Papa Sam

Caramba! Nana Plaza gogo bar Lollipop (GG) will reopen tomorrow as a Mexican (!) restaurant: Arriba, arriba...andale, andale... https://www.facebook.com/LollipopNanaPlaza/ https://www.facebook.com/LollipopNanaPlaza/photos/a.268116370319648/1304822133315728/

Soi Cowboy tonight, Wednesday December 1st, first day that "entertainment restaurants" can officially serve alcohol until 11 p.m. and have live music (max. 5 band members and they have to wear masks...). Kozy Kazy (or v.v.), a GG agogo, is looking for diners: Prices: 2500 short time and 5000 long time. And no: I'm not talking about the prices for rare or well-done steaks... By the way: 300 for the bar. From Twitter The Oasis pub on Soi Cowboy has also reopened today: facebook.com/theoasissoicowboy/ The Oasis on Soi Cowboy 3 December 21: Pic source: Twitter I think Oasis, located almost next to Cockatoo and across from Shadow bar, has still the same management as Shadow (lb) and Cockatoo (lb).

Same same here... I'm torn between traveling to LOS this month already or waiting until February or March...or maybe even longer, to see what that omicron bitch is doing and how the governments are reacting to it...

PCR tests are still required:

A nice picture I would say of Kandy Zyanide, one of the Drag Race Thailand stars, in front of the Pattaya fireworks show last weekend: https://instagram.com/kandyzyanide At the House of Heals in Bangkok: The House of Heals is owned by famous CD / DQ artist Pangina Heals, who also appeared on Drag Race Thailand. House rules at the House of Heals: if you can take a dick, you can take a joke... www.thehealsbkk.com/ Statement from the House of Heals yesterday: "We have made a tremendously difficult decision. Due to the hardship of carrying business at such time, we are ashamed and have to sincerely apologize that House of Heals will have to cancel all the upcoming parties, we were planing on 1st -2nd December due to the urgent situation. The temporary shutdown of House of HEALS is made totally on the grounds of unreliable government policy. The business of bar and night life entertainment does not lie under the category of the business which is allowed to stay open so shutting down the businesses is inevitable. The lockdown is expected to be lifted until the middle of January by the government regarding the opening of the businesses and strategies of the lockdown. Amidst this grim situation, we are glad to inform you that the business shall stay open as an "Entertaining Restaurant" but we will be temporarily moving to "House of HEALS Pop Up Party at Flamenco Bangkok" at EmQuartier. See you again December, 3rd." https://www.facebook.com/houseofheals/posts/427543479015151

Pattaya entertainment venues ask the state for permission to open before the New Year festival, hoping to incentivize tourism. Published 30 Nov 2021 16:00 Mr. Damrongkiat Pinijkan, secretary of the Pattaya Entertainment and Tourism Industry Association said at a meeting at the Hard Rock Hotel the government should consider easing the current nightlife restrictions and should take measures that will allow entertainment venues to open before Christmas or New Year. The Pattaya Entertainment and Tourism Industry Association therefore proposes the easing of restrictions for pub and restaurant operators including beer bar operators that operate in open air and that can assign guests a seat that is socially distanced from others. Many hotels have an occupancy rate of less than 50 % because most tourists choose to stay in 4-5 star hotels with discount programs. If the situation doesn't improve during high season which ends in February, there may be SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) that will have to close. He pointed out that the vaccination rate in the area is more than 80%. https://mgronline.com/local/detail/9640000118785 (translated from Thai into English using Google Translate so please bear with me) https://www.topnews.co.th/news/174103

About 62 % of the population in Thailand is fully vaccinated. Compare that to: USA: 58%, UK 68%, European Union: 67%, Singapore: 92%, Vietnam: 50%, Asia: 48%, World excl. China: 37%. https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-people-fully-vaccinated-covid

I think from tomorrow December 1st onward, bars in Bangkok can officially operate as restaurants and they can serve alcohol until 11 p.m. and close at midnight if they are SHA certified. Perhaps more Nana Plaza bars will then take this opportunity and open as restaurants. So far it's only one bar on the ground floor that's open. Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy bars have received survival bags from the owners after the government last week confirmed they want to postpone the reopening of bars: Similar scene across from Cockatoo ladyboy bar on SC: Cached images from social media, i.e. they will disappear in a couple of days. Nana Plaza Bangkok 30 November 21: Pic source: Twitter

Most people in Thailand are dead against making pornography free for all, a survey revealed on Sunday: https://thethaiger.com/hot-news/crime/survey-reveals-most-respondents-oppose-legalising-pornography-in-thailand

Bangkok Metropolitan Administration relaxes booze ban. Restaurants can now serve alcohol until 11 p.m. starting December 1st. https://www.facebook.com/114517608647869/posts/4066427423456848/ Entertainment venues, pubs, bars and massage parlors remain closed: https://www.matichon.co.th/local/news_3063792 (published November 29, 2021 - 1:52 p.m.) https://www.khaosod.co.th/special-stories/news_6756971 (published 29 Nov 2021 2:10 p.m.) https://www.pptvhd36.com/news/สุขภาพ/161480 (published 29 Nov 2021, 2 p.m.) https://thethaiger.com/th/news/501883 Restaurants have to close at midnight now. No dancing, no karaoke. https://www.brighttv.co.th/news/social/bangkok-extend-drinking-time https://www.infoquest.co.th/2021/150766 The full moon party is cancelled. The PM has received reports about certain places secretly selling alcohol and knows that some are secretly open for services like in a pub or in a bar. If regulations were not strictly followed, the relaxation measures could be reversed: https://www.khaosod.co.th/breaking-news/news_6757044 (published 29 Nov 2021 2:48 p.m.) Between 25 and 27 November 2021 police in other districts of Thailand have made 27 arrests in total, including 15 in Chiang Mai, 9 in Lampang, 2 in Chiang Rai and 1 in Lamphun: https://www.topnews.co.th/news/172925 (published : 29/11/2021 15:14)

Looks as if the BiB are taking a tougher stance on "semi-legal" bar reopenings. Nana Plaza tonight Sunday 28 November 21: Rolling staircase to the middle floor of NEP closed-off: Geisha (ex Cascades / Charades) Obsession still closed: Twister BKK open: Have fun, guys! Sukhumvit Soi 7 bars however stopped serving alcohol at 9 p.m.: Source: Twitter

Interesting: Not only regular restaurants and pubs serving food, but also several entertainment venues / "naughty boy places" in Bangkok, such as Check-in Bar (lb) or The Bank Club (GG brothel) are now SHA+ certified: Facebook.com/thebankmassage/ Facebook.com/401617183283119 As of Monday, November 29th at 8:00 a.m. 9,951 places in Bangkok are SHA or SHA plus certified, including: 6,167 restaurants and 780 hotels https://www.facebook.com/114517608647869/posts/4065725233527067/ Are there any (ladyboy or GG) bars in Pattaya that are also already officially SHA Plus approved? Regarding the booze ban: people on social media say that the BiB arrived early last night on Bangkok's Sukhumvit Soi 7 to check if any of the bars there violates the 9 p.m. booze ban still in effect. Bangkok Soi Nana last night: https://fb.watch/9yVE3BRL7B/

Yep, Tree Town last night I guess: Pics from Twitter Many sex workers will have to wait before they can get back to their old place of work again: As a sign of protest they're sending their shoes to the government with a letter telling them: No money, no honey, no GDP: https://www.khaosod.co.th/politics/news_6753132 Dated 26 Nov 2021 4:25 p.m.

Good morning America!

Stop dreaming: CCSA meeting today, no decision to reopen bars before January 2022: Today there has not been a resolution to relax and open entertainment venues faster due to concerns about the Covid-19 situation. However, government has been tasked with finding remedial measures to help entrepreneurs and musicians. If any entertainment venue violates the rules and opens illegally it may be closed for a long time. At the same time, government has also imposed a ban on travel in and out of Africa after a new mutation was found. " said Gen. Prayut. https://www.tnnthailand.com/news/covid19/97655/ Starting January 16th: "entertainment venues, pubs, bars can sell alcohol until 11 p.m. and open until midnight. Conditions: 1. No karaoke. 2. No public dance area. 3. No shared drink glasses. 4. No promotional activities or activities that involve crowding and close contact with customers. The emergency decree will be extended for two more months until January 31st. There are no more dark red zones. https://thairath.co.th/news/politic/2251262 https://www.tnews.co.th/Social/554696 https://www.komchadluek.net/news/494344 https://www.posttoday.com/social/general/669181 https://www.prachachat.net/politics/news-809864 Shoooot... Bars remain closed until mid-January! But: The BBC writes today: "However, a spokesman for the government said that the meeting acknowledged the suffering of entrepreneurs and workers in this business. Therefore, if operators follow the measures to prevent infection well they may open sooner than January 16th" A shimmer of hope? Guess we'll have to wait another 2 weeks or whenever the next CCSA meeting will be... https://www.bbc.com/thai/Thailand-59426568 The Bangkok Biz News also still sees an opportunity for entertainment venues to open before January 16th - if they strictly follow the rules: https://www.bangkokbiznews.com/social/974132 "No need to stick to the original schedule, which is January 16, 2022, if the entertainment venues fully cooperate. They may be able to open before January 16, 2022" said a government spokesman according to https://www.matichon.co.th/covid19/thai-covid19/news_3059584 (via Google Translate from Thai to English, so please bear with me) Maybe they are concerned about this: What do you think, guys? Any chance to see the bars legally open before January 16th, despite the disappointing CCSA meeting today? This post may be updated...

Hard to believe but true: Nana Plaza was open yesterday: last night 11/25: Sorry, seems I cannot delete the above video anymore... Here's the updated version: Soi Nana November 25th, 2021. The Nana Plaza part starts at around 7:20: Are the guys who sit at the entrance checking for vaccination status and/or test results ? Nana Plaza open (kind of):

Sex workers in brothels, bars, karaoke clubs, a-gogos, massage parlors, and freelancers wrote a letter to the government. They are asking for compensation from government because they closed the entertainment venues where they used to work. The sex workers from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Lampang, Bangkok, Samut Sakhon, Udon Thani, Mukdahan, Pattaya, Phuket, Krabi and the Empower Foundation also demand more safety at work and want to be protected by labor laws and they don't want to be discriminated against and stigmatized. The compensation received from the government so far was insufficient and inconsistent, especially for workers without social security and for migrant workers and ethnic groups they say. Everyone hoped that on December 1st they will be able to return to work. But they were disappointed because this date was postponed and now no one believes the government anymore they say... They demand 5,000 baht compensation per month. Campaign to send shoes to the Government House: https://siamrath.co.th/n/300772 (Date of publication: 25 November 2021, 7:37 p m.) Prachatai also reports on the initiative by the sex workers to send shoes to the government to raise attention to their fate: https://prachatai.com/journal/2021/11/96114

A huge python eats the house cat before crashing through the ceiling in a family house in Nakhon Sawan:

Deputy PM and Health Minister Anutin gave an interview today. He's angry that some entertainment venues in Bangkok had secretly - and illegally - opened already, probably referring to the a.m. case in Bangkok... He also mentioned the possiblity of relaxing travel restrictions to Thailand. Seems that in the future there'll be no more PCR test required anymore and replaced by regular rapid tests. When asked about the reopening of bars, Anutin said that the bars will first have to take proper measures for a Covid-free setting. Bar owners have to vaccinate their employees and they also need to check guests' vaccination status before entering the bar. If they are ready to do this, the government was ready to relax the rules he said. (via Google Translate, so please bear with me.) https://www.khaosod.co.th/politics/news_6751047 https://www.posttoday.com/social/general/669120

According to the Daily News, police last night at 10 p.m. raided two restaurants in the "Groove" restaurant area of the famous Central World shopping mall in Bangkok's Pathumwan district (BTS stations Siam and Chit Lom are relatively close by). Two of the twelve restaurant inside "Groove" apparently continued to serve alcohol past the 9 p.m. deadline. The managers will be prosecuted and the owners as well if found guilty of neglect. https://www.dailynews.co.th/news/510150/ Channel 7 also reports on the raid and has published a video: https://news.ch7.com/detail/531935 Siam Rath covers the story too: https://siamrath.co.th/n/300552 So does Amarin TV: https://www.amarintv.com/news/detail/109410 and Nation TV: https://www.nationtv.tv/news/378854039 and Thai PBS: https://news.thaipbs.or.th/content/310047 https://www.facebook.com/158324029747/posts/10159221447699748/ Pic source above: https://www.tempothailand.com/ https://thestandard.co/centralworld-clarify-about-covid-infected-people-at-groove/

At tomorrow's CCSA meeting, they will apparently also discuss the opening of the land borders in December. Of course, the opening of entertainment venues, such as pubs, bars, but except karaoke on December 16th in the 17 tourism pilot areas will be discussed as well. Preliminary guidelines: No karaoke and no open communal dance areas are allowed. Guests must refrain from getting close to other people. Employees must do a covid19 check every 3 days. Customers must show evidence of being fully vaccinated and (or?) present covid test results before entering the bars. However, these guideline are only preliminary. The Ministry of Health will give details later on, writes: https://www.pptvhd36.com/news/สุขภาพ/161238 (via Google Translate) So do I get this right: karaoke style places won't be allowed to open? -> Not the expected good news then for many gogo bar owners in Nana Plaza, Soi Cowboy, Walking Street & Soi 6 Pattaya and so on... Or does "no communal dance areas" mean gogo girls can show off their bodies on the stage but can't sit with a customer??? Basically the same story can be found here: https://www.brighttv.co.th/news/politics/open-country-phrase-two Staff must refrain from getting close to the guests... And Khaosod writes on 25 Nov 2021 8:23 p.m. that there will be 4 rules for the reopening of bars on December 16th in the 17 tourist pilot areas: 1. No karaoke. 2. No public dance area. 3. No serving drinks that use the same glass and 4. No service close to customers. https://www.khaosod.co.th/covid-19/news_6751526

Is it really 30 years already that Freddy died? Time flies by ... RIP Freddy!

Thai ladyboy street fighter

Sonthaya, the Pattaya mayor, "accepts" the demands from the Pattaya bar industry to open bars before NYE, writes Channel 7 today: "Progress in the case of Pattaya Walking Street operators requesting relief from opening entertainment venues." "The entertainment venues such as pubs, bars, karaoke will be proposed to be considered open during the New Year." (Google Translate) https://news.ch7.com/detail/531835 Walking Street bar owners met at the King seafood restaurant to petition for the reopening of bars: Bryan Flowers mentions he's told by the (restaurant and bar) licensing guys that December the 10th will be the day bars could reopen: Khaosod on November 25th, 8:23 a. m. mentions December 16th as a possible reopening date: https://www.khaosod.co.th/newspaper/newspaper-front-page/news_6749729 Let's hope for good news for the Pattaya bar industry on Friday (CCSA meeting).

I think his nick over there is "loip" - never heard of him before. Don't know if he's also a regular lbr forum member or just a guest lurker here... I assume many of us check what's going on on other forums. Therefore there's no point in hiding that you found something interesting somewhere else. Just mention where you got the info from in the first place, that's all. If I see something interesting on Pattaya Addicts for example and post it here, I'll usually say so... He could have written: saw this on the really great lbr forum and wanted to share it here - or something like that... Anyway: it's not a big deal. I was just a little annoyed for a moment... Case closed for me...