tm_nyc

NOTE -- I highlighted the sentence about street food because I saw that in evidence nightly on Patpong One nightly on recent trip.
From Tourism Authority of Thailand
A Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) survey has revealed that foreign tourists have increased their spending on accommodation post-pandemic, showing a preference for luxury hotels or resorts despite higher airfares.
The survey, which involved 30,054 tourists in 2023, highlighted that average spending per trip rose to 50,900 baht, up from previous years. Accommodation costs accounted for a significant portion of this expenditure, averaging 23,518 baht per trip.
The survey also showed a shift in dining preferences among tourists, with an increase in those opting for street food, rising from 63% to 77.3%. This change has led to a decrease in the average spending on food and beverage to 4,094 baht, down from 5,875 baht in 2019.
Café hopping has emerged as a new trend, increasing in popularity among tourists. The TAT observed spending patterns among different nationalities, with tourists from the Middle East being the biggest spenders, followed by visitors from Oceania, the US, and Europe.
The survey highlighted the evolving landscape of travel bookings, with a majority of individual travelers (53.7%) using online platforms for trip arrangements. Despite this, travel agents and tour operators still play a significant role in the industry.

This is very interesting. It's a site for Asian travellers (I suspect majority Japanese) judging by the handles used by those posting comments, and by the fact that it offers automatic translation into Japanese, Mainland Chinese, Taiwanese Chinese, Korean and English (cool use of technology). I think it charges businesses for advertising/listing.
It's great to see sites catering to Asian travellers. They are the one who will keep gay businesses in Asia alive and well.
 

I saw this today and it seems very comprehensive and current. I’m not going to search whether it’s been previously posted.
If you go to the main menu you can link to Pattaya, Chiang Mai, or Phuket.
https://gayandasia.com/en/bangkok
 

I agree with @12is12  You've written the post in a manner that simply recounts the facts and lets the facts speak for themselves. Indeed, it serves as a cautionary tale for others.  You've also been very fair by describing how the mamasan resolved the matter promptly and satisfactorily. Thank you.
What remains as a bit of a  mystery is how the upfront payment of 1500 baht for "tip" was even requested in the bar itself before you set off for your hotel. Was it condoned by the mamasan? Paid to the mamasan/bar cashier? Or paid to another boy for "safekeeping" for Jack? If the latter, it would be suspicious.
That said, over 20 years ago, I did have a similar experience, where a bar on Sukhumvit Soi 23 (Bangkok) told me that their practice was to collect the tip in the bar itself before the boy goes off with me. I thought it strange then, but the bar manager explained it something along these lines: (a) the boy should have no reason to ask for more money at the end of the session, (b) if the boy does not perform, come back to the bar the next evening and let us know; we will not transfer the pre-deposited tip to the boy.
In that instance, the boy did well and I had no reason to go back to the back the next evening. But till now, it remained the only time ever that I have encountered such a practice of collecting the tip upfront.
So, what I am saying is that this practice of collecting the tip upfront may be rare, but is not unknown. And if the bar is a reputed one (which Circle Pub seems to be), it may be for a good reason - as your own experience has shown.
 

Let me summarize my recent trip. I had a long weekend trip to Lisbon and I was going to attend an event there with my friends so I did not have a lot of time to explore but I had a good grasp of the market. As usual in Europe, hunqz was the most reliable bet but I haven't hired from hunqz for some time. I know that some of the escorts can delete their reviews so I did not find those reviews very useful and that's why I moved away from hunqz. On the surface you find many guys on hunqz but after digging a little bit I realized that it didn't have many guys of my liking. It's not as extensive as Barcelona. But still some options. I also realized that guys in Lisbon are much slower than the guys in Barcelona where I usually get a very quick reply if I contact them through their ad or hunqz website. Most guys quote 100, some 80 (outcalls extra Uber), I got one 120, 150, 200!!! Weirdly the highest two offers were the ugliest 😂 120 was an Argentinian guy who claimed he lost his reviews so smelled a bit fishy and I didn't try. For me bigger sized guys are a problem so it restricted my search quite a bit. Many Brazilians with xx+ so I had to exclude them. I found an African guy who looked like Caribbean or North African. He was 180 + in height and had a very nice well-defined body, not too mascular, very balanced body huge thighs and legs so he was my type in terms of looks and body. He also had a very nice attitude when we messaged: very efficient communication easy to chat upfront about the rates and pictures. So I decided to hire immediately even though he didn't have any reviews. I went to his place and he looked like his at pictures, although a bit balding. I made sure that kissing was okay and everything, so when I arrived we made out and he started having trouble with erection, and of course, when guys have erection problems things get quite ugly. He started telling me that this was his first time and he decided to do it because his friends said he should do it to get extra money and he thought it was easy and the funniest part was that he said he was so confused at the moment when he made out with me and he is straight 😂 well at least he was honest and still had a nice attitude so I decided to end it and pay him 50e, although technically speaking I always say no pay if erection problem. How do you guys deal with erection problems with escorts? I am usually more of a bottom when I hire so erection is essential for me. Without it I don't see any point of hiring them.
For the second one, I wanted to go for a reliable hire so someone with a lot of positive comments, so ended up with a Brazilian guy. He was a bit short but nice muscular body, very chill and relaxed. We started from a massage, which usually is mediocre in my past experience outside of Asia but he was quite good. Then we finished the deeds without any issues, nice kisser and average size, which is perfect for me. If you are interested in this guy, message me in private but he is not for the size queens. 
I also noticed there are some local sites like classificadosx and vivastreet when I googled. Some of them list their prices on their ad so I contacted a few but nothing came out fruitful. On these websites I saw some Portuguese guys so I was curious. Weirdly their rates were lower but all of them except one did not go through. And I didn't have time to meet with the one I managed to chat theough. It was on my day of departure and his place was far from the airport. 
One interesting incident is that some Brazilians advertise with the same number and same rate but different profiles. Maybe they are staying together but I didn't quite understand what they are up to. There were two hot guys and one tranny using the same location and numbers. Two guys advertise it as 50e for 1h but as soon as you contact them they will increase their rate to 100e, which is still fine but it didn't sit well with me. Something was sketchy so I googled the number and some hunqz profiles came up and they didn't have any reviews either. So I didn't bother to explore more but they were not the nicest people with communicate with. Be careful about these guys. They are very obvious on the platform.
Overall, online hiring was a bit time consuming compared to sauna hires. I always had a very nice impression about Brazilians because they deliver and they are very passionate in sex and have nice looks but in Lisbon I realized that most of my positive impressions came from sauna hires. In Lisbon I ran into some difficult Brazilians when I tried to hire online but I realized that I had the same issue with the Brazilians in London as well. So I kinda paused and said wait, maybe I am so biased because of my sauna experience with them 😆
So this was my hiring but I will follow up with non hiring part. 
 

From The Thaiger
An unnamed Thai police officer revealed that his superiors attempted to suppress a story about the arrest of a British backpacker for selling Category 1 drugs on a notorious island in Thailand.
Andrew Brett was arrested on Thursday, February 29, for allegedly selling ecstasy and LSD to other foreign tourists at the Ecco Bar on Koh Tao island in the southern province of Surat Thani. The Thai officer, who wished to remain anonymous, informed a reporter that the police had been monitoring the drug dealer for several months before they swooped to nab him.
The Thai cop made known they wanted to conceal the crime because the drug dealing took place on the notorious Koh Tao island, widely known as Death Island.
Following a tip-off from a concerned patron, police initiated an investigation into allegations that the British man was distributing drugs at the bar. After monitoring his activities for five months, officers finally apprehended him on his way to the establishment on February 29. Among his belongings, officers allegedly discovered 0.54 grammes of ecstasy in a plastic bag, along with 25 ecstasy pills and 75 LSD sheets, locally known as magic paper.
According to police reports, Brett would leave his apartment daily at 8pm to sell drugs to customers at the Ecco Bar, a short distance from Sairee Beach where British backpackers Hannah Witheridge and David Miller were tragically killed in 2014.
The police officer revealed that the case had been kept confidential for several months. Subsequently, they stated that orders had been given to “suppress the case”’to safeguard the island’s notorious mafia-like reputation.
“The suspect admitted that all the narcotics found belonged to him. He said he sold ecstasy pills to tourists for 1,000 baht each, while the LSD paper was sold at 100 baht each.”
Brett has been charged with possession of Category I narcotics for distribution and now faces a potential punishment of up to life imprisonment or even the death penalty, depending on the severity of the case.
Koh Tao earned the nickname Death Island following the tragic murders of British backpackers Witheridge and Miller in 2014. Subsequent incidents of tourist deaths have raised concerns, with several cases remaining unexplained.
Authors, documentary makers, and researchers have attributed these incidents to corrupt Thai police and a powerful group of local families controlling the island, accused of covering up the murders, reported The Daily Mail.
 
 
 
 

From Thai News Agency 
BANGKOK, March 5 (TNA) – Thai transgender women gathered in Bangkok downtown last night to reclaim dignity for their peers following an incident where four Thai transgender women were allegedly assaulted by a group of 20 Filipino transgender women.
A thousand of Thai transgender women gathered outside a hotel in Soi Sukhumvit 11 where the Filipino transgender women involving in the brawl were staying.
According to a victim’s friend, the incident occurred around 5 a.m. on Monday outside a restaurant near the BTS Nana Station. They encountered a group of Filipino transgender women with whom they had a previous conflict. A verbal exchange ensued before turning physical outside the restaurant.
The Filipino group reportedly consisted of around 20 people, while only four Thai transgender women were present, resulting in injuries to the latter.
The incident was later shared on social media by Filipino transgender women, causing Thai transgenders to feel humiliated. This created a significant uproar among Thai transgender community. In response, they gathered at a hotel where the Filipino transgender women involved in the case resided, hoping to resolve the issue and reclaim their dignity.
Around 10 p.m., police deployed forces to maintain order at the gathering point in Soi Sukhumvit 11 to prevent further escalation and escorted three Filipino transgender women for questioning at the Lumpini Police Station.
Shortly after, about 100 transgender women expressed solidarity with their peers, gathering outside the police station to monitor developments in the case.
Thai transgender women, claiming to be victims, also provided statements to the police.
Pol. Col. Yingyos Suwanno, chief of Lumpini Police Station emphasized fairness in their investigation for both parties. Once the culprits are identified, they will be summoned for further questioning. Authorities will also scrutinize the purpose of entry into Thailand for foreign nationals involved.

From Thai PBS World

A large group of Thai LGBTQ+ people rallied in front of a hotel in Sukhumvit Soi 11 in Bangkok late Monday night, reportedly to confront a group of Filipino LGBTQ+ people following a violent incident early yesterday involving members of the two groups in front of a food shop near the Nana BTS station.
A member of the Thai group alleged that about 20 Filipino LGBTQ+ members attacked four Thais and then posted a clip of the incident on social media, in a way they considered to be an insult to the Thais. Two Thais were injured in the incident.
They said that the rally was intended defend the dignity of Thai LGBTQ+ people.
Officers from Lumpini police station were dispatched to the scene, to prevent the confrontation from intensifying, and invited the two groups to the police station to settle their dispute, with the promise of justice for both sides.
Pol Col Yingyos Suwanno, the police superintendent, reportedly said that he would check the papers of the Filipinos, to find out if they have work permits.
He then urged the Thais to disperse, a request with which they complied.

I am more concerned about short transit times than about overnight flights. Nowadays, some airports can be terribly congested and there are infinite reasons for delays. I've had an occasion when I had to run to the departing gate because the arriving flight was late. I made it and was proud of myself. But at the final destination, I was told my luggage didn't make it. "Maybe it will arrive tomorrow".
So if needed to avoid a short transit time, I would even choose an overnight flight.
 

Hi gay fellow travellers
I really enjoyed reading all the stories and travel report from this community. Now I want to share my experience in Saigon 5 years ago.
I rented an airbnb with street door access 2 floors. I used 2nd floor for my own rest and the first floor dedicated for escort use luckily there was a bed and bathroom on each floor.
There was a website called https://www.ngaytho.me/diendan/
You check what they offer and talk to the mamasan via a local chat app called Zalo, tell the mamasan who you want and where do you want to meet. Mamasan is good at communicating in English even if you have trouble you can still use google translate for scheduling. I picked one guy and he came to my airbnb. The service was ok and i remembered it was around 1 million VND. The website has been changed so much snd the going price ranging from 1.2 million to 2 million now. I have not contacted any of the mamasan since then, but i am sure you will get a similar experience. Also please be aware of the boys may use photo editing to their pictures. So the one who appears on the website may be slightly different than what you see in person. I paid the guy in cash.
For gay suana, i went to several but i cannot recall all of them. Of all, Nadam spa was the best and i am still thinking going back. Design was very traditional chinese, erotic but not too overwhelming. The maze also very flirting. 
My trip then went all the way up to hanoi. You can tell the more north you go, the more socialism it feels. I did not recall good experience there.
This was my past experience and hope it helps for you.
AsianExplorer 
 

The Pet Shop Boys have release a new single called Loneliness
As a song it is fairly similar to pretty much all their other songs, and a similar theme, but if you are of a certain age like me who was in my teens in the late Eighties/Nineties, it is an irresistably nostalgic listen.
And the video for it has a nice story-line and some very cute men (sometimes wearing very little), so even if you are not into the Pet Shop Boys it might be worth a click:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUVfoybVqIg&t=314s&ab_channel=PetShopBoys
 
 

From Pattaya News
Pattaya is experiencing a surge in tourism, with hotels exceeding 90% room occupancy driven by an influx of visitors from China, Russia, and India, alongside a rise in domestic tourism.
According to Mr. Sanphet Supabawornsathien, president of the Eastern Thai Hotel Association, this positive trend is fueled by several factors. Russian tourists, seeking respite from the cold and the ongoing war with Ukraine, have chosen Pattaya as their destination, leading to increased flight frequency since late January.
This resurgence is further bolstered by the return of Chinese tourists, who began visiting Pattaya earlier this year. Indian tourists are also contributing to the tourism boom. Notably, while domestic Thai tourists were relatively scarce in January, their numbers have significantly risen during recent long weekends, indicating a growing domestic travel interest in Pattaya.
Mr. Sanphet noted a shift in booking behavior among Thai tourists, who are now making last-minute reservations as opposed to the traditional advance booking pattern. This trend is reflected in his own hotel chain, where room reservations have increased by over 200 rooms on average, signifying a citywide occupancy rate of more than 90%.

Why couldn’t they have managed to charge the real perp.
From Thai PBS World
The Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) has agreed to indict former police chief, Pol Gen Somyot Poompanmuang, former deputy attorney-general, Nate Naksuk, and six other individuals with malfeasance in office for allegedly helping Red Bull heir Vorayuth Yoovidhya to evade prosecution following a fatal hit-and-run incident in 2012.
The six other individuals are Pol Maj-Gen Thawatchai Mekprasetsook, a former divisional commander, Pol Col Veeradol Thaptimdee, a former enquiry officer at Thonglor police station, public prosecutor Chainarong Sangthongaram,Deputy Professor Dr. Saiprasit Kerdniyom, Thanit Buakhiewand Chuchai Lertpongadisorn.
OAG spokesman Prayut Bejraguna said that they also decided to retain four other suspects as prosecution witnesses. They are Pol Col Vivat Sitthisoradej, Air Marshal Chakkrit Thanomkulavutr, Pol Lt-Col Pannaphon Namuang and Air Marshal Surachate Thongsaluay.
Five other suspects were cleared of any wrongdoing by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC), which investigated the case. They are Pol Lt-Col Songvuth Charoenvichayadej, Voraphol Soktiyanurak, Usa Chusin and Natnjcha Thongchuen.
 

I stayed at the Birdcage back in November.  It has a mixed M/F staff so is maybe 'gay-friendly', but all the staff were all very pleasant to deal with.  I liked the location, my room was very comfortable & the garden/pool/restaurant is great.

I found Sukhotai one the most pleasant places in Thailand  ; the laid-back ambiance , the nice people and the beutiful old city . I booked only 2 nights before heading to Chiang Mai by bus and regretted I didn't stay more.
Phuket is a waste of time for gay activity I visited first time at 2000 there was a huge gay Beach with lots of boys hanging there and Paradise Complex was packed with gay go go bars clubs and open bars all is gone also the apps are hopeless . If you are for tourist purposes it's enjoyable destination but as for gay activities it's not what it used to be in the past. I won't return in the near future. 

From The Nation
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin made an unannounced check of operations at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Saturday and found the arrival and departure passenger procedures were still disappointing.
Srettha announced on his X account on Saturday night that he had made another surprise inspection at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Saturday evening to follow up on his first unannounced inspection on February 5 in the morning.
“I came to check the service systems at Suvarnabhumi Airport without informing the airport in advance after I made a similar check in the morning. So, today I came to check in the evening and there were plenty of passengers,” Srettha posted on his X page.
The prime minister said he found that both the arrival and departure procedures were too long.
“I counted the time since a passenger got off a vehicle and entered the check-in system and passed through the security system to reach his terminal to wait for boarding.
“And for arrivals, I counted from passengers' exiting their plane and coming to the immigration counters. I checked all the procedures in detail and found that they took a long time.”
Srettha said that he had asked the officials in charge if they could reduce the time taken. “The answer was that the processing time was uncertain,” Srettha said.
“This has to be improved urgently,” the prime minister added.
Srettha said he would like the executives of both the Airports of Thailand Plc and the Immigration Bureau to go out to check the procedures during the peak hours by themselves so that they could find out what caused the bottleneck. “I’ll make a surprise check at the airport to check the procedures in detail again,” Srettha said in the post
 
 
 
.

I stayed at the Birdcage back in November.  It has a mixed M/F staff so is maybe 'gay-friendly', but all the staff were all very pleasant to deal with.  I liked the location, my room was very comfortable & the garden/pool/restaurant is great.

Sounds delicious 🤗
I’ve found that another pleasant walk is from Screw Boy to Foodland—with boy pairing for about same price. 😋

From Thai Tourism Authority 
The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) is organising a special excursion train from Bangkok to Ayutthaya with steam locomotive to celebrate its 127th anniversary on 26 March 2024.
Travellers will get a chance to ride on a Pacific steam locomotive, numbers 824 and 850, from the World War II era. The special steam train ride will leave from Hua Lamphong.
Train No. 901/902 will depart the station at 08.10 Hrs. and will arrive in Ayutthaya at 10.20 Hrs. Passengers will have six hours to tour the ancient capital, before the train leaves for Bangkok at 16.40 Hrs. and arrive in Bangkok at 18.50 Hrs.
The train will stop at Sam Sen, Bang Sue, Don Mueang, and Rangsit stations, so passengers can board or disembark at any of these stations.
Bookings open on 25 February 2024, from 08.30 Hrs. onwards via D-Ticket mobile application and website (www.dticket.railway.co.th) or at the ticket booths at SRT stations across Thailand.
Round-trip prices for adults and children are 329 Baht for third-class, 529 Baht for second-class air-conditioned, and 799 Baht for sleeper and special air-conditioned cars. The price includes snacks and drinks on both the outbound and return trips.
 

From NNT
South Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research (NIER) and NASA have launched a joint air quality study across Asia, including Thailand, to investigate the sources of winter air pollution. Announced by the South Korean Ministry of Environment, the research began in South Korea and will extend through Malaysia and Thailand, concluding on March 25.

This year’s study, taking place from February to March, looks into the factors behind increased air pollution levels during winter, a shift from the previous study conducted in May to June 2016. The findings from this research are expected to be released in detailed reports that will serve both academic and policy-making purposes.
The collaboration will see the Korean research team supporting NASA’s efforts in Asia, with a specific research station set up in Chiang Mai province to analyze the causes and effects of smog occurrences in winter. A remote observatory in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, will also assess the performance of the Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer, a satellite launched by Korea in 2020 to monitor air quality across 20 Asian countries.
The air quality research, which was initiated in the Philippines in early February, will include various phases across South Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand. This year’s ASIA-AQ (Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality) project significantly expands the scope of the 2016 Korea-United States Air Quality study to include more Asian countries and involves over 500 participants from 45 teams, including research institutes, governmental organizations, and experts.
 

Hi I've been lurking in this forum as I'm currently travelling around Thailand, just went to Prince and thought I'd post.
90 minutes, 1400 minimum to Prince, 2000 to the therapist. Well worth it. Great facilities, full service, whatever you are up for. They can send you pictures on whatsapp if you want, or you can just pick someone out from the lineup. Mostly more built style guys. My therapist was a college student doing this part time. Very sweet, massage was okay, he seemed a little tentative, everything else was fantastic. He was rock hard for most of the session.

Day 13.
 For today’s trip Christian PFC , famous blogger  https://christianpfc.blogspot.com/ 
who happened to be in Siem Reap at this time is joining S and me for the trip. Destination of Koh Ker and on our way back -Bang Melea.
 As before,   we departed at 8 on the dot and it’s  about  2 hrs. drive to Koh Ker. Admission 15 $.
Temple is very unusual for Angkor temples as it’s pyramid shaped and would not be out of place in Chitzen Itza or other Mayan sites. Of course we climbed it as first step, wise move as more tourists arrived.







 
After surveying pyramid and main temple underneath we surveyed about 10 smaller temples  in the surrounding forest , all accessible by the vehicle. Then returned to main temple area for a lunch  and on our way back checked another 2 or 3, last of them close to the exit Prasat Pram turned out to be second best to main temple only.
 



Then to Bang Melea. Last time I was there my time was spoiled by 2 busloads of Chinese tourist who behaved below any standards, screaming and climbing ruins even where prohibited. This time , in the afternoon , just before closing time it was much more serene and most tourists at that time  seemed to be locals.
 It used to be 5$ admission but now Bang Melea is included in Angkor ticket. Do not even try to arrive without one as guards were quite adamant to require one and even if they let you go , there’s another ticket check at main complex . Unfortunately that was our Christian’s fate but he patiently waited for s and me having driver as companion.
 Bang Melea is perhaps most atmospheric from all Angkor temples, specially if not crowded with it labyrinthine construction and deep shade from trees growing on the stones .
 




 
Back in Siem Reap I secured our driver for trip to the airport tomorrow and  three of us went for pizza to Pub street.
 
Today is my last day in Cambodia and I was proud of my budgeting. After putting aside some money for the maid in hotel and for driver for the fare tomorrow  I was left with 1$ and 1000 riels .
For said dollar I bought my last Hanuman Black and 1000 riels took home as memento.
 
As for entrainment, again  some whispers on balcony  while emptying that hanuman and another one I had in the refrigerator already.
Nosy person should ask what about S ?  Shouldn’t you give him at least that 1000 riels?  Relax , all was fixed in advance as he preferred to be  compensated in baht and in Bangkok.
 
Day 14
 
After breakfast we parted ways , S went to see his folks with plan to come to Bangkok in the evening and I at 9 jumped into car and went in style to the airport. In 45 minutes I was there, this time admitted to the departure area. Since Keithambrose already placed pictures above no need for repeat but I need to mention I notices that all signs in departure are were in English and Chinese, nothing in Khmer in their own country !
 

Day 12
 Today  we repeated yesterday’s morning routine, breakfast was quite pleasant affair as I noticed few other patrons including few young girls were following S when he was picking his food and drinks and I swear  I was object of their jealousy having landed such handsome guy in jeans showing quite a nice bulge.  Doubt anybody was thinking ‘ oh that’s is guy with his grandson” . I did not mind S sending some smiles toward those girls fully knowing who winner is, let them have it.
Today’s destination is Sambor Prey Kuk, temple complex predating Angkor with most temples made not of stone but of bricks  from 7th century on,  located near Khompong Thom , half way to Phnom Penh. It took us 3 hours to get there.
 Entry is 10$ , they suggested hiring guide for the same amount and I agreed . She even dragged with her another girl- guide in training. Having guide there is good idea as objects are dispersed in the forest , trails  are well marked but still  on you own one may miss this or that.
 







 
 
It took us about 3 hours to visit every corner, I tipped that trainee 5$ then we went to local restaurant for a meal , 16.50 $ for three, not  a bad deal .
 Again long trip home , fortunately today Saturday  traffic was quite light and it was driver suggestion we go there on Saturday as he was afraid Sunday traffic will be heavier.
At home S suggested artistic part – dinner with Apsara traditional dance show on Pub Street so we went there. I like when my travel companions have own ideas not only asking “what we are doing now ? ”. At the table beside us young farang couple was sitting and I noticed both of them were paying an attention to S presence . Bit later when we had chance meeting on the street they even said  " Hi " to him ignoring me entirely. You can't imagine how my fragile ego was hurt at that moment
I meantime S got message from his bar friend , Siem Reap native,  who came  to see his folks at home and when he show me his picture it turned out I also know him from 2 long time offs, one threesome included. So we went to see him , he was dining with another boy and somebody suggested ‘lets go check Barcode “.
I offered to finance that escapade but at the door we were sent away- today bar closed for some private function. Other two boys said they are going to bed and that was idea S and I borrowed from them so we parted ways every couple marching to different bed. I had another senior moment – why I did not suggest  “ lets go all to our room”. Knowing that friend there was chance idea would be approved. Oh well. S and me still managed to had some fun including feasting on some pistachios and fruit while sitting naked on balcony right above hotel’s pool closed at that hour.

Day 11
 We raised to the sound of alarm clock at 6.45, prepared goods for today’s sightseeing and made sure to be first when they started serving breakfast in hotel at 7.30 because as suspected, my driver pulled in at 8 am on the dot.
Plan for today was ambitious with 7 temples and first we set off was the farthest from the list- Banteai Srei. Not only because I consider smart thing to start sightseeing from  most distant place just in case something happens and even more important, Banteai Srei  is only temple where you can buy Angkor ticket apart from official ticket selling office on outskirts of Siem Reap.
 There are 3 kinds of tickets available – 1 day for 37 $, 3 days within 10 days for 62$ and 7 days within 30 days for 72 $. Payment in dollars only , that was only place where they are  not accepting  riels. I opted for 3 days ticket because after tomorrow I’m planning Bang Melea temple and recent change was to remove separate ticket there and include it in Angkor ticket. Good news for some and not so good as we learn for others.
Another bonus of Banteai Srei ticket office was that there we no lineups.
 That temple is one of smallest Angkor temples but definitely most richly decorated and also one of most popular so it pays to be there early which we could appreciate when leaving and hordes in vans and tour buses start arriving.



 
 
Next one is along with Ta Som my favorite -Banteai Samre. It’s quite a distance from main complex and  one of least crowded. When I was there in 2001  there was no infrastructure there at all but now there are restaurants , toilets, souvenir stands and even guys playing Khmer music for donation. Often overlooked there is former ceremonial alley leading to the temple – on your left when you approach temple complex .


 
Third one was of course Ta Som, at end of complex there gate enveloped by the tree , one of those iconic Angkor places. Again , in 2001 that tree was not trimmed yet, whet we see now is later job.
If you are there make sure to go to the very end and then turn back to appreciate the sight. I stress it because I saw people missing it ‘ lets return , it’s only that small gate there” .
 
 Then Easten Mebon as I missed her in 2022 and lunch in some restaurant picked by driver which was not a good idea to leave that to him. He led us to typical crowded and overpriced tourist locale geared toward bus tours. Not that is busted my wallet but there are plenty of places I’d chose instead.
 
After lunch we did three biggies ; Ta Prohm famous for giant trees eating into ruins but also I suspect holding them together.


Then Bayon with hundreds of stone faces with mysterious smile


 
and to crown of today’s selection Angkor Wat itself , biggest and most magnificent of them all.


 
S, my guy as I expected was ideal tour companion, interested in sightseeing with none of those ‘ are we done already ? ” . Quite opposite after climbing highest level of Angkor and subsequent wandering through all level below I was ready to skip first floor galleries only to hear ‘ what ?, lets go”. It was really uplifting to see guy so interested in his country heritage.
 
After such busy and intensive day we returned to the room quite tired. After it got dark we picked up ourselves to go for dinner and then,  I swear it was not me, S suggested we go to 168 massage for massage. So we did .
 
 My boy was quite good and good looking too. Later and in the room I senses bit of jealousy ,S asking what we did to each other with the boy and visibly not believing my answers. Massage was 10$ for 1 hr, I tipped my guy 20$, S tipped his only 6$ but he was adamant it was nothing that just massage even if I did not really care having good idea how those stores are operating.
 
Then he had another idea – to check Barcode bar so we went there but it was bit too early with only few patrons and working boys. We had drink and returned home . No need for me to stay and watch he show when I have in my room guy  better looking that their selection, not to mention of tested quality.
 

And that's exactly what Imodium is meant to fix. ☺️