PeterRS

Yes, I agree entirely. Colonial looters were just one group. I am sure that each country with looted artefacts had plenty of locals who were very happy to steal and loot for the cash provided by rich fat cats both from their own and other countries. But somewhere we have to draw a line. We can not rewrite basic history. Nor can we change basic historical facts. You mention Haghia Sofia. But that is not an artefact. That is a building in a specific place that was built at a specific time. Sure, it was built as a Christian Church by a Christian Emperor. And the Byzantine Christians were able to hold on to it for almost a millennium. Indeed, they might have held on to it longer had it not been a result of the attempt by other Christians led by the octogenarian Archbishop Dandolo of Venice during the Fourth Crusade, a man now despised by history. While answering the call to help Constantinople, this wily thief changed course and had his fleet sail up to the city state. The end result was not only his massively looting the city but, by so weakening its defences, rendering it far more vulnerable to later attack by the Ottoman Turks. It's no accident that since the early years of the 13th century many of Constantinople's treasures are to be found adorning Venice! So much for Christian against Christian. But that's another subject! Since you mention it, on the two occasions I went round Hagia Sophia it was a dedicated Museum. We all have the ultra nationalist Turk leader Erdogan to thank for changing its status back to a mosque. But this brings us to another point. Modern day Turkey is the legitimate ruler of Istanbul. The leader of Turkey made the change. Does the world have a right to mandate that the ruler of a country does not have a right to do what he might say he has been elected to do? Another long subject! Going back to looted treasures. I believe the world as a whole has to start somewhere. So nations of the world should be the first to show an example. In the colonial era lasting several centuries, they were by far and away the largest looters and thieves. Their governments at least have an electorate behind them which may eventually take up this cause. It's useless to expect the fat cats to start the ball rolling. Indeed, I doubt if anything other than very large bags of cash would persuade them. So that's just a lost cause. Nations, though, are another matter altogether.

I'd be happy to, but I have covered quite a lot of ground already, mostly in this forum on this site - https://www.gayguides.com/forums/forum/25-gay-china-taiwan-hong-kong-macau/ May I suggest that you first take a look at the various threads that relate to Taipei and Taiwan. I think these will give you a reasonably good idea. Thereafter, do please ask for any more specific detail and I will be delighted to answer here. I hope you manage to read the thread/s about the annual Taipei Gay Pride Parade which is always held on the last Saturday in October. I think it is the most fantastic day (week-end if you are relatively young and into rowdy gay parties with loads of handsome young shirtless guys). Taipei becomes packed with relatively young - but all age groups really as I am way at the other end of the age spectrum and I have been at 7 Pride Parades - gay guys from all over Taiwan and indeed from many countries in Asia. Apologies to those who have seen these photos posted before. The other thing is that as an island, Taiwan is scenically very beautiful. About 7 years ago I took a 5-day coach tour around the island. Although I had known Taipei since 1986, I knew little else about the island - and was stunned.

That was partly the argument for many stolen artefacts being stolen in the first place by colonial looters - that they would be safer and better looked after in Museums in the colonial countries. And sorry @vinapu, I regard that as total rubbish! What right did colonial powers have to steal anything from the countries they colonised. They were nothing but thieves out for personal glory - as so many books by so many experts now agree. Lord Elgin stole the "marbles" from The Parthenon in Athens "to protect them from being destroyed by The Turks." (The Turks in that age ruled Greece). That is what he told a Parliamentary Commission in 1801, but in prising some of the artefects from The Parthenon, Elgin's agents inflicted considerable damage to them. He always stated he had a letter from the Turks agreeing to his taking them as he was in the British foreign service. But Elgin was not an official diplomat and had no right to claim them for the British Crown. The British government eventually paid £350,000 for the marbles which ended up in the British Museum where they are displayed today. Did any of that money find it's way to Greece? Of course not. Lord Elgin used it to pay off his creditors! In 2013 British Prime Minister David Cameron stated he was totally against "returnism"! So much for official British policy! Another example. The Koh-i-Noor diamond is now located in the crown which the British Queen wore at her husband's recent coronation. But it had been tactfully removed prior to the public ceremony. This was a result of embarrassment of how the diamond came to be in the royal collection. It was originally mined in India, for centuries the only country in the world where diamonds were mined. In 1739 it was stolen by the Persian ruler, Nader Shah, in a mass looting of gold and treasure that left tens of thousands of Indians dead. In 1813 by which time the British East India Company held sway in India, the diamond was finally returned to the Sikh ruler Ranjit Singh. Noted Indian historians Anita Anand and William Dalrymple wrote an excellent book 5 years ago Koh-I-Noor: The History of the World's Most Infamous Diamond. In this they finally unearthed how Britain came to "own" this most precious of gems. "For the British, that symbol of prestige and power was irresistible. If they could own the jewel of India as well as the country itself, it would symbolize their power and colonial superiority. It was a diamond worth fighting and killing for, now more than ever. When the British learned of Ranjit Singh’s death in 1839, and his plan to give the diamond and other jewels to a sect of Hindu priests, the British press exploded in outrage. “The richest, the most costly gem in the known world, has been committed to the trust of a profane, idolatrous and mercenary priesthood,” wrote one anonymous editorial. Its author urged the British East India Company to do whatever they could to keep track of the Koh-i-Noor, so that it might ultimately be theirs." And that is precisely how Britain came to steal the diamond. In 1849 the British imprisoned one of Singh's heirs, 10 year old Juleep Singh, and his mother. In return for their freedom, they forced him to sign over the Koh-i-Noor diamond. The boy duly signed. The diamond was given to Queen Victoria in London. To suggest that this was anything other than outright blatant theft is utter nonsense! And further to suggest that Britain should still keep it is monstrous! I give high praise to many of Hong Kong's top Chinese businessmen. Many have been buying back priceless Chinese artefacts stolen by western powers and then donating them back to China. As anyone who has visited China knows, museums like the Shanghai Museum in People's Square are world class facilities. To suggest that stolen artefects would today be destroyed by their return as the Bamyan Buddhas (I cannot find any reference to Banyan Buddhas) were by the Taliban is a completely false argument, sorry to say. These Buddhas had not in fact been stolen!

Thanks to my partner's checking on some of the South American sites, I am staggered at how amazingly handsome many of the Columbian boys are. On my two South American trips (from Asia) I kick myself for not having included Columbia on the itineraries! As for Asia, I hope more readers will start to think about Taiwan and especially Taipei instead of always it being Thailand or The Philippines. I realise there will be concerns about not knowing the city and its gay places, not being able to speak Mandarin or read signs etc. Yet just on the apps alone there are many very cute Taiwanese young guys looking for the company of a westerner - often an older one.Most will speak reasonable English. On my trip last week, I had one young 20s guy all but desperate to travel up from Taichung (170 kms away) to spend a day with me! Taipei now has a plethora of gay venues from busy gay saunas and hot springs to gay bars and cafes, fetish clubs, gay dorm-type hotels with single and double rooms but where most guys walk around naked - and so on. Other cities are not so well endowed (sic) with gay venues but some are well worth a visit for a day or two. There it's the apps that will be humming and calling you! Plus travel is now so easy with the inexpensive high speed train linking Taipei in the north and Kaohsiung in the south in less than two and a half hours. For first time visitors it's probably best to consider a gay guide to take you around for the first couple of days. Or if you're adventurous, just look at some of the gay websites and get a map. Or even look at posts made here. I have no idea about flight costs from Europe and the USA. All I know is that Bangkok/Taipei flights on China Airlines are still what they were pre-covid and will continue as far as November year - less than 10,000 baht return including one 20kg bag and a large meal on board. And the service is excellent.

Since Aniki died 2 years ago, most of the discussion on saunas in Taipei has revolved around the relatively new Soi 13in. It certainly remains THE sauna for meeting mostly young Taiwanese and other Asians, especially at the week-ends when it always seems packed with way over 100 cute guys. But another sauna is undergoing something of a rebirth! For at least 2 decades, Hans Mens Sauna near the Red House gay complex of bars and cafes has continued to attract mostly older Taiwanese with occasional university students after classes and on a Saturday. The last time I went pre-covid it was pretty run down and sleazy, its one main attractive feature being a hot pool where you could sit and watch guys taking their showers, those having emerged from the very dark steam room often sporting sizeable erections. Four months ago it moved two blocks further up XiNing South Road into totally new premises. It now occupies the entire 8th floor of Wan Nian Building. It has obviously been designed from scratch and is spotlessly clean. It obviously hopes for a large number of patrons as I counted more than 300 lockers. I went twice, the more active being late on Saturday afternoon. Since it is so spread out, I could not accurately estimate the number of patrons but I reckon at least 70. Most seemed to make a beeline for the two steam rooms, at least to start their visits, and these were pretty active. The facilities also include a sauna, TV room with reclining loungers for relaxing and watching one of the regular TV movies, a corner with a long couch showing porn, a karaoke lounge, a decent number of private rooms (but not nearly enough if it ever gets packed) and about 4 totally dark spaces with mattresses. It also has an open-air balcony which I did not venture on to. I rarely if ever have met anyone I knew at a Taipei sauna. This time I was attracted to a young guy who came in and seemed to smile at me. After he had changed into his towel, he came up to me and said, "Obviously, you do not remember me!" I hate it when someone says that, but fortunately he went on, "It was at the hot spring about 4 years ago when I was 18. I only spoke a little English then but we chatted a little." Then the icing on the cake, "Really nice to see you here!" Needless to say, after he had showered and we had met up in a steam room, we chatted a bit and then proceeded to a dark room where we had a really great time. Afterwards we exchanged Line IDs and will keep in touch. The one thing the new Hans lacks is ambience, but then few attending will be looking for that. The walls are mostly industrial concrete and the floors linoleum. But overall I thought the clientele had moved down an age bracket or two. Clearly some guys were in their 20s but I reckoned most were between late 20s and mid-50s - except for me, that is!! To get to the sauna, probably the best way is to go through the Red House from near the subway exit to Sol Bar at the very end on XiNing South Rd. Exiting Sol, turn right, cross over the traffic intersection and walk up about 80 meters to the next intersection which is from the pedestrian area. Across the street you will see a large building in green. This is the Wan Nian Building. Find the entrance on XiNing South Road and walk through the small stores (a bit like Terminal 21 in Bangkok although these are mostly watch shops). There is no sign in English for the 8th floor, only one with two Chinese characters on a blue background. The lifts will be on your left. Entrance is now NT$400 (US$13), NT$50 more than at the old premises. I noticed there is a hotel on the 6th floor. No idea what it is like but I imagine pretty inexpensive. On a more general note, as far as the apps are concerned, I gave up on Blued a couple of years ago and was a bit surprised that some of my Taiwan friends had also ditched the app. Grindr was arguably the most active for young guys seeking older westerners, but Hornet and Jack'd were not far behind. I did venture out one evening to the gayish Hot Spring, Huang Tzu. Not as many guys as normally the case, but then it was very hot in Taipei last week and a hot spring is better suited to cooler if not colder weather. Still, there must have been 60 - 70 guys there with some as usual being agressively handsome.

I feel desperately sorry for Ugandan gays. I assume those who can afford it will elect to leave for other countries, but with many African countries holding on to British colonial anti-gay sex laws, I wonder to which countries they might consider moving.

In all my visitis to Taipei, I have never had a problem with flight times - until yesterday afternoon. Returning to Bangkok there were a lot of clouds and we had been advised in advance that it was raining at BKK. On several occasions an aircraft I was on from other destinations has had to circle for up to 30 minutes, usually around the Pattaya area while waiting for a rain storm to pass over BKK. Throughout my career and a vast number of flights, though, I have perhaps surprisingly only rarely experienced aborted landings for one reason or another. Yesterday the China Airlines flight had two goes at landing and both were aborted. So we had to fly up to Chiang Mai and sit there on the tarmac for an hour for refuelling before we could spend another hour flying back to BKK. By then the storms had passed and landing was easy. We were, though, four hours late. Several passengers were understandably very concerned about their connecting flights. Arriving at 20:05 instead of 16:05 most had missed theirs and I expect one or two might have had to wait overnight. As the rainy seaosn gears up, members who might be connecting at BKK might bear in mind the possibility of rain delays when making flight bookings.

Whenever I have taken the train it has invariably been full. Perhaps this is because most occasions were at or close to rush hour. I do feel, though, that 45 baht each way for an airport train is almost ridicuously cheap. In Hong Kong for roughly a similar length of ride it is close to 500 baht with 2 stops before the end of the line. The Nartia express in Tokyo is about the same, although the journey distance must be double with no stops, unless you take a train going beyond Tokyo station which is then a bit more expensive.

Having been out of Thailand last week I only came across this thread on my return last night. I had met Kjun12 several times and enjoyed his company. The first was for drinks on Silom with his long-time Thai partner. Thereafter we met for lunch on several occasions, once with Jellybean the moderator of the Sawatdee forum. The last time we met was at a Christmas dinner at their house to which he kindly invited me. Thereafter he had a bad accident outside his house which nearly took his life. Although we then arranged several times to meet, they were all postponed which I took to mean the effects of the accident were a good deal more serious. Yet he continued to send greetings cards on important occasions. My sincere condolences to his partner.

It was the Christians who led the anti-gay marriage movement in Taiwan. But then their numbers were thankfully vastly smaller than those in many African countries.

I find what is happening the USA utterly abhorrent. But as a non-US citizen I can do nothing about it. From the outside, though, the creeping homophobia smacks to a degree of what happened to gay men under the Nazis in the 1930s. My own personal view is that the term queer predates that of homosexual. To those who lived in the 1950s and 60s, being queer was a term of abject abuse. I therefore find it strange that it has come back into fashion virtually as a badge of pride. As far as other countries are concerned, my own - the UK - has its own gay baggage littered around the world. It is more simple than what is happening in the USA, but potentially far worse for gay men and women. I refer to the notorious Section 377 of the penal code brought in during the Victorian era, the so-called anti sodomy law making it illlegal for men to have sex with men. It was immediately enacted as law in all British colonial possessions. 23 former UK colonial posessions still have this law on the statute books, in some the penalties having been extended to, in some cases, death. The British conveniently left them as law because in Britain at the time it remained illegal to be gay. The law was not changed in England and Wales until 1967 (in Scotland it was some years later) when it had departed most colonies. In Asia, Singapore only decided to abolish this law last year. It took Hong Kong until 1990 to do the same. Yet the law continues in existence in the former British colonies of Malaysia and Brunei (where stoning to death entered the statute books in 2019). In both countries Islamic influlence is strong and the chances of the law being repealed slim in my view. Thankfully we have the example of Taiwan where gay marriage is now enshrined in law, as is the right of same-sex partners to have children.

Equally mysterious unless as seems possible it was a short time hotel.

When it opened around 2000 it was very farang friendly. In the last decade, though, it has definitely become far more Thai-for-Thai or Thai-for-Asian. On the other hand, if you are relatively young and fit, it should not be difficult to hook up. Thai friends tell me evenings after 7:00 pm and week-ends are the best times, unsurprisingly. For some years Chakran has also housed VCK Massage, the former V Club that for years was based in a separate house on Soi Aree. I have not been to the facilities in Chakran but the old V Club was a great massage place. It frequently had great looking and genuine models from TV and magazines offering massages. Perhaps others can comment if that continues.

Not sure I agree with this. As the eminent French statesman Jean Baptiste Colbert stated in the 17th century, “If you enact a law and do not enforce it, you are condoning what you condemn.”

The new Prime Minister-elect's threat to amend the Constitution, reduce the army's influence in politics and particularly to revise the lese majeste laws are anathema to the existing ruling elites. They are bound to mount a variety of major attempts to ensure the status quo is upheld. But if the Upper House that consists of totally army-appointed Senators and the ultra conservative Courts try to deny him power, I am totally certain the country's youth will be back on the streets in far greater numbers than three years ago. And this time far more of their parents' generation and business leaders will join them. For the first time in 4 decades of visiting and living in Thailand, I can feel a generational change in the air! Unlike the Shinawatra clan with its strong ties to the police and its extensive corruption, Khun Pita is not himself a product of the elite system, despite his family's wealth. He is extremely well educated, has extensive business experience, is a single parent and clearly exhibits a ton of charisma. Hopefully he does indeed become the country's next PM.

On Tuesday Taiwan's parliament approved a bill giving same sex couples the right to adopt children. When it passed approval for same sex marriage 4 years ago, it stopped short of adding acoption rights. That has now changed. 'Fan Yun, a lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party was among those that initiated the legal change . . . “Parental love is the same, and only through joint adoption can we protect the rights and interests of each other by law.”' https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/16/asia/taiwan-same-sex-adoption-marriage-equality-lgbtq-intl-hnk/index.html

Totally agree about Qatar. Since I usually fly through Doha to the UK, each round trip involves 4 flights and so I must have taken about 32 flights in recent years. The entire biz class experience is virtually as good as it gets. When I arrived in Doha in early March, the A380 was parked far from the terminal. But the premium class buses were more like limousines with individual armchairs for each passenger. As @TotallyOz mentions, the lounge at BKK is excellent with a very good selection of different types of food and drinks. The same is true of the on board catering. Never had a meal I did not enjoy and the wine list is excellent, especially the rose champagne offered on flights to and from Doha. I do find the lounge at Doha over large, though. Not surprising perhaps given that the number of passengers in the 11:00 pm - 2:00 am period is mega given that this is peak time for transfers.

Looking at the Skytrax review site both airlines are dropping down the rankings following the pandemic. Emirates was always higher than Etihad and remains so with an average rating now of 5/10 when it used to be 7/10. Etihad also used to have a much better reputation but is now at 4/10 and recent reviews are pretty dreadful. Pre-pandemic I took Emirates daily A380 from/to Bangkok/Hong Kong at least 2 dozen times when biz class tickets were cheaper than the cost of most economy tickets now. That was fantastic value. But the biz price is now 50%-70% higher depending on dates. Also I would not fly on Emirates 777 biz class as most aircraft still have 2-3-2 seating and seats which do not fully recline. I note that Qatar has just announced a 5th daily flight between BKK and Doha with some limited time reductions in biz class tickets between some destinations.

As @vinapu has pointed out, there are people movers along most of the routes from planes to Immigration. The actual amount of essential walking can not be more than about 100-150 meters. The morning rush hour traffic on the expressway into Bangkok is horrendous. The train is really the only option at that time and will be about one tenth or less of a taxi. There will be queues at the BKK station but trains depart quite frequently. I'd just join a queue until I could grab a seat - although the journey length is short.

Now we wait for the 250 army appointed Senators to determine if they will endorse the changes that the Thai people have clearly shown they desire. With Move Forward and Pheu Thai seemingly gaining their majorities from a largely youth vote (and young people persuading their family members to vote for them), will the ultra conservative nature of Thai politics finally change? Or will the Senators and the equally conservative Electoral Commission find a way to water down the election results or even nullify the vote? These look to be exciting times.

Strange, since you helped start it!

So you are extremely rude as well!

If I felt as you and not had vaccinations, given my age I would probably be dead by now! Your advice is unwanted.

This reminds me of my first ever visit to Thailand more than 4 decades ago. I was staying far from Suriwong and given the times I was somewhat timid about exploring. Then a tout offered to take me to a gay gogo bar and for the only time in my life I took him up on the offer. A long tuk-tuk ride later, I was in the somewhat notorious Stockholm bar near the foot of Langsuan - long before that street moved very upmarket. It was a large bar in an old Thai building, hardly any other customers and about a dozen boys dressed in jeans. The mamasan soon sat next to me asking my choice. Jet-lagged and unsure of protocol I said i was still not sure. She recommended I take two upstairs and let them do a show for me. And that's what i did. For one whose only prior experience of sex clubs was a couple of visits to the Reeperbahn in Hamburg and the saunas in Amsterdam, I was somewhat nervous. But the boys were great. As they were performing, one suggested I move to sit on the bed. It was not long before I was invited to join in the action. Given my inexperience of Thai bars, I loved it and even today it remains clear in my memory.

I have worn masks and used hand sanitizers virtually all the time in Thailand. My concern recently has been primarily the number of tourists visiting Thailand and the consequent possibility of somehow getting infected despite having had 4 vaccinations. Just over 2 weeks ago I was in Hong Kong for 48 hours. Although all restrictions have been lifted, again I wore masks. I know that most masks are far from foolproof, but I feel better wearing them. Then about 4 or 5 days after my return I started to feel unwell. Thereafter I tested positive and underwent a really bad week. For almost 3 days I had a very high fever and various lesser ailments. Worse, I had absolutely no appetite. For a week I was able to eat only a small bowl of cereal and fruit in the morning. By mid-week, I tried to drink some clear soup. After three spoonfuls I felt sick. All I could do during that week was drink lots of water, sometimes with electrolyte powder. Oddly, the really sore throat I was told to expect never materialised. It took 8 days before I tested negative over 2 consecutive days. The one good thing - if there is anything good about getting covid - is that I was at home. Had I been on vacation, it would certainly have ruined most of it. Perhaps ironically, I had tried to get a booster prior to a trip to the UK in early March, but was told by all the hospitals i contacted they had no stocks of vaccine. I certainly recommend that anyone presently living in Thailand, especially of the older generation, get a booster shot if available.