[I’m back! Bangkok trip report July 2023]

Arena is always on my must visit places, or as I call it my rough and ready place, whether the massage is good bad or mediocre there is always someone there willng to pound you in to the mattress and I always walk away well and truly satisfied.

[4hand & Couples Massage]

I love 4 hand massages, I have never asked the boys to play with each other as I want both to service my needs and have had no real disappointments yet (only one was classed as satisfactory but it still worked and served a purpose). As reader says above, after reading and taking advice of other members here I found the best way is to choose one boy at the massage shop and have him select the second boy, that way he (and #2) hopefully will be or should be comfortable working together. 

[Can we tell massage men that oil breaks condoms?]

I always have a supply of condoms and lube when I go in for a massage (just in case), just my preference to not have oil on the condom when being fucked or doing the fucking. Plus I do like to clean the oil off our bodies after the massage so that some oral action takes place without the taste of oil before the full on fun starts. 

[Hotmale beer bar]

Yes ring the bell and you have to buy everyone in the bar a drink, usually used by show off's, someone celebrating something or richer people. 

[First time visitor, can someone explain it all to me...?]

In the sex massage shops I used to be a bit shy at the start, after following advice from members of these forums I learnt the best method was to just speak up and say what you want. A good example is when I visit somewhere like Arena, after deciding what massage and length of time I face the guys and say the magic words "tops only please" and then the hands go up for me to choose from. I haven't been disappointed with that method and everyone knows what I want, after that it's just a matter of getting down to the fun. 

[Apollo massage Bangkok]

Looks promising 

[What has Delayed or Stopped your return to Thailand?]

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What has Delayed or Stopped your return to Thailand?

For me it has been a combination of things, a couple of operations, deaths in family and also of friends (far too many), a lack of direct flights and lately the Australian dollar has turned to shit. All that added up to knock the interest to travel out of me but hoping to get that interest back soon but just when is anyone's guess. 

[The Prince reopening?]

Brilliant news indeed. 

[The Prince reopening?]

I have my fingers crossed for The Prince reopening as well, had some wonderful times there in the past. 

[Hotel Booking Strategies]

My usual method is to book well in advance (minimum 3 months before the trip), when travelling I research which hotel/s I will be staying at and book directly with them and I found there are some that give pretty good early bird discounts. My normal 2 to 4 week Bangkok trips I book and stay at just the one hotel. I never use online companies like Agoda or Booking etc (due to hassles a friend encounted with them) and I haven't used a travel agent in a very long time (due to what I considered a blatant rip off when asking them to get a visa for me for one Philippine trip), I always deal directly with hotels and airlines now.  

[Bangkok’s legendary Pantip Plaza]

Was a bit sad to see the demise of Pantip, have been there many times buying goods 

[New park links 3 green lungs in city centre]

I love areas like this in the big cities, gives a nice clean space to get some morning exercise, should be more of it too. 

[Bukkake]

I'm quite sure that if you walked into Arena massage or as above (Natureboys) with a fist full of baht and explained to everyone just what you wanted that they would be very obliging

[A timely warning for some]

I've had that rotten BPH and I can say it isn't fun at all, some medication helped to relax the prostate but I ended up having the TURP procedure which in itself wasn't fun either. The good news is that now there are different and less horrid procedures to deal with the enlarged prostate than TURPs, if and when mine goes off again I shall be looking at one of those new procedures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[7 steps for coping with extreme heat]

8. Spend the hot day in a mall checking out the talent 😁

[Police make arrests after wallets disappear at Suvarnabhumi]

I usually have plenty of baht kept over from a previous trip that will see me through to the hotel and beyond (includes sim card at the airport and taxi) and that I have in my pocket before I even get onto the plane, no need to delve into my bag for money at the airport and always keep my carry on bag on a tight leash just to be on the safe side. 

[Size queen]

It's been a while but I have always managed to get well hung guys at Arena massage 

[Based in Pattaya: we all need to be very careful re scammers....]

On my old landline phone the scammers were ringing it non stop so I got rid of that phone, even after I had all international calls blocked on that line the Indian call centers used voip to call and the telco couldn't block those calls. Now I just use a mobile phone and I have resorted to a simple method, if I don't know the number or I am not expecting a call from a local business I don't answer it. If it's a serious call then they would or should leave a message but that never happens, the peace I get now is pure bliss. 

[Medicine ( when travelling for extended periods)]

There's a couple places on Rama IV that I go to (just around the corner of Surawong), Chula is one and the other is a small store next to it, never had any problems getting my medication (without prescription) from either but I do take in the empty pill packet so they can see exactly what I need. 

[What happens to your body on a long-haul flight]

If you have a choice choose a different airline to Qantas, they suck and no not literally. When returning from Thailand I got into the habit of getting a Thai massage at Suvarnabhumi (just need to arrive a bit earlier than normal) and that makes a big difference on the flight home and I think would make a longer flight more relaxing as well, although it was just a massage and no happy ending it worked a treat. 

[Thai Airways announces summer schedule]

And that just confirms that they have no interest in returning to Perth or Brisbane any time soon, I did get a standard preset message on their Facebook page saying they won't be returning in the foreseeable future. Looks like us plebs will have to use different airlines and those aren't direct either, the direct flights were a bonus.  

[Do you prefer hotel small shampoo bottles and soaps, or dispensers?]

Dispensers are my choice (for shower gels / soaps) but I do supply my own shampoo and conditioner. 

 

[Tourist Police push special care for foreign visitors]

12 hours ago, vinapu said:

Is not easy to be hetero those days it seems

I've seen and read a lot about straight guys getting ripped off or set up in the Philippines, my belief is too much drink and they let the little head over rule the big head too much.

[Police mourn cop killed in high-speed chase]

25 minutes ago, reader said:

The agency responsible for policing the highways recognized the bravery of Sgt. Maj. Setthakan Loykhampom who was killed yesterday in Pathum Thani province after a routine stop led to a high-speed pursuit because the suspect feared that he would be busted for possessing a vape.

The 36-year-old driving instructor said that Setthakan had tried to search his car, and he feared arrest because there was an e-cigarette and a bottle of beer.

Pretty poor excuse for what he did, I see a long prison sentence is on the cards for him, unless he falls out of a high window. 

[There goes Chiang Mai]

From The Nation.

The Real Estate Trade Association of Chiang Mai Northern said on Thursday that around 1,000 houses worth over 3 million baht in Chiang Mai are now owned by Chinese nationals, with total value of at least 5 billion baht.

“Chinese have been buying real estate in Chiang Mai for more than a decade,” said association president Non Hirunchetskul.

“Popular methods include buying via online Chinese brokers, or Chinese-run Thai agencies investing over 40 million baht and thereby receiving privileges, or by marrying Thai nationals.”

In a worrying new trend, Chinese investment groups registered with Thai nominees are buying properties in housing projects in bulk and then selling them to Chinese nationals for profit, Non said.

“These companies are 100% Chinese-owned. And since the transactions are done online or in China, they do not generate any income for the Thai government.”

According to the association’s latest survey, housing projects popular among Chinese buyers are in Hang Dong, San Kamphaeng, San Sai, and Mae Rim districts, while condominium units in downtown areas are also highly desirable among Chinese buyers.

Non urged the government to investigate real estate investments for legality and place limits on how much property these companies can own.

“Without any intervention, all properties in Chiang Mai, large or small, will eventually be bought up by foreign investors. Thais might have to rent property from foreigners to live in their own country.”

Hotels and restaurants, too

Chiang Mai hospitality operators have warned of a similar problem in their industry.

Weerawit Saengjak, a representative of small hotel operators in Muang district, added that over 100 small and medium-sized hotels and restaurants in Chiang Mai tourist neighborhoods are now owned by Chinese nationals.

These neighborhoods include Tha Phae and Loi Kroh roads, Som Phet, and Chang Phueak, he said, adding that the properties had been bought via Thai nominees of Chinese companies.

“These companies are investing more than a billion baht to buy and renovate hotels and restaurants in Chiang Mai. The trend is growing and there will be more businesses being sold to foreigners unless we have more effective anti-nominee measures,” he added.

Chiang Mai buy up