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I managed to get on this morning before going out. I noticed many off the posts in various threads were missing. I tried a few minutes ago and it's down again.

As we are "rich" and they aren't, I can understand why they might ask us for money. If I were in their position I'd probably try my luck, too. If only 1 in 10 farang agreed, I'd be ahead. Most guys know they will probably never see us again, so it's worth a try. I spend most off my money on the guys at Golden Cock when I'm in Bangkok. I'm always pleasantly surprised when none off the guys ask for money, even though they are aware off how much I spend there day after day on drinks, tips and offs.

"I took a new to Pattaya Farang friend with me to Winners who was disgusted that i threw ping ping balls at the boys and walked out." I don't blame him. I first saw the ping long ball throwing at BBB and felt very uncomfortable with the idea. Watching the guys pushing each other aside as they scrambled for the balls was a humiliating experience for them, I thought. Lots or customers thought it was a scream and we're having a good laugh. But it was at the guys' expense.

I'm not a charity. If guys ask for money - something that rarely happens in my experience - they have to do something to earn it. My two regular guys have never made such a request, nor have they ever asked me to buy them anything. Any shopping we do is my idea. But if either if them found themselves needing money, I'd help them out in a heartbeat.

I think I agree with you -"may" sounds better as, at the end of the day, we can only speculate.

I couldn't imagine students ever getting naked with their teacher, although on school trips we always went into the public bath together - but that's different. As for gaijin getting involved in a bit of fun, I guess they'd behave like they do at home and keep their pants on. Mind you, guys involved in sporting teams in Australia, especially football players, often get naked together. It builds team spirit, apparently! Last month a number of them were charged with Indecent Exposure when they got naked at a party celebrating the end of the season. The problem is, they did it on the balcony of a hotel in full view of passers-by. A few years ago photos appeared on social media showing footballers engaging in group sex. Other photos have appeared from time to time showing team members cavorting nude in hotel rooms. One team, the Bulldogs, used to perform the "elephant walk" in front of fans at end -of -season celebration parties. They get naked and walk right behind each other in a line, holding hands between each others' legs. So from the above, it seems some foreigners do exactly what the some Japanese do when they belong to a specific group. I belonged to a number of different groups - a few friendship groups and a group of close work colleagues. But we only got naked sometimes; it wasn't a regular occurrence with us. But all it took was for one guy to strip off and it was game on. I think the photo of the guys up the tree is just an example of the above. At the end of the day, we are all basically the same when the situation arises. In societies where nudity is not constrained by religious taboos, and where guys commonly bathe naked together, it's no big deal. The other photo where there is actual physical contact between the guys is probably abuse. BTW faranglaw, the gay scene for locals in Japan tends to centre on gay clubs in the backstreets of Ueno, which all require membership. I had membership in three of them. My parents actually bought me my first membership as a 21st birthday present! They are hidden away behind closed doors. There are also numerous gay bars and short-time hotels in the area but you have to know where they are. Also, gaijin are not welcome unless you go with a friend and can speak Japanese. I have since sold my memberships. I once wrote a detailed report on SGT about a gay cinema situated at the top of the stairs leading down to Shinobazu Pond in Ueno Park. (Oh, the stories I could tell!) The cinema complex is still there but I'm not sure if the gay one upstairs is still going.

They have to "mop up" after you? Wow! Lol

What about the various food scraps floating in the tea? That's also a turn-off for me. And I also worry about that may that has been sitting out in the sun for God knows how long. At the end of the day, it's probably safe. I have actually eaten at the Sunday night food market in Chiang Mai. But when I'm on holiday the last thing I want is to get food poisoning. It's just not worth the risk.

Yes, that's the one. Paborn, I access Silom Complex directly from upstairs at the Sala Daeng BTS station. Look for Canyon Coffee.

A few years ago in Shinjuku on New Years Eve some guys climbed one of the lamp posts outside the station. To the chants of "chinko misero!" (Show us your cock!) they stripped off. They were soon joined by another group who climbed the post on the other side of the street who did the same. There must have been at least a dozen guys involved. Sadly, the cold weather didn't do them any favours! The police came along, told them to get down, get dressed and move on. In Australia they'd be charged with Indecent Exposure, but in Japan it is no big deal - just guys being "naughty." The nudity I personally encountered close up always happened behind closed doors. At the end of the year Japanese hold 'bounenkai" parties. From my experience over many years and having attended dozens of such events with colleagues, guys getting naked after a few glasses of Chuu-hai, dancing around and singing karaoke is par for the course. It's not sexual in any way - it's the Japanese way of bonding with your colleagues. I don't know whether or not you speak Japanese, but they have an expression "hadaka no tsukiai" which refers to socialising in the nude. The idea behind it is that if you take your clothes off, rank and seniority disappears - everyone is treated as equal. It's the only time this happens. At my company's bounenkai parties where, yes, I also dropped my pants, the divide between myself and my superiors magically disappeared. Respect language was toned down and we could laugh and joke together, and bitch and complain to our hearts content.. The next day at work, everything reverted to normal. My Australian friends are horrified when I tell them what I got up to, but to me I see my behaviour in Japan as something quite normal. The bottom line is, they see nudity completely differently to the way we do. To experience it, you need to belong to a tight -knit group, be it your work colleagues or just your friendship group. And again, it's non-sexual. And it's a feeling of freedom - being free from the strict social conventions of daily life in Japan.

I would love to eat street food but having seen how they "wash" the plates in that filthy water (which is probably never changed by the look of it), I only eat in restaurants. I often go to a street food restaurant in the basement of Silom Complex opposite the supermarket. I once ordered a soup and it was so spicy it had me in tears. I went back the next night and ordered it again! Unfortunately, I don't have a favourite Thai restaurant in Pattaya. I go out for dinner with Nom every night and leave the choice of restaurant up to him. But he never chooses a Thai restaurant. When I'm in town he only wants to eat steak and Japanese food, although last visit he introduced me to Ninja Seafood restaurant and that was awesome. I'm no gourmet, that's for sure, but I love food. I'm obsessed with it, especially when I travel. I've already chosen some of the restaurants I'll be visiting when I go to Japan next month.

Bob, that confirms what the German owner told me earlier this year. Looks like Soi Twilight's days are numbered. The end may have come quicker than we thought. But with bars now re-locating across the street, it doesn't really matter. As long as the guys keep their jobs.

Yes, that's my view, too.

In a country like Japan, where society is very much controlled and freedom to do what you want to is severely curtailed, when guys get drunk one of the first things they do is get naked. It's their way of strengthening the bond between each other and can be seen as a reaction against their society which strictly governs their behaviour. So when I saw the guys up the tree, I wondered if this is their way of breaking free, rather than being forced into it. Maybe they are just having a bit of fun.

The point I was making is that if you are lucky enough to live in the ciuntry, you don't need to know about how the language works. That has been my experience learning 3 languages in-country. If you don't live in the country, you need a lot of contact time with the language. Unfortunately, I don't live in Thailand so need to take classes. Those "non-natural learning approaches" you mentioned therefore apply to me. We are in total agreement.

I disagree. With English and Japanese -and French to a certain extent - I learnt them from hearing them spoken 24/7 over a number of years. The structure of the language came naturally. For example, I didn't need anyone to explain to me that in Japanese the verb comes at the end of the sentence. And I could conjugate French verbs correctly without even knowing there are three different types. With German, on the other hand, which I did not learn naturally - I actually had to study it - I needed someone to teach me the very specific word order, how to use the four different noun cases and the various other complicated aspects of grammar. As I don't live in Thailand there is no way I can just pick up the gramnar and structure of Thai. I need things explained. Other people may not. If you pick up any language textbook you'll find grammatical explanations. There's a reason for that.

"entirely unecessary." For you, maybe but not for me. We all learn in different ways. Learning a language in-country is not the same as learning it sitting in a classroom. I learnt Japanese by being forced to speak it every day and so was able to pick up the grammar naturally - just as I did when I learnt my native language as a child.

"Also, no matter how much work you put in, the quality of the teaching makes a difference." That is so true. Just being a native speaker is not enough. You have to know how to teach. That is why your boyfriend may not be a suitable teacher. A few years ago I did a 10 week conversational Thai course. There were about 10 students, including two females. The teacher was a Thai housewife who didn't really speak much English. Consequently, she did not know how to explain the grammar and structure of the language. We started with the greetings but she then moved to those 3 questions we hear from the guys - What's your name,? Where are you from? How long are you staying in Thailand? She then added: 'What's your phone number?" and 'What's your hotel room number?" The two female students were never seen again!

I wonder how common these "drills" are in the Thai military. I've seen a few photos over the years, such as the ones posted here, but when I've mentored it to guys over the years who have done military service, they say they've never experienced or seen anything like that. If it's not consential then it is a form of abuse or hazing. BTW, they also said that they'd never seen any sexual activity in the military, either. I've heard numerous accounts from farang of orgies and group jerk-off sessions in the barracks, but all the guys I've ever spoken to have denied ever seeing anything. I think the farangs are simply letting their imaginations run wild.

"5.if your hotel is nearby leave everything in the room, take with you only as much as you think you may need plus, say 500 baht for unforeseen extras, then return to your hotel and continue with your chores." That's what I do. And I always wear a cheap watch.

As I've said previously, Golden Cock can be hit and miss. You need to know what to do in order to have a good time there. It's more like a social club where the guys gather to meet up and spend time enjoying each others' company. The key is, you need to get to know the guys by visiting frequently. If you do that, they will turn up for you. My favourite guys are always there for me whenever I'm in town. It might be difficult if you just walk in off the street.

Perhaps one of the reasons Thai partners don't want their farang to learn Thai is because they fear they will be expected to be their full-time teacher, and they can't be bothered. Another reason might be because they want to practise their English. Also, some Thais want us to believe their language is so difficult and so "special" that farangs couldn't possibly be smart enough to become competent. I also find the tones difficult to master and as a consequence, I get a lot of "arai na?" responses. Like Thai, Japanese is also very contextual as there are so many homonyms and you need to see the Chinese characters. It's why you often see people "writing" the characters in the air or on their hands. Often they even have to "spell" the character in order to be understood. But that's a lot easier than trying to distinguish words by their tones.

We all know that Paulsf is reliable, but "rock hard"? Then again, he is in Thailand, so.....

I reported seeing the "trapeze act" at Hotmale earlier this year. The hot hunky top was a true Lord of the Rings! And on the same trip I saw a fuck show at X-Boys. There was no trapeze involved but the lights were fully on and they didn't bother with that annoying curtain which hid most of the action. It was well and truly in your face. So the full-on fuck show seems to be making its way back, no doubt to attract more customers, as witty has mentioned.

I've thoroughly enjoyed reading your trip reports, Vinapu. Thanks for taking the considerable time required to write them for us. I'm in awe of your stamina!