vinapu

Day 6 After breakfast we are heading to Mae Sai on border with Myanmar , Thailand’s northernmost point. Recently there’s Sky Walk built there which I must to see and S is gladly tagging along. There’s also talk about possibility of crossing for a day into Tachileik - on other side of border without visa but on day pass and 10$. I got conflicting information about whether it’s still possible , no better way than just go and see. We took van there from bus station and in about 1 hr., we were on bus station in Mae Sai from where we took 2 motorsais to the sky walk. Better option than climbing the hill as sky walk is quite high up the hill on the border. It was fairly early and far from crowded. Admission is something like 50 baht . We were given protectors to put over the shoes but I created sensation hiding my sandals in the back pack and putting those on bare feet. Two ladies were so taken by my extravagance that requested their photo with ,me to be taken by the guy they were with. They also made sure to point to everybody present that this farang put protector on bare feet, how brave guy he is ! Weather was ideal and view over to Myanmar nice, although one would be hard pressed to say that Tachileik is memorable sight. beyond the river there's already Myanmar Then we descended to local market and went toward border crossing about 1 km away. Thai official was speaking English and politely explained that owing to situation in Myanmar not only locals can cross on day pass and foreigners must fly over border So we took pictures of Thailand’s northernmost piece of land by the river and resigned to returning to Chiang Rai sooner than expected as apart from that sky walk and market there’s not much to do in Mae Sai. But certainly sky walk is warranting getting there. As a bonus we learned that there’s another sky walk in Chaing Rai area – and exactly where we are heading tomorrow i.e. in Golden Triangle. How it’s possible we did not see it yesterday I wondered but that’s mystery to solve tomorrow. So we took songtaew to bus station and bus back to Chaing Rai . On our way we discussed what to do with newly found free time and we decided to go to Goddess of Mercy on outskirts of the city. In Chiang Rai close to bus station we found restaurant with excellent chicken with cashew nuts , the we went to refresh in the hotel and then took 150 tuk-tuk to the Goddess. Closer to it is , better impression it makes. Statue is enormous and I was glad to see that it’s possible to take elevator to the head and admire view from there. view from the Goddess eyes : Beauty of the place was enhanced by the fast that sunset was approaching . By time our 200 baht tuk-tuk took us to the center it was dark already. S went to the gym and I went to buy banana pancakes to both of us for a supper. Soon after we finished it lights went off but not necessarily we went to sleep right away. Sometimes watching stamp collection in the dark is a lot of fun.

that is the reason I prefer long time over short anytime

+1

my guess will be you have a lot of memorable experiences with guys from any shop in the area and you are not alone

Best part of fun is working on finding 'the best ' place and boys ourselves. There is no such thing like ' best ' by the way as it all depends of what we like. Doing survey of soi 4, Patpong 2 and soi 6 offerings as well as Silom and Suriwong roads between them should easily keep you occupied to week or two

that would be a price I 'm looking for for that place.

indeed smart idea. You want to taste other culture and be around of people from other countries. You have plenty of Polish in Poland. But if you crave home meals and after week or two of Asian fare you may, G'Bangkok in soi 4 , German restaurant, will satisfy you desires for schnitzels and fried saussages with potatoes.

indeed it is Take a heart, during my last trip in January and February I saw many Polish tourists in Thailand all the way from Chiang Rai to Krabi and in between so time may come when you will be able to exchange zlotys at reasonable rate in Bangkok directly.

really or you just saying? I thought you not fan of big boys

peace of life may be slow in Laos but they have fastest trains in SE Asia

You should be able to exchange them but that may require bit of canvassing and rate you get will be bit worse than of new emission notes. I saw that disclaimer in some booths in Bangkok but for the hell of me can't recall where. I'd try Xone in Suriwong or Super Rich in Silom Plaza( where Arena is ) , if that won't work try some banks branches along Silom. Bangkok Bank was rightly mentioned above I don't think you will be subject of double conversion if you withdraw money from Polish account in ATM but rate may not be the best and you will pay 220 baht of withdrawal fee on top of what your Polish bank may charge you. At end of day , don't panic , just try few more popular places starting with ones by the train station in the airport. Let us know how it went. By the way I think Kantors are bullshitting you by claiming there's nation wide shortage of banknotes of new emission. Local US consulate would laugh at you if you asked then for help, it's not what consulates are for .

Day 5 part 2 Next stop of our tour was tea plantation, high in the hills. That was one of those obligatory commercial stops but at least they served us light lunch and views were nice. Then off to Sop Ruak, place where Myanmar , Loas and Thailand meet in confluence of Mekong and Ruak rivers. That the once infamous Golden triangle , it used to be lawless opium growing area , hence notoriety but now is serene place with good views and only Opium Museum reminds us about that past. Museum is quite interesting and manageable and we got some time to stroll along the river to marvel at other two countries. While Myanmar side looks serene , on Laos side there’s new Chinese built city and while I’m not against development , it looks bad in such beautiful spot. monument on tops of the hill above the triangle Buddha guards border from Thai side sharp end of Myanmar, Laos across the Mekong Main accent of that city is not the temple , mind you , but casino. Since in my opinion we did not had enough time to back in Golden Triangle I made decision to return there after tomorrow. stop by rice fields on way back By time we returned to Chiang Rai , about 1 hr. drive away it was dark already . S decided to spend 1 hr in the hotel’s gym then we went to Night Market , about 30 minutes walk from hotel to eat something and check offerings but I can’t say stuff on the stalls was very unique , mostly the same one can buy in another tourist markets all over Thailand. Back in hotel for well deserved rest after such busy day if one can call ‘rest’ sharing bed with handsome hunk who is quite grateful for his vacations here. Alarm clock set for 7 am just in case

XSize in soi Twilight

let us know how it went please

you dirty mind !

relax, it's not your penis but that idiot's

The same here but after I developed uniformed response " I give money only when we meet in my room" message seems to sink in

Day 5 part 1 Alarm rung but it was only me who woke up to it, S decided to linger in bed bit longer but it turned Ok as we were still waiting for our van after hotel’s breakfast. First stop was famous White Temple. They gave us 1 hr. which is by far not enough. Never mind impressive temple, admiring almost as impressive toilet complex could take half of time. and then impressive toilets: But that is nature of organized trips, logistics is taken care of but often at expense of spending not enough time in some places and way too much in others. So we need to take good with bad. Certainly whole complex is worth a trouble of getting to Chiang Rai, even if just to visit that temple IMNSHO. Even if it was relatively early – we came to the temple at 9 am there were tons of visitors. Next step was Blue Temple, almost equally impressive and equally crowded but toilet complex not even close to one at White Temple Then on to Black House , temple like collection of different oddities including at least 20 crocodile skins and live buffalo . As for toilet – sign leaves nothing to imagination. All those places are close to the city but not really walking distance. Then off to Karen’s village. It’s bit of tourist trap but curiosity took over but at least it looks like village with people living there , animals wandering freely and only main street is more like market than village street. I was most impressed with long neck lady with all those rings talking over smartphone, XV century met XXI. Village guardians : part 2 of the day - Golden Triangle to follow

Day 4 HC left at 6 and I got some sleep. Past 8 I went for a breakfast to Ibis Styles, they have a deal , buffet breakfast for 250 and it’s extremely good value. After that short survey of Patpong market and back to hotel to pack up. Most of my stuff I’m leaving there as I will be returning to the same place . That part is usually easy for me as I’m used and well trained to travelling light. S showed at hotel on the dot, whole in smiles and we went to Don Muang by usual BTS+Mrt+ SRT red line way. All very smooth although they removed from his luggage some big bottle of body lotion but he kind of expected it. In order not to lead into temptation we were seating separately as one never knows where his hand may land in the plane full of people. Taxi for 180 to our hotel, The Space but south of city center but still walking distance there. We both are in Chiang Rai for the first time. After shower we went to the city , on our way had some local meal 200- for both and secured an adventure for tomorrow – for 1000 per person I bought trip to the Golden Triangle, whole day , visiting 7 places. Soon after dark we retired to hotel as I claimed I’m tired while in fact all I wanted was some intimacy with such a hunk. That turned out easy to have. I guess he felt bit indebted. Second very sweet night in row , I’m afraid to become diabetic. Alarm set for 6.45 am. Few pictures from evening walk in Chiang Rai

Day 3 Today I’m free of social obligations with my friend owing to little lie – I told him I’m going to Chiang Rai today. I will meet him again at end of trip but he will not know it until it actually materializes. Time from arrival was pretty intensive and I feel lazy today wasting precious vacation time in the room or wandering on the market behind the hotel. At 3 pm I mobilized myself to go to Foodland for a soup #4 on the menu – chicken rice soup. Nothing special but since I discovered thanks to one of boys it’s my daily staple whenever I feel hungry but not very hungry. S is very excited with tomorrow’s trip, packed already and sent me picture proudly reporting it’s only 7 kg – I warned him about carry-on limit. From Foodland I went to soi Pluk Chit but not to have massage at Sabaidee Spa or Sanctuary by A but to get a haircut for 100 baht – that is heavily local area with prices to match , on my way back I went to check new mall on corner of Rama 4 and Witthayu roads, Parade or whatever is called. I’m not mall person so only mildly impressed. Returning to hotel I checked new shiny Squrrel House hotel in former BBB Inn location. Looks really very new, if only prices would be more user friendly. Tired with doing nothing whole day and hungry after dark I returned to Foodland for a meal and then parked myself over Chang in front of Banana Club where I was supposed to meet ichigo who showed up on the dot as we agreed. We exchanged latest gossips as he is at end of his very long trip and after gulping beer and gin/ tonic we discussed next steps which turned out to be Dreamboys. I was hoping either Handsome Cambodian ( HC )or Vu Thy, another Cambodian will be there and indeed HC spied me right after he showed up on the scene. I saw him many times but honestly his smile was broadest of them all ( we had unsmiling meetings too ). Using excuse of siting with ichigo I kept him in suspense for a while before inviting him to seat and have a drink. Something good happened in his life or he was on Prozac because I never saw him so happy before. Seeing me, the trusted ATM, was only tiny part of this happiness . Of course we agreed on LT tonight , went to Foodland to get a bite and then to the room. I always liked HC and tonight I was genuinely happy to see such great change of his mood to a super upbeat. He told me bit about his plans for future as well as troubles of the past and was unusually clingy – he usually maintained cool macho appearance but tonight was extract of sweetness. That was transformation I was happy to see. Happy reunion indeed.

Glad to hear you arrived in one piece and are happy from the start. Have fun, no doubt you will

nothing dumb about the idea. Luck smiles at us often only once and if we don't catch now , next time may never happen. saying that I think Jason is still right, stick to original plan. I say it for selfish reason will be waiting for your report from Tokyo where I never been other than overnight in hotel by Narita

Day 2 During our time together I mentioned casually that in few days I’m going to Chiang Rai. S immediately jumped on that wagon saying he wants to go with me. It was exactly what I was planned and hoped for . As traveler companion he is second to none, interested in sightseeing and never complaining about anything. I enjoyed his company in Siem Reap year ago so consider him well tested as co-traveler. I asked him to send me his passport details do I can buy him ticket and we worked out financial details – i.e , all expenses paid, I will pay off fee for 4 days and his compensation will be what I paid him for long time less 1000. Judging from his reaction he would be happy to just go no matter what I offer to pay. Sweet taste of vacations I guess. He declined breakfast offer so I went to UNESCO listed Foodland alone and was surprised how full it was that morning. I claimed last and only available table. Then I went to see my friend , only to learn he had one of his stupid ideas opting for Chatuchak Market so I tagged along. As always it was crowded and very hot. Since we are both jet lagged after few hours of wandering we felt need to rest. Ok , I was feeling quite good but did not want to waste that opportunity to part ways so claimed to be sleepy as well and on Siam station we went our own ways. In the room I bought S a ticket using my tablet as I’m under own strict order not to use phone for any financial transaction unless absolutely necessary. Not sure that strictness served me well but more on that later. Being so close to the bed I soon collapsed on it but not before setting alarm for 9 pm again. For supper I went to G’Bangkok warmly welcomed by Guido the owner as well as Banana barker from across the soi who recognized me immediately and even went as far as to say he is lucky because tomorrow morning he is going to see him mother somewhere in Issan. I forced some tip on him to help with his bus fare. As for bar to visit I opted for The One (Tawan) curious how they are coping after Atlas sucked so many of their employees. Two or three barkers outside were veterans, one even immediately inquired discretely if I would entertain an option to take him with me LT. Inside there were handful of customers and few boys from old crew. One of them , true veteran who I mentioned few times in my report as guy who gave me second worst performance and then year or two later best off of them all immediately suggested I buy him a drink but I politely declined – last time I offed him he cut meeting short claiming he parked his motorbike in wrong place and then 5 minutes later asked for taxi money ! On the stage was one new guy, quite hunky , I’d say twunk +++ sporting very handsome face and surprise, surprise , two brothers who I met first in Arena back in 2013. One of them, Dit was actually very instrumental in me visiting Tawan for first time. We were passing by on the way to BBB Inn and he suggested we step in to see big boys. It’s how I discovered Tawan charms. Now 13 years later I see him on the stage of Tawan’s new incarnation. His brother Fai is one of best masseurs I even had pleasure with . Since tonight I had other designs, I finished my beer, tipped both brothers and new , handsome guy and went my way. Not sure about show at The One as I left about 10.30. I walked around the area to finally land myself at Moonlight . It was 11 pm and show was on. Bar was quite empty with perhaps 10 spectators which was less than number of waiters and mamasans. Certainly there’s some crisis there and for the hell of me , I don’t know why as I still consider that bar the best and feel the best visiting there eve if at least one of their mamasans has nasty habit of leeching to me as soon as I sit down. I was hoping to see Y but was told he took few days off . show always stop mid time for boys parade and quite of them , familiar faces . mostly already rehearsed at least once tried to attract my attention and was even one who tried equally hard not to notice me even if we met in Nov and parted ways on good terms. In absence of Y, leechy mamasan pointed at another attractive guy , not knowing that it was the guy I tipped yesterday at Hot Male – on weekend nights 3 Moonlight dancers boys we giving guest performance at Hot Male between 11.45 and midnight. Practice discontinued week or two later with change of Hot Male’s ownership. So if mamasan and me are synchronized it left me no option than to call guy over. Well built , from up close even more impressive than from distance, nice smile , good English. LT declined but with me being freshly arrived is not crucial so we settled on not so short short time. While walking M told me why he is so well built – he is runner and plays volleyball so sporty type and it shows. We weren’t hungry so did not stop anywhere. Great meeting and I was happy even if he left before promise time – I need some sleep and likely he noticed it so clumsily claimed he needs to go to bar because he forgot something . OK, ok no harm done. He left me happy with the choice tonight.

good you pointed it out. I use that staircase often if I want , for this reason or that , avoid barkers from bars on street level.

they do. What spoils it for them are inconsiderate customers taking photos and clips of the performances, it's why the masks. It seems that often announcements about " not photo" falls on deaf ears. One of our members actually witnessed manager throwing Asian couple out of Tawan exactly for that infraction. I don't like masks either but bask in knowledge that if I want to see their face when they shoot out I can always off them and ask for private show.