Department_Of_Agriculture

Nope, no BMWs on offer. It's a Mercedes if you want luxury; and a Camry or an Isuzu or some weird Chinese brand if you want a discount https://www.aotlimousine.com/service-vehicle

If by the bar area you mean Patpong and Soi 4, they are literally a 2 or 3 minute walk away from the Tarntawan. Why would you take a car and how did you manage to spend an hour in it?

The prices quoted above are bonkers for a trip from Suvarnabhumi to Silom. 1150 for a Camry to Silom is nuts, given that a chauffeur-driven Camry from Suvarnabhumi to Pattaya with some of the better known companies only costs 1,000 baht. It would be 1,200 baht by Camry from central Bangkok to Pattaya and 1,400 from Don Mueang. Similarly 1,200 from Suvarnabhumi to Silom by the official airport limo is extravagant; although I note that that is for the Mercedes. It is 750 if you take a Camry. The Mercedes may be justifiable if you have someone special with you but seems pointless if you a travelling on your own and going to a mid-tier hotel. And if you are going to take anything less than that, there are better options. I usually just take a Bolt or Grab. It's quick, convenient, comfortable and far cheaper, and the driver will know exactly where to go. I looked at the Bolt prices from Suvarnabhumi to Silom, Tarntawan Hotel at 5:00 p.m. and again at 6:00 p.m. today - right at rush hour - and I am posting the 5:00 p.m. prices below. 6:00 p.m. was actually about 2 baht cheaper on all options. Travel time was one hour to the Tarntawan. Why would anyone bother taking the train or booking a Camry with SP?

Do you mean that you have actually been sober the rest of the time while posting?🤣😂

Yes, cat and dog meat are expensive. They cost a lot more than pork. Dog meat is often double the cost of other animal protein sources such as pork; and cat is even more expensive. That is probably one reason why the dog-eating/cat-eating/rat-eating Vietnamese money boys are so pushy and greedy. As of 2020, the pricing in Vietnam was as follows: Dog * Dog meat in Hanoi: 232,000 VND ($10) per kg * Raw dog meat: 150,000 VND ($6.50) per kg51 * Live dogs: 80,000 VND ($4) per kg Cat * Live cat: 100,000-160,000 VND ($7-8) per kg * Live black cat: 180,000-200,000 VND ($9-10) per kg * Cat meat: 160,000-300,000 VND ($8-15) per kg * Black cat meat: 250,000-500,000 VND ($12.5-25) per kg * Cat meat dish (with noodles): 104,000 VND ($4.50) Black cat meat is the most expensive, because in the brilliant thinking of the Viets, it is the best for health. As far as who is eating it goes, the report notes that “Cat meat consumers are very similar to dog meat consumers with a few exceptions. Firstly, although dog meat consumers are skewed towards males, cat meat is even more so. Cat meat consumers tend to have lower incomes, with the average household income between 6,500,000 – 7,499,999 VND ($280-$323) per month, even though cat meat is more expensive than dog meat.” So, although cat meat is more expensive than dog, it is preferred by people from the lower socio-economic status. It also preferred by males. Considering that 40% of Vietnam’s population are cat eaters, and that cat-eating is concentrated among lower socio-economic background males, it is reasonable to assume that about 70% of Vietnamese money boys in Bangkok are cat-eaters. Quite a few of them are probably stealing cats and bashing them on the head with a hammer at home and then cooking them. Bashing it on the head with a hammer is one of the standard ways of killing cats for food in Vietnam. Every time you off a Viet money boy, some cat or dog is probably doomed to be beaten to death, as I have little doubt that the Viets in Thailand have their own clandestine network where you can pay to eat.

Go for it! It will be hilarious to see how the Thais react. They will probably think that you are married to a Viet woman. Just be aware that you might soon end-up getting what you ask for given that they are now talking about importing even Vietnamese labour to make-up for the unfortunate exodus of Cambodian workers. Given that the average Thai is not very fond of the Vietnamese, it's a sign of how bad the labour shortage is. Still dog owners and cat owners really ought to be pointing-out that the last thing that Thailand needs is an influx of Viets. Assuming that cat cashew nuts does become secretly available, it might cost you quite a bit though, given that even in 2020, a cat meat hot pot in Vietnam could cost up to $50. That dish definitely cannot be described as took lae dee.

The Chinese often do. From live monkey brains to live baby rats, they like it as fresh as possible, along with all the supposed health benefits. See, for one example, this charming video: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5979266/man-eats-live-baby-rats-sauce-wine-video/ Note that the dish in the video above is hardly a one-off. Eating live animals is quite common in China and in Chinese diaspora communities, albeit more furtively and much less so these days than in the past. I suggest waiting at least an hour after you have finished eating before watching that video. I should note, though, that even the Chinese who eat dogs and rats usually draw the line at cats. Most don't eat them, even though China is a major exporter of cat and dog meat to Vietnam Also, rather than declining in popularity, cat meat appears to be growing in popularity in Vietnam: "Cat meat, referred to in Vietnamese as ‘thịt mèo’ or ‘little tiger’, appears to be increasing in popularity in Vietnam, with thousands of cats killed every day. In January 2015, thousands of live cats destined for consumption were seized in Hanoi after being smuggled into Vietnam. The truck contained "three tons" of live cats, reportedly sourced from China. In October 2018, there was an interception of nine cooler boxes with nearly one ton of frozen cats travelling from Dong Nai province in the south to Thai Binh province in the north." See this report from the AFP: https://www.businessinsider.com/afp-thousands-of-live-cats-from-china-seized-in-vietnam-2015-1 As recently as 2000, it was estimated that over five million dogs and over one million cats are trafficked for consumption in Vietnam every year. For a comprehensive report on the dog and cat meat trade and consumption in Southeast Asia, see this Link The Thais of course, are too civilised and too decent for that sort of thing - and Thai cuisine too good. After all, why would you want cat when you can have chicken cashew nuts? Cat cashew nuts just doesn't have the same ring to it, although the Viets might beg to differ. Also note that my comments about lousy Burmese food and the cat-eating/rat-eating/dog-eating Vietnamese money boys was in the context of Thai boys not being impressed with Took Lae Dee/Foodland, while those from inferior culinary cultures seem more inclined to eating there. But, anyhow, rather than allowing this thread to be derailed by that old man who always seems to have far too much time on his hands, let us return to the actual topic at hand.

A host bar is a bar that has boys - hosts - available to take care of you in the bar. Guys will sit with you, chat with you, drink with you, play around with you and, in a proper host bar, take care of things such as making sure that your glass is full and topping-up the ice. Beyond that, formats may vary in-terms of whether or not a boy can be offed during working hours, whether or not they have stage shows, how hands-on you can get with the boy while in the bar and how exactly a boy's payment is handled. In the Thai-style places, there is usually a fixed amount or fixed formula per hour that varies by bar. Most of the Thai-oriented places will also offer food and the guys are usually lined-up on stage while waiting to be called down by customers. Thais will usually go to these places in groups for a night out. You will find host bars in all the major cities and some of the smaller ones as well. Thais, generally, prefer these places to the go go bars, which are increasingly seen as quite déclassé and definitely passé. While everyone is welcome in these places, the atmosphere in these Thai-oriented host bars is quite different from what you will find in the Western/foreign-oriented "host bars". In the Western-oriented ones, such as you will find on Soi 6 Chiang Mai, you will have bar with a bunch of boys sitting around, hoping that you will invite them over for a drink and then take them off from the bar. If you see one or more that you like, invite them over for a drink. Some guys may take the initiative to come over and say hello. Invite or don't invite them to join you according to your preference. In the Western-oriented host bars, your tip to the boy for the time he spends drinking with you is at your discretion. Obviously, don't be a stingy dickhead, though, or you won't find a warm reception from the boys the next time you show-up. The guys in the Western-oriented host bars are less polished in-terms of actual hosting; they aren't likely to top-up the ice in your drink, for example, but they are usually quite interactive. All boys can be offed from these places, if they are willing. Another difference is that most of the Thai-oriented host bars are staffed by Thai boys; The foreign-oriented host bars, increasingly, often have a large proportion of foreign boys. That matters to some. Overall, host bars are less in your face than the go go bars and the boys are more interactive by virtue of the format. Specific to Soi 6 in Chiang Mai, there are now three Western-oriented host bars: Orion (the oldest); Connections; and Charm, which is the newest and smallest. Charm was set-up by the bartender from the old New My Way bar and a couple of the guys from that bar can be found here. Generally, though, the crew is made-up of friendly young guys. If you are new to the scene there, I would start with Charm. I like Connections as well. The owner was formerly a mamasan at Dream Boy when it was on Soi Twilight. There is also a fourth bar on that street - RAM Bar, which is a drag show bar that is popular with foreigners. Someone on here once called it the best drag show bar in Thailand. I would just call it a small slice of hell.

I need to check it out as well. Eh, no you don't. As @captainmick has stated above, it is basically mediocre food. The name of the restaurant in Foodland is Took Lae Dee, which, literally, means "cheap and good". Many go there because it is cheaper than some of the surrounding restaurants. Not many go there because it is good. It is only average, at best. I have never had a Thai boy actually ask to go there. They will go along if you ask them to, as the food isn't bad - but none of them are actually going to recommend it. Don't waste your time or money in Foodland. Most of them will be perfectly happy to go to the Happy Beer Garden though; but most of them will be even happier if you take them to the @Surawong restaurant on Surawong Road, near the junction with Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Road. The food is excellent and many of them go there on more special occasions. Note, though, that I am talking specifically about the Thai boys, as they actually know what good Thai food is. On the other hand, If you have offed a Burmese or Vietnamese boy, there is no accounting for their lack of good taste. Burmese food is appallingly bad; and the dog-eating/rat-eating/cat-eating Vietnamese money boys would probably be at their happiest if you could grab them something on four legs from a back alley, which they can then cook, out of sight, in their own homes - especially if they can persuade you to pay for the condiments as well. 40% of the Vietnamese population eat cats and that is especially common among the poorer sections of society, where it is considered a great delicacy. We can, therefore, assume that about 70% of Vietnamese moneyboys eat cats (the overly obvious joke about eating pussy need not be attempted). As cat/rat/dog is not on the menu in any Silom restaurant that I am aware of, the Viets will settle for Took Lae Dee. That is hardly a great recommendation of Foodland, though. In addition, Took Lae Dee/Foodland is completely lacking in atmosphere. If it is boy-watching that you are interested in, you are better-off sitting at one of the open-fronted bars on Patpong 2, or at the French Kiss restaurant on that road. French Kiss has been there since the 80s and the food is good - and so is the view. French food, obviously. The Derby King is good for Thai food. That place has also been there since the mid-80s and that it has lasted so long speaks to the quality of the food. Unfortunately, the last time that restaurant was actually aired-out was also probably in the mid-80s. It has 40 years of the accumulated pungent smells of Thai cooking, which isn't very pleasant. There is a good reason that they do more business from takeaway than dining-in. That is also why it is best to visit Derby King on your way home from a bar, rather than at the start of a night out. The last thing you want when trying to pick-up a boy is the smell of the Derby King clinging to your clothes. The odd choice of name for a Thai restaurant is because it used to be an old farang-owned bar before being taken-over. Hence also the faded, overly grand decor. @captainmick has already mentioned the Mango Tree on Soi 6 as a good, more upmarket choice for Thai food and I definitely agree. Their masaman curry is absolutely fabulous - the best that I have had in Bangkok. An alternative nearby Thai fine dining venue is the Ruen Urai restaurant, attached to the Rose Hotel. The Rose is a legendary dump, but the current generation of the family that owns it is doing more innovative things and the restaurant has a nice ambience, with a beautiful garden, in addition to good food. Neither of these places will break your bank account. In passing, since we are talking about restaurants, beyond Silom but not too far away, I still like Cabbages and Condoms on Sukhumvit Soi 12. It still offers excellent Thai food and the ambience has only improved as the garden has matured. I believe that they no longer perform abortions in the back room though. Also, the food court at Central Embassy is one of the very best in Thailand, both in-terms of variety and quality of the food, and very reasonably priced.

The 1,000 baht seats at Rajadamnoen are actually the most fun of all as that is where the local Thai gamblers sit. That is where you will have the most raucous and authentic experience, as opposed to sitting among the foreigners. Note though, that the quality of the fights defers greatly depending on the day that you go to Rajadamnoen, as different promoters have their events on different days. The worst one are on Monday and , which features a lot of lower quality fighters, including foreigners who have come to Thailand to train. Not worth it. Tuesday is so so. On Wednesday, you have the Palangmai promotion, which is good and quite traditional. On Thursday, you have the Petchyindee promotion, which often has good fights, but has a very modern format, with a live DJ and is very popular with foreigners. Saturday is the Rajadamnoen World Series (RWS) which often has well-known fighters, but has a modern format. Sunday has the best and most traditional fights by the Suek Kiatpetch promotion. If you want to watch old school Muay Thai, go on Sunday and get the 1,000 baht tickets.

Well this is some amusingly hypocritical idiocy. Here we have a poster who - according to his own words and standards - is tainted by association with genocide and ethnic cleansing calling for someone else to be ignored. You called for forum members to boycott Myanmar, based on your claim that the population was supporting the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingyas. You said: Yet today, when polls show that a majority of Israelis support the ongoing genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza, I don't hear you calling for Israel and Israelis to be boycotted. Why not? Because it is one standard for you and Israel and one standard for the rest of the world; and of course because you would like to keep flying around the world paying for sex and you would like everyone to be very polite and not mention that, according to your own words and standards, you are tainted by association with Israel's genocide and ethnic cleansing and should be boycotted. But the desire for politeness should take a backseat to truth. If anyone here deserves to be boycotted, it is you. Yet here you are calling for someone else to be ignored. Clown.

Ayutthaya is fab and it is definitely worth spending a night there, or even two. I wouldn’t base my decision on the opinions of a few old queens in a hurry to get back to Bangkok to get their arses stuffed that night. There are some really nice boutique hotels and restaurants along the river, with wonderful views of the illuminated ruins. Enjoying very good food and live music – not of the thumping kind – with the river flowing by, is a delightful way to spend an evening. The better ones also offer riverside swimming pools. Plus, there are, or used to be night time tours, so you have the chance to see the illuminated ruins at night. Some of the boutique hotels near the monument park also offer free bicycles, so you can tour the larger area at your own pace. There is also a rather nice night market which is quite new but atmospheric. From the riverside hotel area, you are also only about ten minutes away from the heart of town, if you feel like stepping out for the night. When touring the ruins by day, just remember that it can get very hot, so you will need a hat, with plenty of vendors around there offering them. Accordingly, you are better-off starting your explorations a little earlier, before it gets too hot and too crowded in the main area. Therefore, it makes more sense to arrive the evening before and spend the night there, have a good breakfast and then start, rather than driving up from Bangkok in the morning and then arriving in the heat and crowds. If you are starting early, you might want to start in the main, ticketed, monument park area before the big crowds arrive and then move on to the outer areas. If you have an interest in history or architecture, one of the things that I found really enjoyable was seeing the evolution of Ayutthaya architecture, with some of the earlier buildings clearly based on the Haripunchai/Lamphun models and then evolving towards what we now think of as classial Thai architecture. As @Keithambrose has mentioned, there are also many other monuments worth visiting beyond that area. No need to rush it just in order to get back to Bangkok. If you are spending a second night there and then returning to Bangkok by car, stopping at the Bang Pa In royal pleasure palace is worth it. Or you can take a leisurely boat ride back to the capital. Either way, don’t rush. At a minimum, I would say spend one night. Two is fine too. Ayutthaya is as much a place to unwind as it is for sightseeing. Enjoy it.

I wouldn't pay too much attention to that. Most of those sorts of comments come from old farts who get more satisfaction from whining about how places they used to visit years ago have now closed, rather than going out and enjoying the many new places that have opened. They mistake their own increasing decrepitude and impending death for the decline or even death of the scene, not just in Chiang Mai but practically everywhere else. The one good thing about their moaning about Chiang Mai, though, is how it deters the unpleasant, hardcore sex tourists from going up there. The Empress probably isn't the best place for a solo stay. It is rather quiet in that area, while the real fun is in the night market area. For a comparable price, you could get a room at the Movenpick hotel, which is rather bland, but situated right on the doorstep of the action with the night market just steps away. If you want to splurge, the Marriott (formerly Le Meridien) is directly opposite. Since you are only going to be there on your own for a couple of days, you probably don't need a list of too many venues and are better off sticking to the ones that are well known on here. In addition to the massage places mentioned, you may actually enjoy some of the host bars on Soi 6 (aka Soi Gay) in the night market area, if you want night time entertainment. If you are taking a taxi or tuk tuk back to your hotel at night and mention to the driver that you are looking for guys, rather than girls, when he inevitably offers to take you to a girlie bar, he may offer to take you to an all night karaoke with host boys instead, because he will get a commission for bringing in a victim. Be careful of that. While those places have some very good-looking boys, the price can really start piling-up very quickly - room, bottle, host fees by the hour. Those places are meant to be enjoyed and paid for by groups, not solo. Note that I am talking about the all-night karaokes, rather than the Thai-style host bars, which are perfectly safe. As you are new the city, don't go to any venue that a taxi or tuk tuk driver recommends. Note also that the all-night karaokes offer both boys and girls. Another thing that you may enjoy doing while in Chiang Mai, if you like hard male bodies, is going to watch Muay Thai. There are four venues in the night market area where you have Muay Thai nightly, with different venues hosting the fights on different days. These will be advertised by promoters around the market area, so you can't miss them. In addition, the nearby Thapae Stadium has fights every night. Given the number and central location of these venues, it is much more convenient for tourists to go and watch Muay Thai in Chiang Mai than it is in Bangkok or anywhere else. For all these venues, it is 600 baht for entry and you get 2 or 3 hours of good entertainment by hot Thai guys.

I am just amazed, and slightly disappointed, that @ChristianPFC hasn't shown-up to tell us exactly how much he has spent over the last 16 years, complete with a breakdown by item and backed-up by pictures of all the receipts since he first arrived. What was it that he paid for a plastic comb again?

What rubbish.