pong

Frankly; this has been told here 123456 times or so by now; there is NO hotel or aprtmt in the whole of that biggest brothel in this world that does not allow ''partners'' in-no one at reception will be able to tell if they ask you for baht in the room or not-nor does it matter (in 99,99% of places) that your partner is male. It is their prime bisnis! How they handle your temp. visitor varies by place- your boy for the time wont be offended by any asking for ID or whatever, even if you may think it is ''not done''

It is one of those annoying farang-unfriendly manners of Pattaya-the Thai do not have that trouble. Most of them make small ''asking'' gestures with their hand- like str8 on or turn L/R-if it approaches a junction. And there are NO set routes by drivers-it goes just as custom asks for. But then again it is heavencompared to what farag have to endure in Phuket.

Do like any Thai would do-and even as some of the older printed guidebooks tell you: hire a MOTOSAI at the bak-soi=start of the soi. If not for the distance, then for their knowing ANY place along their streets. Plus a shiny example -you can tell your friends braggingly @ home about it-how smart you were to do so and how crazy the BKKians are... On the way into the far end of soi 11-the most unThai soi I know of, you pass BED-the spaceship tourist-approved supperclub and with good eyes youll note 2 more massgeplaces for M2M; Albury and Banana Club. and also from me thanks for kjun- one mostly reads this on other forums.

perhaps in a rubber boat with boots on and in a raincoat with some sandbags in his entourage to show off how dumb the Thai were to to let him in earlier? Oh no-that would make dear sister loose the face too much........... 2nd Try: he will politely explain to BKKians that that would be their expected fate becse they had the nerve to not vote for him..........You see; My hometown CMai was not flooeded-or at least not so much

furhter news: this does thus NOT mean that NOK will fly out of Swampy. They intend to park their planes at U-Tapao. Orient Thai (formerly known as 1-2-GO or 1-2-Crash) has moved flights to Swampy-reduced schedule. From the news: Don Muang airport was flooded-so that a bunch of latest arrivals on NOK were trapped inside the terminal building (since a few monthes they moved domestic to the old international big building0 AND the ''flood regulation or so Committee has its premises/temp. offices in this building (also used by the govt. when the reds besieged parliament last year). It is to be exepcetd that many news/radio and papers, will confuse peope with ''BKK airport closed by flooding'' or so- again: this is the OLD DMUang airport, hitherto only used by a very few domestic flights and NOT the newm main big Suvannaphumi airport-which is dry and safe and all that. I also read (en enormous thread on TA=tripadvisor) that SOME=not all airlines are nice to booked pax into BKK and let them postpone or divert their bookings (f.e. to KUL or SIN)-contact your airline if that might interest you.

sorry for lateness, I usually do not follow this forum-part. I always thought that somehow you were working or closely attached to an airline, so i assumed you would know the tricks of that trade. general: I think a dedicated forum like flyertalk is far better suited for these types of Q. -1-+-2-+-3-: Varies, but for a large part this is history-sometimes from a century ago. Same-same as so often on Thaivisa and the like: people like to pass on stories ''heard from a friend'' and recycled again and again-without clearly stating from what date it was. It also has to do with the airline and were it is based; in the EU and hence for EU-airlines, this is now strictly forbidden en checked that they do not sneak in. Thus even old grandma BA has to follow suit-and the Brits can complain again about the nosyness of the EU or so? more specific: I have checked prices to BKK for several weeks on several boards for dep. jan '12. They were stable for a week or 2-and then moven up, all together,. FRom what I have read about the new technology etc. it is more a case of ''what others=the competition'' does as any other. There are also some fabled stories that some airlines put cookies in your computer so that next time you check you have to see a higher price-as I use public computers and do not have my own, I escape this easily-and so does half of thailand. -3- as said, this is now forbidden in the EU. Also the skipping of a first part of a ticket to gain a better fare (f.e. KLM would offer LONdon-Accra via AMS cheaper as a return starting in AMS). However, US-airlines still do that and lead you into another part of their enormous www's to gain higher fares, easy to avoid by sing a neutral booking machine. Some minor airlines with too many staff (and hence loosing too much money as state-pride) perhaps do this on monopoly routes=always to/from their own HQ. But of course there are many more of those in Asia as in EU BTW-did you know that business traveller mag has various versions, not even interrelated? the one for EU is only by subscription or distributed in some airlines.

nice pix! It is no secret: the tipical bekpek style guides have this place since a few yrs in the books. But the curse of chiense tourist travel is exactly those domestic Chinese (like on my last trip into yun-nan=south of the clouds): too many of them, a barrier with a hefty entrance fee at every conceivable and more spots, JPNese style tourgroups with those flags and all with the same type/colour of baseball cap on. Funny to see now you also admire BK-mag: I always make it one of my first to grab it somewhere after arr in BKk-wetcity. A perhaps fairly cheap way to reach it is on AirAsia-via KUL then. And Chengdu gained a direct link to AMSterdam on KLm a year or so ago-coming from West-Eur. A the Chiense Embassy in BKK (near Fortune Town-on the MRT) you can easily and without fuss get a tourist visa for China- 1100 THB for NOn-USA (these pay 140 US$=the same as you charge them for entry) and perhaps 9my cinic mind) any city in mainland China that has over 3 gays may once be called ''the gay capital of china?'' in utopian thinking

2 points: re Paradise Inn- I stayed regularly at the old place-guess now how long ago that was. From recent reports and that area, i conclude it is now at least 99% Arab-make up your mind for yourself. Also many rooms for rent in that giant Chinese Wall-lookalike condo (yensabai|?) behind Sunee-these are mostly private, so standard intern vary 2.Re rented bahtbus; in BKK in a real taxi, meter, with AC and all that (and does not matter how many people inside) for a 100 bt ride you can go nearly 15 km (in nighttime-no traffic waiting) Really: all of you who say ''it is so cheap'' have no clue about prices. But yes, I also know- in London a single on the bus is now 2,20 GBP=well over 100bt, p.p. it also really does not matter at all where you pick it up, but Thai will take care to use it in the right direction-so that he does not need to turn. In BKK there is the curse (for the unknowing) of waiting taxi's who refuse to go by meter-I have not really seen that so much in PTY

Then that most likely means there are lots of lurkers just for the pix. Frankly for me most pix are not worth that much: 99% of them I have seen anyway somewhere before-or at least a same-same thing. I mostly read this and other fora for the real information about things I do not (yet) know, changes etc. But I realise I am not much of the average big median in these matters. And much more trivial: can you also determine how many ''unique hits'' (or whatever this is called in web-management it were to Obsessions-or just the owners checking ev. 5 mins (with same code) if someone had dared to write somethig negative about their place?

seems to me-and again I am no expert at all in these matters, that it is basically the same as if you had a 2nd home in whatever country and died without any direct relatives (children etc.). Here in this EU-country the threshold for heritage is very, very high for direct children (and be honest: is what you describe as your small little condo worth over 325k in GBP=nearly 15 million THB?) and gets lower when the lineage to those who gain is further away. Best way to get some general advice would seem to be in the multitude of ''home abroad'' UK organisations, much less costly as a solicitor on an individual project. If you choose to ''give'' your condo now to the relatives, it would turn the situation around; then they give to you (the rent-value), no idea if that would also hit you with UK-taxes. Most urgent to me would seem to have someone trusted in Thailand to take care of your possessions after death- and handle them in the way you requested.

And now my idea about how that booming Chinese economy will stall-sooner or later: China only allows/takes their own people running bisnis. They milk out western firms till they have what to them seems enough to carry on by their own. The higher those figures about booming economy, the more suspect you should get: they fake everything, statistics and even signal systems for their new high-speed trains and metro-systems. In the end it is my beleive that no country can survive that is being led by fossile dinosaurs of 80+ (every now and the they adopt a youngie-of 66+) and with a rampant corrupt mid-management -so corrupt that even Thaksin and his family/cronies pale in comparison. Most of you are mature enough to remember the same hype about Japan and the Pacific-rim booming tigers: see what has come from Japans economy since 2000. By the time it is stalling-oh, do not worry, there will be a new booming tiger-economy (India?)-going all the same way. They can only build and construct for things to last a year of 4-5 and then they fall apart-well, at least that keeps doestic economy alive, but wont be a big moneymaker. OTOH: illegal poor Chinese are still sneeking out of their own mainland to go and find low-paid work in countries like Thailand-estimates are that 1000s if not 10000s are living like that in BKKs Chinatown. Surely there is a big market-weekends in that area where every 2nd seller is unable to speak Thai and looks very much mainlanderish.

[quote name='fountainhall' timestamp='1317301677' post='52718' In a long analysis of the book, there are many other points which have been related elsewhere. It also concludes with more views expressed on this Board more than once - But dear khun FHJ-you made us/me so curious and you are not even revealing what the essence of the article is? THis mr. Jackson has indeed written 2 or 3 books about the life of gay Thai. But as soon as I start reading about that PC titling of GLBT etc.-this simply does not exist in Thailand. Is most often a sign of well-intended, but missing the point western subsidy for pitiful minorities. Though somehow I suspect this professor to also either ''lurk'' or post on some of the Thai gay boards. What I recall from previous discussions is mainly the switch-over to more www sites and fewer real brick+stone shops. Fewer a gogo with boys to peruse and more perusing og various websites. And fewer westerners/whiteys and more Asians (but somehow I think whitey is stable and Asians more up). Only touched on in the passig, but IMHO also relevant; fewer working Thai at young age and more from countries around: Laos, Myanmar=Birma etc.

@1. the only thing you can be pretty sure about is that it will be different as anyone know can think/dream of. 2.no-mainland Chinese are not. They could well be compared with what a few days ago was written about the Russky: perhaps that comunist heritage? Just go out of that Silom/ enclave-safety zone and take a peek at major tourist passing places like the quays for boatrides or that floatig amarket; a groupe of country bumpkins to the xtreme, very easily distinguished from the HK/Taiwan-chinese Singaporese etc. Have travelled by myself the last 5 years 3 times across China-many different parts, also out of the tourist zones and without a guide, but with a guidebook. Remember the complaints here about those groups visiting the gay go-gobars and gaping at anything ''we dont have that @ home?''

this is not quite right, as far as have learnt it from them: 1.they DO need some kind of exit-permit, this is speedily (automatically if you want it) granted when they apply for it the usual way- by joining a group tour. Thailand does not ''automatically'' give visa-visa are always on 'discretion'' but that is hardly bothering and cost is again 1000THB. 2.dear khun FH-in this case I think you are mixing 2 types of visits for mainland Chinese up; single individual visits to HKG are also regulated by HKG itself-they do not want to be swamped any 1/10 golden week by a few billion of mainlanders.

hello all, was travelling around for a week or 2, and now catching up. i think there might be a key to this; in the now locked up shamelessmack column there once was a response of a Chinese guy also listing moreorless similar positions and names for it, as befits a proper Chinese, with animal names. Again: do not judge to quickly on these, it might simply be some story circling around among Chinese or know whos who else. I also know for sure that a veeeeeeeery long time ago I read some French ''handbook'on it and it also listed dozens of positons and insertions 9str8) by all kind od names. i personally think this is what people come up to when they have really no thing better at hand? Maybe your lives are too busy for that?

you should not be that surprised-time is short and this is, contrary to your belief, not a very pop destination. No, there are no real ''gay'' places, but this is Thaild; there is no discrimination against male-male couples, the Q to ask is daft simple: do they allow prostitutes. Lots and tons of mixed (str8 and farang-Thai) couples go there for the same purpose. And take a honest and str8forward look into your friend: are you only wanting that luxe room for you- or do you really think he needs it? Also note that travel to that island is not that comfy but rather normal Thai style: a cramped minibus (dont worry-ANY placeyou stay in PTY can book you in) and a small deafening loud-speedy boat, often with wade across the sea to get to destination. Koh larn is tipically a 1 day excursion for the same; farang and casual friend. there is hardly any accomm on it. Weekdays it can be very quiet, on weekends and certainly long Thai weekends do plan ahead and book. Beside this western comfort (AC as such is not): do you also want western food available? I think this is far more an issue to look out for.

heard-or rather more precisely read: yes, been to: no. This place is the 3d or 4th new name for same place in soi Silom 2,5 (where GOD also is)-between 2, that narrow one with Dj and 4. Another gay sauna of which there are so many in BKK-big town, due to the area also aiming at visitors and farang. Hit and miss and reviews that show no common opinion. CFS has more on it in its sauna thread.

re SMana: I would rather say its sticky rice for sticky rice-when i was there last I think well over 70-80% of patrons were Chinese and not Thai. But reports are very, very various about assumed-or not farang-fiendishness. In fact-even more as those massageshops, sauna's (and there are well over 40 in big BKK) are very much hit or miss and a favorable report from nr 1 will not at all mean you qill enjoy, this is Thaild, so there never is any garantee. Also take a introspective look into your own style: one major reason for Thai to stick to Thai is their idea of (justified or not) improper farang behaviour. I think the all-over best)but its a long read and spread over many years by now) is on the CFS-forum Thailand, Bkk-sauna's. In that area around Silom I would say Heaven gets on average best notes.

as a-often changed-general rule I spend the cold wimtermonthes in LOS, and after having travelled any of Thailands 77 provinces (more now) and seen about all of it) I have settled on Bangkok big city for most of that time, with the odd trip outside. Partly becse I am a cityfriend and do not like the beach at all, partly becse of the utter boring surroundings in rural Isan and partly becse best friend of now also happens to live in some part of BKK. Have been to Pattaya many times, but gave up some 8=-9 yrs ago by now-plain utter boring with nothing to do daytime there. Plus a much higher farang-cheating attitude at many places as in BKK.

@michael-fanclub: asd above, they how often do half price or even lower promotions for slack hours-often via Thaimassageboy-print out or boys distributing to people they seem fit for @ Silom. I think for you it is slightly more hitormiss compared to Hero. (which would mean a higher chance on 'misses''). @ khun FH: about the khon Yipun/Nihon jeen: in fact there are also quite a lot in less rich positions-many of them in fact also come to Thaild-or Cambodia, Indonesia etc and live for cheap in budget rooms and eating Thai-style (thus for most considerd unclean) streftfood etc. Quite some chraracters among them. This would also apply to the majority of young JPNese backpackers-and there are millions of them, though they do not all come to Thailand. Often much better sources at saving money as even the most frugal wstern bekpekkers- yes, I admit, I have a weak spot for them. OHIO!

could be? yes of curse-anythign could be in Thaild. But just read the daily news on thaivisa a minute ago-the reds want the only real thing any Thai is moved by; NGEUN, THAANG, MONEY, BAHT. Just like fish-or tigers-just thrown them something from time to time (big brother will advise as to how muth and how offen) and they will keep quiet. My cynic attitude is more after how long it will take before those reddies will see that old establishment has been replaced by new establishment-doing exactly the same: corruption, money grabbing, giving the best jobs to their old schoolpals, selling the ministerposts (at least: that is what the rumour mill said about those unlikely men grabbing some posts). And stand up till that. That lady is only beautiful in the Thai way of seeing things: her skin is white-ish. As all ladies from the north have.

as above-on the longest part of the route you can just go and find some spot. There are a few hotels along that stretch with rooftop terrace-and thus most likely all-in fees with food/drink etc. Like New Siam III and Navalai-in the Banglamphu area. AFAIK there is NO Thonburi bridge-all brdiges go to Thonburi. There is sapan=bridge Krung THON-which is more north, the narrow 2 lane-all steel bridge going due west from the Vict Monument, there is a big low-graded tourist hotel just north of it, Thoburi side. This spot is usually the start for most boat-corso's, like also for Loy Kratong. The boats (but I am not sure about this one!) mostly go due south along the river beyond wat Arun-till about the Post Office and turn back from there. there is also sapan Krung Thep.

for those who know the area a little and the already existing massage places: it is most close to former Harem, which has since chanegd names-check ThaiMassageboys (I think Apple-but there were so many changes lately). That listed bus: Toh (sorry-no Thai here in Europe)13 is NOT a big bus, bus a rot tour=minivan. Better avoid if you do not know how that all works and where you go. Best connection is bus 522 from the VICTORY Monument-very frequent and fast bus-turning directly on expressway and turning off at The Mall (former Banglamphu-now Panthip2) deptmt store. The place is not really opposite kasert (harem is-but way out hidden at the end of some 2-turned sois), Oh well-there used to be (or is) another spa from TMB roughly in that area-maybe also simple changed owner and names? The quoted promosyen prices are for service before 17.00-and then a real bargain- oil/aroma at just 300 bt/2hrs!.

except for 1 sauna, no really gay places in the way they have it elsewhere-but as you know, this is BKk/TH so never mind. The somewhat hidden real Thai/Bkk Yuppie enclave. There are probable negatives too: (but this is all from 2nd hand-for me thats way too far out and too hi-so): farang unfriendly (not fiendish-but youll be looked as just another weird plant or so), hi-nose to anyone who dares to arrive on foot or motosai and not in his golden wheeled BMW (often nicknamed soi ''golden wheel''=thong lor'' due to that). But again: this is BKK/TH: all things are just vague and there is no US-style policy-enforcement or dressing rules or whatever. 2 people are bound to have different opinions.

maybe the bars would-but most of the boys would not like it. What you may see in ads etc in those booklets are ostly years and years old. On a dedicated site like thaimassageboy (for massageshops offering more-and needing insciptions) most shops have even more boys not wanting to get their pics on as those who do.