PeterRS

I feel desperately sorry for Ugandan gays. I assume those who can afford it will elect to leave for other countries, but with many African countries holding on to British colonial anti-gay sex laws, I wonder to which countries they might consider moving.

In all my visitis to Taipei, I have never had a problem with flight times - until yesterday afternoon. Returning to Bangkok there were a lot of clouds and we had been advised in advance that it was raining at BKK. On several occasions an aircraft I was on from other destinations has had to circle for up to 30 minutes, usually around the Pattaya area while waiting for a rain storm to pass over BKK. Throughout my career and a vast number of flights, though, I have perhaps surprisingly only rarely experienced aborted landings for one reason or another. Yesterday the China Airlines flight had two goes at landing and both were aborted. So we had to fly up to Chiang Mai and sit there on the tarmac for an hour for refuelling before we could spend another hour flying back to BKK. By then the storms had passed and landing was easy. We were, though, four hours late. Several passengers were understandably very concerned about their connecting flights. Arriving at 20:05 instead of 16:05 most had missed theirs and I expect one or two might have had to wait overnight. As the rainy seaosn gears up, members who might be connecting at BKK might bear in mind the possibility of rain delays when making flight bookings.

Whenever I have taken the train it has invariably been full. Perhaps this is because most occasions were at or close to rush hour. I do feel, though, that 45 baht each way for an airport train is almost ridicuously cheap. In Hong Kong for roughly a similar length of ride it is close to 500 baht with 2 stops before the end of the line. The Nartia express in Tokyo is about the same, although the journey distance must be double with no stops, unless you take a train going beyond Tokyo station which is then a bit more expensive.

Having been out of Thailand last week I only came across this thread on my return last night. I had met Kjun12 several times and enjoyed his company. The first was for drinks on Silom with his long-time Thai partner. Thereafter we met for lunch on several occasions, once with Jellybean the moderator of the Sawatdee forum. The last time we met was at a Christmas dinner at their house to which he kindly invited me. Thereafter he had a bad accident outside his house which nearly took his life. Although we then arranged several times to meet, they were all postponed which I took to mean the effects of the accident were a good deal more serious. Yet he continued to send greetings cards on important occasions. My sincere condolences to his partner.

It was the Christians who led the anti-gay marriage movement in Taiwan. But then their numbers were thankfully vastly smaller than those in many African countries.

I find what is happening the USA utterly abhorrent. But as a non-US citizen I can do nothing about it. From the outside, though, the creeping homophobia smacks to a degree of what happened to gay men under the Nazis in the 1930s. My own personal view is that the term queer predates that of homosexual. To those who lived in the 1950s and 60s, being queer was a term of abject abuse. I therefore find it strange that it has come back into fashion virtually as a badge of pride. As far as other countries are concerned, my own - the UK - has its own gay baggage littered around the world. It is more simple than what is happening in the USA, but potentially far worse for gay men and women. I refer to the notorious Section 377 of the penal code brought in during the Victorian era, the so-called anti sodomy law making it illlegal for men to have sex with men. It was immediately enacted as law in all British colonial possessions. 23 former UK colonial posessions still have this law on the statute books, in some the penalties having been extended to, in some cases, death. The British conveniently left them as law because in Britain at the time it remained illegal to be gay. The law was not changed in England and Wales until 1967 (in Scotland it was some years later) when it had departed most colonies. In Asia, Singapore only decided to abolish this law last year. It took Hong Kong until 1990 to do the same. Yet the law continues in existence in the former British colonies of Malaysia and Brunei (where stoning to death entered the statute books in 2019). In both countries Islamic influlence is strong and the chances of the law being repealed slim in my view. Thankfully we have the example of Taiwan where gay marriage is now enshrined in law, as is the right of same-sex partners to have children.

Equally mysterious unless as seems possible it was a short time hotel.

When it opened around 2000 it was very farang friendly. In the last decade, though, it has definitely become far more Thai-for-Thai or Thai-for-Asian. On the other hand, if you are relatively young and fit, it should not be difficult to hook up. Thai friends tell me evenings after 7:00 pm and week-ends are the best times, unsurprisingly. For some years Chakran has also housed VCK Massage, the former V Club that for years was based in a separate house on Soi Aree. I have not been to the facilities in Chakran but the old V Club was a great massage place. It frequently had great looking and genuine models from TV and magazines offering massages. Perhaps others can comment if that continues.

Not sure I agree with this. As the eminent French statesman Jean Baptiste Colbert stated in the 17th century, “If you enact a law and do not enforce it, you are condoning what you condemn.”

The new Prime Minister-elect's threat to amend the Constitution, reduce the army's influence in politics and particularly to revise the lese majeste laws are anathema to the existing ruling elites. They are bound to mount a variety of major attempts to ensure the status quo is upheld. But if the Upper House that consists of totally army-appointed Senators and the ultra conservative Courts try to deny him power, I am totally certain the country's youth will be back on the streets in far greater numbers than three years ago. And this time far more of their parents' generation and business leaders will join them. For the first time in 4 decades of visiting and living in Thailand, I can feel a generational change in the air! Unlike the Shinawatra clan with its strong ties to the police and its extensive corruption, Khun Pita is not himself a product of the elite system, despite his family's wealth. He is extremely well educated, has extensive business experience, is a single parent and clearly exhibits a ton of charisma. Hopefully he does indeed become the country's next PM.

On Tuesday Taiwan's parliament approved a bill giving same sex couples the right to adopt children. When it passed approval for same sex marriage 4 years ago, it stopped short of adding acoption rights. That has now changed. 'Fan Yun, a lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party was among those that initiated the legal change . . . “Parental love is the same, and only through joint adoption can we protect the rights and interests of each other by law.”' https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/16/asia/taiwan-same-sex-adoption-marriage-equality-lgbtq-intl-hnk/index.html

Totally agree about Qatar. Since I usually fly through Doha to the UK, each round trip involves 4 flights and so I must have taken about 32 flights in recent years. The entire biz class experience is virtually as good as it gets. When I arrived in Doha in early March, the A380 was parked far from the terminal. But the premium class buses were more like limousines with individual armchairs for each passenger. As @TotallyOz mentions, the lounge at BKK is excellent with a very good selection of different types of food and drinks. The same is true of the on board catering. Never had a meal I did not enjoy and the wine list is excellent, especially the rose champagne offered on flights to and from Doha. I do find the lounge at Doha over large, though. Not surprising perhaps given that the number of passengers in the 11:00 pm - 2:00 am period is mega given that this is peak time for transfers.

Looking at the Skytrax review site both airlines are dropping down the rankings following the pandemic. Emirates was always higher than Etihad and remains so with an average rating now of 5/10 when it used to be 7/10. Etihad also used to have a much better reputation but is now at 4/10 and recent reviews are pretty dreadful. Pre-pandemic I took Emirates daily A380 from/to Bangkok/Hong Kong at least 2 dozen times when biz class tickets were cheaper than the cost of most economy tickets now. That was fantastic value. But the biz price is now 50%-70% higher depending on dates. Also I would not fly on Emirates 777 biz class as most aircraft still have 2-3-2 seating and seats which do not fully recline. I note that Qatar has just announced a 5th daily flight between BKK and Doha with some limited time reductions in biz class tickets between some destinations.

As @vinapu has pointed out, there are people movers along most of the routes from planes to Immigration. The actual amount of essential walking can not be more than about 100-150 meters. The morning rush hour traffic on the expressway into Bangkok is horrendous. The train is really the only option at that time and will be about one tenth or less of a taxi. There will be queues at the BKK station but trains depart quite frequently. I'd just join a queue until I could grab a seat - although the journey length is short.

Now we wait for the 250 army appointed Senators to determine if they will endorse the changes that the Thai people have clearly shown they desire. With Move Forward and Pheu Thai seemingly gaining their majorities from a largely youth vote (and young people persuading their family members to vote for them), will the ultra conservative nature of Thai politics finally change? Or will the Senators and the equally conservative Electoral Commission find a way to water down the election results or even nullify the vote? These look to be exciting times.

Strange, since you helped start it!

So you are extremely rude as well!

If I felt as you and not had vaccinations, given my age I would probably be dead by now! Your advice is unwanted.

This reminds me of my first ever visit to Thailand more than 4 decades ago. I was staying far from Suriwong and given the times I was somewhat timid about exploring. Then a tout offered to take me to a gay gogo bar and for the only time in my life I took him up on the offer. A long tuk-tuk ride later, I was in the somewhat notorious Stockholm bar near the foot of Langsuan - long before that street moved very upmarket. It was a large bar in an old Thai building, hardly any other customers and about a dozen boys dressed in jeans. The mamasan soon sat next to me asking my choice. Jet-lagged and unsure of protocol I said i was still not sure. She recommended I take two upstairs and let them do a show for me. And that's what i did. For one whose only prior experience of sex clubs was a couple of visits to the Reeperbahn in Hamburg and the saunas in Amsterdam, I was somewhat nervous. But the boys were great. As they were performing, one suggested I move to sit on the bed. It was not long before I was invited to join in the action. Given my inexperience of Thai bars, I loved it and even today it remains clear in my memory.

I have worn masks and used hand sanitizers virtually all the time in Thailand. My concern recently has been primarily the number of tourists visiting Thailand and the consequent possibility of somehow getting infected despite having had 4 vaccinations. Just over 2 weeks ago I was in Hong Kong for 48 hours. Although all restrictions have been lifted, again I wore masks. I know that most masks are far from foolproof, but I feel better wearing them. Then about 4 or 5 days after my return I started to feel unwell. Thereafter I tested positive and underwent a really bad week. For almost 3 days I had a very high fever and various lesser ailments. Worse, I had absolutely no appetite. For a week I was able to eat only a small bowl of cereal and fruit in the morning. By mid-week, I tried to drink some clear soup. After three spoonfuls I felt sick. All I could do during that week was drink lots of water, sometimes with electrolyte powder. Oddly, the really sore throat I was told to expect never materialised. It took 8 days before I tested negative over 2 consecutive days. The one good thing - if there is anything good about getting covid - is that I was at home. Had I been on vacation, it would certainly have ruined most of it. Perhaps ironically, I had tried to get a booster prior to a trip to the UK in early March, but was told by all the hospitals i contacted they had no stocks of vaccine. I certainly recommend that anyone presently living in Thailand, especially of the older generation, get a booster shot if available.

This is correct. It seems they will be at the back of the cabin - but that's a guess. There will be 6 pods - 2 banks of 3. So those in the lowest pod will rather have to crawl in. They will be available for 4 hours with only one session per booked passenger. The crew will then clean, install new bedding and turn around each pod. Cost estimate is in the region of NZ$400 - $600 per 4-hour session = US$254 - $380. Expensive given that economy fares on long haul flights have risen a lot recently. But as the attached article points out, a great deal cheaper than a restricted business class return which presently costs in the region of NZ$8,700 for the 16-hour Auckland/New York return flights for autumn this year. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/11/snoring-is-perfectly-natural-testing-air-new-zealands-world-first-sleep-pods

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The operative phrase here is "in recent years." When launched during the first Thaksin years, the Elite visa was I believe the first attempt with benefits to lure the rich. For years very few purchased one, it lost a lot of money and there were strong rumours the Elite visa would be discontinued. Yet it is now extremely popular. I believe this is primarily for two reasons. (1) the draconian increase of the annual savings requirement for retirees to 800,000/400,000 has had an effect on the numbers taking this route, largely because many also do not have pensions generating 65,000 per month (I certainly don't); and (2) the pandemic. While 600,000 for 5 years is expensive, the more so when you get nothing back at the end of the term, the 20 year option for 1 million is much more reasonable.

Being across from Nature Boys this was probably the building to which Barbiery re-located when it moved away from Suriwong opposite Soi Twillight around 2000. Unfortunatey it also changed its business model and one of the finest of all Bangkok's gogo bars died within a year.

Sorry I can't help much. Since the covid restrictions ended, i have been there for only 3 nights in January and 2 at the end of April. Only had one free night when I met up with a lovely guy from Grindr with whom I still keep on touch. Have not been to a sauna for a good 5 years now. I ditched Blued some time ago but there were still hits on all three other apps. I just did not have time unfortunately. Years ago I used to enjoy CE provided I went at certain times - mostly week-ends and sometimes early weekday late afternoons before dinner. It used to attract a few high-end tourists from mainland China in HKG for long week-ends shopping and clubbing with a sauna trip thrown in. These guys were mostly tall, in shape and on the gorgeous end of the spectrum. No idea of the clientele now.