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Excellent video of efforts to construct a large mural, memorializing the event. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-asia-45029013/thailand-mural-celebrates-cave-heroes

From NHK Newsline Travelers passing through the main airport in Laos are about to see the benefits of the latest development aid from Japan in the form of a bigger, better terminal building. An opening ceremony at Vientiane Airport on Thursday marked the debut of the new facility which is twice as big as the original. Japan covered most of the cost through assistance worth around 80 million dollars. It comes at a time when Laos is increasing its economic ties with China. A Japanese company will continue to manage the terminal for another 10 years in tandem with a local state-run enterprise. Japanese officials say they hope the aid can contribute to sustaining relations between the 2 countries. Video link https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20180809_44/

The guy in dead center of photo is the one I wrote about in my recent trip report. He remains the object of my Moonlight obsession.

From South China Morning Post After years of debate, Chinese scientists are close to a consensus on the design for what would be the world’s longest undersea railway tunnel, connecting the mainland to Taiwan. If realised, shuttle trains could be whizzing through a 135km (84 mile) undersea section of the tunnel at up to 250km/h (155mph) by 2030. The ambitious undertaking would include a multi-billion-yuan engineering and technical “warm-up” project, according to plans the scientists have sent the Chinese government, the South China Morning Post has learned. Despite this technological progress, rising political tensions between the self-ruled island and Beijing, which regards it However, some researchers said it was possible that Beijing would start work on the project in a unilateral, and largely symbolic move. Continues with pics and video https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2158271/strait-ahead-how-beijing-planning-worlds-longest-rail-tunnel-link

From The Nation Kuala Lumpur - The Malaysian government came under fire Thursday for ordering the removal of two LGBT activists' portraits from an exhibition, with campaigners labelling it an attack on the "dignity" of the gay community. The photos of Nisha Ayub and Pang Khee Teik were taken down from display at an arts festival in the northern state of Penang this week following the government order, festival organisers confirmed. Authorities in Muslim-majority Malaysia often take a dim view of homosexuality, and the country retains its colonial-era ban on sodomy. Officials have been criticised for introducing programmes directed at the LGBT community, such as a competition launched last year by the health ministry offering cash prizes to whoever could create the best video explaining how to "prevent" homosexuality. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/breakingnews/30351828

From Bloomberg News Thailand’s central bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged near a record low as expected, and kept its rhetoric about the decreasing need for monetary policy to support the economy. Six of the seven monetary policy committee members voted to hold the one-day bond repurchase rate at 1.5 percent, where it’s been since 2015, according to a statement on the Bank of Thailand’s website on Wednesday. One MPC member voted for a 25 basis-point increase. All 20 economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted the rate would stay on hold. Thailand’s hefty foreign reserves and a current-account surplus have helped to shield the nation against the worst of the volatility engulfing emerging markets, giving the central bank more time to refrain from raising rates. But policy makers have started to lay the groundwork for rate hikes as inflation picks up and economic growth strengthens. “The need to use an accommodative monetary policy will continue to lessen over time,” Assistant Governor Jaturong Jantarangs said in a briefing in Bangkok. “But we can’t say when is the trigger point.” The central bank will probably raise rates if “overall economic activity over the period continued to gain traction from all components, especially private consumption and investment,” Tim said in a note. The export outlook is better than expected and the central bank hasn’t yet seen the impact from rising global trade protectionism, Bank of Thailand’s Jaturong said. Economic growth was at a five-year high of 4.8 percent in the first quarter. Inflation is slowly rebounding and has returned to the central bank’s target range of 1 percent to 4 percent since April. Bank of Thailand said it is closely monitoring the currency’s volatility and its impact on the economy. The baht was among the worst-performing Asian currencies in the past three months, dropping about 4 percent against the dollar. “Looking ahead, the baht would likely remain volatile, and thus the committee would continue to closely monitor exchange-rate developments as well as impacts on the economy,” the central bank said in the statement. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-08/thailand-holds-key-rate-near-a-record-low-to-support-growth

I counsel patience. It was small, and I don't know what it symbolized. But it did not deter me.

From BBC Travel ‘Sumumasen’ is an everyday word used to show respect for others (Credit: Malcolm Fairman/Alamy) So, if apologies are just one cog in the larger moving wheel of Japanese politeness, where does the overarching cultural concept come from? “There is a need for politeness in Japan to get along with living on top of your neighbours – it’s a respect for others,” Inokuma said. In Tokyo, watching great swaths of humanity queuing politely for miles on end to get into Shinjuku Gyoen park or shuffling forwards towards Nakameguro’s riverside during cherry blossom season, this makes sense. Japan has some of the most densely packed cities in the world, with a whopping 93.93% urban population. Tokyo, for instance, has around 6,150 people per sq km, in comparison to London’s 5,729 (bear in mind, that includes Tokyo’s expansive outer suburbs – the bulk of residents are concentrated in the city centre of Greater Tokyo, the world’s most populous metropolitan area, and a further 2.4 million commute in every day). The average living space per person in the city is an elbow-bumping 22 sq m across the country, going down to 19 sq m in Tokyo. We experienced this first hand, staying in apartments throughout our trip that were unanimously spotless, homely – and unbelievably tiny. When there’s a premium on space, it suddenly seems natural to become as considerate of it as possible. “There is this respect for other people’s space,” Longhurst affirmed. “When you go into a Japanese home you always take your shoes off – a separation of outside and inside. There’s also an attitude of ‘meiwaku’, meaning ‘sorry to bother you’ or ‘sorry to come into your space’.” But this bone-deep politeness isn’t just a reaction to cramped living quarters. When we got out of the cities into the stillness of the Japanese Alps, people were, if anything, even more polite. We walked into Kamikochi, a mountain valley closed for the season: a strenuous two-hour hike that’s usually a 10-minute drive when the buses are running. It was worth it, but when a worker stopped and offered to drive us back, we nearly cried with relief. The day before on the rural bus up to our Okuhida ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn), I’d left my phone and didn’t realise for hours. The bus driver who found it later personally delivered it, calling Find My iPhone’s ‘lost phone’ number of the ryokan flashing on the screen to get the address to drop it off at. Continues with photos http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20180805-the-complex-art-of-apology-in-japan

The biggest culprit is the single track bottleneck at Saphan Taskin. One fix would be to increase the number of cars in a train that I believe existing platforms can accommodate.

When I first started visiting LOS, it was not that uncommon to encounter guys (particularly from Isan) who had their already adequate equipment "enhanced" with beads, injections and implants. Judging by the results, it didn't look like work necessarily performed in a medical setting. It was a fad that fortunately faded.

From Khaosod English BANGKOK — The BTS system may soon get slightly less crowded as dozens of new trains with more capacity set to enter service later this year. BTS Skytrain executives on Monday officially unveiled the first of 46 new trains in Chonburi province, purchased for 11 billion baht to support the Sukhumvit line and its extension to Samut Prakan province, which will open in December. The train, comprising four carriages, was delivered Sunday. Company representatives said the new trains’ carriages, bought from German and Chinese companies, have a 10 percent greater capacity than current ones. All new trains will be delivered by late 2019. The popular city rail network currently serves about 900,000 daily commuters. Surapong Laoha-Unya, the company’s director, said in 2017 that 52 trains were in service along both lines. Its official website says each train accommodates up to 1,490 passengers. The operator faces mounting pressure to improve its services after it malfunctioned repeatedly in recent months, suffering signalling system disruptions, defective doors and water leakages inside carriages. It broke down as many as 20 times in June alone. http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/bangkok/2018/08/06/new-bts-trains-coming-to-extended-route/

From the Nation Thailand Post holds exhibition to mark 135th anniversary Thailand Post has invited people to visit an exhibition it has organised at the Central Post Office in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district to learn about Thai postal history and buy commemorative stamps specially issued to mark the 135th anniversary of Thai postal services.At the opening ceremony on Saturday, Thailand Post president Samorn Therdthamphiboon said people could visit the exhibition every day from Tuesday to Sunday until October 31 and admission is free. Continues with pics http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30351471

From The Nation A special lane at Suvarnabhumi airport has been inaugurated - it is for the ease and convenience of Chinese visitors. Thailand's poster boy top cop Maj Gen "Big Joke" Surachet Hakpal - deputy commissioner of the tourist police - and Pol Maj Gen Pritthipong Prayoonsiri at Region 2 immigration have shaken hands on the deal that provided the new lane. Though they did not mention if this was in response to bad press after the boat accident in Phuket recently that saw many Chinese cancel their holidays. Continues with pics, video http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/around_thailand/30351469

From National Public Radio Scotty Bowers, pictured here in his Marine uniform, ran a gas station in post-WWII Hollywood that provided a unique service for many movie stars of the era. Greenwich Entertainment We are constantly rewriting our collective history, but few of us can do it with as much devilish glee as Scotty Bowers. Now 95, the onetime Hollywood hustler spent decades during Tinseltown's golden era providing sexual services to the biggest names in town, including Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, George Cukor and Rex Harrison. He'd rent out a trailer in the back of a gas station on Hollywood Boulevard for $20 per session and also make house calls, sometimes matching the celebrity with his tricks, often jumping into bed with them himself. And Scotty never spilled the beans on any of his clients, until they'd almost all died off and he felt free to publish his salacious tell-all memoir in 2012, forever altering our relationship to the stars. Well, Scotty's got nothing to lose anymore, and director Matt Tyrnauer knows it, which must by why now is the time for Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood. The documentary sets fire to the red curtain of modesty we've draped around our celluloid idols for so long. Some will be skeptical of such hard-to-prove claims about long-dead celebrities, which can have a JFK-conspiracy-theory tint to them, although for what it's worth, a lot of folks (including Gore Vidal) have vouched for their accuracy. But today, the hardest part of Scotty's story to swallow might be that he was somehow able to practice decades of discretion. You watch him on camera, going off on wild tales about setting Hepburn up with 150 women, and you can't believe this guy was capable of keeping all his clients' needs in his head—never writing down a word—for so long. He just enjoys the gossip too much. Picture him tossing off this nugget about Grant and his "roommate" Randolph Scott in as casual a tone as you can imagine: "I've been with them individually, and both of them, what you'd call a three-way, and I also brought another buddy so there were four of us, you know, two and two." Continues with pics https://www.npr.org/2018/08/05/635462094/a-sexual-underground-surfaces-in-scotty-and-the-secret-history-of-hollywood

You've been active in many posts but this one has summoned our better angels. I am sorry to hear of your declining health as are fellow members. You've been our go-to guy for all things Singapore. I especially recall your wonderful street food contributions there and elsewhere. Please don't hesitate to share what you're comfortable with. You know that there are many folks who are ready to listen. We may not be family but I think most will agree that we are a community. You may feel physically useless but what you offer us is far from spiritually useless. You have taken a risk and shared your despair. That required courage. Please post whenever you can, Abang. The strength you muster to do this contributes your unique inspiration to us all.

I've been trying to think of an event that produced as much positive feelings than did this. It affirmed the very best man is capable of in the face of calamity. Courage, tenacity, selflessness on the part of the rescuers; humility, bonding, and courage on the part of the rescued. I think this is class apart and will likely remain so. It will indeed be difficult for a movie to capture accurately these feelings. But with so much to work with, I look forward to the effort. The world needs to witness what occurred. It has immense potential to inspire when inspiration has never been more in need.

From Coconuts Bangkok Members of the “Wild Boars” football team hand flower garlands to Buddhist monks during a ceremony to mark the end of their retreat as novice monks at the Wat Phra That Doi Tung temple in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai province on August 4, 2018. The Thai boys freed from a flooded cave in a rescue bid that gripped the world left the Buddhist monastery 11 days after ordaining as novice monks to honour a diver who died in the mission to save them. / AFP PHOTO / Lillian SUWANRUMPHA https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/thai-cave-boys-leave-buddhist-monastery-honoring-dead-rescuer/

Whenever I'm with a young man in public, I practice decorum and do nothing that would cause him to lose face. No public displays of affection, no hand holding. In short, we behave as friends. Whether were walking across a hotel lobby or eating in a restaurant, I remain at ease and chat with him. That, I believe, enables him to relax and feel confident that we belong there. And it telegraphs to others that same message. In brief, I've traveled halfway around the world to be with guys like this and I'm proud to be in their company. The key, for me, is to show respect for my companion. While waiting for pizza to arrive at the Madrid last month, my regular guy walked around, looking at the many photos on the walls, soaking in the atmosphere. I couldn't help but notice his self confidence and comfort level. We were just two guys (albeit separated by a few generations) who wanted to share a good meal and a few laughs as we drank our beers. I would not hesitate at all to embrace a friend I haven't seen for a while as any other friends would do, regardless of sexual persuasion. I don't like to think of it as anything more complicated.

As of 10 days ago, quite a few of the guys who appear in photos were still around. Four I know are temporarily--I believe--back in VN. There's always a turnover so it's interesting to walk by and see what's changed. I can attest that in almost every case they look better in the flesh than they do in pics.

From Bangkok Post An Algerian man has been arrested for picking the pocket of a Hong Kong tourist inside a passenger carriage at the Makkasan Airport Link train station. The passenger reported his wallet missing on Wednesday. Tourist police then examined recordings from closed-circuit cameras, which showed a man stealing the wallet from the tourist on board a train at Makkasan station on Aug 1. Police found the stolen black wallet in his possession, along with the 1,020 baht cash and US$2,680 it contained. A police investigation revealed the suspect had entered Thailand 12 times. Police believed he entered the country to commit similar offences each time as he had three passports he took turns using. https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1515158/algerian-pickpocket-caught-working-airport-link-trains

And he only charges her 2,000. Not fair. Clear case of gender discrimination.

NOTE -- I've only been successfully pickpocketed once (Buenos Aires, 2003) and never in Krung Thep. The trade, however, was common practice when I was visiting the suck cinema in Saphan Kwai 16 years ago. Fortunately, those who practiced it weren't the smoothest of operators and most movie goers seemed to quickly spot the telltale moves. And if you were a regular you began to recognize them by sight, even in the dark. This was the wonderful time before apps and this particular location would attract huge crowds of young Thais after work and on weekends. Outside of that, it's never been one of my concerns. Now, however, it seems on the rise in the target-rich environment of the Chit Lom BTS stop. And it is foreigners who have taken it up. From Khaosod English BANGKOK — Three Mongolian men were charged with pickpocketing and credit card fraud Thursday after being arrested at BTS Chit Lom. Okhinsuren Bayarsaikhan, Tseddenbal Oyunbold and Indermaa Ganbold, all in their 30s, were accused of stealing 300,000 baht in various currencies from tourist areas last month, much of which allegedly went to purchasing iPhone Xs. They have been charged with pickpocketing and credit card fraud. Police arrested the trio near BTS Chit Lom on Wednesday and seized US dollars, Euros, Thai baht, Australian dollars and Korean Won worth about 100,000 baht. Tourist Police Deputy Commissioner Maj. Gen. Surachet Hakpal said Thursday that the gang consisted of five Mongolians who entered the country July 18. Two returned home July 26 with the iPhone Xs. Credit card fraud is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of 100,000 baht. http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/crime-crime/2018/08/02/mongolians-accused-of-pickpocketing-bangkok-tourists/

From Bangkok Post The new terminal for interprovincial public passenger vans is located under the Si Rat expressway, opposite Mor Chit bus terminal. The new terminal for public passenger vans operating on interprovincial routes opened in Bangkok on Wednesday. All van services at Mor Chit bus terminal had been moved to the new facility on Kamphaeng Phet 2 Road under the Si Rat expressway, Land Transport Department director-general Sanit Promwong said. The new terminal, built for exclusive use by public vans, is across the road from the Mor Chit bus terminal. The 30-rai complex can handle up to 2,000 passengers at a time, leaving on all routes. Transport Co allows public vans to operate to destinations within 300 kilometres. Longer routes are reserved for buses. https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1513838/new-van-terminal-for-interprovincial-routes-opens

It was about 35+ years ago when late one evening I picked up a hitchhiker and agreed to drop him near his home. En route some groping quickly ensued so I pulled into a deserted beach parking lot. With out pants around our ankles, we proceed much like you did in Silom. As I was getting (going) down to business, I noticed that his right hand had dipped down below steering column and then moved to deposit something between passenger seat and door. But I was enjoying the session so much I let it pass for the moment. When it was his turn to reciprocate, he gave me one of the best blow jobs that is probably as high on the memory scale as yours. As we zipped up a few minutes later, I reached over and retrieved my wallet. Looking a little deflated, he said, "Want me to get out here?" I told him no. "You didn't stop when I said I'm coming so I figure I at least owe you a ride home." I still occasionally jerk off to that incident of my youth. Well more his than mine, actually.

Thanks, DM, for the above link. Particularly enjoyed links at the end of article that describe other new parks about town I wasn't aware of. Too bad city administration couldn't work out an agreement with long-time fort residents. As a youngster, my family was forced out of our home by the "urban renewal" craze that swept many American cities 50 years ago. It paved the way for commercial deevelopment but also resulted in the destruction of the city center. Politically-connect real estate interests made out fine, however.