rise. It means much of the city could be underwater within decades and increasingly exposed to dangerous flooding. The looming crisis, and the chance to witness global talks up close, has given Kotchakorn more perspective about the need for greater action, the inequalities that exist and the frustrations of political negotiations. Continues with photos https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sustainability/cop26-climate-change-thailand-kotchakorn-landscape-architect-2292241