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Airport exchange booth was by the luggage belts. Because of covid I was, whisked to the waiting taxi so no chance to see whether booths at railway station are opened. What I noticed in Silom area few booths are closed presumably due to lack of tourists. I like to steer you to a "" Silom bars" thread where I posted a bit about Dreamboys show. As you see, live is slowly going back to normal. There was some movements I Hot Male outside too but did not have a chance to check it out yet. Soi 4 on Monday was, less busy but by no means deserted although at Jupiter it seemed only waiters were present and perhaps two boys but it could change later. Bars are starting earlier, at 8 but also closing earlier, at 11. Walked certain twink to a taxi past midnight through Patpong 1 and few bars were showing sign of life. On another hand atop of Mahanakhon between 10 and 10.50 apart from first arrival I. E. me only 3 other tourists appeared, one of them stepped on the glass platform, but I was first anyways. Lunching with another forum member at world famous, 5 Michelin stars Foodland Patpong restaurant between 1 and 2 it was almost empty as well with more staff than diners. Quarter Silom, new hotel in soi 6, just past Tawan or at least when Tawan once was, perish the thought is very modern and well appointed, even with a pool and a gym. Rooms not too big but very well appointed and organized, I liked long desk particularly. There's breakfast buffet, well stuffed particularly with Asian style food, if not included in room rate one needs to splash 129 baht. Kind of novelty are almost universal so far( 3 out of 4) requests for deposits at check-in, either 1000 or 500 so be prepared with cash or card number. Whether it's new trend or just kind of my bad luck remains to be seen. Dragon fruits are quite big this year so it looks covid works well for that crop. And jet lag is still killing me, as usual 3rd day is the worst. Getting old is no fun, jet lags, twinks and other disasters don't compensate for a fact that from time to time somebody yields the seat in the subway car or bus.

Last night show at Dreamboys was almost like old days with lip sync singing by glorious ladyboys, c****k sucking, big c****k presentation, vigorous dancing by Johnny etc. Notable absence was f****k show and, thanks God Almighty ladyboys's dicks presentation. Even ridiculously loud music was the same like before. Guys on stage fully or half dressed with top removed. Not to many of them though and quality still lacking. Mamasans pushy as always, quite well attended. All that did not prevent disaster- Vinapu was seen leaving with twinky twink, cute like hell and according to Reuters, AL Jazeera and Russia Today they did not go to neither church nor Wat Hualampong. Late night CNN report stated that Vinapu was happy which is beyond comprehension, him and twink, go figure, world is turning upside down.

I just want to give my most heartfelt thanks to @vinapu for taking the plunge on not only visiting Thailand during these uncertain times, but also to document, in almost real time, his exploits. The trip reports continue to be the bread and butter of this forum, and @vinapu your perspective is always welcome and greatly appreciated, in my world. I have completely written off Thailand for at least this holiday season. While I'm glad that things look like they are slowly getting back to normal, some of the uncertainties still make me feel that I won't be able to enjoy myself as much as i would, like the usual New Year circuit parties for example, have not been reinstated, as far as i know. I am heading to Mexico and Brazil for Christmas and New year, but who knows after that. Maybe Songkran next year will be a thing? And @vinapu please continue this trip report! Maybe you will have a monodiet of twinks this trip. I havent been dining on twinks lately. Too many muscle gods taking up my time in Brazil.

It was supposed to be Jun 2020 trip but Thailand did not let us in, then I tried my luck for October this year but canceled it. When Thai Pass came to an effect I decided to finally utilize that prehistoric ticket I bought back on Dec 3, 2019 for Jun 2020. And here I'm, feeling like chewing gum after 27 hrs trek, locked in my hotel room, waiting for a nurse to come and take my sample for dreaded PCR test. First time took Swiss and must say that their good reputation is well deserved, massive Boeing 777 plane was surprisingly full with plenty of mixed Thai-Caucasian couples prominently visible in statistic sample and a lot of young people. Few nice surprises on arrival. Thai bashers will be disappointed to hear that admission process was extremely efficiently conducted, well organized and well staffed. In reality they want to see your passport, Thai Pass QR code, immigration T6 form or whatever it'called AND YOUR BOARDING PASS FROM LEG BRINGING YOU TO THAILAND, somewhat unexpected. At 6 am weather extremely pleasant, perhaps no more than balmy 23,even now at 9.30 I' m sitting in my room with balcony door wide opened, AC turned off and all that in the room actually facing the sun. Traffic was also light, Sunday morning has it' s charms. Dtac booth selling Sim cards was opened, just past luggage belts and I noticed 1 exchange booth open but rates were kind disappointing so I did not change money there. Somebody reported messy and disorganized taxi procedure but it was not my experience,as you leave customs area there tables with names of participating hotels and somebody will lead you to your car from there. I must say I need to bite my tongue not to ask my hotel representative if he would be interested in LT since he will be right in place on the Moonlight stage. That is it for now, I will try to update you guys but test, results and well deserved rest first before I even venture anywhere from my temporary and quite pleasant confinement.

As confinement started to wear on me precisely at 9.55 P. M. phone buzzed and YES positive I. E. negative result came. At time when decent people start making their beds I left my comfy prison heading to nearby BTS. It looks that ticket machines are revamped and are taking only coins now, at least that was my impression, will check again. Vagons are revamped, some seats are removed to make more standing room. As I entered, to remind me paradise is near I was greeted by commercial poster featuring two BL actors, Mark and his partner, can' t recall his name now. Then across from me in company of the girl was sitting guy I recall from one of massage parlors. Silom was quite deserted, Sunday night after all but still few vendors, few massage places opened, in one close to former Robinson I noticed stunner playing with cat. Soi 4 quite full, forget social distancing. Some bars crowded, some less so but none empty. Jupiter opened with karaoke inside and tables outside. Had beer and YES, got lucky. Not very lucky as I' m Longtimer but lucky enough so good start. Walking Silom from Narathiwas to Charon Krung I noticed very empty street, I saw, more rats than people, not that were too many of them. And street was very clean, almost no garbage anywhere. And with that emptiness of darkened street I had a thought- where the fuck in the world you can walk at night completely empty quite long stretch of the street in the city with multi million population and feel relaxed and safe? Next time you start complaining about this or that in Thailand remember that I walked alone to tell the tale without any heart pumping. Very mild temperatures now so I slept, if one can call 3 hours sleep "sleep" as jet lag is ravaging me, with wide open balcony door and was waked up by feeling hungry and sound of crowing cock. Go figure, in the middle of 10 million city!!! No doubt I' d like to have something to do with other cock at that hour but ifyou don' t have what you like, you like and enjoy what you have.

Boarding pass will not tell how long we were somewhere but has one piece of information I believe they are looking for - where we were seated in case some case will be detected aboard. Yes I noticed z909 was equally surprised but I decided to stress it again as people may tend to dispose boarding passes as soon as they are seated aboard. As for your question,, why now,,? It was mainly to act on old Lenin's question: "if not us, then who?, if not now then when"? Reasons were few :I waned to utilize my old ticket before airline gives any sort of deadline which may or may nor suit me in the future- there are months wheb traveling would be financially suicidal for me. Curiosity to see how it is now, desire to be that early bird catching the worm, few quite encouraging messages from members on the ground already are other reasons. I always say that we need only one bar and only one guy in that bar so it's time I act on my own wisdom I decided. Holding ticket paid already exactly 2 years ago to a day and very economical hotel prices are other reasons. Desire to see celebrations of closure of Halampong was other point as I, m and always were railwayman by heart. Not to mention fun of attending midnight mass at HOLY Redeemer on Christmas Eve. Two years of staying at home helped to built my own travel fund beyond expectations. And you know what? I simply missed Thailand and now sitting on the balcony of my prison I see I missed her even more than I thought. Since I,m already vaccinated my reasoning is I Don't need to worry about getting sick, they are always others who do, right? While point about bars is valid there's danger thet it may be very long before they open in former format, another point of not waiting. And there's sense of adventure to go when not many do, although plane yesterday was almost full, traffic in all airports on my way was noticeably reduced even for time of year. I was thinking about January but I may have something coming up, that' one and if it, what stops me from returning in January again, not likely but not impossible either. So reasons are many and none IMNSHO particularly stupid. Whether trip was good use of time and resources remains to be seen when it be over. Hope that answers your question.

From The Thaiger More than 160 Thai soldiers were apparently forced to masturbate… and climax… before they were allowed to take a shower. At least that’s what a social media user claims. Numerous Thai media outlets have reported the story, but there has been no confirmation or statement from military officials. On Facebook, a screenshot was shared, and picked up by Thai media, of soldiers sitting together with a caption in Thai which translates to “The week of masterbation check. Finish your masterbate first, then you will be allowed to take a shower. Do it together with 168 members.” The original video was said to have been posted on an Instagram story and has since been deleted. On Facebook, many Thai people have been revealing their own experiences in the military and saying that they have experienced situations like this while in service as well as other accounts of sexual harassment and abuse. https://thethaiger.com/news/national/168-thai-soldiers-apparently-forced-to-finish-masturbating-before-showering

168 at one time? Damn, such low numbers. I had more than that at my 50th BD celebration.

I read I read about the cancelation in yesterday's San Francisco Chronicle, and in the article-- the mayor of Rio de Janeiro had NOT made a decision regarding Carnaval 2022. But since all of the special New Year's Eve events/activities are being canceled in Rio, Sao Paulo, and Salvador (Bahia), I'd assume there will not be a Carnaval 2022 since it's a very, very major and very huge affair that goes for a week+ and involving lots and lots and lots of folk. I managed to take in Carnaval 2003 and truly enjoyed all of the festivities. Four events still remain with me today: Sambadroma (sp) event, a gay ball, the gay parade in Ipanema, and a trip to the Green Isle accompanied by 20 escorts and about 45 to 50 men enjoying ourselves on a boat for almost 5 hours. When I returned to Rio from our all day boat trip-- I had company at my hotel. One of the hugest guys on this trip came and entertained me royally for an hour+ prior to my going to the Gala Ball.

Yes, i agree in that photo he looks typically Chinese. Seeing his face in close-up on television I reckoned there were certain differences. But just my thoughts. I don't think it is true that the Uyghurs are from the same region as the Hui in Xi'an and thereabouts. I have always been under the impression the Uyghurs were from a different 'stock'. There have ben Hui in Xi'an for around 1,300 years, They come from a mix of Silk Road countries like Persia and parts of Arabia. They are well assimilated into the life of the city and suffer no persecution. They have their own Great Mosque of Xi'an, one of the oldest in the country. The Uyghurs are ethnically different from the Hui. They come more from the northern Middle Eastern countries like Turkey and then the various central Asian 'stans' - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan etc. The region was conquered during the Han Dynasty around 2 millennia ago. Thereafter it was variously part of the Mongol empire, a series of independent states, of the Tang Dynasty and then for five centuries an independent state again. The Qing Empire finally conquered it in the 18th century and eventually renamed it Xinjiang. Amongst the Uyghurs there is a strong West Eurasian gene resulting in fair hair and blue eyes in roughly 50% of the population. This is totally different from the Muslims in Xi'an. Xi'an Great Mosque Streets in Xi'an Muslim Quarter

If you look for trouble, you will find it. I didn't, and had safe trips on several occasions.

El poblado is very popular with locals. Medellin, until very recently, wasn’t a tourist destination — so there aren’t areas that are just “tourist” spots, like Times Square. Just because tourists go to Poblado, doesn’t mean it’s not authentic. Tourists go to Greenwich Village and Central Park — but it’s full of actual New Yorkers who live in and around those neighborhoods. You’d be missing out if you skipped Poblado. You should stay in Poblado and use it as your launchpad to go other places… I would stay outside a 10-15 min walk radius of Parque Lleras, although you definitely want to check it out on the weekend… it’s where thousands of Colombians descend to chill on the street, hang out in the park or drink and eat.

This was just announced on the news (confirmed on Twitter) here. Colombia will require proof of full vaccination for all foreign travelers(18 and older) starting December 14th. Here is the notice it the local press, will look for a translated version to add later: https://www.portafolio.co/economia/gobierno/colombia-pedira-carne-de-vacunas-a-viajeros-internacionales-559368

From The Thaiger The Thai embassy in Berlin says Thailand has been removed from Germany’s list of Covid-19 high-risk countries, according to a Thai PBS World report. Provided they are fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine, travellers from Thailand can now enter Germany without having to quarantine. The accepted vaccines are Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna, and the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine. In addition to being fully vaccinated, arrivals from Thailand must produce a negative PCR test result, taken within 72 hours of travel, or a negative antigen test taken within 48 hours. Travellers who have recovered from Covid-19 need to show proof of a positive PCR test result that is at least 28 days old, but no older than 6 months, or evidence of being fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine at least 14 days before their arrival. https://thethaiger.com/hot-news/tourism/germany-removes-thailand-from-its-list-of-high-risk-countries

I waited longer than I should have for him as he was slow.Then, he told me his eyes are not so good and was very old. Not a good start. But, he lived in USA for 20 years and in NYC and we chatted. Then, he spoke French, Russian and German with the BF and they had a nice chat. The ride was long as his eye sight was not great and he was slow. But, without question the best ride I had in ages. He said he learned French 60 years ago when in school. Again, scared me a bit since he told me the army turned him down for poor eye sight. He made up for it all and got a great tip!

I have quickly looked at those wikipedia sites. I'm sorry they are just far too long for me to even bother reading in detail! But it is clear from the first few paragraphs that there are Muslim communities in most major Chinese cities and that they are primarily Hui people. So, as in Xi'an, they have been integrated into the local Chinese populations for very many centuries. There may well be some Hui people in Xinjiang but I know from good friends in Beijing and Shanghai that the population is very largely of a different ethnic stock. The reason the Muslims in Xinjiang are being treated so abominably by the Chinese leadership is that they have only really been part of China for a much shorter time. Over history they have been ruled by different Empires as well as different Chinese Empires. Then as I noted above they had 5 centuries of virtual independence before the Qing Dynasty forcibly annexed the Province again. Xinjiang and Tibet are 2 massive Provinces which happen to make up China's western border. We know from quite recent Chinese history that the Beijing leadership has since the decline of the Imperial system been extremely sensitive about the country's borders. In the second half of the 20th century it has fought border wars with the Soviet Union (which almost became nuclear), then India and most recently with Vietnam in 1979. Perhaps oddly China assumed control of both Provinces only in the early 18th century, although it paid little attention to them until after the collapse of the Nationalist government. The communists were determined that the country would never again permit the annexation of chunks of Chinese territory by western nations and Japan as it had been forced to do in the 19th and early 20th centuries. So its borders became the focus of far greater attention. The government's fear in both Provinces is of breakaway movements that might mushroom into full scale rebellion. What it is doing to ensure breakaway movements are strangled before they become a threat is something the world should be paying far more attention to. But in terms of international relations China is now too powerful. The rest of the world is not prepared to take China on in other than through meaningless diplomacy. China will have its way.

The day that I arrive 🙂

Is Brazil dangerous? Yes and no. Eventually, everyone from tourists to locals “gets got” somehow in the major cities of Brazil — yes, even those of us who “look the part” of a brasileiro. I am referring to anything from petty theft to violent crime. The ones who say it’s never happened to them have just been fortunate thus far or are have not had enough visits to be broken in this way. Tourist areas in Rio especially are major targets for petty theft. The young guys are the best at it. Smart phones are the biggest, quickest and easiest targets. Never, ever, ever have one of those out or within reach. Necklaces are easy to cut from the back or just snatch and grab. If you like your ear lobes, I suggest not wearing your earrings. There is a saying in Brazilian Portuguese that translates in English as “the finger is more valuable to you than the ring.” In this respect, I’d compare the Brazilian cities to maybe 70s or 80s New York City — when almost everyone, from locals to visitors, experienced or witnessed some form of street crime. But is Rio or São Paulo as bad or as dangerous as, say, Lagos, Nigeria or Kingston, Jamaica? Of course not.

@Latbear4blk Would be my pleasure. Will keep you posted. Scheduled to return in March but my schedule is always subject to change.

I'm sucker for animal stories. From Pattaya Mail Kampol Tansacha (right) and Dr. Padej Siridamrong received baby ‘Khwak Rak’ at Nong Nooch and immediately began nursing the injured pachyderm back to health. Nong Nooch Tropical Garden assisted the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation to rescue a baby elephant snared in a hunter’s trap in Chanthaburi. The calf, only a few months old, nearly lost its leg in the trap laid in the Kang Hang Maew forest. Its lower leg was torn apart and the calf had 10 shotgun-pellet wounds. Veterinarians at the National Park Protection Unit at Khao Hin Khwak in Khao Sip Ha Chan National Park in Chanthaburi worked frantically to save the elephant’s limb. Once stable, the elephant was brought to Nong Nooch Dec. 1 where Director Kampol Tansacha and Dr. Padej Siridamrong began nursing the pachyderm back to health. In addition to food, rest and hydration, the animal is being given constant medical care. Padej said the elephant’s condition was severe, but it is very young and the wounds were not life-threatening. Surgery was planned to remove the buckshot from the leg, some of which had damaged the bone. Kampol named the baby calf ‘Khwak Rak’ after the place where it was found. He said Nong Nooch has arranged an experienced mahout to care for the animal around the clock, the same one who nursed ‘Fa Jaem’ a previous calf that had suffered even more serious injuries. https://www.pattayamail.com/news/pattaya-vets-save-baby-elephant-snared-and-shot-in-jungle-381640

+1

as long as you stick to tourist zone, you will be fine I made my first trio to brazil last year, it feel better/safer compared to news reports

In the airport proper, or down in the basement? In normal times, if you need to change money at the airport it's best to go down to the basement, where there are several money exchanges. Because it's technically the airport rail link terminal, it is outside the cartel that the banks run in the airport proper and the rates are significantly better (several percent, not fractions of a penny). Of course "normal times" don't apply so I don't know whether the exchanges are operating at present.

It would be helpful if people who post advice on requirements for entry were those who have actually done it (enter Thailand very recently) rather than those non-travellers who are trying to interoperate government requirements.

Don' t spit on me but it will be exactly what will happen. I will keep you posted about tourist stuff since it was my thirst up to 3 days ago so I understand the needs but manly stuff will wait until I return. As for your trip you are best placed to made informed decision based on your priorities and circumstances. All I can say now it' s I' m very happy I braved to come, at least after 1 day.

Why not? If the waiters were clad only in underwear, guess which restaurant I'd be eating in most often . . .

The same holds true for me - as long as the boys at least are shirtless. But if they are fully clothed in jeans and also wearing shirts, I fail to see much point in going to those go-go bars where you're going to pay exorbitant prices for drinks. You might as well go to a beer bar where the boys are also fully clothed, but the drink prices are far less expensive. Also, I have never had some sort of mama-san try to pressure me in a beer bar. For me, that has happened only in go-go bars. I learned a long time ago - never buy a drink for a mama-san who sits with me, uninvited, and starts the pressure routine. I make the mama-san get lost and try it with some other customer.