macaroni21

Ah, that is helpful information if anyone is going to Chengdu or Chongqing. Such is the Youtube algorithm that I find another video by the same pai pai guy, this time about a gay bar in Beijing called Destination. The thing that comes across is how different gay culture can be in different countries.

The bar is called "Pose". Near the beginning of the video it says one can google "Pose Chengdu" to find its location, but doing so didn't give any result for me. Instead, Google fed me "Hunk" bar at these co-ordinates: 30.63923713404091, 104.09020340885925, also in Chengdu city. I'm not saying they're the same.

So, what does all that mean? Did Sky Massage hack into and steal OneSpa's line account and client database? There was an outage not along ago, no?

Yes, that will explain it. I wonder why a small business even needs AI chatbots. After all, the incoming requests will still need to be relayed to the nominated boy and to ascertain whether he is available, then check whether a room is available, etc etc. So a human will still be needed for coordination. Just stick with a QUALIFIED human and forget about the latest fad of AI.

When I went, which was perhaps 10years ago, the monkeys were numerous but they minded their own business. I guess they are still like that, and fighting among them is probably a rarity - this why the video above was newsworthy. I could walk around the ruins but frankly the ruins were not worth one's time. Phimai and several other sites would be more worth the effort and time. However I was always on guard among the monkeys. You never know when one might come real close to snatch your bag or hat or phone just as you were taking a photo. So, I didn't feel relaxed and it wasn't a pleasant day. That said, if you look at the video above, even as the two gangs of monkeys were confronting each other, they largely ignored the humans.

I had a similarly perplexing experience with OneSpa (now Sky Massage). I think whoever handles the Line account is barely able to read English and clearly unable to say more than "Yes" or "OK". I also have a suspicion that whoever it is does not even know how to use Google Translate. I don't recall much difficulty with Kman Spa (but maybe the staffer has since been replaced?). The two that impressed me were River 365 and Nine Spa. A lot has to do with whether the digital receptionist can speak any English at all. One needs to be able to at least read English to check if Google Translate has done the job properly.

What happens when Bangkok sinks into the sea? "... Greenpeace says almost all of Bangkok will be vulnerable to floods in the scenario of an extreme sea level rise by 2030. Under this extreme projection about 96% of the city will be below the mean sea level." https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2499786/bangkok-is-still-sinking-and-fast- Of course, Greenpeace tends to focus on the extreme scenario, but nobody (outside of the lunatic fringe) disputes the fact that Bangkok is subsiding and sea levels are rising.

Fortunately, gang members weren't carrying weapons other than sharp teeth.

We heard in an earlier report that high-pressure water guns were banned because they might cause injuries. But the city had whole trucks instead?

The LINE account has changed its name from OneSpa to The Sky Massage.

Cooking, assuming the heat is high enough and long enough, may kill the bacteria, but while the food was sitting in the humid heat, the bacteria would have produced toxins. Some toxins, such as that produced by Staphylococcus, are heat resistant, so cooking or reheating does not denature them.

I have no idea what this event is, and there's probably nothing gay about it. But I thought I'd share it here for the visual pleasure of those members who like some meat on their men. The video description mentions Tondo, which is generally a slum area in Manila. Some parts of Tondo are only grubby, other parts are positively dangerous.

It was at such a stand where I caught the worst food poisoning in years. In hindsight, the skewer must have been left on the stand too long in the warm Thai air. Ever since then, I avoid such food stands though I am conscious (at a rational level) that the same can happen in the kitchens of the nicest restaurants.

I think I can help with a few of your questions. 3. I have a revew of OneSpa in my blog (https://shamelessmacktwo.travel.blog/2024/03/13/shagging-in-the-shabby/) 4. No need to check IDs in massage parlours. If you see anyone uncomfortably young (which I have never encountered), just ask to change the masseur. 6. More often than not, they deserve no more than the minimum. When I think they're better than average, I may add 10 - 20%. When I am over the moon (which is rare), I may add 30%. I suspect many posters on this forum are shocked that I am giving farangs a bad name by not throwing money around (isn't the superior sahib supposed to do that when meeting the destitute natives?)

As often is the case with Thai journalism, it leaves more questions than it answers. 1. Any sign of a high-speed rail linking the 3 airports? Any sign of building works at least? (They must have won the contract in or before 2018). 2. Has anyone noticed that "the route has expanded to cover a greater distance since 2018"? As far as I know, it still starts at the airport and ends a Phaya Thai (and vice versa). 3. Have they restored the express line (different from the present local line) - the one which they say will have increased capacity to carry a grand 800 passangers a day, which is toughly 0.65 percent of the 123,000 passengers* a day that use Suvarnabhumi? *45 million assengers a yer divided by 365 days.

"The signboard had been removed"... Now THAT'S worrying. The only way to reconcile that with assurances about reopening next month would be if it reopens under a new name and new owner.

There are two possible dynamics at work here. The first is the possibility that Phuket is suffering from foreigner fatigue. Large numbers, with the usual percentage behaving disrespectfully (note that I am not saying they are any more boorish than usual or any more rowdy than Thais themselves can be) tend to induce a certain heightened sensitivity among locals. If there are unusually large numbers of Russians staying longer than usual, the fatigue may be particularly directed at them. The second, and more likely, dynamic would be one where one news story "begets" another, similar one. For example, a kicking story by itself may not be newsworthy and in other times an editor may shunt it aside, but when it follows in quick succession another story of foreigner being boorish to Thais, then it becomes more newsworthy.

What's "gv"?

Whoa, I have not heard of this one before. A google search shows its name to be Aurora Massage @Sukhumvit and: https://www.top-rated.online/cities/Khlong+Toei+District/place/p/17837152/Aurora+Massage+%40Sukhumvit with Line feed: https://line.me/R/ti/p/@359fhjop The comments in the first of the two links above (sorted chronologically) seem highly variable: 5/5 Rattha W. 2 months ago on Google • 1 review Good service 1/5 Y Y. 2 months ago on Google • 9 reviews Cold staff bad service 5/5 Josh 3 months ago on Google • 203 reviews Very comfortable 5/5 Dan C. 10 months ago on Google • 19 reviews It is a place where men should come and relax with a fragrant aromatic oil massage or a scrub for smooth, soft skin. Suitable for taking a break to relieve fatigue. Good service staff, clean store, private, luxury 1/5 Tam T. 1 year ago on Google • 40 reviews No fun. There are no special services, the owner emphasized. 5/5 นายณรงค์ฤทธิ์ �. 1 year ago on Google • 1 review The massage skills are very good, the room is very good and the service is very good. 5/5 Chitsanupong S. 1 year ago on Google • 1 review For good service

@a-447 is right. There is another reason, though. A good percentage of the clients that these businesses serve are in the closet; many married to wives. Their employers are not as open as companies in the West, reinforcing the closet. The shops know that to serve this market properly, they have to make sure that the customer never gets to see another customer, or even any other member of the staff. Thus, it makes no sense to ask customers to come to a central location (the shop). In fact, I think many of these businesses do not have a shop or office. The management operates virtually. The only real estate they lease may be a couple of private rooms here and there, whose addresses they will not release to the public or customers (lest the wife discovers it). That's why they operate the way they do: the chosen boy will meet you at a notified location and walk you to the hideaway. There are exceptions though. Some businesses also run a bar and walk-ins are allowed. But these businesses also operate in parallel the same system where they take email bookings and the boys will meet their customers outside nearer the rented rooms. Even Tokyo Kids, which I have used at least twice, maybe three times but the first time was long ago (or I'm confusing that time with another shop), although they have an address and a signboard outside, I have never been inside. They've always met me outside and walked me to their private room.

I have. A number of times over several years. Nothing to worry about. But always be punctual, in keeping with Japanese norms.

Sorry if I am pouring cold water on your fun moment, but the word "loka" is from Sanskrit. It means the world or the universe. (see 4th paragraph of https://kr-asia.com/in-the-top-flight-everything-you-need-to-know-about-traveloka-part-1-of-2) Not everything revolves around the Western world or European languages 😘

Indeed, I have had that experience. Wherever possible I book directly with airlines' sites. But these aggregators are good for finding out which airlines fly to the the destinations I am looking at and for price comparisons.

In the context of aviation, maybe the expression should be trash in crash out.

Easy to forget one's own presence unless one looks into a mirror. I don't know about @Lucky but it's something I'd rather not do as the years creep up.🙃