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Next in opening line is Fresh boys, I visited on Tuesday, familiar Mamasan, ( no, not Lucy), few fully dressed boys on the stage so it, s just beginning but start it is ! Twink lovers would pick somebody, that sure thing. Drink 350, boy drink the same. Mamasan told me that Tawan will be moving across the soi, news confirmed by one of their boys I met on Wed in Sabaidee spa. At this time, no sign of moving though. The same Tuesday at Jupiter I survived (barely) shock of my life. 20 years after I first went there I received a smile from one of their guys and it was, repeated few times. So when they did their usual parade, still fully dressed and handsome as always I rewarded him with 500 note so that historical moment was not lost neither on me nor on my pocket. For now they have karaoke format with few guys on duty waiting in the wings I. E. on their phones and not paying attention to audience and their but considering circumstances it makes some sense. Smiling guy was kind of exception. I should take an advantage of situation but that night I had another expactancy, not realized as I learned later. At one point karaoke stopped and for few minutes guys made their usual parade on the stage and audience, whole few of us and still couple od them managed studiously to avoid even cursory eye contact so old habits die fast but as I said, there are signs of encarougemnt. SoiTwilight is now green space, even if fully boarded and inaccessible, I will post picture later as I have it in plain view from my Raya window.

Perhaps as much chance as us returning to our glory days.

No chance on twink monodiet as I found suitable hunk 😀and I, m on 3/5 monodiet now. As for parties they won,t probably happen for New Year but can be arranged which happened to me on Wed when innocent after massage beer invitation turned into well attended one. I never know l can walk that fast being somewhat quite drunk and I even liked sound of my voice singing Russian military song,, Raise immense Country,, ( Vstavay strana ogromnaya for you Russian readers if any) in original in Raya's elevator just past midnight. So I'd not be worrying about lack of parties.

Mango Tree was open but appeared to have few customers. The massage places had few guys outside and did not appear to be doing great business.

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While pictures don't like and soi looks exactly like that it, s not a dead zone. Silom Market operates as before and is quite crowded so you would not notice any difference. Tawan soi is not that quiet either as new Quarter Silom hotel seems to be very popular. I showed at 11.00 on Monday and they made me waiting till 2 to check in. Parking was full and so was restaurant at breakfast ( buffet, 129 baht). As for Tawan itself as I reported in other thread they will be moving across the soi as confirmed by Mamasan from other bar as, well as well known Tawan boy I met in other place. So hope it turns true.

Speaking about transport options - yesterday I surveyed new SRT red lines from Bang Sue stations. Shiny and fast. About 10 minutes to Don Muang airprt, trains every 20 MINS, go all the way to Rangsit. 42 baht to Rangsit. Another one goes other way, across the river to Bang Bamru terminating in some Tailing Chan or something, I forgot no, convenient for unique boat shaped Wat Chelo. On another hand old, rickety train from Hualampong took 1 hour to Don Muang while with new train with need to take Mrt to Grand BaNg Sue Station, than walk to platform and again walk quite a bit at Don Muang one easily can be there in mere 60 minutes. Conveniently as you walk from SRT to terminal there,s Street food mall on the way so yoy can have your fill. I,m bit sarcastic here and it, s not warranted since I really liked it but it,s good to be realistic with timing. New SRT station is also at south end of terminal while old one is just across with much lass, walking. Anyways as we know on 23 rd Hualampong option becomes history. Bang Sue is a monster of the building as far as size goesvbut eye pleasing from outside and all. It needs is a shuttle from old station there, elevated or in the tunnel. It, s also prepared for the furore with " HIGH SPEED TRAINS" pointers installed already. You build it and they will come.

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.

The following article appears in The Thaiger. I am not an expat and have no personal knowledge of retirement schemes. ======================================== If you are planning to retire in the beautiful and tropical country of Thailand, there are many places which will suit your interests. From up north in Chiang Mai where the air is cooler (during winter), to a tropical oasis in the southern islands, Thailand has it all. Of course, with all things, you will need to get sorted before you come and we are right here to help. How much money will I need to retire in Thailand? For example, a retired couple should be able to live quite comfortably on £1,600 (71,000 THB, 2,100 USD) a month, but of course, it depends on your lifestyle. While the cost of living is low in Thailand, it is still important to have a savings of at least £20,000 (890,000 THB, 26,500USD), probably more, depending if you’re getting anything paid to you from outside the kingdom. This can help in the event of unexpected expenses, such as health insurance premiums, purchasing a car, or home repairs. For those in the UK with pensions, having your UK pension paid to you in Thailand is possible, but you cannot transfer over any other UK-based pensions without incurring a tax of at least 25%. This is because the UK’s HMRC does not list Thailand in its qualifying recognised overseas pension schemes (QROPS). You may still be able to transfer payments from your UK bank, but you are likely to incur bank and currency conversion fees. But, you won’t have to pay tax on this income to the Thai government. Other countries will have different laws on pensions and taxation so you need to find out about these before proceeding. If you are wanting to buy a property in Thailand, you can. Sort of. It can be a bit tricky if you want to buy freehold land or a villa on land. As Thai laws prohibits foreigners from buying land and property in their own name, there are a few loopholes which allow foreigners to ‘own’ property. Continues at https://thethaiger.com/news/national/key-info-for-those-planning-to-retire-in-thailand

Lawmakers Approve Marriage Equality in Chile A reaction to marriage equality in the Senate chamber in Valparaiso, Chile on December 7, 2021. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido Lawmakers in Chile overwhelmingly voted to approve a marriage equality bill on December 7, capping off a four-year political standoff and ushering in a new era for the LGBTQ community in the South American nation. The legislation passed both houses of Congress and President Sebastián Piñera has vowed to sign the measure into law. Piñera opted to support the bill after previously opposing it, paving the way for legislation that had stalled for years after former President Michelle Bachelet first introduced it in 2017. The measure gives LGBTQ couples the right to have children through adoption or assisted reproduction and removes a requirement that transgender or non-binary people must divorce in order for the government to recognize their gender identity or legal name changes. The law is a major step up from an existing law that gave couples the right to enter civil unions, but lacked the parenting rights or updates for transgender individuals. Folks embrace in Santiago after lawmakers approve marriage equality.REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado In the Senate, 21 lawmakers approved it, eight rejected it, and three abstained. The bill passed the lower house 82-20, with two lawmakers abstaining. Videos posted on social media December 7 showed people celebrating in Santiago. An LGBTQ organization known as Movilh Chile, or the Homosexual Integration and Liberation Movement, hosted a rally featuring a crowd of attendees, many with Rainbow Flags in hand. “Happiness on so many faces,” noted a translated tweet posted by Movilh Chile. “People’s lives change for the better when we stop being second-class to the laws. Nice Chile, that’s the way you like it.” Love is in the air in Santiago.REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado The bill’s passage also comes at a pivotal time in Chilean politics. On December 19, a former student activist, Gabriel Boric, will face right-wing populist José Antonio Kast in a runoff after neither candidate received enough votes in the initial tally last month. Kast, who is opposed to same-sex marriage but has said he would sign the bill anyway, had the most votes in the first election. Piñera will remain in office until March. Chile will become the 31st country in the world and the latest in the region to establish marriage equality. Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Uruguay allow for same-sex marriage, while Mexico has marriage rights in certain parts of the country.

I sincerely hope it can return to its glory days.

From Pattaya Mail Thailand Pass affects post-arrival immigration procedures By Barry Kenyon Since the introduction last month of Thailand Pass, around 150,000 foreigners have entered the country by air. A sizeable number of them, perhaps a third, have made a beeline for Pattaya and Jomtien. Most appear to be returning residents or family members, but there are also many European snowbird vacationers fleeing the cold weather in northern Europe. Chonburi Immigration (amongst other offices) is reminding newly-arrived foreigners that they need to register their address by providing passport details and proof of address under the TM30 regulations. There is no need to do this in person if the hotel or condominium has actually recorded personal details online to the immigration bureau. It is not possible to obtain immigration services, such as a visa extension or a certificate of residence to open a bank account or sell/buy a car, without a TM30 form dated after the last arrival from abroad. Short trips within Thailand itself no longer require re-registration Foreigners arriving at local immigration this month say they are confused by the situation at land borders. Although there are active plans to reopen Thailand’s borders with Malaysia, Cambodia and Laos, the purpose is to facilitate the transport of goods and to permit open access for workers and market stall holders in border regions. There has not yet been an announcement that foreign tourists, or Thai-based expats, can pass through border posts as sightseers or visa runners. https://www.pattayamail.com/latestnews/news/thailand-pass-affects-post-arrival-immigration-procedures-382268

Golden Cock the first gay bar I visited in Thailand decades ago. Nature Boy when I was feeling naughty. I haven't been back since the amalgamation but it is stretching my imagination to see two bars occupying the N.B. premises (seemed like half a shophouse😁). Good luck to them both.

Sorry guys for lack of updates but I found chapel for quiet contemplation and I' kind of busy. Will write soon but pleased to inform you that things are picking up, I'd say, by the day at least In BKK but will have news from Pattaya as well. Working on certain travel guide to go there with me as I,m afraid I may be lost in Ekkamai or something. Dearth of tourists is visible so if you are thinking of coming, just do it for YKW sake

It has been a long time since Numazu last shared his trip

Just to add to the ample warnings from previous posters. I've seen two thefts happen in front of me during all of the 4 years I've been going to Brazil. Oddly enough these two thefts happened within a week of each other, and within the last month. First one happend last week. I was walking on the sidewalk by the beach in copacabana. I was with a GP. He wasn't a slouch - he's 6'3, muscular, young. He had his shirt off (as you do), and was wearing his cheapie "gold" necklace. I was noticing a younger guy on a bike eyeing him as we walked past. A few steps further a taxi driver shouted to us to "be careful". As we approach posto 4, the same kid who was eyeing us quickly rode past us and snatched that necklace from my friend. The kid quickly disappeared in his bike. My friend should have known better. He was a Carioca after all. He was shaken after the incident, and wanted to look for the thief. I had to calm him down by disappearing into one of the quiosques and shared a beer with him and tried to just talk him out of it. He was left a bruise in his neck where the necklace was snatched. This was like 2 pm in the afternoon in broad daylight. The second one happened two weeks ago in Sao Paulo. I was in Higienopolis with another GP friend and we were just heading back to his condo from a Cafe after breakfast. We were walking in a quiet street with other people when a woman in the further side of the same street started screaming. A thief snatched her cellphone while she was walking. As the thief tried to run away from her, I see the thief trip and fall to the ground. A group of older guys happened to manage to trip him and pin him down. My GP friend, not a stranger to confrontation, quickly rushed to the scene and filmed the whole thing. The older guys were punching him and kicking him. The woman whose cellphone got snatched joined in, and retrieved her cellphone. Some other passers by also joined in the melee. Pretty soon the police arrived. The guy was bloodied when all was said and done. The mob was rightfully angry, probably frustrated by all the theft happening lately. This was before noon. While all this is horrible, this two incidents have done nothing to change my view about Brazil. Its a dangerous place for sure, but if you know how to be careful, and to be mindful of your surroundings, I'm pretty sure you'll be fine. The pros way outweigh the cons. Did I mention that sex after an exciting incident is just way better? You already have all that adrenaline flowing!

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.

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.

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.

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.

Those of us who buy sim cards on arrival will soon have fewer--if practically none--choices in the future. From Bangkok Post Telecom firms Total Access Communication Plc (DTAC) and True Corporation Plc have agreed to merge, to pursue new tech business and raise venture capital for startups. The merger plan was approved by their respective executive boards on Friday and their decisions forwarded to the Stock Exchange of Thailand on Monday. The two companies on Monday also signed a memorandum of understanding for an equal partnership to form a new merged firm to pursue tech business. The companies said that Citrine Global Company, a joint venture of Telenor Asia, the parent firm of DTAC, and Charoen Pokphand (CP) Holding, the parent firm of True, would make a conditional voluntary tender offer for all shares of the two firms - 5.09 baht per one share in True and 47.76 baht per one share in DTAC. Norway's Telenor and CP issued a separate joint statement, that both True and DTAC will enter into equal partnership to form a new tech firm that will pursue new tech businesses, create a digital ecosystem and set up a fund to support startups. https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/2219499/true-dtac-formally-announce-merger-plan

It is, perhaps, worth commenting that a few minutes prior to these photographs Thaniya was very quiet indeed and Surawong utterly deserted. Subsequently, Silom was very quiet also. My usual hotel was at about 20% capacity and their restaurant closed because they couldn't get staff. A sad state of affairs.