TotallyOz

TY, I love you! You have such an eloquent way with words. Nail. Hammer. Pound.

I guess I am an idiot then as I much prefer the skytrain when I am in Bangkok. Faster. Easier. Cleaner. As for taxi's in Thailand, it is a shame that the metered ones don't stick by the meter. I never have an issue in Bangkok but I can't seem to find one cab in Pattaya that uses the meter. It really is a shame.

I have no problem with Arabs taking over Pattaya. I think that is their goal. But, what I do have a problem with is the loud music that is heard for blocks and the way the young Arabs drive the motorcycles around Pattaya. There is a reason that most in Thailand drive 150 cc or under. The laws were created in order to keep the Arab 20 something's from getting on the 1200cc motorbikes.

LOL Bob, you use God with a little g. Are you agnostic? Have you lost your faith? That is blasphemous. And, this is just after the little child's birthday celebration. Go and do 10 hail Mary's and 5 Rosaries at Adam's Apple tonight and all will be forgiven!

I like tales of sex. If anyone has stories to share, please bring them on. PeterP, perhaps you can start a few of the conversations that you seem to be interested in? Agree z909. When I travel to LOS, I find I use the site more and find great information here. I think you are right RichLB. I would be interested in knowing how to get more involved in a few of these charities as well. Good Point.

There is no doubt in my mind that HeyGay once dated Martha Steward. His recipes are divine inspiration.

If that would alienate them, they would not post here anyway. We have had posters bitch and moan every time Daddy's name is mentioned here and say that it would never be allowed over there and the reason they don't post here is they feel this site is obsessed with Daddy. It is complete and utter bullshit. My name is dragged through the mud over there often. Does that alienate anyone there? Answer: no. So, to be honest, I am not concerned about what posters that don't post here think. This is not my board. It is our board. The majority of posters that read these boards know that Hooboy was a beloved person to many of us. Anyone that would be alienated by honoring his memory isn't thinking rationally.

Hold on now buddy. I was with you for only one week and you must have had at least 30. If I had your stamina, I would have been near the 300 mark.

The photos look great! You are to be commended. I love the wet and dry sauna idea. I am looking forward to trying that.

That is easy. It took him so long to be told what to say in a convincing way over and over again. Once they told him everything that was done to him, he may now believe it. The Thai government looks like a group of bumbling idiots with this. If those in charge were smart, they would have put one person as spokesperson for this and directed all comments to that person and that person only. As it is, often the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. Plus, every time this makes mainstream media, it makes those in charge look bad and they strike back. IMHO

Not really the Thai way of doing things. If the levels are down, that means they will likely raise prices and tell everyone they are full beyond capacity.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand has release a new app for the Ipad. It is free to download. While there is lots of room for improvement, it is free and fun to use.

We do not allow private information of our members to be posted on this forum. It is a violation of our rules and is grounds for immediate banning of the individual posting this information. We have not done a great job at stopping personal attacks during one thread on this board. As an admin, I should have stepped in immediately to warn members that this was not acceptable. I accept responsibility for this and will attempt to stop things from happening before they escalate out of control. It is often hard for moderators to determine what constitutes a personal attack and we have had this debate several times in the moderator forum. We will continually strive to make sure the site remains free of this at the same time trying make sure we give posters the ability to speak freely. Personal information that is posted is not hard to determine. If you post personal information about a member on this board, you will be removed from the site. There are no exceptions to this rule. Personal information is any information that identifies a person or his residence or place of employment and includes but is not necessarily limited to: - first and last name - residential or business address - phone number - Social Security number - credit card number - e-mail address - Photos of subject or subject's family/friends/pets/place of residence or employment/study, automobile*, or auto license plate. - IP address - age or any other specific information which clearly identifies an individual.

Pattaya city is putting the final touches on its tourism-development master plan, which will need a budget of about Bt15 billion for 132 projects designed to turn the beach resort into a "world-class greenovative tourism city". Thiti Chantangphol, director of planning and coordination for the Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (Dasta), a public organisation, said yesterday that the master plan was being revised to respond to local preferences. After a survey, which led to the scrapping of plans for a monorail and an above-sea building, a working committee will be set up to monitor the development, which will be carried out by the administrations of Pattaya and nearby areas. Regarding Pattaya's annual plan, during the first stage Dasta will mainly conduct a study on zoning for the city, with areas for entertainment, seminars, natural tourism and other uses, which should take about six months. Next Dasta will work on wastewater management and beach recovery to create a sustainable travel destination, giving Pattaya a new all-around image instead of the present one as a nightlife paradise. Mayor Ittipol Khunpluem said the takeover by Dasta would change the image of Pattaya as well as the cooperation between public and private sectors. Mega-projects will be completed sooner and be more faithful to the blueprint, he added. Thiti said the results of Pattaya's repositioning as a tourist destination should be visible by 2017. By then, tourism will be contributing Bt300 billion a year to Pattaya's economy, up from Bt60 million, as visitor arrivals increase from 7 million to 30 million and the average stay stretches out. Pattaya is considered to attract 10 per cent of the country's tourism revenue. In 15-20 years, 320 rai (about 51 hectares) of Koh Lan, off the coast of Pattaya, will be open to bidding for building and managing three hotels. The hotel concessions will run 30 years. Dasta will also look to launch Koh Phai, between Koh Lan and Pattaya, as another island attraction. In 10 years' time, if nothing were done, Pattaya would face many problems such as tap-water shortages, mafia control and traffic congestion, analysts say. During the past five years, the number of tourists has dropped by 9 per cent, which led to lost revenue for both the country and the tourism industry. The withdrawal of the monorail plan will not affect the Thailand World Expo in 10 years, Thiti said. http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2010/12/29/business/Plan-to-make-Pattaya-World-Class-30145410.html

I have always hated that I loved him.

Probably not on the mind of many here but one story that has made headlines in my part of the world is the case of Mikhail Pletnev. I know him and many of the people involved in this case. I have said since day 1 that he was not guilt of the charges but in Thailand, they normally try to get you to pay cash to not go to trial. He refused and fought the system. He finally won but his reputation has been destroyed in the process. Article: A Thai prosecutor's office has dropped a child molestation charge against acclaimed Russian pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev, Pletnev's lawyer said on Tuesday. "No charges will be brought against Pletnev anymore. All the legal procedures are finished towards him. I have received a Thai prosecutor's office's decree," the lawyer said, citing the prosecutor's office of Thai Chon Buri Province as saying. "I am absolutely convinced of my innocence that is why I did not hesitate for a minute about the result of the investigation. Now, when everything is over, I can only say that money was behind the attempts to trump up a case against me," Pletnev said. Pletnev, the Russian National Orchestra (RNO) conductor, was charged with sodomizing a 14-year-old boy in July and could have faced up to 20 years behind bars if he had been found guilty. He persistently denied all charges. During the investigation, the musician had to return to the resort town of Pattaya every 12 days to renew his $9,000 bail. The bail restrictions, which prohibited him from traveling abroad, have been lifted. The Russian musician, who established the RNO in 1990, owns a small piece of property in Pattaya and spends several weeks there each year. BANGKOK, December 28 (RIA Novosti) http://en.rian.ru/russia/20101228/161967788.html

Gay and Straight mixing? That is almost as bad as Coffee mixed with Vodka. Yuck! Who the hell wants all those breeders next to you? Give me a good all gay place any day of the week. ....unless those that are mixing with the gays are cute straight boys (or girls that bring those boys to the alter). Then, there are exceptions.

A Thai prosecutor's office has dropped a child molestation charge against acclaimed Russian pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev, Pletnev's lawyer said on Tuesday. "No charges will be brought against Pletnev anymore. All the legal procedures are finished towards him. I have received a Thai prosecutor's office's decree," the lawyer said, citing the prosecutor's office of Thai Chon Buri Province as saying. "I am absolutely convinced of my innocence that is why I did not hesitate for a minute about the result of the investigation. Now, when everything is over, I can only say that money was behind the attempts to trump up a case against me," Pletnev said. Pletnev, the Russian National Orchestra (RNO) conductor, was charged with sodomizing a 14-year-old boy in July and could have faced up to 20 years behind bars if he had been found guilty. He persistently denied all charges. During the investigation, the musician had to return to the resort town of Pattaya every 12 days to renew his $9,000 bail. The bail restrictions, which prohibited him from traveling abroad, have been lifted. The Russian musician, who established the RNO in 1990, owns a small piece of property in Pattaya and spends several weeks there each year. BANGKOK, December 28 (RIA Novosti) http://en.rian.ru/russia/20101228/161967788.html

Thank you. I'll put that into consideration. I have not yet decided if I'll find a place year round or every 6 weeks in USA and 6 weeks out. But, PV is very close to family and would make things easy. That is a big plus IMHO. HOLY COW BATMAT! I think I could propose to him and just look at him all day.

Only 21? That is a great number IMHO. I think hard to match that unless one lives in places that offer companions quick and cheap. Living in Thailand part of my year, that includes me. I have yet to go home alone this month and usually with 2 guys per day. I don't have an exact number, but I think it is around 100 guys with most of that in the past few months. I had a long term boyfriend which I ended our relationship with several months back. If I were still with him, that number would be about 80 guys less. But, when I end a relationship, I tend to try to jump in the sack as much as possible in order to try to "get over" the pain associated with the breakup. This breakup was particularly hard as he has been with me for 7 years. I honestly thought he was THE ONE. Found out differently. Same story, different year.

The below article would be great for those of us that travel a great deal. Article: After expanding its streaming service into Canada, it seems Netflix is looking elsewhere internationally to build its business. Speaking to the CBC last week, Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey said the company is "talking about other regions in the world." He went on to tell the publication that Netflix is planning to "continue our international expansion next year." He also told the CBC that the company will "allocate significant dollars to it." Even more potential evidence of Netflix expanding internationally was revealed today when AdWeek cited unnamed sources that claim Netflix is working with "advertising and media agencies" around the world to determine ad placement. The report claims that those talks are currently "exploratory" in nature, but indicate that Netflix is getting serious about expanding the availability of its streaming offering. As Netflix expands internationally, the company is leaving its DVD-by-mail service in its wake. In October, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings echoed that sentiment, saying that the focus of his company is changing. He also acknowledged at the time that he was looking outside of North America to expand Netflix's streaming operation. "By every measure, we are now primarily a streaming company that also offers DVD-by-mail," Hastings said in a statement accompanying his company's third-quarter financial results. "At the same time, the introduction of our streaming offering in Canada in late September has provided us with very encouraging signs regarding the potential for the Netflix service internationally." Hastings didn't say how popular its streaming offering is in Canada. However, Swasey told the CBC last week that the company plans on being profitable in that country by the one-year anniversary of its Canadian launch in September. Expanding internationally seems like the next logical step for Netflix as it attempts to become the go-to streaming company service on different devices. However, it won't necessarily be met with open arms. In Europe, for example, Netflix will be forced to compete with Lovefilm. That company currently caters to customers across the U.K., Sweden, Germany, and other countries. Aside from its by-mail service, the company has a streaming service like Netflix's. That offering is available on the PC and on Sony's PlayStation 3. Regardless, Netflix has no other choice but to expand if it wants to see its streaming service continue to grow in leaps and bounds. But it should be interesting to see if it can maintain its winning streak. Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-20026717-17.html#ixzz19SNF2Gkn

After expanding its streaming service into Canada, it seems Netflix is looking elsewhere internationally to build its business. Speaking to the CBC last week, Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey said the company is "talking about other regions in the world." He went on to tell the publication that Netflix is planning to "continue our international expansion next year." He also told the CBC that the company will "allocate significant dollars to it." Even more potential evidence of Netflix expanding internationally was revealed today when AdWeek cited unnamed sources that claim Netflix is working with "advertising and media agencies" around the world to determine ad placement. The report claims that those talks are currently "exploratory" in nature, but indicate that Netflix is getting serious about expanding the availability of its streaming offering. As Netflix expands internationally, the company is leaving its DVD-by-mail service in its wake. In October, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings echoed that sentiment, saying that the focus of his company is changing. He also acknowledged at the time that he was looking outside of North America to expand Netflix's streaming operation. "By every measure, we are now primarily a streaming company that also offers DVD-by-mail," Hastings said in a statement accompanying his company's third-quarter financial results. "At the same time, the introduction of our streaming offering in Canada in late September has provided us with very encouraging signs regarding the potential for the Netflix service internationally." Hastings didn't say how popular its streaming offering is in Canada. However, Swasey told the CBC last week that the company plans on being profitable in that country by the one-year anniversary of its Canadian launch in September. Expanding internationally seems like the next logical step for Netflix as it attempts to become the go-to streaming company service on different devices. However, it won't necessarily be met with open arms. In Europe, for example, Netflix will be forced to compete with Lovefilm. That company currently caters to customers across the U.K., Sweden, Germany, and other countries. Aside from its by-mail service, the company has a streaming service like Netflix's. That offering is available on the PC and on Sony's PlayStation 3. Regardless, Netflix has no other choice but to expand if it wants to see its streaming service continue to grow in leaps and bounds. But it should be interesting to see if it can maintain its winning streak. Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-20026717-17.html#ixzz19SNF2Gkn

Thank you! I do appreciate that. There is really no comparison. Brazil wins hands down for enjoyment and adventure. I know that is not what many would expect but it is the truth. I have always had great fun in Pattaya and Bangkok and Chiang Mai and when I am in LOS, I love my time here. But, the Brazilian boys and attitude are much more to my liking. The difference I will say is cost. The cost to live in Pattaya is cheap compared to the cost in say Porto Alegre which I could really enjoy living in. Pattaya also has a great deal number of expats which is a big plus and while in Porto Alegre, (for the gay scene and the sauna scene) I was often the only foreigner in the places. Like most cities in Brazil, Porto Alegre has tons of American businessmen there to do work. But, for the most part they are not in the saunas or the bars.

The Greyson kid reminds me of that group of British boys that did the X Factor contest this year. He would have fit right in with them. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5UQD61Tg3E&feature=fvsr http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMnoKFi5GYs&feature=channel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtxPIXE_Nrg&feature=channel