ChristianPFC

The subject has been discussed in multiple threads, the most recent information here https://sawatdeenetwork.com/v4/showthread.php?17271-Saranrom-Park-news and on my blog. But the link by reader is new to me. As far as I can judge, those times are over.

There was a study somewhere (coconutsbangkok?) What the collected tips are used for. The low end of the scale was that all of it is used to pay part of the electricity bill, if my memory serves right. In Thailand, tipping leads to absurdities like getting shoulder massage at the urinal, or staff in toilet handing you a hot steamed towel to dry your hands after washing them, and expecting a tip for that.

Have you ever been in a taxi in Bangkok? They start at 35 THB and then go up in steps of 2 THB. To support DivineMadman's argumentation, we would need the wage of staff at 7-Eleven (or any other place that has lots of employees and where tipping is not common) with wait staff in the entertainment industry. But even if there is a discrepancy, I keep my argument that that's up to them to negotiate a wage they can live on. I have my own problems, I don't want to hear of any other person's problems (except friend's problems). I think the evil of tipping has been brought to the world by US-Americans. It's a nuisance, just like daylight saving time, that should be abolished (both, or throw in driving on the left or right side of the road, to make it three, and different power plugs, four). As for getting small change, that now goes automatically that pay with different notes/coins depending on place (1000 THB notes in 7-Eleven or in well lit, reputable places where I can see what's going on and have time to wait for change), exact amount everywhere dimly lit and where I don't want to wait for change. And always keep 3 x 10 THB coin in my room for the washing machine.

The express was more expensive and less frequent than the commuter train. I once calculated, and it was like wait 5 min for the commuter train and ride the train for 30 minutes, or wait 10 minutes for the express train and ride the train for 15 minutes. But there were time slots where the total time (wait and travel) was longer for the express than the commuter.

Tipping is like religion. Whether you believe in god or not, whether you tip or not, the outcome is the same. I can get sick and will finally die, just like someone who prays every day for health and long life. I get served in restaurants and bars just like people who tip. Coming back to my tipping of taxi drivers. For no money in the world would I want to drive a taxi in Bangkok. Whereas serving food or drinks requires no skills, even I could do it (although that would be a waste of my many talents). But while I look up to taxi drivers for their abilities to navigate Bangkok traffic and find their way, and tip them for that, I do not tip doctors. As has been said by others, tipping customs are inconsistent and illogical. (Tipping must be my favorite pet peeve, and prices in Soi Twilight a distant second, and public transport in Chiang Mai on third place.)

As far as I know, Thai embassies who issue the visa and immigration who grant entry to Thailand are different entities. Even if you have a visa, immigration officer can refuse entry.

I don't tip out of principle. I find the idea absurd. I pay the price in the menu. There is one exception: taxis. When I take a taxi in Bangkok and the last digit is 1 I round to to full ten, and from 3 to 9 I round up to full 10. Sometimes the driver gives me exact change, which I don't take. The reason? The traffic is awful and I'm so glad I'm sitting in the passenger's seat and not the driver's.

Tipping is the new religion, and I'm a non-believer. As far as I know, tipping is not customary in Thailand and was brought in by tourists and is limited to tourist areas. But staying with gogo bars, I don't tip general staff (but tip boys I touch 100 THB and boys I take home 1000 THB), and am greeted friendly by everyone every time I pass or enter. I like it simple. I want to know in advance how it will cost me. I disapprove of menus in restaurants where VAT and/or service charge will be added. I don't think about whom to tip how much, depending on where I am in the world, I don't tip.

Tipping airline crew? That idea is absurd! I used to tip inconsistently in the past (up to five years ago, sometimes 20 THB, sometimes nothing), but then stopped tipping altogether. I think it's incumbent on the business owner to pay his staff, I don't want to have anything to with it. I pay the goods I order, that's it. I usually stay in cheap hotels (300-500 THB in the provinces, in places like Chiang Mai or Phuket I would have to go up to 700, or if I want a certain location and a km further would not do or there is not much choice hotel-wise), where a tip would not be expected. And in gogo bars, well if I pay up to 200 THB for a drink, that should be enough to allow the owner/manager to pay his staff a decent wage?

No. I have limited (let's stay 3 times) and distant (let's say five years ago) experiences with songtheo as well. And as I said, it's one of my pet peeves, just make a post that has "Chiang Mai" and "songtheo" in it and I will tell for the umpteenth time what I think about the public transport system in Chiang Mai.

But Hua Hin has some songtheo lines that are clearly labelled and cost 10 (or is it 20? I don't remember clearly).

The public transport situation in Chiang Mai is one of my pet peeves, I could bitch endless about it. Only Phuket and Samui are worse. But the bus or songtheo in Bangkok or in the provinces is 7 or 9 THB, and even in Pattaya songtheo is only 10 THB. Intra-city bus lines in Chiang Mai. I have to try next time. (Inter-city would be between different cities.) I'm referring to one incident when I had to wait 10 minutes to cross from outside ringroad (around the moat) to inside ringroad, and there it appeared to me that in Bangkok we have at least pedestrian overpasses (and a few tunnels as well), whereas Chiang Mai has not! However, there are traffic lights in both, and I don't remember why I didn't cross at a traffic light. There are roads in Bangkok that are impassable unless you cross at a traffic light or pedestrian overpass. Although I once managed to cross Rama 4 road, and survived to tell the story, without using either (where the railway line crosses and there is no barrier in the middle).

Non-air-con buses are 6.5 Baht (no fan) or 9 Baht (fan). But that's all I look for in a hotel: bed, toilet and shower.

Bangkok. No aircon, but you can call it a restaurant as kitchen and furniture are fixed installation. Your questions are valid. Need more information than just price to compare.

I'm lenient when it comes to poor pictures or multiple or often changing profiles. The problem is rather efficient communication. Most notably unacceptable delays in reply, and when I ask a simple question I don't get a straight answer. Like where the boy is now, what he is doing now, when he is free, all things I need to know to set up a date.

Buses from terminal to airplane are the worst part of flying. A human rights violation! In Don Mueang, I once (2014?) spent half an hour on bus to airplane for a 45 min flight to Phom Penh. I was beginning to think they will take me there by bus instead of airplane.

The dire public and private transport situation in Chiang Mai is the reason I nowdays only go there with friends who have a car. I haven't been alone in CM for over 5 years as I don't want to walk (situation for pedestrians worse than in Bangkok) longer distances or pay rip-off prices.

Don't worry. You are in good company. A non-commercial encounter. I was in Surat Thani two years ago (?) chatting with a profile that looked very yummy and was nearby and wanted to meet. The person who arrived was just acceptable when we met outside, too fat naked in my room. Under normal circumstances I would hot have had sex, but he rushed me to my room and I was confused, so I let him play with my body. Afterwards I could not contain my curiosity any longer: "Is that you in the picture? You look quite different." "The picture is my younger brother." "Can you send your younger brother to me next time I'm in Surat Thani?" "He likes girls."

My wording was poor. I meant that technically, they all survived the capsizing. Anyway, I thing I confused that with the accident on the boat to Koh Larn. I could easily swim to shore from a boat that capsizes between Pattaya and Koh Larn, but probably not during bad weather somewhere between Phuket and other islands. And I read somewhere that drowning is a major cause of child death in Thailand, and most of them would have survived if they could swim.

I regularly eat fried chicken with cashew nut, rice and drinking water (glass bottle will be refilled) for 85 THB in Ladprao near soi 101.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. I would have missed. I went today.

I once (2013) took a boy from Banana bar in Soi Twilight (long time 2000 THB). Some years later, he was still working there and I spotted his profile on one of the gay dating apps. I asked to see his private pictures and the reply was "You know already".

Just found this by chance: https://jackbangkok.wordpress.com/2017/03/01/the-global-pig-who-makes-bangkok-his-public-piss-playground/ Activities match, but time does not (2017/03/01/the-global-pig-who-makes-bangkok-his-public-piss-playground).

An ailing friend once sent me to do medicine shopping for him (he spends about 8000 THB per month on medicine), and that was to the pharmacies on Rama 4 road across Chula hospital. He says they have the lowest prices and largest choice. On google maps, search for "Chula Bhesaj Pharmacy"; there are several pharmacies next to each other, and all around the corner from Soi Twilight. Prices for medicine can vary widely, for Ciprofloxacin and Sidegra by factor two. In Cambodia (Pharmacie de la gare, near railway station as the name (French) says), some stuff is considerably cheaper than in Thailand, above mentioned friend asked me to bring some stuff from there as well (his consumption 50 USD per month when bought in Thailand, 22 USD per month when bought in Cambodia). Price variations for Sidegra, own observations: from https://christianpfc.blogspot.com/2018/08/wop-viagra-sidegra.html

I have been using Line for years and here some thoughts: I haven't set a Line ID (just can't think of any, and once you set it you can't change it), I give the boys my phone number to add me. If you are friends with someone on Line, I didn't find a way to get his Line ID other than asking him. A friend wanted to introduce me to one of his friends via Line, so we he set up a group with us three, and in this group I friended the third. I accidentally logged off Line on my phone, and on logging in all chat data was gone because Line didn't recognize my phone as the same as before, thought it was a new device. With upcoming purchase of new phone, I want to move all chats from old to new, and then have to look again into how to do this. Pictures and videos are only available for 30 (?) days. However, on my phone I found a folder that seems to contain all pictures I even sent or received on Line, and which amounted to 2 GB (!!!) of data. The folder is ASUS_Z00LD/Internal Storage/Android/data/jp.naver.line.android/storage/mo (might differ for your phone). The two points above are an awful backup and awful waste of space.