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From Pattaya Mail Restoration efforts to address severe beach erosion began late on September 2, following significant storm damage. Teams worked tirelessly overnight to restore Pattaya’s coastline, which is a crucial asset for tourism. “The storm has caused considerable damage to our beautiful beach,” said a local government official overseeing the restoration. “We understand how important this beach is for both the local community and tourists. Our immediate goal is to repair the damage and prevent further erosion.” The restoration work includes reinforcing the sand, stabilizing the beach surface, and implementing measures to make the shoreline more resilient to future storms. “We are deploying sandbags and other materials to reinforce the affected areas,” explained the project manager for the restoration team. “Our aim is to restore the beach as quickly as possible while ensuring that it can withstand future challenges.”

From The Thaiger Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific has been forced to ground its entire fleet of Airbus A350 aircraft after discovering a never-before-seen engine component failure, throwing travel plans into disarray for thousands. The Hong Kong flag carrier cancelled 48 flights, leaving passengers stranded and scrambling for alternatives. The trouble began when Zurich-bound flight CX383 had to return to Hong Kong shortly after take-off yesterday morning, September 2. The airline swiftly launched inspections on all 48 of its A350s, aiming to complete the checks within a day. However, as Cathay Pacific’s director of engineering, Keith Brown, revealed, several aircraft required further repairs, delaying their service return. This component was the first of its type to suffer such failure on any A350 aircraft worldwide.” The airline immediately alerted aircraft and engine manufacturers, as well as regulators, to the issue. The engines, manufactured by Rolls-Royce, have been lauded for their fuel efficiency but this incident has raised concerns. The A350, first deployed by Cathay in 2016, has now become the focus of scrutiny, with Brown emphasising that safety remained the top priority. In the wake of the cancellations, affected passengers expressed frustration with Cathay’s handling of the situation. Hairstylist Shum Sai-cheong, who was travelling to Singapore, criticised the airline’s customer service.

Visited there four or five times. Banana Club had Arena-like lineup when you entered plus good shower and room facilities. But the owner eventually replaced the guys with women. He reportedly concluded that the the men were proving too difficult to manage. If you search this forum for "Banana Club" (with quotation marks) you'll find any old entries.

You can find western brand names in Bangkok at pharmacies, markets and even 7-Eleven, if I recall right.

Phetboy Spa is offering a promotion for three (3) one-hour massage sessions for 900 baht that can be used until the end of the year. They also appear to have recently added 17 new guys to roster. https://phetboyspa.blogspot.com/2024/02/phetboy-spa.html Phetboy is also lowering off-site fee (guy comes to you) from 1,000 baht to 500.

The correct spelling is Ramkhamhaeng (with "g" at end). This may help when using search function. I tried just now and found many entries about the area on the forum but some are a decade or more old.

Once read that there are more flag grade officers (generals, admirals) in Thai military than there are in US military. It is indeed a very political environment.

Keep in mind that "asking" price is for the "business" and not the property. Business is the name and contents of shop (massage chairs, tables, etc.).

Most take feedback very well., especially if they think it will affect their tip.🙂

If I find that I don't like the pressure or some other aspect of the massage, I get up and ask masseur to lie down and I demonstrate what I want him to do. Works for me.

That's the protective sheeting to protect it from he elements during construction. It looks like there will be two entrances to property (Surawong and Rama 4). It's a condominium and many of the units have already been sold.

From The Telegraph Jake Coyner runs a specialist kratom café in Bangkok that sells kratom sodas, tea bags and capsules. His clientele are wealthier international consumers - Krerkburin Kerngburi ‘Well, this is trippy,’ says Jake Coyner, as the makeshift polystyrene raft we’re sitting on floats along shallow waterways. He can’t help but laugh: just beyond the walls of a nearby surreal, UFO-shaped Buddhist temple, a legal, non-prescription opioid is flourishing. At Sherb’s farm, a smallholding on the outskirts of Bangkok, close to 1,500 ‘top-quality’ kratom trees are growing between the irrigation channels. Native to south-east Asia, the plant’s psychoactive leaves are touted as an energy-enhancing stimulant, a pain-relieving substance, or a euphoric mood booster, depending on how you consume it. ‘It comes from the same family as the coffee plant, and like coffee there are different varieties – horseshoe crab, the golden coin, the finial,’ Coyner, 41, says, examining the trees that supply his own business, OG Kratom. ‘I think more people are starting to explore its benefits, and Thailand is having almost a renaissance movement right now. It’s been a really interesting few years.’ Kratom, from the tree Mitragyna speciosa, has long been used in south-east Asia, where labourers chew leaves for an energy boost, and traditional healers brew teas to tackle pain or common ailments such as stomach cramps. But it divides regulators and health experts worldwide: some laud its medicinal properties and believe it could help wean people off harder opioids; others cite addiction concerns, recreational misuse and side effects including hallucinations and vomiting. More still warn that the information to make a judgment is lacking. In 2021, a World Health Organization committee on drug dependence found there was not enough evidence for an international ban, yet said kratom should be ‘kept under surveillance’. But in Thailand, where kratom was decriminalised three years ago, a fledgling industry has found fertile ground among foreigners. In 2021, the government removed the substance from the narcotics list that had restricted its use since the 1970s. The drug hasn’t exploded like cannabis – some 6,000 marijuana dispensaries have popped up since weed rules changed in 2022 – but kratom is seeping into new markets, including expats and backpackers. ‘Traditionally, it’s been used a lot by farmers and labourers to give them energy, so it has this stigma as almost a “low-class energy drink”,’ says Coyner, a South Korean American who’s lived here for 15 years. ‘If you come from a good background in Thailand, cannabis is still cool but kratom is looked down on. What I’m trying to do is very different, I’m taking kratom seriously… and purposefully presenting a clean image for my products.’ Unlike the street stalls selling leaves and bootleg brews for as little as 40 baht (90p) to motorbike drivers and construction workers, his specialist café in Bangkok is full of kratom sodas, tea bags and capsules targeting wealthier international consumers. ‘Most of my customers are over 30. They’re using it for pain relief, as an alternative to alcohol, or because of previous drug addiction issues,’ says Coyner. Continues at https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/a-legal-opioid-potion-is-proving-a-hit-with-backpackers-in-thailand-so-i-gave-it-a-go/ar-AA1pJoXe

From Pattaya News An upcoming US Embassy outreach is coming to Pattaya. Below is the information! Provision of Consular Services: Tuesday, September 17, 09:00 AM- 11:00 AM The American Citizens Services Unit will be providing limited consular services at American Legion Post TH02 in Pattaya City, Chon Buri province, from 09:00 AM to 11:00 AM on September 17, 2024. Please note, that these services are limited by appointments only for: Passport renewals (for adults holding 10 years passport) Passport renewals for minors (age 0-15) First-time adult passport (age 16 and above) Notary services To sign up for services, please register below. Reservations are by appointment only with additional consideration for those with limited mobility.

Not that I'm aware of.

I believe that you'll find that expected tips are quite similar to those at nearby 15M Massage and K Man. I usually translate to Thai when messaging shops.

GBeat Massage in Saphan Kwai today posted seven pages of guys. Here's a sample:

Several years ago (well before covid) I recall some posts about them but don't recall seeing anything recent.

I believe it was One Spa that offered the 12-hour promotion. The current KK Massage offer (4 sessions, 1k baht does not have to be used all at once.

From Pattaya News On the morning of September 1st, 2024, Thai national media reported that Thailand’s men’s 4×100-meter relay team secured a bronze medal at the World Athletics U20 Championship 2024, in Lima, Peru. The team finished in 39.39 seconds, clinching third place in the final. The relay team, consisting of “Bew” Puripol Boonson, “Bird” Weerayut Daenkhanob, “Best” Sarawut Nuansi, and “Tata” Chutitath Pruksorranan, had previously set a new Thai national junior record by winning their heat with a time of 39.56 seconds, ranking second overall in the heats, just behind Jamaica. In the final, the Thai team maintained their strong performance. Bew Puripol, running the anchor leg, sprinted ahead of competitors in the final meters to secure the bronze with another national record of 39.39 seconds. Jamaica won gold with a time of 39.18 seconds, and the United Kingdom took silver with 39.21 seconds.

Hearing rumor that owner of M-Star Massage on Silom Soi 6 is interested in selling business for 1.5 million baht.

From Pattaya Mail By Barry Kenyon Although Thailand has suffered a military coup about every seven years since 1932, experts say the conditions are not right for a putsch right now. Coup historian Barbara Tuchman said, “To put the garment of legitimacy is the first aim of every coup,” but the circumstances are very different from those in 2014 when general Prayut Chan-o-cha cancelled the constitution with considerable public support. For example, the Ministry of Defence regulations have now been amended to allow the prime minister to suspend generals suspected of planning a coup as well as abolishing the military courts against which there was no appeal. More significantly, the military-supporting civilian “yellow shirts” who organized vast street demonstrations against the civilian administration 10 years ago are no longer a powerful force in Thai politics. At that time, the pretext for military intervention was the attempt in parliament to abandon the criminal charges against exiled Thaksin Shinawatra and allow him to “come home”. Of course Thaksin is now a free man, having received even a pardon from the monarch, and an influential adviser to the ruling Pheu Thai party. The former prime minister two days ago dismissed the possibility of another coup precisely because the ingredients of violence and chaos on the Bangkok streets isn’t present. These days the military-backed parties in the Thai parliament are much weaker than before. The unelected Senate, with 250 individuals nominated by the Prayut government, has been abolished and its successor body is not empowered to play any part in choosing the prime minister. Former deputy premier general Prawit Wongsuwon heads up the small Palang Pracharath Party, but this has recently split into two feuding parts with about half its members actually joining the civilian Pheu Thai administration. General Prayut Chan-o-cha, who split with general Prawit before last year’s general election, has now retired from active politics to become a member of the Privy Council. The Thai army, with its 1,700 generals, is no longer a unified force in the political arena. Of course, the advent of yet another ruling military junta cannot be discounted altogether. Suspicion of billionaire tycoon Thaksin Shinawatra remains very significant and he has yet to face a trial on charges of disloyalty to the crown. But the main argument against the likelihood of a coup is the existence of an alternative way of subverting politics: the constitution court. The unelected body of nine judges, created in 1997, has jurisdiction over the constitutionality of parliamentary acts, the appointment and removal of public officials and issues regarding political parties. This is the body which recently banned the popular Move Forward Party (now renamed People’s Party) and dismissed the prime minister Srettha Thavisin. Many observers now refer to the reality of judicial coups rather than military interventions. There is no need for “warfare” when you have “lawfare”.

New KK Massage promotion is offering four (4) one-hour sessions for $1,000 baht through Sept. 6.

+1 Would tip well for the opportinty 🙂

Richard Barrow's Train Guide is a good tarting point if you're new to buying tickets or have questions about the process. Options for buying train tickets online in Thailand: D-Ticket (Official site) SRT D-Ticket App: App Store or Google Play 12Go Thailand (travel agency) Baolau (travel agency) PLEASE NOTE: Long distance trains on the Northern, Northeastern, and Southern lines now leave from the new terminal station in Bangkok. When buying your tickets to leave from Bangkok, you need to enter “Krung Thep Aphiwat”. For local and commuter trains, including tourist trains and trains on the Eastern Line, these will still go from Bangkok Station (Hua Lamphong). You need to type “Bangkok” as your departure station for these trains. I always like to try and use the official site to buy my train tickets, but when I was abroad recently, I had trouble verifying my payment and couldn’t buy my tickets. Other people living abroad also told me they sometimes had trouble registering or even opening the website. It is true that the official site now has an English version, but they don’t translate everything. Sometimes important information is only shown in Thai. Overall, the interface and the support is not user-friendly which is why many people choose to use an agency site such as 12Go even though there is a service fee. Agency sites have the added advantage that everything is in English including the support. You can also buy through tickets that includes buses and boats. Useful if you want to go to the islands by train. ADVANCE TICKETS: Starting from 1st July 2024, you can buy train tickets 180 days in advance for all long distance Special Express, Express and Rapid trains. However, you must be travelling at least 60% of the entire route to book 180 days in advance. If it is between 25% and 59% of the entire route, then you can book 30 days in advance. Less than 25% of the route, you can only buy one day in advance. Please also note, for local and commuter trains, usually numbered 3xx or 4xx, you can only buy these tickets on the day at the station. You cannot buy these kind of tickets online. You'll also find links to purchasing tickets for buses, ferries and flights in SE Asia at link below. https://www.thaitrainguide.com/tickets/

I've thought about what kind of act would fit well into Tawan's reputation. I think this guy would do the trick. I believe he'd appeal to all cumers.