daydreamer

I'm sure the news that @readerreported in another thread about international airlines returning 80% of their landing slots through March 2022 will make them realize not everyone is coming just to visit temples and spend their holiday money in high end shopping malls. As you said "heard the message loud and clear".

In reply to @macaroni21, I'm not sure about receiving the yellow card in the US by going back to the vaccinator. Good idea, it may save people a lot of anguish when submitting their paperwork. Maybe somebody knows?

That may be the case if you receive the vaccine in Thailand, however the great majority of Americans trying to enter Thailand are not in Thailand, and they did not receive a yellow card when vaccinated. The information in the video is indeed correct if you received your vaccine inside the US, no passport number, and no nationality are listed on the white CDC card issued in the US. I merely posted this information in case it might help someone who is trying to submit paperwork to enter Thailand in the near future.

Check out this video at 45:50. This guy had major issues submitting his proof of vaccination using the standard US CDC vaccination card. So much difficulty, he gave up and hired a Thai agency to submit his paperwork. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xynAgAN87nY&t=2750s

More than 70,700 people had been evacuated from Afghanistan as of Tuesday evening (Aug 24th). https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/24/us/politics/afghanistan-evacuations-kabul-airport.html So does this mean you "must surely be living in some sort of cloud cuckoo land" ?

The coconuts article @readerposted the link to says "To reach Krabi’s three sandbox destinations, you’ll have to use SHA Plus-certified boat or ferry services."

Yes, it includes the translators etc. It is called Operation Allies Refuge. News media in the US are reporting that the 3,000 troops will aid in evacuating US Embassy personnel and visa applicants. From the US Defense Department website: As part of "Operation Allies Refuge," by the end of the month the U.S. is expected to begin relocation flights for eligible Afghan nationals and their families who are currently within the Special Immigrant Visa program, Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby said during a briefing today at the Pentagon. https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/2694515/defense-department-will-provide-options-for-operation-allies-refuge/ From Wikipedia: Operation Allies Refuge The operation was unveiled on July 14, 2021 by the Biden administration. At least 20,000 SIV holders and applicants are in the process of being relocated. On July 30, 2021, the first group of 200 Afghan interpreters arrived at Fort Lee, Virginia for SIV processing. On August 12, 2021, the Biden administration announced that 3,000 troops would be deployed to Kabul to assist with the evacuation of embassy personnel as well as civilian SIV applicants. Additionally, 1000 personnel are to be deployed to Quatar to assist with processing the SIV applicants.

I agree with PeterRS. I never saw any exploitation of underage boys in the areas in Bangkok that were frequented by westerners. The only time I was personally aware of under age boys in a bar in Bangkok was a small hidden away boy bar on the Sutthisan side of Phahonyothin Road, a short distance away from Saphan Kwai. I know of this because I was walking on Pradipat Road one night, and a tout from the under aged boy bar approached me. When he told me the ages of the youngsters, I made it clear I was not interested. Needless to say, I did not go to the bar, but I did see the location when he pointed it out across Phahonyothin Road. The Sutthisan area, east of Phahonyothin Road was and still is a local Thai nightlife area. I have gone past the bars many times in taxis, and I never saw any westerners in the Sutthisan area. When the tout approached me was during the late 1990's, so before Thaksin and Purachai were in power. All the boy bars in Saphan Kwai employed only 18+ year old boys.

The one who masterminded and implemented the new social order campaign in 2001 was Interior Minister Purachai Piumsomboon. He was famous for personally heading up a team of police and reporters and raiding bars, looking for reasons to close them down. Yes, he seemed more focused on the boy bars rather than the girlie bars. A Thai boy I used to off regularly at the time told me that Purachai took out his anger on the boy bars, because he had a son who was gay. I don't know if this is correct, but that's what I was told at the time about twenty years ago. Anyway, Purachai no longer lives in Thailand. He moved to New Zealand many years ago.

Yeah, they had some real quality control issues in the past. Here's a quote from a CNN story about Egypt's Stella beer dated 1997 - "We had a lot of incidents with the Stella beer, we used to call it the surprise bottle because sometimes we found matches, sometimes nails, sometimes cockroaches, also flies, lots of flies. And sometimes just slimy stuff," said pub owner Nihah Sursock." The article mentions how customers were playing Russian roulette when they drank a bottle of Stella. I remember when I lived there, always asking for an unopened bottle, and holding it up to the light to check for "extras" before opening the bottle. Like I said above, it's not for the timid. It's part of living in a backwater country. In Cairo the donkey cart is still used to haul rubbish, it's cheaper than buying garbage trucks. http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9708/12/fringe/egypt.beer/index.html

I'm guessing the Stella lovers mean Stella Artois, the Belgian beer. Stella beer without the "Artois" is brewed in Egypt. It's not for the timid, as every bottle is different. I drank it occasionally when I lived in Egypt, but only if there was no other option. The company has been sold since I lived in Egypt, so I don't know if their quality control has improved lately. It has been brewed under the Stella name in Egypt since 1897. The label on the right below is the new version since being sold.

No, I wasn't a member of the BT forum before the merger. In the past 24 hours, all I have done is log in a couple times, like and reply to a couple posts, and start this post. I did not knowingly join the members club.

Actually, I had 10 posts months ago, long before the merger, so it's not that. I think there are gremlins in the board software. I have no idea how in the past few hours my user name was added to the "secret society" members club.

Same here, I'll patiently wait until the quarantine ends before visiting again.

I know the two boards were recently merged, and there are new things to get used to. I noticed that some posters have a "Members" tab in the upper right corner of each of their posts. It appears that when the members tab appears, the post also has a brown highlighted border. What are these posters members of? I'm guessing it was something that carried over from the boytoy site during the merger?

I too like the bars also over choosing a boy from a photo on a screen. I enjoy the atmosphere of the bars, and being able to view the whole group of boys firsthand. I don't let the mamasans bother or intimidate me. I talk with some of them, as some have useful information. If a mamasan is obnoxious or annoys me, I simply ignore them as if I'm deaf.

The contract may only mean that you cannot sub-let an extra room, or cannot take in a rent paying room mate. I agree that your Thai boyfriend is your dependent, but the leasing company may not see it that way. Like z909, I would want to check before signing a lease. Also, will they require his ID to be on file, and his name on the lease as a condo resident? And what happens if in the future you get a different boyfriend? Does that require the lease office to be informed? Even a neighbor could create a problem for you in the future. Better ask in advance to preclude possible issues. I would specifically ask if an unmarried partner can reside there, and if so, get it written into your contract as z909 said.

I believe you are right, zombie. I also received the email from Bumrungrad Hospital. The photo they are using at the top of the hospital survey is a stock photo of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine vials:

No doubt that building is sponsored by Mike. It's a symbiotic relationship, as the Mike Hotel and shopping arcade near Boystown sit on leased land, and owned by Wat Chai. The wat owns a chunk of land in south Pattaya, and leases it out to a number of businesses, generating substantial income for them. Since the wat was begun in the 1930's, long before Pattaya turned into a concrete jungle, my guess would be that the wat owns the land all the way from the wat compound to the beach.

Hard to say....Mike has three hotels in Pattaya that I know of, plus the shopping arcade that spoon mentioned near Boyztown. Also the Mike mall between Beach Rd and Second Rd, and at least one gym.

For long term hook ups including travel, I have always paid the regular daily long time tip. I make it clear to the boy the amount he'll receive per day when asking him if he wants to travel with me. I don't negotiate the tip or the off fee. Nearly always, the boy is eager to go. Of course I pay all expenses, too. Often the expenses include airfare and rental cars. I also tell the boy he can have free time, but usually they stay close to me every day. It depends what you have planned. If you've rented a car, the boy certainly won't want to miss out on driving around in air conditioned comfort, and exploring new areas. I used to have a few regular boys I would often see when my home was only a two hour flight from Bangkok. After a few nights in Bangkok to survey the scene, I would usually take one boy for the BFE for the entire trip. I have traveled to many areas of the country with different boys. The only times I have received a discount on off fees was years ago from Saphan Kwai bars, and a couple times in Chiang Mai. The discount was always offered by the bar if offing the same boy for a week or more. Nowadays I don't think a discount is common for multiple-day offs. The bars are struggling to survive, so I think off fee discounts are more rare today. As far as how I pay the tip, yes I pay every day unless the boy has asked to receive the money at the end of the trip. One boy wanted to get his money every two days. On my most recent trip one year ago, I paid the boy every day, and he took most of the money to an ATM several times during the trip to deposit it to his bank account. Every baht has been money well spent, and it has made for some beautiful memories of my travels. I like to try to see at least one part of the country during my vacations. It's not always a new place, but I like to travel a bit. One month in Pattaya and Bangkok is a bit too much for me without a side trip thrown in. Milk78, you may be interested to read my trip report from February 2020 on this forum. I traveled with a boy from Pattaya. It's at gayguides.com/forums/topic/12788-koh-chang

Bernie Sanders isn't in the photo?

Over the years, I have had a few guys I would off every day during trips to Thailand. A couple of the guys I saw over several years until they had moved on. If I find a guy that pushes my buttons, I look no further. As far as performance, if the boy's service declines, I just move on. However, on some vacations to Thailand, I have done the butterfly routine with a new guy nearly every day. If I am lucky enough to find someone I like, often after a few days with him - to be sure we're compatible, I'll ask him to travel somewhere with me. I did this on my last trip in Jan-Feb, taking the boy to Koh Chang for five days. I like the BFE experience, if I can find it. (In this case, BFE means Boy Friend Experience, not Bum Fuck Egypt).

I believe that is correct. The answer is revealed if you google "who owns Siam concrete".

There are two sensors. They are located on the outside of the cockpit, below the pilot side windows. All large aircraft have these. What was missing from the Indonesian and Ethiopian 737 Max aircraft were the angle of attack indicator (not sensor) and the disagree alert to alert the pilot if the two sensors do not match. Boeing made these items optional. Both would have been present in the cockpit if the airlines had purchased the options. Only a few airlines purchased both options on the 737 Max. United Airlines ordered 137 of the aircraft and none of them are equipped with either of the two options. United says they use other data to fly their planes. More detail can be read at the following links: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/business/boeing-safety-features-charge.html https://www.reuters.com/article/us-boeing-fix/boeing-says-optional-737-max-alert-was-not-activated-as-intended-idUSKCN1S5233