NIrishGuy

On this day in 1954, University of Manchester hero Alan Turing took his own life, two years after he was prosecuted for gross indecency during a time when homosexuality was illegal in the UK. He was chemically castrated for his sexuality just a few short years after his groundbreaking ingenuity and determination saved tens of millions of lives during World War II. He must never be forgotten.

"a friend who had too much, of course it didn't allow it. Went to a counter and through it went with no issue, no fee" Yep you're right there Anddy and that also was my own experience too. We have all at some point i'm sure carried out the inadvertent ( or intentional) turning up at the desk with one or two ( or 10 ! ) Kilos "over" and either turned up early in the hope of sweet talking the check in operator, hoping that as it was the start of the check in that they were feeling lenient or just didn't care. Or perhaps knowingly timing it so that we were verging on "late" and so knew the staff would be busy just trying to get everyone checked in and ON the plane and so we knew / or hoped they wouldn't stop / charge us anything - or it has even been known for people to slid a foot under the weighing scales to save a few kilos even ( not me, I read about it in a magazine once just Im sure :-). For me I can say that such rouses worked probably about 75% of the time or more even perhaps. Now however, with the advent of the introduction of these infernal machines this means that there's ZERO tolerance for even just a one Kilo over AND as Anddy had said all payments MUST now be made at the machine with your credit card BEFORE a boarding card will be spat out at you. This then results in ridiculously long queues forming of people either totally disgruntled at being charged at all, or for whatever reason perhaps finding themselves unable (or unwilling) to pay the ( granted ridiculously high) "over at the desk" charges! Either way these machines are not a good thing and we should all rise up and take a wrecking screw driver to each and every one of them we find before they become "the norm" ! :-) This is one machine that the luddites may have had a point about !!! :-( And yes, before anyone says it 'yes of COURSE we could all just turn up with the correct baggage limits, all correctly weighed and pre-checked" - but a) sometimes that's hardly that it sounds when returning from holiday at least and mainly.......sure where would be the fun in THAT !

"Charges for exceeding weight allowances can also be paid on the spot via the interface" In my experience ^ THIS is more about why airports are installing self check in baggage machines - and each and every airport I've seen them in I've also seen queues of furious people wanting to argue with airline staff and an equal number of airline staff wanting to try to avoid the passengers as they too know that the machines are there solely to generate income for the airlines - whilst putting a load of their colleagues out of work at the same time !

At least he was sure of a good drilling !

Yes but the big question is "DOES HE SWALLOW" ! :-)

Last time I checked it wasn't mandatory - if YOU dont like the idea of being gay then you can simply "stop" being gay ( yeah good luck with that) - the rest of us who are gay will I'm sure just carry on just fine thanks.

If you're in Thailand and can only find a dick to suck WHEN the bars are open then i hate to break it to you but you're doing something terribly wrong !

All I can tell you is that he is American and "no one is going to tell him what to do" and "it's his right to move wherever he wants and he'll just deal with whatever he finds when he gets there as it couldn't be THAT bad" and "Im sick of being told what to do here in the US and having to wear stupid masks that dont work so I'm going to Thailand where I wont be told what to do every two minutes and my right to chose will be respected" HA !!! Hilarious then that one of his first video blog posts thereafter was to complain that he was being "forced" to now "wear 'a stupid mask" again in Thailand "and it was a nonsense and this was just the Thai Government trying to control the people just like in the US " - meanwhile two weeks later lockdown took place and even then he couldn't / wouldn't see any correlation between those two facts and was just angry that his "rights" were being trampled on "again" and repeated how it was all a Thai government conspiracy by the elite to control the people for political reasons. Quite funny too as before he departed the US several people had asked / goaded him online as to was he going to Thailand to find "a girl" and he was very offended and made lots of speeches about "not all of us are like that you know, that's NOT whyI'm relocating there" and stating his aims where more about perhaps doing charity work to "help the poor Thai locals" ( not in terms of Covid mind just in general there by the way as they obviously needed it as they "looked so poor". So it was hilarious to then watch as literally on his FIRST full day on the beach when released from quarantine he was posted a video, where a nice (attractive) young Thai lady "|just happened to bump into him and speak with him ' as "wow, these Thai's are SO friendly to us US citizens and they love us and they love America it seems" (apparently ) - and then listen love on his video to the whole "hello, what your name, how long you stay routine being played out "live" ending in him issuing an invite for dinner later that night :-). BUT he stressed this lady "is different" and did not seem like the usual Thai girls you see in bars but seemed very respectable and upper class. ( perhaps he's right about that I dont know) Either way, the bottom line is that she's now in every video he makes, every day 24.7 and "at his request" she volunteered to take time out of her busy day him to take him to a local state school and after him witnessing "the poor Thai children who had nothing", he made a sizeable donation to help those same "poor children" to the teacher. His new lady also apparently has several other ideas lined up for him too as to where she can take him so give over some more money to other poor Thai's :-) So, he's very pleased and he's posting how pleased he is as he's finding "all Thai's so warn and welcoming everywhere he goes when giving out his money" ( during a lockdown when they've no other income no less - they must have thought that Buddha literally sent them a money angel all the way direct from the USA ) But as for your "he is totally stupid" thought...... I couldn't possibly comment ! lol Either way I've a feeling that his is a story that's going to run and run somehow :) Good luck to him !

Certainly when watching a few videos last night of a 50 year old guy who had relocated there from the US about 6 weeks ago the place is a ghost town ! Everywhere closed up, restaurants that are open are closing by 9pm, no alcohol being served, bars are closed, gyms closed, shops closed - and closed DOWN and basically street after street shuttered and locked up. He has been told by the Thai's there "oh but it'll all be great again as all open again by the Government on the 1st of June as the tourists are coming back on that day" - I fear they are in for a bad shock ! :-( He has also spoken to other locals there who have told him whether shutters come up or not is almost irrelevant as alot ( MANY) of the staff and residents of the City have returned home to their villages and wont be returning anytime soon no matter what happens now. He has actually posted now that he feels it's so bad that he's now actively looking to relocate to live somewhere else, totally outside of Thailand as the current state of Phuket certainly wasn't what he signed up for ( this even though I and plenty of other people did try to warn him what he was letting himself in for by going in the first place!)

Same as some humans / politicians who can when it's needed talk for long periods through their arse it seems ! :-)

So, this now leads nicely on to that other seemingly hot potato topic in Hollywood these days - so, if apparently it isn't cool or acceptable for straight actors to play gay roles, is it then no longer cool or acceptable for Colton Underwood ( being that he has played the "role" of the epitome of a hot "straight" guy in The Bachelor) to continue on playing THAT "role", or should he now be fired as it being "not acceptable for a " gay guy to continue on in that show" ?? .....I think not !

Yeah but don't be fooled as we may be "nice" but be certain that as we were carrying the round to your table we'd be sure to veer off to the toilets to make sure we sneakily pissed in it first mind !! :-)) Revenge is a dish served....in this case piss luke warm it seems !! :-) So, perhaps NOW you understand why that English Real Ale you tried was a tad warm and smelt a bit rank ! lol

"He touched multitudes of souls" That must be assholes they're referring to after him and his gay antics in asking his staffer to jerk off for him so he could be sure his penis was working and then wanting to teach him how to give long passionate kisses ( even the staffer woke up to his game at that point and sued him !). Or after advising many men in his church to have vastectomies he also then insisted on seeing each of their penises "just to make sure the operation had be completed correctly'. Still if the christians are going to be ripped off by frauds like this, him with his 26 million dollar Boeing 747 private jet etc, then who bet to do it that some raging old queen in a wig !! There is some beautiful twisted irony to that in a wayI guess

If by gumption there you mean the likes of the feeling the effort for going or perhaps lacking in the basic travel knowledge or get up and go to do it etc I would say just get up and DO IT and GO. In general the Ph's is an easy trip, everyone speaks english, the food and culture isn't a million miles away from western culture ( dont know if that's a good thing or not), getting around when there is quite easy ( traffic jams in Manilla aside) and the guys are cute and usually very happy to hook up ( albeit whilst putting on a decent catholic boy front that they would never do such a thing of course) Some beautiful beaches there if that's your thing and whilst it certainly isn't wall to wall gay bars, go go bars or saunas ( by a LONG way) I'm sure there's more than enough action about on the Apps and in the Malls to keep you busy if that's your thing too. Manila you'll see as you'll probably fly in there well once was enough for me personally there I think just as it's so busy and congested - and a little dangerous perhaps etc too. The smaller towns ( Cebu, Davao, Boracay- Beach area ) etc were all much more chilled and easier on the stress levels I found. Davao CITY area is fine, perhaps avoid travelling around the southern Mindanao area outside of the city generally though for the same reasons you wont travel around the south of Thailand too. * Edit - just on my thinking that a lot of the bars in Malate had now closed or moved a quick google check on "travelgay" says this ( just in case anyone was to book hastily and pick the wrong area)..... "Malate district used to be Manila's main gay nightlife. Now the gay bars have spread out to other parts of Metro Manila - particularly on Timog Ave in Quezon City and near Ortigas Home Depot in Pasig." source for that ; https://www.travelgay.com/manila-gay-bars/

Not sure how old this thread is but if it helps I've stayed here before https://tropicanasuites.com.ph Whilst it's certainly not 5 star I see they're advertising one bedroom suites now for around £50 SGT a night so not to bad, although maybe check reviews as I dont recall it looking quite as nice or as modern as some of the room pics on their website and was starting to showing it's age when I stayed, but that may have been more the cheapskate room that I just happened to book at the time (intentionally so I could run amok without being bothered to much ;-) It was very close to Robinsons Mall ( like just across the street ) and also close very to the bars ( which I thought had all now basically closed down in that part of town, but perhaps I'm wrong about that ?). The hotel seemed to have no problem with joiners - although I think that was more from both just a lack of interest on their part and also my ensuring I used the back stairs to my room a lot = either way I seem to recall that I'd several or more "good times" when there and I'd probably stay there again if wanting to visit that particular area, mainly for that reason !

My Bf's filipino brother in law, who lives here in the UK is called Winston Churchill ! Weird thing is he barely knows who that is and on my asking I was told it was the current British Prime Minister - whereas truth be told Boris is only that in his own dreams !

The UK Government actually applied this same early closing rule during the UK lockdowns as well, I cant say Im aware of the published reason but I think it was mainly an acceptance that people needed to eat and so those who wished to ordered carry out food - up until 8/9pm etc, but the hope then was that once you were fed you stayed home and as everywhere else was closed had no further need to go out anywhere after that 9pm 'unpublished" curfew time perhaps.

Well if by "smile you mean "cringe smile" then I guess this one always works ! lol

A) There's no question that Charles WILL take over as Monarch when the Queen passes, that's just a constitutional fact and isn't something "to be decided on by anyone" and b) I've no doubt that the Monarchy is quite secure for many years to come both via Charles, William and his son after that.....

I really wish they wouldn't post about it not being armoured etc as the less people know about ANYTHING to do with the Monarchs security the better just. Sometimes the "assumption" that there are a lot of covert security features being used just may be enough to deter someone from planning any nefarious activities, to actively confirm there is and was no such devices employed can only serve to give bad ideas to those who might seek to harm HM and to tempt fate perhaps ! ;-(

Although in some / most places what it SAYS of course on a boys public profile pic re them being "MAN ONLY" etc, especially where their friends can see that etc, doesn't ALWAYS end up being the ACTUAL case sometimes once the door gets closed and things get a little more private - if you're lucky and / or tip enough perhaps.

so, and again.... I'm confused - so are we now suggesting that Thailand has added "the USA and Great Britain" to list saying that should people arrive from those Countries to Thailand they now have to be quarantined for 14 days ?

Sorry I'm confused - so are we now suggesting that Thailand has added "the USA and Great Britain" to list saying that should people arrive from those Countries to Thailand they now have to be quarantined for 14 days ?

When I seen the title 'Happy Birthday George" I thought for a moment you were referring to King George and was about to say you're a bit early ! ( 4th of June just in case you feel like celebrating it there lol) but was also wondering why an American would post that in the first place perhaps - well, unless you were the last Monarchist left in the US perhaps I guess ! lol Mind you, not a bit of wonder the poor guy was Mad ( not so much mad as FURIOUS) as no one there ever seems to remember HIS birthday anymore it seems ! lol

You must think you know something the rest of us dont here! ? But as you obviously have little idea what you're talking about so i'll not even bother correcting you, aside from saying I already can and do travel from the Republic of Ireland a lot if and when it suits me and that has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on anything to do with Nationality or Sovereignty, it's simply a matter of logistics.