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I couldn't figure out where to post this, but this thread seems like the best place. I stopped by Nakarat for a massage yesterday. It was one of the worst massages I have had. I didn't get the masseur's name, but he was probably late 20s, fairly muscular, handsome guy. His massage technique was really terrible. He started out straddling my back but was sitting basically in the middle of my back and since he was a fairly heavy guy he basically made it hard for me to breathe. It also didn't help that the table had no face well. Once I flipped to my back and he started massaging my front he did this weird thing I've never encountered before where he was basically choking me. I don't understand how he could possibly have thought that was in any way relaxing. Obviously any massage place you go to it's somewhat a luck of the draw. But they should at least provide some basic training to these guys.

fwiw, when I added value to my old rabbit card yesterday I was not asked for my passport. It could be that the line was so long that the cashier didn't want to deal with it

I stopped in there today. It isn't quite the same as every other mall. As the name implies it is more like a market with small stalls - sort of like that one section at Terminal 21 or certain parts of MBK. I will admit that I have never understood how retail works here. How do all of these stores and shops stay open when no one ever buys anything there? I like wandering around the malls because they are air conditioned and it's something to do. But I almost never see any customers actually buying anything. Most shops seem to mostly be empty when I am there. And so it is with this new mall. Lots of little vendors selling various clothing items and lots of different food vendors including the usual places like KFC, Pizza Company, etc. There are two stalls in close proximity selling the exact same wallets, passport covers, etc that can be personalized with your name or these little metal plates that can be attached. I saw one food counter business that had 5 or 6 employees and no customers. I get that it's brand new, but it was Sunday lunchtime which you would expect to be busy. Central World was quite busy, for example.

I think they have been making plans to move everything to Europe. I like the A380 a lot. It's so quiet inside and just seems to float along. But obviously there aren't a huge number of them out there. I think I've only flown them on Singapore Airlines, THAI, and Emirates. My current favorite is the A350. I prefer it over the 787.

tunnels under swamp land, what could possibly go wrong? The plan for the wooden terminal seemed very odd to me as it had so few gates and looked like it was going to be very expensive with all of that detailed woodwork. A mirror image terminal seems somewhat sensible as long as there is a way for vehicle traffic to get to it.

sadly this never happened at my engineering school

very nice. I think we've all experienced the discomfort of being the only patron in a bar with all of the boys staring at us hoping that we'll choose them.

Depends what you want to do. I use my Chromebook most of the time since I spend time mainly surfing the web. Can use (most) Android apps too. My big desktop rig I switched over to Linux Mint with Windows 10 dual boot only for a couple of big photo editing applications that don't run on Linux. If I didn't use them I would be Linux full time. I got tired of all the problems I had with Windows and their broken updates. Linux Mint is quite easy to use for the most part. If you run into problems the user community is very helpful walking you through how to fix things. The user interface is very Windows-like so it's easy to adjust to. There are also Linux versions available that have desktops which mimic MacOS if you're more comfortable with that.

look at all of the privacy we all give away for free every day for the sake of convenience. Google knows more about me than I do. I like the convenience of the Rabbit card. I am not likely to balk at linking it to my passport for my relatively infrequent visits.

I arrive on the 16th..

I've never really had to wait using Global Entry

glad I am arriving a week later...hopefully less crowds at BKK

Have you been to Colombia. Of all the places in S America that is the one I'd most like to visit. The apps and websites are full of hung, hot Colombians. They all seem to be really horny all the time.

Given EK's financial woes this is not surprising. They still have a pretty big fleet of A380s though. For sure A350s are the plane for the future. Decent size but not too big. Huge range. Good economics. And I suppose once the 777X goes into service it will most likely be replace existing workhorse 777s.

spraying a fine mist of water from a drone is just going to make the problem worse, not better. Wind is what will help fix it, not a couple of liters of water.

that's a depressing story. The sheer number of unmoving vehicles is clearly a big problem. I wonder if they re-timed the traffic lights to be shorter if it would matter at all. Too many major intersections back way up partly because the lights last 2 or 3 minutes

good for you. I spent several days in Yogyakarta a few years ago and really liked it there. Lots of universities there so a pretty youthful vibe. And some stupendous sights to see. I didn't have a lot of free time as I was on a private guided tour. Not sure it's a country I'd want to go back to given the current climate. But happy to hear you're having fun

how was the pollution in Bangkok? I am thinking about bringing a bunch of the N95 masks and giving them out as tips. :-)

I only transited DXB one time, was connecting from business to first and am able-bodied. And I also hated that airport. Took forever to get from one place to another. Almost as much walking as JFK. Not a place I am interested in experiencing again.

thanks for all of the latest news. I will be there in a couple of weeks - really looking forward to it. I'll be staying around the corner at the Crowne Plaza for quick access. :-)

interesting. I've been watching a number of videos on YT lately. There's a channel by a couple of expats called ADVChina. One guy is American and the other is South African. They've both lived in China for many years, have Chinese wives and family. And they are ready to pull the plug and leave China. They say it's gotten to be too much hassle to stay there as Westerners.

sounds like you are building good karma points

or he figured some people don't really care all that much once he arrives as they are ready to get their massage, but others who do care might not be worth the hassle? I've encountered plenty of guys over the years in various venues who ended up looking nothing like their photos.

never in a million years would I have figured that out! thanks

I thought Spinder was finally available, but only good on MRT (and some buses I think)