PeterRS

A word of warning for those who have been transferred from the US site. For around a decade one of the best on line apps for meeting up with young gay Asians both around the continent and sometimes in other countries was fridae. Founded by a Singaporean, it used to be a paid site with an annual subscription of around $45 giving you access to what was claimed as 500,000 members. I joined around 2005 and found it a great site, well worth the subscription. Not sure when it happened but perhaps around 8 years ago it was sold to a business concern. Quickly it went downhill and I left the site. Now it is all but dead and subscription is free but a waste of time. Examples. 1. Check on who is online from various countries ar any one time. This will always show between 1,600 and 1,800 - always. It recently included 59 members allegedly in Afghanistan and 60 in Antarctica! Click on the country and you discover that there was in fact just one member in each country! 2. Go into advanced search (for those who paid their subscription) and insert something like Thailand guys under 35. It will provide a list but the average age of those on the list will in almost every case be well over 35! Of 45 presently listed in Singapore, only one is under 35! Most are in their 40s, 50s and 60s. 3. The list of saunas, massage places and coffee shops includes some which closed as long ago as 2015. 4. The news items of gay interest used to have a couple of posts each week. It has had nothing for the last 4 months.

Like TotallyOz I read a lot. So permit me to add two other books that opened my eyes - literally. After my first visit to Istanbul, I became fascinated by the Byzantine Empire and the whole history surrounding that part of the world. The Crusades played a major part. So I started by reading Steven Runciman's early 1950s three-volume history (surprisingly readable!). At school, I was taught that the Crusades were the virtuous Christians attempting to take back its most holy site from the heathen Muslims. And that was about it. In fact, they were a huge blot on the history of Christianity. Many more recent accounts make this clear, including The Crusades Through Arab Eyes by Amin Maalouf. This finally helped me put all those centuries into a better perspective. On a totally different tack, I am a classical music fan and love much of Wagner. Brigitte Hamann's masterly biography of the evil Winifred Wagner, the 17 year old Welsh girl who became the wife of the 45 year old gay son of Richard Wagner, Siegfried, Winifred Wagner: A Life at the Heart of Hitler's Bayreuth is utterly fascinating especially from an historical view. No one was a more dedicated Nazi than Winifred. That she was in love with Hitler is certain. That he was in love with her is equally certain. Whether they ever consummated that love remains debatable, but it is likely. Even after the end of the war, Winifred never wavered from her adherence to the Nazi cause. Her family kept her out of the public eye, but in a tv documentary made about her life in the 1970s she renewed her dedication to the cause of National Socialism. Even on camera she seems proud to present herself as "the only Nazi in Germany."

Most of the books that have affected me and to a certain extent changed my thinking relate to historical events or my views on a certain country. The partition of India had largely escaped me until some decades ago I read Paul Scott's masterful quartet of books which go under the title The Raj Quartet. This epic fictional tale brings to the fore the differing views of long time British residents, colonial masters and the rising tensions with the people of India. The characters are superbly drawn from the sadistic police inspector to the young lady just arrived from Britain to meet up with her Indian boyfriend and Barbie Bachelor, the ageing Brit who intends to stay on after Independence as she has nowhere else to go. The Quartet was made into an excellent tv series in the 1970s featuring the cream of British acting talent. It changed my views on the history of the lead up to that disastrous period in history. The first two books of the Quartet Over the last three decades we have learned more about the story of Hong Kong and how it became one of the world's leading economic city states. With China now breaking its agreement with Britain to basically leave it alone for 50 years after the handover, our attention is on the present and future rather than the past. Yet its past is utterly fascinating, from the Qing Dynasty being the world's major economic power in the early 18th century to the internal decay that was evident a century later; from British traders being confined for most of the year to the quaint little Portuguese enclave of Macao, to the need for the British colonists to find an outlet for the opium which they grew in great quantity in India and so to the Opium Wars that heralded what all Chinese even today call the start of the century of shame. None describes this in simpler, easier to comprehend detail then Foreign Mud by Maurice Collis. This was the name given to the drug opium. The origins of the Vietnam War also fascinate - and horrify me. From the dreadful effect of French colonialism, from Roosevelt and Truman's rejection of their wartime ally Ho Chi Minh's written requests that the anti-colonial American government not permit the French to return to post-war Indo-China, to the mistaken belief that Vietnam was a communist domino rather than a country seeking to rule its own affairs, Vietnam suffered 3 million deaths over a 30 year period. Again, many books have been written, but none had more effect on many than Robert McNamara's 1996 mea culpa In Retrospect. Vietnam was basically McNamara's War. As he writes, "we were wrong, we were terribly wrong." In Retrospect reveals the fatal flaws and misassumptions behind America's involvement in the war. It is tempting to suggest that it should be a bible for all those countries going to war believing they are in the right. Yet America's leaders paid no attention and continued its overseas misadventures with Iraq. Recently I came across a short novel which made me think more closely about the priesthood. Stephen Hough is one of the world's finest concert pianists and clearly a fascinating character. The Economist named him in 2009 one of the world's top 20 polymaths. His intention was to become a priest until he won one of the world' top piano competitions at the age of 21. That launched him into a major concert career and he now has more than 60 CDs on the market. The Final Retreat is his first novel. A short book with just 182 pages, it takes as its subject a troubled gay priest, his thoughts and deeds as his world descends into areas he sought to avoid (although i hasten add that pedophilia is not part of the book). Written almost in a clipped style, it is difficult to put down.

Very little commercial sex. Only a few on the apps. Peace Park a few blocks behind the Caesar Palace Hotel used to be very cruisy with a lot of rent. May still be. Not sure what you mean by old. I and my friend are in our mid 50s - late 60s and never had problems finding sex on the apps or in the saunas. There are not many westerners living in Taipei and a considerable number of young Chinese guys looking for them.

Love the photo of the old red Citroen. Exactly the same model as my father drove for some years, although his was black. He loved that car! Last word on Luang Prabang. Although it was about 15 years since I was there, I booked a gay evening tour of the city's nightspots. A lovely young guy took me around on his motorcycle. Nothing much happening in the one bar and one club that I recall, perhaps because I was smitten with my young guide!! He was gay and would have come to my room but this was prohibited in my guesthouse. I am sure visitors are allowed in most places, but frankly do not know for sure. On my last afternoon I was sitting by the river when school came out. Two boys who were probably around 17 or so sat at the next table. Obviously gay, they flirted with each other and also with me. Then one came up and asked if I liked his friend - because he liked me!!! Told him I had no time, but also he was a bit too young for me.

As far as I know, none of mine are gay owned, but all are definitely gay-friendly. There's a new restaurant on Soi Yen Akat (about 400 meters from the Malaysia Hotel) called Workshop. Intimate, mid-price but great food and service. At least one of the staff came from Zanotti in Soi Saldaeng. Portions may be on the smallish side if you are desperately hungry! Il Bolognaise at the end of the short Sathorn Soi 7 (the Singapore Embassy is on the corner of Sathorn and Sathorn Soi 7). Been around quite a few years, excellent Italian food at reasonable prices. Near the top end of the price scale, Eat Me off Soi Convent has consistently been wonderful for probably around 20 years. Great atmosphere, impeccable friendly service, Australian fusion menu, several wines by the glass selections - and fabulous desserts! For a small coffee shop with a small menu of excellent food and again excellent service, Kush on Soi Nanglinchee has become a favourite. For breakfast or brunch, their scrambled eggs with melted cheese, bacon, salad and the largest and best croissant you will find in the city is superb. Nanglinchee is the extension of Soi Suan Plu off Sathorn. Kush is on the right just before the gas station on the opposite side. For Thai food, it takes a lot to beat Ruen Urai. This is set in a Thai House in the grounds of the Rose Hotel off Suriwong. This s nothing like the hotel itself. The quality is really excellent and the atmosphere almost unbeatable. However, always book ahead and ask to be seated on the ground floor. The upper floor is boring! Mid-price. The only restaurant that I have ever found gay un-friendly was Indigo off the Silom end of Soi Convent. French cuisine, mid-price and patronised by many of the French community. The owner was a total homophobe who would rant about the gay Fan Club massage being just across the soi until it closed some years ago. I believe it is now run by his son, but after one of his rants 6 years or so ago, I vowed not to return.

You should add Taipei to that list.

Like others - TRAVEL! Somewhere in Asia away from Thailand where there is a good nightlife scene and company to be enjoyed.

Thanks ResponsibleTourism for bringing out some issues I was not aware of. Please be assured I was not comparing Phrae to Cirque du Soleil or the famous Chinese Acrobatic troupes. As I pointed out, such a comparison would be "horribly unfair". After all, a Cirque show in Las Vegas usually takes three years during conception, evolution, rehearsal and construction of special theatres. I will certainly watch the Al Jazeira programme. I do think, however, that given everything you say all performing artists from whatever background have somewhere deep inside them a desire for a form of perfection. It is perfectly possibly to maintain the core values of the company and the acts/scenes based on their personal experiences when at the same time bringing in a little more experience in terms of, for example, lighting. You don't need lots of light units. Just a little more creativity which enhances the performers. After all, this is precisely how the Chinese acrobatic companies developed over time. From small touring groups on minuscule budgets with a minimum of presentation, they looked at what others were doing in other parts of the world and gradually developed a whole new set of skills. Phrae is clearly ambitious. Hence the desire to be in the Guiness book of Records. So why not have a much longer term goal that embraces training, local culture, history, individual stories and skills, and quality of presentation? Just my thoughts. I remember when I was in Siem Reap, I was taken to a silk factory where girls from dirt poor families were trained in all the skills of silk making from cultivating mulberry leaves to weaving the finished products. They could have produced an average quality of silk and no doubt the public would have purchased it at local markets. But the foreigner who had set up the factory believed these girls deserved better and higher wages. He was determined that they have an environment where they could develop their skills to the point where the silk produced compared to the best almost anywhere in Asia. It was wonderful quality and I bought quite a lot.

I agree that Charles seems to have the type of character who might say it - albeit in jest rather then as a hugely significant moment. As for title and security, their son could not automatically become a Prince. He would have when the Queen dies and Charles becomes King, but goodness knows why. I too am confused because the issue of security would not have arisen had they stayed in the UK. I do think a look back at how the Brit royals treat outsiders, even those who have been loyal 'servants', illustrates why they continually put their collective feet into the muck. I read this yesterday on another forum. I have checked the facts and it appears totally true. "Before the abdication, the present Queen and her sister had a loving nanny Marion Crawford. She was devoted to the children. When their father unexpectedly became king, she postponed her own marriage and chance of having children to stay with the royal family and look after the princesses. She stayed with the family during the war until Princess Elizabeth got married. As a mark of the royal family's gratitude, she was then given what is termed in Britain as a 'grace and favour' residence in the grounds of Kensington Palace. She was permitted to live there at a peppercorn rent for her lifetime. "Encouraged by an American publisher, she wrote a simple and loving account of her time with the little princesses. She had nothing in her contract of employment about not putting any of her experiences in writing. It was published in 1950. Immediately she was dropped by the royal family like a stone. She was forced to leave her "home for life" and never had any contact with the royal family again. It destroyed her. To have some chance of seeing the princesses, she bought a house in the Scottish city of Aberdeen so she could at least glimpse them from afar as they left Aberdeen station for their annual holiday in Balmoral. No one ever visited her. Twice she attempted to take her own life, leaving a note saying " I cannot bear those I love to pass me by on the road." "When she died in 1988, there was no wreath from either of the princesses, from the Queen Mother or anyone associated with the royal family. She had been totally frozen out and totally forgotten. "Just a few years later came their disgraceful treatment of Princess Diana and her various attempts at self harm. Now MM. "Now they are also covering up for the depraved disgraceful exploits of (alleged) pedophile Prince Andrew cavorting with young girls thanks to his close friendship with Marc Epstein, even after his Florida conviction. Once Epstein's sidekick Ghislaine Maxwell gets to court, watch for a lot more to come out about this. "Clearly the people behind the scenes in that dysfunctional family have zero interest in outsiders and not an ounce of sympathy for them."

Hard to believe it was only ten years ago. It seems like history. But the huge 9:00 magnitude quake that hit just off the eastern coast of northern Japan took place at 14:46 local time ten years ago tomorrow. The events which then unfolded were screened around the world as all looked on in horror. We saw the tsunami waves making their way to the coast where towns were thought to be protected by large tsunami walls and gates. None worked. The water just cascaded over them and moved whole sections of towns inland. Worse, further down the coast the nuclear plant at Fukushima was inundated. In theory its shore defences should have been high enough. But I have read that one result of the earthquake was to raise the land to the point where the defences were useless. True or not, it is now estimated that it will take 40 years to clean up the Fukushima area. How long it will take to make the nuclear waste water presently stored in huge tanks safe may be hundreds of years. But let us tomorrow remember the more than 18.000 people killed and the many more made homeless.

I hope you will also consider visiting Luang Prabang the old royal capital. It is a fascinating small city that is now a Unesco World Heritage site.

One of the earliest was Lord of the Flies which another poster has mentioned. Another was John Wyndham's sci-fi Day of the Triffids. Becoming aware of my crushes on other boys, I loved a book which i think is no longer in print, Roger Peyrefitte's Special Friendships, a poignant and mildly erotic but touching story about the love between two boys and set in a Catholic Boarding School. In my teens, I always liked to get absorbed in long books. War and Peace and David Copperfield were two. Since then, I still enjoy longer books. Absolutely loved Viram Seth's A Suitable Boy (more than 1,000 pages) and Donna Tart's more recent novel The Goldfinch.

I did watch most of the hour long show last night. I felt a mixture of happiness that this company is trying hard in developing their skills and creating jobs in the country and continuing its culture. It was a reasonable start. But I also felt some sadness that it clearly has a long way to go. So let me humbly make a few suggestions. More could be done to provide links between the various sections. Any comparison with Cirque du Soleil would be horribly unfair, but this was the first thing I noticed when seeing my first touring Cirque show, Alegria about 25 years ago. It was not merely a series of superb acrobatic and comedic acts. Each was linked with the appearance of characters who appeared throughout the show. No dialogue as in all Cirque shows - merely stock characters in great costumes. I believe it would help Phare's development to work on this. Cirque du Soleil has certainly never performed in Cambodia but there are videos available of many of their shows. Overall presentation and lighting could be worked on to develop a more professional look (or was this mostly bad TV lighting, I wonder?) A bit more drama could also be injected into some of the individual items. Circus has a long tradition in China and some of its companies are world beaters. It would probably help Phrae if they could work out some sort of loose relationship with one of these Chinese companies. 20 years ago I saw the company based in Shenyang which is one of the most professional and dazzling companies. Not only were the individual acts almost breathtaking - one boy slowly balanced one hardback chair slantwise on another and then another and so on until he was actually balancing on about 12 chairs without any safety net - they were obviously starting to learn from Cirque du Soleil through more innovative lighting, music, drama and linkage of acts. Still, the injection of additional monies will no doubt help the company develop into a much stronger performing unit. Hopefully many who watched will give them that encouragement.

Like Londoner, I have not been to the bars for a few years as I too am in a relationship. But for many years - several decades in fact! - I was a regular. We all change over time and we all age. So inevitably our preferences also change. Then again, I used to love the bars. I loved seeing the boys on stage, many of whom openly flirted with customers in the hope of an off. I loved it when nudity was allowed in most of the bars, not because I wanted to see the "whole package". It was much more that I found the naked body of a young Thai guy such a turn on. I took a lot of the boys off in those earlier years and only once had what Id term a dud. It so happened he came from Screwboys in the mid-1990s. But you cannot hit the bullseye every time and that one experience apart I had loads of good and sometimes great times. Living in Thailand, personally I have never been a great fan of the apps. The first time I used one I arranged to meet a guy in a coffee shop in a mall. I then learned that Thai time is very much like Bali time - rubber time in effect. My guy had not shown after 30 minutes. I called him. On the way, he said. After 45 minutes I told him I could only wait another 5 minutes. Please stay, I'm on the way. I just gave up. Another experience we all have had, another coffee shop rendezvous had the guy show more or less on time but he was at the very least 10 years older than his pics. Of course, punters have now got wise to such things and find ways round them. When I was still single, I used the apps successfully when overseas. In Thailand it was the bars! I know I am repeating others, but the bar experience was not just for looking at handsome young guys. They were fun. And the boys seemed to be having a lot of fun even if offs were scarce. In the early days all were Thai and presumably some had come from the same village. What has been missing for many years now and certainly on my last visit about 5 years ago was that fun and interaction. Mobile phones are surely partly to blame. All the boys were glued to them. In earlier times, there were no such distractions. Ensuring the customers had a good time was much more important.

Given the horrific near recent history of Cambodia, I think its great that a company like this is not only creating employment but offering training to young people and helping keep alive some of the country's culture. I will watch and will donate.

And it's a lovely time of year because many trees and plants begin to blossom. These were taken on a short walk near my apartment this morning.

I am out and about most days. Very few people seem like tourists.

Are they? I live in Bangkok and have neither seen nor heard of any marching against anything for some 4 months or so. There certainly were major protest marches in October but these were not exclusively against the worsening economic conditions. There was another reason which on this Board cannot be discussed. Like many Asian nations, Thailand has a good family structure. Some of those out of work especially in the tourism industry will no doubt have returned home and be working in the village shop or in the fields. Then you have to realise that several polls have found that a considerable majority of Thais do not want tourism to reopen until there are better solutions to the covid19 pandemic. The Tourism Authority of Thailand constantly pushes for opening up tourism in some way but the government is not biting. Thailand is far from alone in this respect. A couple of months ago Hong Kong and Singapore announced a traffic bubble to allow one flight in each direction initially. A few days before it started, Hong Kong had a new outbreak and the bubble burst! For those who enjoy travelling we just have no alternative but to wait.

On Golden Pond was a lovely movie. Jane Fonda was great as were her father and Katherine Hepburn. My favourite Fonda scene, though, is from Klute where she plays a hooker. At one point she has been picked up and is giving a dull guy a good time. The camera then focuses on her bored face as she raises her hand to check the time on her watch. Clearly she is thinking how much longer do I have to go through this before I get my cash!

Suggest you take a look at Taipei under the City Guides. Taipei offers a lot for the gay traveller. It's not Bangkok or Pattaya but in addition to plenty of sex there is a lot of culture including the must-see National Museum where the treasures of China over centuries are displayed (although only a fraction can be displayed at any one time).

The start of the thread states "Threads can only be added by Scooby." Is that name being continued?

Having bad mouthed Bitterman, let me explain why. Early last year my friend and I arrived around 6:45pm. About to order from the drinks list in the main menu, I happened to overhear the waiter tell diners at the next table that there was a 2 for 1 Happy Hour until 7 and suggested they order drinks quickly. So we called the same waiter over and ordered our drinks. When they arrived about 5 minutes later, we said we'd like our second drinks along with the main course. The waiter asked what we meant by second drinks. I explained. Of that is only from our special Happy Hour menu, he said. But he had not bothered to give us one, adding we did not qualify for a second drink. When something like that happens I ask to speak to the manager. Just after 7:00 pm she came over. She blamed us. After a while, she said she would make an exception and give us "second drinks on the house". Those second drinks never arrived despite being asked for a couple of times. I had Atlantic Cod with vegetables. A disaster! Tough, dry and tasteless. I could not finish it. Our bill for 2 was 2,000 baht. As we left the manager was by the door. I pointed out that the promised second drinks had never arrived. With a surly look on her face, all she would say was "Sorry". Friends had recommended the restaurant, but we will not return.

I would be grateful for Spoon's comments. I have read up quite a bit about religious extremism in countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. It seems from what I have read that both countries were much less concerned with such extremism prior to 1979. That year of course saw the return of the Ayatollah Khomeini to rule Iran with his firebrand Islamic revolution. Increasingly governments in countries in Asia with a majority Islamic population (and even Singapore with a minority of Muslims) became increasingly concerned that Khomeini's strict interpretation of Islam and anti-western stance would spread generally to the Islamic world. So greater attention was soon paid to reinforcing religious laws. Is that too general a view?

There are also some very good restaurants on that soi. I have dined three times at the relatively new The Commons. This is a group of very nice smallish restaurants in a cluster rather like a small shopping mall. The one restaurant I avoid on that soi is Bitterman. Only dined once but the service was dreadful and the food little better than mediocre.