PeterRS2

Finally some sense! The European Football Associations have had an emergency meeting and said if the Infantino/Trump money raising madness goes aheaed, UEFA will withdraw from all future FIFA events, including future World Cups. With The American CONCACAF and the Asian group of nations having now stated Infantino's madness is precisely that and are totally against it, there are enough votes to kill Infantino's scheme. UEFA only has 55 Associations but a World Cup without Spain, France, The Netherlands, England, Portugal, Germany and the other Associations is unthinkable. Now Infantino's right hand man and a former banker Carlos Cordeiro has resigned stating it is a bad deal for FIFA and a bad deal for the future of the game. The Associations now have enough members to vote Infantino out of his job in November. It seems there may be five possible candidates who could take over from him. One is Arsene Wenger who led Arsenal to its greatest sustained period from the end of the 1990s and is widely regarded as totally incorruptible.

I'll have to go to Cambodia for my next dental work. A crown in Bangkok varies in cost depending on the dentist but it can cost as much as Bt. 20,000 and a root canal around Bt. 16,000! An extraction about Bt. 8,000!!

And I suppose you know all about this subject because you have in the last few years had books published. Really? I doubt it! You are talking through a hole in your head! As I said, I have had three books published. Two in the UK went through literary agents. No, I do not have a specific agent because they only take on writers who have either a reaasonable volume of work they are interested in or they see a best-seller shouting at them from the page. My two were on very different subjects For the one in Hong Kong (being a far smaller market) I was recommended directy to a publisher but by a literary agent based in Shanghai who did not first read the book. You will do well to read the following from the Penguin Books website - Agents act as a crucial connection to the rest of the industry. For those writers hoping to sign with a publisher, for example, having an agent is a key part of the process. Most publishers don’t take unsolicited submissions - which is the industry term for the manuscripts a publisher receives directly from a writer without asking for them, and without an agent. This is because the volume of submissions received would be so high that it would be almost impossible for editors to get through them all. Instead, agents help streamline this process by ensuring editors receive manuscripts for genres or types of books in which they have particular expertise or interest. https://www.penguin.co.uk/about/company-articles/what-is-a-literary-agent As for finding a literary agent, my books had very specific subjects and so were not of interest to just one particular agent as they believed they would not be able to attract interest from publishers. And for your interest since you do not know the subject at all, there are masively more authors than there are llterary agents. More than half the number of agents in the UK are closed to submissions for much of each year. Many agents generally receive 5,000 - 10,000 book submissions annually. No way are publishers going to read them first! And no way are agents going to look at any of them unless there is something in the book proposal that particularly interests them. Please know a specific subject in detail before you comment on it.

I reckon you also said that when Soi Twlight closed

Since I have travelled a lot, I thank my lucky stars that I purchased the 5-year Elite Visa when it still permitted a 15-years extension for the same price. Now renamed the Privilege Visa, it helps me get business class counters when on economy tickets, free access to one of the three Miracle Lounges in the departures area which have a reasonably good selection of food and drinks (although less good than most business class lounges), and all the help including a buggy when I arrive back even in economy class. Bt. 1 million for 20 years is a lot and unfortunately no longer possible since Elite became Privilege two years ago. The recent five-year Bronze membership @ Bt. 650,000 closes at the end of September. Thereafter, the five-year rises to Bt. 900,000. Neither permits the opportunity to extend. A 15-year Diamond membership will set you back Bt. 2,500,000. 20-year Privilege Visas are now by invitation only at a whopping Bt. 5 million. These visas are clearly not for tourists unless thay happen to be rich, or only really useful if you are living in Thailand with lots of travel or visiting Thailand very regularly. I could have opted for the Bt. 800,000 retirement route, but I just do not trust the Thai Immigration authorities. With the country now desperate to find new ways of raising cash due to the very rapidly delining birth rate, I have no faith that the Bt. 65,000 and Bt. 800,000 limits will stay.

Just a general question. I always assumed that Soi Twlight would be part of our lives, and Babylon the same (although not in Silom it was pretty close). Both now gone. With Bangkok One now fully occupied and anyone who has been there will be aware that its plethora of restaurants are frequently packed, I am wondering: do you think gay Silom will disappear in the relatively near future? There have been comments on this Board about the possiblity of Soi 4 being sold but without any evidence apart from Circus being sold. Secondly, were gay Silom to disappear for future development, where would a future gay location be likely to spring up?

As I think has already been mentioned in this forum, the Fast Track is still operational for those on a departing international flight. There are Fast Track counters at each end of the Departures area and these are still for business/first passengers, over 70s and those who used to be served in the Fast Track Arrivals area. Franky, having been through these several times, I will always elect to go to the East area by the TG check in desks, even if it means a longish walk. It is often virtually empty whereas I have been stuck in longish queues the West area. But for travellers who want to use Fast Track on entry the rules have changed and the numbers who can use the Lane have been reduced. It is no longer acceptable for business/first class tickets or over 70s unless you have the special Fast Track Privilege. Instead, I have been told there are newish Priority Lanes you can use in the east and west arrivals halls. Alternatively it seems BKK is trying to persuade those seeking Fast Track Services to pay for them. This can include being met at the airbridge, a buggy to take you to Fast Track, quick Immigration and the services of a porter at the carousel. I have seen this quoted from Bt. 1,000 for very basic service to Bt. 3,800, the latter including the buggy. I hope this follows the basis of @daydreamer and @hank75's posts.

With all respect to your view, I think losing face is not quite the same as just causing embarrassment to others. Perhaps we could say that's a rather mild form of losing face. Personally I don't think we over-analyse the face issue. I think it is more that most people don't even think of it until it happens to them. Your comment about the old days are I believe very pertinent. As one who has visited Taipei so many times I have lost count of an exact number (over 100), I can recall the final years of martial law when Taipei basically had no gay scene other than cruising in the New Park a little way behind the Hilton Hotel. You are also so right that in those days hardly anything was spoken. We relied on looks, body language - in fact our basic gaydar. That told us when someone might be interested in us. Similarly when they were not. We never pushed for acceptance nor were we annoyed when they showed they were not. We just accepted the situation. As a small gay scene started by the beginning of the 1990s, gay Taiwanese still tended to go out in groups. I can recall visiting Funky's in the mid-1990s with two foreign friends. We sat at the bar watching many groups of young guys enjoying themselves but with no desire to acknowledge our presence. That was merely what they were accustomed to. Yet away from their friends, in the one large sauna near the station that had opened, westerners were in considerable demand. I supposed the guys we met there more than a few times just did not want to lose face in front of their own gay pals by admitting they liked foreigners. For quite some time, outside the sauna guys would often not acknowledge our presence. The Taipei gay scene has of course developed massively in the last 30 years and many Taiwanese now eagerly seek out western men. Most not for cash, as MBs are relatively few. I cannot help but compare it with Japan, another country I love. But of the hundreds of bars still left in Shinjuku Ni-chome (more than 100 have disappeared in recent years), all but a dozen or so will still not welcome foreigners. To a certain extent that is a face issue. Most Japanese-only bars are tiny, often accommodating not many more than 12-15 patrons. They are hardly gay bars in the western sense. They are places where usually the same group of Japanese go on a regular basis. More of a sort of social club than the western concept of a bar. The mamasans are concerned that foreigners who do not speak Japanese and do not understand Japanese customs will disturb the harmony of the bar. Enter one with Japanese frends and it is totally different. You are made very welcome. The first time I went with friends, I was rather shocked that the mamasan asked if I was top or bottom. The reason was actually quite practical because she then seated me next to one who sexually preferred the opposite to me. But with no foreigners, there is no chance that anyone in the bar is going to lose face. I consider the loss of face issue has slipped into the background largely due to the apps. We are too used to instant gratifucation whereas years ago it was more of a slow build up when the 'chase' was almost as much fun as the 'conquest'. There is no requirement now to be polite, even to enter into any form of social discussion. When I return to Taipei in November, I know I will get lot of hits even at my age, far more than I can handle. I don't want to be rude but unless I get rid of the apps, I have no choice but not to respond to many of them. I have no desire for them to lose face, but I think loss of face on the apps is something most people do not even think about nowadays if they get no response from someone they have hit on. All I will say is that I have longish discussions occasionally on an app with guys in China, but there is hardly ever a chance of meeting them. We just want to know more about each others lives.

I'm perfectly happy for it to come back and "haunt" me because I check my posts before posting. Since you suggest I have not, examples please! If you find any apart from the occasional spelling mistake which is also common in other posters, then as you are talking about glass houses perhaps you can then check your own and post a comparison! And recall this discussion is about posting comments from posters which are in fact posts from different posters and therefore downright wrong! And please don't come back with the trite comment that you do not have time! You make the assertion.

I realise @mauRICE and I have not been having a great day today, but I'd like to add my twopenny worth here. In my book, writing "I'm not into foreigners" would be particularly rude whichever party wrote it. It would hardly be saving face for the other party. If as it seems it was a Taiwanese, he could have put in his profile "Taiwanese (or Chinese) only please." And if approached by a non-Taiwanese, he could have written "Please look at my profile". Sure, @mauRICE is correct. Many do not fill out their profiles. More fool them in my book, because that means they are probably going to get dozens and dozens of profiles they have zero interest in. On the other hand, assuming we are still considering Taiwan, I cannot think any Taiwanese would consider writing "I'm not into foreigners!" They are too polite, even on the apps. On my reasonably regular visits to Taiwan, I change my profile and state "Taiwanese or other ethnic Chinese only please." The fact that my photo is also on the page means that those not into westerners will pass over my page quickly. But given that there are a lot of younger Taiwanese wanting to meet up with foreigners (they aways say there are so few westerners living in Taiwan - which is true!), the chances are that a decent photo will do the trick and you will get more than a few hits. I admit that elsewhere I will often just not respond. On apps I do not believe we have any obligation to do so. It's a bit like going into a 7 11 and walking out because it does not have or has sold out of what I want. I did at one time use "Sorry, not interested", but I believe that too could be considered racist by some to a certain degree. Better nothing at all.

In my condo in Bangkok one of the regulations is "no pets" - not even crows 🤪 Yet I recently discovered that the very nice Chairman of our Owners Committee has a dog in her apartment (a real one, not her husband)!

Thank you very much. I do appreciate the clarification.

Now you really are becoming childish!

No need to be so stupid!

I referred to comprehension by the reader who then makes a post. I have no idea where @Patanawet is based and whether he reads his own posts. But checking before posting takes seconds! Besides, he responded inaccurately to a post several posts ago in this discussion. Many readers may not bother looking back - especially non-members - and are not aware of the detail in the thread. So correcting the record is frankly not unimportant! The more so when I stated he was wrong and he then stated I was not wrong! He was wrong!

I'll admit something. Until I was flipping through some channels on TV some months ago, I had never heard of the newish sport named Padel. Based on tennis and using the same scoring system but played in an enclosed court with large table tennis-like racquets, it is fast becoming popular around the world. Many major sports stars like Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray own teams. There are lots of Spanish and South Americans in the teams. Last night one caught my eye. Manu Castano is just 17 but playing in the pro-League. I am not sure why Spain is producing so many major young athletes. Prior to his wrist injury we all wowed at the achievements of 23-year old and already winner of seven majors titles, tennis player Carlos Alcaraz. Spain has just won the World Cup with its 19-year superstar Lamine Yamal in the team. Now 17-year old Manu Castano is likely to become king of the Padel courts. This video is of an interview with Castano. If you play around you can get it in English and with English sub-titles. But the primary reason for uploading it is just to show Castano.

How desperately sad! There are many unanswered questions but for the time being we should consider his family, friends and all those who enjoyed his travel videos. My condolences and symphathies are with them.

My very first experience of a gay bar in Bangkok back in 1979 ended up quite unexpectedly as a four-hander. I thought I had gone to heaven!

When you post something by mistake, it is customary to post again to point out the mistake - not just assume you have been correct. And responding to anyone's post requires a degree of comprehension of what was actually posted and about whom!

I always consider it rather strange that in the west (general term) we happily talk about losing face. We hardly ever consider the issue of giving face. Having worked in three Asian countries and visited most of the others over the last 47 years, I learned quite quickly how important giving face is. And it is not always the same in each country, although the basics are the same. There was a post some weeks ago about a westerner who was about 30 minutes late for a massage appointment in, I seem to recall, Seoul. From the taxi he had phoned someone in the spa who seemed to speak English to say he had been held up in traffic and would be late. Having finally arrived at the spa about 30 minutes late he was told he could not have the full time he had booked because he had been so late arriving. I assume the masseur had another appointment after his one and that customer was likely to be on time. The poster blamed the rush hour traffic (always horrendous in Seoul) and then had an argument with the owner about not being allowed his full appointment. He then left the spa shouting some form of obscenity. It clearly never entered his mind that it was entirely his fault that he arrived so late and was nothing to do with the manager of the spa. Yet he had booked the start time and he had not bothered to get to the spa area early so that he would be on time. Instead of accepting the fact that it was his fault, he blamed the spa and just left. He complained in this forum as though this was an example of Asian rudeness or something to that effect. Never in his post did he once consider that he had in fact been at fault and that by cursing at the manager he was making him lose face in front of his employees. He could have at least been polite and apologised for being so late before saying something like "I'll come back another time." Every guide to Asia should have near the start something about 'face'!

That is kind - thank you.

Yes I totally deny it and you are not writing anything like the truth! In fact I don't know what on earth you are rambling on about. I have never posted my age other than as 47 which clearly was a joke in response to another thread (see below). I have never said I was 82 and certainly never 52. My bio does not even give an age. It is you who have the problem. What I wrote yesterday referred to an @Olddaddy post - "Yet elswhere he has said he is 62. Like I'm 47!! 🤪"

Apologies. I thought the post was focussed on gay bars within Danang and assumed Hoi An Living Colours was probably just a bar - not a reference to Hoi An itself.

Japan has had another earthquake yesterday. When I worked there all Japanese households were required to have an earthquake kit. I believe it is recommended that these should now include- - A light preferably waterproof backpack - One change of clothes - Bottled water and dried foods - Basic tools - First aid kit - Your essential papers, cash and documents - Communication devices

Sorry but you are wrong. I have never posted my age on any Board. But you are correct. 47 is not quite correct! 🤪