fedssocr

I've pretty much always found what I was looking for at the spas. First place I went (Royal Spa) the masseur wouldn't get naked. But everywhere else I've been has been a good massage and the sexual contact I was looking for. The last place I visited was really fantastic and hope to be able to return one day.

Thailand has the highest suicide rate in SE Asia

there are several massage spas though with some sexual contact

I think I also visited those waterfalls plus some others. There's a big complex of waterfalls right near the Cambodian border.

I did the Vat Phou Mekong River cruise a few years ago which was really nice. Amazing sunrises and sunsets, great service, good food. And then did a little tour in central Laos which didn't have much in the way of services, hotels, etc. but the nature is spectacular. If they ever get their act together Laos could be a great ecotourism destination.

Nature Boys still exists?! Thanks for the report

people are marching in the streets

Apparently the aircraft that UA rounded up to fly the passengers on to Hawaii had itself suffered a similar engine failure a few years ago on a flight from SFO to Hawaii. That time they returned safely to SFO. 777 ETOPS is 180 mins, I believe, on one engine. If they were over the ocean they would either turn around and go back to the West coast or continue to the closest diversion airport. 4 engines are a lot less fuel efficient. And the 777 has performed extremely well over the years as noted. Sounds like the problem with these PW engines is their hollow fins.

you're a nice person for doing as much as you already have. It is a sad situation. People all over the world have issues. As an introvert myself I can understand how they wouldn't have made any local friends. Older people don't always have the greatest judgement or cognitive abilities. Certainly people in their 80s can have problems. My own mother is in her early 80s and has memory issues and scammers preying on her every day. No matter how many times I tell her to not answer the phone she keeps doing it. No one really knows what issues these guys have faced. And it's certainly not Peter's job to support them. Here in the US there are some things like food banks and charities that can help support people somewhat when they have hit hard times. But if you retire to a developing country you have to realize the societal limitations - especially in the midst of a pandemic when everyone is hurting. Thanks for the cautionary tale. Once upon a time I had considered retiring to Thailand (among other places abroad). A friend of mine here who is a decade older than I am always asks questions about retirement like will be close to healthcare? Who will drive you to doctor appointments or help you if you really need it? While some of his questions feel a little hysterical to me, it has made me think a bit about the future. Even with plenty of money you can run into problems that you don't expect.

not Thai, but sounds interesting if you have Netflix - Korean drama called Wish You https://dearstraightpeople.com/2021/02/13/wish-you-review/

for sure QR suites are fantastic. I agree that the Emirates F suite was not the most comfy. I'd still love to try their latest suite though which looks great. Not sure I'd like the virtual windows in the center section

Or F class. :-) I agree it is sad to see the A380 being ditched by almost all of the operators who flew it.

some more photos (from the Dear Straight People FB)

long haul travel has been killed along with most other travel over the past year. Eventually it will bounce back, but it will be interesting to see which airlines have survived by then. TG has struggled with the A380s since they bought them. I am more surprised by ditching the A330s. Without the A380 or 747s though they won't have first class anymore. Where will all of those most important people sit? I was watching a video the other day suggesting that lots of long haul routes are going to be serviced by narrow body aircraft with the intro of the A321LR including lots of trans-Atlantic routes because they claimed people don't like connecting. Give me a widebody with a connection any day over a direct narrowbody, but I also live close to a major international hub. I suppose regional Asian routes will also be able to be served by smaller aircraft though. If there are more A350s in service that would be a good thing as far as I am concerned since that aircraft is the most comfortable generally.

I take back what I said about the general not caring about what the people do. Shutting down the internet shows real weakness and fear of the people. All of the millions of people who have had a taste of the internet and are probably social media addicts like everyone else in the world are not likely to be quiet. Not to mention how much commerce relies on the connectedness of people to the internet. Although I suppose it will be much harder for them to organize

it's interesting to see people trying to push back, but I doubt the general cares about people banging pots or doing the 3 finger salute on social media. It's certainly a beautiful but complicated place. It's sad that so much of the world including SE Asia is getting more authoritarian

he certainly has a lot of stamina

Glad that the rest of you got around to I Told Sunset. It still annoyed me, but there's no doubt it was beautifully shot. For me Bas was the MVP of the series. But I'm a sucker for those heroic characters and their unrequited love. I never felt much chemistry between the leads.

wow. that's a lotta car traffic sitting still. It's been over a decade since I was in Hanoi. It was mostly motorbikes then. I guess the growing middle class are buying cars like they do everywhere

you can find most of these things on dailymotion.com with subtitles. There's a little cottage industry of people of subtitle these things and post them. This person seems to be a reliable source. https://www.dailymotion.com/jiminskook The first 3 episodes of this series are available.

I don't know how anyone can keep up with all of this. Apparently Ohm and Fluke are from some previous series? The comments on this video are asking if they have a new series coming which seems likely. I have to say the actors are adorable

The last episode almost saved the series for me, but I wasn't a fan of the ending. I get that a lot of the praise was pinned on how "realistic" it is as a coming of age story. I didn't quite buy that, but there's plenty of melodrama. But for sure the cinematography is excellent. I wasn't quite as sold on the leads' acting, but the little mini-documentaries attached to each episode made them more likable.

I can't wait to go back to Taiwan. I'm afraid it's going to be a while though

the Pfizer vaccine require freezing down to minus 100 degrees and 2 doses 28 days apart. The logistics of distribution will be daunting

Speaking of chemistry... I don't know if any of you are watching I Told Sunset About You. Here's a link to ep 3 You can also find the behind the scenes documentaries on dailymotion. The one for ep 2 talks a lot about how they worked hard to find actors with good chemistry. Personally I don't see all that much chemistry between the leads. Part of it could be that their characters are a bit of a mess. Their confusion leads to a barrier of sorts. The main character is a controlling, jealous jerk to a great degree. So I am having a hard time believing that the cute gay boy would be all that interested in him. Although frankly both of the characters are immature - which makes sense given their age. Hopefully the loyal friend of gay boy blows his top soon because he needs to stand up for himself.