captainmick

I prefer Derek Caravaggio’s movie released yesterday https://www.freshmen.net/content/jorik-tautou-amp-derek-caravaggio--32648

I come from a part of the United Kingdom where the 1967 law decriminalising homosexuality in England did not apply. So that law continued in force. Partly as a result, very few people were prepared to be known as gay. I remember my parents talking in hushed disapproving tones about a middle-aged man who worked in the local pharmacy. "He attends THAT club", I recall them saying, only realising some years later that it was the one place where gays could meet. Membership only! There was also only one shop down a back street that sold 'risky' photo books (only of women) and where guys would surreptitiously try not to be noticed when they came in for a box of condoms.
Even at University there was virtually no gay culture. My first crush was with a late teen who stayed in one of the Halls of Residence. We got to know each other, started doing lots of activities together, even hiking at week-ends. But I was too scared of two things - rejection and being known as gay by someone who might not be gay. The gaydar signals that people threw off then were much less obvious. Eventually after many months, we realised our mutual attraction and started a short affair. It was wonderful!
I knew nothing about STDs in those days. We just did not talk about them. Having taken a holiday in New York in 1978, I thought I was in heaven. On the day I arrived, a friend took me to the Gaiety Burlesque off Times Square. I was gob-smacked. Absolutely loved it and returned a few times. On my next trip a couple of years later, I discovered one of the large bathhouses (the Everard perhaps?). By this time I had had a trip to Amsterdam and became fixated on the sauna scene. All I now remember were the Day and Night saunas. It was at the Night sauna that I met my first Asian, a young guy from Indonesia. And wow, could he perform! I virtually became hooked on Asians ever since. In Paris I discovered a huge sauna near the old opera house at the Palais Garnier. I think it was called Le Continental. Almost a third of the many customers seemed to be Vietnamese. As in Amsterdam I fell for one and we had an amazing two nights together in my hotel. Working in London, I preferred the El Sombrero club on Kensington High Street in favour of bar hopping. Sombrero for a time was the place to be. I loved it because many of the clientele were Asian. As another poster has pointed out, condoms were rarely in evidence then.
Soon I was to move to Hong Kong, little realising that it, too, had anti-gay laws on the statute books (they were only eliminated in 1990). My job meant annual visits to Head Office in New York. Since it was now the early 1980s, it was on one that I became aware of the new disease known initially as GRID. Soon this changed to AiDS with a death sentence attached. My European/American sauna going immediately ceased. Like many at that time, I was petrified that I might have become infected. For months I became monk-like, afraid both for myself and any partner I might unknowingly pass it on to. But I suppose the temptations of Asia were too great and I eventually came out of my shell of fear. The gogo-bars in Bangkok where the boys were often nude, the huge 690 Retiro Strip in Manila where the boys on the zig-zag catwalk were equally nude, two nights spent with one fantastic Chinese I met at Blue Boy Bar in Kuala Lumpur, the ease of picking up gorgeous guys on the street or in the malls of Singapore - I felt I was in seventh heaven. 
Then by the mid-80s, AIDS was becoming a much more serious threat to Asia. There was even talk that the bar owners in Thailand would ban customers from Hong Kong. But it never was put into effect. Not long after, Bangkok started what was to become a thriving sauna and massage scene.
Given the law in Hong Kong, I was bit more cautious. Since at least the '70s there had been two gay bars - Dateline on the Island and Waltzing Mathilda on Kowloon. But it was known the cops kept a close eye on them. One of the barmen in Wally Matt was even a police informant. So I stayed away. Cruising, though, was not that difficult. I met my first Chinese boy when leaning on a railing looking at Hong Kong's fantastic harbour. He was about 30 meters away. Soon he was inching closer to me and I to him. We started chatting and our mutual interest was obvious. But not knowing him at all, I decided first to invite him to dinner a few days later. Believing I then knew him much better, he came home. My first conquest! It was to be the first of many. But we are now well out of the 1970s and so I will end there.

Aniki is definitely closed. It was a large lovely spa but too expensive for most Taiwanese. The 'in' sauna is definitely Soi13In which is usually packed with over 200 mostly young, good-looking and in-shape Taiwanese. Also a few foreigners who are usually older. Best times are after work and at the week-ends.
One poster mentioned Grindr as the app to check. I think it was for money boys. Frankly, there are very few on all the apps. It seems Taiwanese are not really into money boys so they tend to target visiting westerners. The Chinese app Blued is also equally popular with younger Taiwanese. 
@pabornmentioned cock sizes. I doubt if he will find many comparable to the boys in Brazil, for example, but I have seen some eye-popping ones at the hot spring - and they were not erect!

Check out @bonersexaddict and @onlydoublep on onlyfans.com if you are interested in Taiwan.  Some of the content at the former was filmed at Aniki World of Wonders which sadly appears to have closed permanently six weeks ago according to their website.  Certainly peaked my interest in a post COVID19 visit to Taipei.

My arm was sore a few days after the first shot. End of the month for the second.
I too find all the drama over the AZ vaccine overblown. Given the number of doses that have been administered to date, any complications are very rare. Given that we're approaching, I believe, 3 million Covid deaths worldwide, this seems a stupid thing to slow vaccination over.

Christmas in Rio: Make Your Own Family
Christmas is for family, New Year’s is for friends.  That’s the mantra I’ve always heard in South America whenever I go here during the holidays. It’s a good thing to remember, especially if you find yourself in Colombia one Christmas night, wondering why the bars and strip clubs are closed, and can’t seem to pin down your usual boy to hang out with you because he is with his family. It is after all, a Christian holiday.  This is probably why I’ve always thought that Thailand was a better place to spend this holiday at. Out there, they still have all the decor and cheer associated with the holiday, without the usual familial traditions behind it.
If you are a gay boy who is not ready to talk about your life to your hetero family, spending any family gathering with them, never mind Christmas dinner, can be quite awkward. That is what a particular boy, Kleyton, is currently going through. He is a cute young-looking 22 year old college student. I met him in the sauna Lagoa in Sao Paulo last year in between visits with the new boyfriend. He seems at first very unassuming at the sauna, just blending with the other more boy-next-door types. I tried him out because I was looking for a bottom and none of the current boys that day were willing to do so in the moment. At the suite, it turned out, up close, he was gorgeous. Nice lean body, smooth and smelled good, yummy ass, and the big surprise was he had a gigantic dick.
In subsequent trips I’d invite him on some overnights, and it turns out that he is an amazing top as well. He also turns out to be gay, which is a blessing sometimes when it comes to going out and depending on him to know where the gay haunts are in Sao Paulo, and the cultural touchstones are similar. And not only was he a college student, he was also whip smart, so while my Portuguese needs help, my conversations with him are more nuanced and gives me insight on a lot of the politics of the day in Brazil. He, in turn, appreciates my thoughts about the USA on a variety of subjects, and we have one hell of a time comparing notes on both countries.
I do believe he does consider me as a friend, with benefits, and the benefits part has evolved as well. Initially of course it was a client and boy relationship, but as with any relationship that is worth its salt, it has to evolve if it is to remain worthwhile. Which brings us to present day. He is a gay boy who does not want to spend Christmas with his family, as he does not want to answer questions about “why don't you have a girlfriend yet” or stuff about his supposed "decent" job in Sao Paulo (he tells his family that he works as a waiter in between classes, well in fact he is a prostitute). We have been communicating about what to do over Christmas since November.
So I decide to invite him for the five days I have before I meet up with the BF in Fortaleza. I tell him he can stay with me in Rio, and we can go to the sauna together so he can work and earn money, but the rest of the time we can spend time together. He was very excited about the invitation, and planned to take the bus from Sao Paulo to Rio when I was ready for him. What wasn’t discussed was any kind of payment he needed from me, or what kind of sex that was expected from him. But from the evolving part of the relationship, it turns out that he was not expecting any payment, and the sex just happened naturally throughout his stay with me.
So after a slow night in Lagoa, Kleyton takes the bus (with the fully reclinable seats) from Sao Paulo to Rio at midnight. I get a call from him at 8 AM to tell me that his Uber from the bus station was arriving at the apartment. In a few minutes, he was at my apartment door, with big suitcase in hand, looking great in a tank top and jeans. After a big wet kiss, he collapses on the couch, and tells me to not mind him, and to tend with Lucas, who was still in my bed sleeping. I rejoin Lucas to complete my sleep. Before noon I hear Lucas emerging from the shower. He “helps” me with my morning wood, and then (after another shower), he bids me goodbye.
Kleyton wakes up as Lucas leaves. He still has his shoes on and just collapsed on the couch from exhaustion. He immediately disrobes all his clothes, gives me a deep kiss, and bolts to the bathroom, with his long dick swinging. After a while emerges from the bathroom, smelling nice and lovely. “I’m in Rio!” he explains, with all the giddiness of a young guy. He says he wants to at least hit the beach immediately, before checking out the sauna later.  “But it is overcast outside. It might even rain.” I said.  He said he didn’t care, as he has not been to a beach in months, which to a Brazilian is might as well be an eternity. 
After a quick run at McDonalds (his choice), we rush to Ipanema to the gay beach. It was overcast, and the gays were out but in small number, but we didn’t care. We were able to catch up with our lives in the rest of the afternoon over numerous pineapple caipirinhas, which gave us the buzz we needed to have a good time:


At 5 PM we head back to the apartment to freshen up and head to 202, since it was Wednesday, and it is supposed to be the Copacabana sauna's busiest day. And it turns out that it was, as we get to the sauna to a packed standing room crowd.

It was Kleyton’s first time in any Rio sauna, so as we check in and make our way into the premises, I give him the rundown of the place - where client lockers and boys lockers were, seating and stage at the primary floor, suites in the intermediate floor, and smoking area and sauna the top floor.  I even lent him my luggage lock and key to use at the 202 lockers, as they ask the boys to bring their own padlocks, or rent one for 10 reais. I leave him by the boy’s locker room and tell him I’ll be around, and if he needed a drink or a snack, come looking for me.
I promptly dove in to the crowd. Nothing like pre-Christmas cheer, and the pre-Christmas need for money, that makes a sauna light up. I sit down on my usual bench to perch (and it was the only space that was vacant, as the rest was packed with clients. I settle in for a caipirinha, and then my second. And pretty soon some boys came and pass me to gage my interest in them.
Maybe because I was with Kleyton now, but I was interested in the younger guys tonight. And there were some nice choices. I find a very cute branquinho who was tall and could pass as white back home. I invite him to have a drink with me. He had a very smooth body, not too worked out but faily toned and sexy. Up close he even looked younger. I asked his age: 20. Indeed pretty young, at least for the average age at this place. I find out he was a carioca, though his accent wasn’t typical of one. He was interested about the USA and my work, and then quickly got to brass tax: full versatile, 150 reais.  The sex was pretty good, and his ass tasted amazing. Definitely a repeat is in order down the road.
 
During the show (and it was pretty good), another branquinho young-ish guy gets my attention. He had a more worked out body, and lean enough that you can see veins pop out. Very good Brazilian genetics. He wasn’t as tall as my previous programa, but he was as pretty. He sits down next to me and shakes my hand. He was 22, another Carioca, and sounded every bit of it. Once he found out that I was American, he switches to English. He actually spoke English very well, and probably better than my Portuguese. He made for a pretty awesome seatmate as we get through the show. The sex was fine, though was only a top so that diminished my lust for him a little bit. 250 reais with cum at the end.

It was around 10:30 PM when I finished up. I didn’t see Kleyton at all tonight, but then I spotted him at the seating area by the stairs, staring at his phone. “How did you do?” I ask him. He said he did great, and had 4 clients tonight. He said he never has this kind of night in Sao Paulo, but then again he was new meat, so he was able to leverage that tonight. We get home, get some sushi from Uber Eats. In bed he whips out his erect cock. I was surprised it was hard. “I didn’t cum today so you get it all tonight.” I gladly oblige.
The next day was Christmas Eve, and there were no saunas open. That didn’t mean that there wasn’t anything to do today. We have a late breakfast at Stalos, the famous 24-hour restaurant that was across the street from the AirBNB. I try the “American” breakfast that was on the menu. Bacon, grilled bread, cheese, ham and eggs. It was actually pretty good:

At breakfast, he tells me about his ex. The ex was his age, 22, and lived in Rio. He shows me pictures, and his bf was stunner like he was. I ask him if the bf goes to the saunas. He says no, and said that he just does Garotocomlocal.com these days, as well as doing some porn on the website meninosonline.net. He then shows me his ex's handiwork, and it was pretty impressive. I ask him where he was. He says he was in Rio, and knows that he was here too. He has been asked if he wanted to meet with the ex. I ask Kleyton if indeed he wanted to see him. He said maybe. He said that the bf was kind of self-centered and selfish, and I'd probably not like him, but admitted that he was cute and at least would be good eye candy. I asked him if he wanted to invite the ex to the beach today.
A few text messages later, the ex was on his way. We head back to the apartment. In and hour, the ex said that he was in Ipanema with friends, and to meet him there. An Uber ride later, we get to Ipanema. We get some chairs from the vendor at the gay part of the beach. After 5 minutes, Adriano, the ex, appeared. He was indeed gorgeous, probably the epitome of a white muscle twink. He was shorter than Kleyton at 5’8. He shakes my hand, and then leans over to kiss my cheek. He hugs Kleyton, and they kiss on the lips. He gets a chair from the vendor and sits by my side, away from Kleyton.
The sun was out, and the gays were equally out as well. Adriano was pretty chill so far, and the self-centered boy that Kleyton described has not appeared. The boys chugged beers and talked and laughed, and Adriano described his life in Rio. Kleyton was relatively pretty quiet compared to Adriano, but he was kind of an introvert anyway. Adriano was the extrovert, and I can see how much trouble he could be if you let your guard down around him.

I ask Adriano if he was going to spend Christmas dinner with his family. He said he was not going to do that, because he said his family was crazy. I text Kleyton to ask him if he wanted to invite Adriano to dinner with us. He was OK with it. After the beach we tried the Christmas spread that Siquiera Grill was offering, and it was pretty good:

Adriano was pretty appreciative of the dinner. Kleyton then suggested that we have some Christmas drinks at one of the Copacabana kiosks that was open. We share a few beers and share a few more stories as we pass midnight, and that's when we give each other kisses and bid each other “Feliz Natal” as we commemorate another Christmas.

We all walk home, pretty buzzed from the beers at the kiosk.  At home we watch the series “Luna Nera” on Netflix. No threesomes. Just Christmas among friends. And that was fine with me, because its not like I am haven't been oversexed this trip anyway, and I was pretty buzzed from the alcohol, and I thought the Kleyton didn't want to cross that line again with the ex Adriano. Adriano sleeps on the couch. Kleyton spoons with me in bed.
Next… Rio is beginning to look like Sao Paulo.

In that case, I suggest you ask the mamasan to point you in the direction of guys that don’t shoot such a big load.    The Tsunami warning siren needs to be sounded before some guys unload, particularly when they haven’t had a customer for a few days.

In that case, I suggest you ask the mamasan to point you in the direction of guys that don’t shoot such a big load.    The Tsunami warning siren needs to be sounded before some guys unload, particularly when they haven’t had a customer for a few days.

In that case, I suggest you ask the mamasan to point you in the direction of guys that don’t shoot such a big load.    The Tsunami warning siren needs to be sounded before some guys unload, particularly when they haven’t had a customer for a few days.

In that case, I suggest you ask the mamasan to point you in the direction of guys that don’t shoot such a big load.    The Tsunami warning siren needs to be sounded before some guys unload, particularly when they haven’t had a customer for a few days.

Christian Private First Class has filed a most detailed field report of his experiences in Cambodia during the pandemic in December 2020.  Interesting reading https://christianpfc.blogspot.com/2021/01/gay-activities-dec-2020-cambodia.html 

Depends what you mean by “a lot quieter”.  I’ve done this trip twice, first travelling upstream like you, and more recently travelling downstream.  There were fewer people travelling upstream and in that sense the trip was “a lot quieter”.  However I preferred the downstream trip despite there being more people on board.  In noise terms, the downstream trip was “a lot quieter” because the boat is travelling with the rapid current of the river and the engine therefore runs at considerably lower revs with minimal noise and vibration making it a very pleasant and tranquil experience.  Going upstream the engine was at or near full revs resulting in noise, vibration and pollution all of which were pretty intrusive - the boat is doing the equivalent of running up the down escalator.   Having done both, I strongly recommend the tranquility of travelling downstream.   

Hmmm.  Think I’ll avoid this place.  Comic to hear the presenter talk about how you could be sitting in a pizzeria in New York City! The pizzas look overloaded greasy and with Americanised toppings.  For me a proper traditional Italian pizza is the only way to go.  Hope Bankokians don’t get fooled into these are proper pizzas.

As a long time fan of Phare Ponleu Selpak non-profit school and their social business extension Phare Circus, please allow me to respond to PeterRS.
Phare Ponleu Selpak is a local, grass-roots non-profit association founded by guys who were refugees during the Khmer Rouge. In the refugee camp, an art teacher from France used drawing as therapy. After the war, they opened the school together to use art therapy to heal the community. Art therapy is still at the core of the association, but it has grown to provide other arts related experiences, education and opportunities. The students come from unimaginably difficult social and economic backgrounds: abject poverty, subsistence farming, broken homes, etc in an impoverished country still recovering from near genocide. They discover and develop talent at the school, and some go on to careers at Phare Circus that didn't even exist in the country before.
The world-class entertainment organizations you mention certainly set the global standard for circus arts, but the comparison with Phare is apples to Rolex. Chinese circuses are enormous productions with equally enormous budgets. Performers are recruited from all over the country. Cirque du Soleil is equally big-budget and recruits top circus performers from around the globe, including one from Phare who was in the production "Volta" before the pandemic closed them down.
Phare performances are nothing like those you mention in terms of technical perfection and budget, but Phare performers bring something not seen anywhere else. They share their own life experiences in the performances. They create the stories themselves drawing from recent Cambodian history and modern Cambodian society. It's from their hearts because it's their life. The big top is intimate and the artists are within arms length. You make eye contact and see them sweat. They might even end up on your lap. It's an experience unlike any other.
It's even more moving when you consider where they came from and what they have accomplished. Many had never left the rice field or their small village. They may have never had money to buy land or build a home. Now they shine on stage and earn a good living, literally transforming their lives.
If you have 30 minutes to learn more, Al Jazeera did a documentary called "Cambodia: Circus of Hope". It's perhaps the best 30-minute sharing of the Phare story and it's impact on lives.
 

Senso has been the best for me. More twink guys. Also comfortable with private shower. Nakilat I found poor, dirty, partition not up to ceiling, choosing boy from catalogue etc.

Interesting - I’ve had neither yet but out of friends and relatives that have been jabbed, they have experienced the opposite with some of the Pfizer people feeling poorly and flu like for 36 hours but Astra Zeneca no side effects other than feeling a little tired the next day.

Interesting - I’ve had neither yet but out of friends and relatives that have been jabbed, they have experienced the opposite with some of the Pfizer people feeling poorly and flu like for 36 hours but Astra Zeneca no side effects other than feeling a little tired the next day.

Interesting - I’ve had neither yet but out of friends and relatives that have been jabbed, they have experienced the opposite with some of the Pfizer people feeling poorly and flu like for 36 hours but Astra Zeneca no side effects other than feeling a little tired the next day.

The A321 Neo and the Boeing 737 Max are more or less the same type of aircraft - narrow bodies that can fly the Atlantic. Like fedssocr I loathe the idea of a narrow body on a longish haul route. At least en route to London Qatar flies A350s and 777s. I'll take an A350 any day over other aircraft, but I will certainly miss the A380 when it finally bites the dust. That is my favourite aircraft, especially if you an afford the biz class upstairs.

Really? I would have expected you to be seeking out workers with a specialist knowledge of erections.

Christian Private First Class has filed a most detailed field report of his experiences in Cambodia during the pandemic in December 2020.  Interesting reading https://christianpfc.blogspot.com/2021/01/gay-activities-dec-2020-cambodia.html 

Really? I would have expected you to be seeking out workers with a specialist knowledge of erections.

“A Soft Lockdown In Pattaya”
A rare case when “soft” is better than “hard”......

Really? I would have expected you to be seeking out workers with a specialist knowledge of erections.

We should be very thankful that he took on all the tasks of keeping gaythailand going and ensuring it was the most active and varied of the various Thai chat rooms. It is inevitably part of the job that the owner of a site will occasionally receive some flak from time to time. With his passing, our gratitude along with Michael's comments is surely all that needs be said.