mauRICE

No, I'm not in a hole. I'm enjoying a lovely cup of tea and some very moist fruitcake in a beautiful tearoom overlooking the Twin Towers. There are fresh flowers on the table and soft music playing in the background. Recollections and viewpoints may vary but I've said what I wanted to say on the topic without resorting to calling people fools or using ad hominem attacks to support my arguments. Others may disagree with me which is to be expected in a forum like this; I don't view disagreements as a slight on me personally but as part of the learning experience.

😮😯😲

He was in Thailand either in late April or May this year.

I'm very sorry to hear this, @zoomomancs . May you continue to make good recovery.🙏🏻🤲 Out of curiosity, where are you from?

What about Chinese Americans? Isn't there a derogatory, racist descriptor you'd like to ascribe to them? With due respect, you're quick to jump and attack over the slightest perceived slur on yourself yet are so generous dishing them out to others.

And both with the same hair!

Didn't you say you were planning to try out different places for six months at a time? So do that. It doesn't have to be either or. Bearing in mind that six months is 26 weeks, and say you visit one new place a week, very soon you're going to run out of elephant camps and you'll still need to figure out what you're going to do with the rest of your time. You've been in Thailand a month now; have you made a Thai friend yet? If you're thinking of learning Thai, I can suggest several no-pressure beginner Thai classes. PS I like the omelette and veggies. Keep it up. 👍

If you liked Kon and Mai, I think you'll find someone there to your liking. The current owner is a pleasant, soft-spoken, Thai-speaking German guy who takes good care of and is respected by his staff, which I always see as a good sign. Also check out Circle Pub. A note about them: they tend to hold handsome/sexy boy contests quite often which are open to guys who aren't working in the bar. Therefore, the handsome guys you see on their socials may not be on staff.

Please. This isn't a competition and there's no need to apologise even if you felt that you had made a mistake. I understood your post to be your experience based on your 3-day jaunt, nothing more, nothing less. I, on the other hand, was only sharing my experiences of the area that go back a decade at least. Reviews of a venue may be helpful but they only provide a snapshot of the time we were there and are influenced by our biases, moods, personalities and perceived knowledge, not to mention the day-to-day variables that affect the venue itself. Moreover, things are always changing and businesses open and close all the time. This is why I say go and experience it for yourself and be cognizant of the variables that I just mentioned. Hence, I wouldn't tell anyone to "avoid, avoid, avoid" a certain venue just because I had a negative experience. To share my own experience, I never liked Pattaya very much but enjoyed my two most recent trips tremendously. Looking back, I realise that my views of Pattaya were largely impacted by my feelings about Sunee Plaza and the horrible things that were going on there, and the fact that one could barely walk around the main tourist areas in the city without running into a bar or brothel of some kind. Now, all that's changed and I'm already looking forward to my next visit before the end of the year.

I think you may have misunderstood my post. I'm not saying that the location of the original bar had changed but the original owner and his business had moved nearby. I was last there in October 2024 just after the big floods. I think somebody else may have taken over the old premises after Covid (I believe the bar has changed hands several times - there was a Scot involved at one point and a Thai who was quite ill) and retained the old name of the bar and they had to close again during the devastating floods of October 2024 The post flood clean up took up to a month in some areas and the bar wasn't yet open when I was there. The original owner (Deet?) had moved and started a new bar in a small alley about 20 metres to the left of the bar in your pictures. As one faces the bar in your googled pictures and looks to the left, there's the pay toilet that you used, then the wide staircase leading to the first floor and then the new bar owned by the former owner of Chiang Mai 19 in a small alley on the extreme left on the ground floor, also in the same building. A very long time ago there was a pizza shop in that CM 19 spot run by a former manager of Adam's Apple. He had been a tuk-tuk driver for a while after leaving Adam's before opening the pizza shop. He then moved and opened a proper pizza and Thai restaurant on Loi Kroh Road nearby which I frequented a few times. The restaurant's closed sadly. Try googling it. Thailand may have re-opened its doors for tourism following Covid in October 2022 but only the businesses that had the resources to do so did and often not immediately. Some had closed permanently as did many SMEs in Chiang Mai following the big flood in October 2024.

I first visited in 2001. I had just graduated that summer and was having a nice long holiday before going back to start my pupillage in the fall. Soi Wat Umong was just a sleepy soi back then as was much of the Suthep area. Nimmanhemin had one or two cafes and the famous Amari Hotel; my favourite was this little cafe that specialised in banana pancakes which was staffed by ex Suan Prung patients to help them reintegrate into society. The owner was a lovely lady who was an ex-patient herself and a native of the area. The legendary Joe Cummings, who wrote the brilliant earlier editions of the Lonely Planet Thailand guides (it's crap now IMHO), lived in Soi Wat Umong. Back then I only had my wits, Lonely Planet, the Thai friends I made along the way and fledgling Thai skills to guide me. Of course the fact that had I grown up so close to then very porous Thai border gave me an advantage but mostly I discovered things through trial, error and experience which has put me in good stead because I learned Thai ways from the inside out. The recently maligned Adam's Apple was already open in 2001, as was My Way and Coffee Boy which was on the east side of town on Tung Hotel Road, near the Chiang Mai Arcade bus terminal. Coffee Boy was a one-of-a-kind; it was in an old teak house on stilts and customers sat on the floor in front of a small stage where the boys performed. It had a guest house on premise. I remember one kindly farang kept wanting to buy me drinks thinking I was one of the boys until the mamasan had to step in. 😅 Coffee Boy remains in my memory as probably the most gentle and polite commercial bars that I've ever been to. Back then it was still safe to ride around town on my bicycle which I gave to a close Thai friend on the day I left. I remember crying on that day but glad to say that we're still best friends 25 years later.

Well as long as they don't have to use carbon dating as a method of verification you're alright. 😉

The version of Chiang Mai 19 as shown in your pic closed in 2021 at the peak of Covid. A new bar with the same owner (can't remember his name - starts with a D) opened in 2023 in a tiny alley about 20 metres north on the same floor and on the same side of the building. It's a narrow, small-ish, darkened bar that's quite easy to miss. Both the old and current versions the of the bar are popular with bar-girls who flock there after midnight - sometimes with their customers - when their bars in nearby Loi Kroh close. Also workers from the surrounding hotels would drop by after their shift. Smoking is allowed in the bar, including weed, and it can get quite rowdy and opens until very late. Not my kind of place. I wouldn't say the old Chiang Mai 19 was that much different from the Soi 6 bars. It had two or three permanent staff, with random street urchins dropping in and out. Some of the old farang you see in the Soi 6 bars would come by - it depends on who they're on talking terms with at that time! There used to be a host bar in the basement right below Chiang Mai 19 and the hosts would sometimes sit and have a drink there before they started work. I remember one particularly tall and handsome one that drove a Beamer (granted it was a used Beamer) and was rumoured to be one of the kept boys of one of Chiang Mai's most notorious and wealthiest ladyboys. That basement host bar also closed in 2021. Above, on the first floor of the same building, is where the very popular and very noisy Sixcrets Cabaret Showbar is. It seems to be on the radar of every digital nomad and the great unwashed ie backpackers. And on the same floor are two smallish hole-in-the wall type bars, also popular with after-work bar-girls, mamasans and assorted types.

When was the last time you visited Wat Umong, @tm_nyc @thaiophilus ? I ask because the street leading to Wat Umong has changed so much over the last twenty years. I agree that the 700-year-old "tunnel wat" is worth a visit, especially about an hour or so before dusk where I feel it is at its most tranquil.

Glad to hear this. Do muay Thai fights at the night bazaar start later now because that must've been quite a rush between sunset and muay Thai? They used to start at 8 PM at the night bazaar stadium at the latest. Anyway, since you had a good time perhaps you can tell us more about this club that you went to very early on a Monday night. Where was it located? What kind of music did the band play? Did they play any popular English covers? The perennial Hotel California? 😂🤣😅 Did the venue serve food? What kind of drinks? Beer only or did they serve cocktails too? What was the set up like? Standing with drink in hand? High chairs? Mainly Thai customers or a mix of Thai and foreign? Young, old, middle-aged? How did they dress? What was the pricing like? Just asking the stuff that our readers usually like to know.

The Thai Government has announced that the royal cremation of Her Majesty the Late Queen Sirikit will take place on Wednesday, 16 December 2026 and the funeral details are as follows: Thailand Sets December Schedule for Queen Sirikit's Royal Cremation The Thai government has finalized communications and operational plans for the final months leading up to the Royal Cremation Ceremony of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, The Queen Mother. The preparations aim to ensure accurate, comprehensive, and dignified coverage, allowing people in Thailand and around the world to witness the grace and solemnity of traditional Thai royal ceremonies. The Bureau of the Royal Household has announced that the Royal Cremation Ceremony will take place from 15 to 19 December 2026, with the following key events: ● 15 December: Royal Merit-Making Ceremony for the Royal Cremation ● 16 December: Procession of the Royal Urn to the Royal Crematorium, followed by the Royal Cremation Ceremony ● 17 December: Collection and enshrinement of the Royal Relics at the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Phra Si Rattana Satsadaram) ● 18 December: Royal Merit-Making Ceremony for the Royal Relics ● 19 December: Enshrinement of the Royal Urn containing the Royal Relics in the celestial chamber at the Chakri Maha Prasat Throne Hall, and enshrinement of the Royal Ashes at Wat Ratchabophit Sathit Mahasimaram and Wat Bowonniwet Vihara To support smooth and dignified news coverage, the Public Relations Committee has set up a press center, arranged live broadcasts through the Television Pool of Thailand (TPT), and reorganized its sub-committees ahead of the ceremony. Every measure is being taken to ensure that global coverage of the royal ceremonies reflects the reverence and highest standards of Thai royal tradition.

Safe travels @Keithambrose . ✌️

And what happened next, Miss Nancy? Please don't keep us waiting, Nancy Drew!

Agreed. Doi Suthep temple sits atop Doi Suthep or Suthep Mountain, one of the highest peaks in the north. It's probably the most famous tourist spot in Chiang Mai; didn't any of your social media influencers tell you about it? Favourite times to go are early morning when the air is fresh and cool and you can see the morning dew on the leaves and blooming petals or just before sunset, which is popular with couples. There are several ways to get to Doi Suthep. One is as daydreamer suggested (and if you're in the area you might want to visit the zoo at the foot of the mountain). You can also hire a red songtaew from Changpueak Gate, which is the north gate of the old city you went to. Note that these shared songtaews only go when it's full or when the driver has met his quota. Of course you can charter the whole songtaew for a negotiated price. Some people struggle getting on and getting off them so worth bearing this in mind if you have weight or mobility issues, get tired easily or are easily irritable. Another more convenient way and one which I think you'd like is to hire a Grabcar which will cost about 400 to 500 Baht from your accommodation although prices may have gone up now since the illegal American invasion of Iran. I've been up Doi Suthep by car, songtaew and my current favourite, on a big bike driven by my partner. Nothing beats the feeling of the wind blowing on my face and it's fun being able to stop at the various viewpoints and waterfalls on the way up. The only sad part is that people won't be able to see the Hermes headscarf under my helmet but at least I get to wear my Jackie O sunnies - oops, sorry, I know you disapprove of these non-butch, non-macho moments. 🙏🏻 There is a very long flight of stairs to reach the temple but not to worry, there's an elevator type thingy that goes to the top if you have weight and mobility issues. You need to buy a ticket and pay an entrance fee. Dress - this is very important when visiting temples and royal grounds - and degree of enforcement varies with the temple. For Doi Suthep temple, no tank tops, no sleeveless shirts, no shorts for men. Shirts or t-shirts with sleeves and long pants only. I personally prefer light linen and cottons - nothing heavy that will stink when one sweats like jeans.🤮 Lastly food - and I know you've been waiting for this - sorry there are no 7-11s but there are stalls selling drinks and snacks at the foot of the temple so don't worry, you won't go hungry. I suggest you try the local coffee from the stalls and their steamed desserts. The local chains like Roastniyom are fine - have you tried their brownies? - but you might want to let your pink dollar (oops, sorry, another gay reference!) trickle down to the street hawkers, many of whom are hilltribe native to the area. As for the views of and from Doi Suthep, it really depends on the time of day and year. On a clear, non-cloudy day the view of the city from Doi Suthep is fantastic and the mountain looks majestic from the city as its great protector. But during the burning season the mountain is hidden by smoke and haze for about two months and sadly some of the burning is on the mountain itself and one can see spots of the hill forests burning from the city There are a lot more things to see on Doi Suthep and different ways of enjoying it but they'll have to wait as I've got some gay errands to attend to. 🫢 Enjoy your day, you big macho stud you! Grrrr. 💪🤭

At this point one almost misses PeterRS. Almost.

Did you write porn manga in Japan? There's a distinct Shōnen-like quality in the way you think and write.

Don't tell him that. Don't listen to Travelingguy, a-447. Just cross anywhere, anytime you like without looking left and right. Don't worry; Buddha will protect you, I promise. 🫶

You all are derailing my thread: I'm going to huff, puff, eat more junk food, put you on ignore, throw a tantrum, stomp my foot, privately message other members like a snivelling coward to blackball all of you...😂🤣😅 Take your time; nothing much going on here other than a few chronic whingers...just glad to hear that you're safe and enjoying yourself. You really need some new material, Keith, but I understand it's hard to get new material when Olddaddy isn't posting! 🤷 By the way, I believe pure gold is one of the safest metals to humans. Otherwise they wouldn't use it in teeth.

Nothing, if that's where you feel you'll get the best treatment. Have you considered Ashworth and Rampton Secure? And if none suits, there's always a balcony in Pattaya...

Which would be fitting as he couldn't tell his arse from a hole in the ground.