RocketSquirrel

He was an important writer of much of my early research. I'd love to re-read his posts from back in the day...Stogie's site, I believe. Top shelf! The years have really flown by. A huge loss to our community.

Stopped in briefly 2 nights ago and was given a warm welcome by proprietors Poesface and Nam. Lovely girls and great vibe! I've been a bit out of the loop for a while. Great to return to Bkk and discover Why Not. This is a good one! Rocket

Great photo CocoJazelle! Hope to be visiting NY in a few weeks! So nice for me to be returning to LBR after a bit of a break and to see this :) Rocket

Cuban Gays Stage Mass Wedding - Castro's Daughter Leads The Way http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/05/150510062929910.html http://www.bangkokpost.com/vdo/world/556695/cuban-gays-stage-mass-wedding

Interesting, this wasn't in any of our papers

Again, excellent reporting Gutsy. The bar looks great. I'm not sure why I didn't visit there on my last trip

Study confirms that penis-length is not correlated to foot size... http://bangkokpost.com/news/world/487721/thai-men-come-up-short-in-1st-scientific-penis-length-study from the Daily Hit Blog: http://hiit-blog.dailyhiit.com/hiit-life/new-study-shows-country-biggest-penises-world/

Tourists Fall Off Express Boat Into Khlong [Video] Published by Stickboy BKK on February 25th, 2015 Foreigner Falls Off Express Boat Into Khlong Video footage captured the moment two foreign tourists were pulled from a Bangkok canal after they lost their footing and fell into the water disembarking a river express boat yesterday. Commuters using the Saen Saep express boat service threw the woman a lifebuoy and can be seen pulling her out the water as a male struggles to climb on to the pier before a woman and man come to his rescue and help him to safety. Both tourists appear uninjured and in need of nothing more than a tetanus shot and a long hot soapy shower. http://www.stickboybangkok.com/news/tourist-falls-off-express-boat-khlong-video/

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2015/02/brooke-guinan-trans-fdny-firefighter.php

Gotta add my vote for the girl in the first photo

Nice shots of the girls Gutsy

I would probably bring a business card from the hotel and maybe have something like a hotel receipt in my back pocket just in case. It's amazing what a little bit of paperwork can do sometimes :)

I have a k bank account that i started at the bank near Nana Station. I just realized last year that I had been signed up for some kind of insurance that was costing me 500 thb/year. I have no idea how that was started. I did not knowingly ask for it! Hahaha. Anyway, it's all sorted now. It's a weird thing signing paperwork that you can't understand :)

I have always had the best luck going to the source (AIS-12Call or True) at one of their offices (every shopping mall). It is easier to come up with the correct sim and correct package for your calling and data needs. Some packages have time and data limitations that require more than just a top-up. Also, both companies have good English speaking customer service lines. All of the companies have desks on the arrival level at Suvarnabhumi. My experience there was that they were rushed and more likely to push "Travel Plans". Travel plans have some limitations.

Great idea for a thread Pentire. Guess 1 was one of the first places that I explored when joining this club. And, yes, there was an amazing lineup. Beer, Jenny, and even Jane were among my first "teachers" I always had an interest in Ohm and Viviannne but sadly never had the chance (actually didn't move on it when I should have) I've got to give credit to TLF as that's where I saw all of the amazing photos of the Guess girls. I learned a lot there.

Is this it?

Again, nice groundwork TC. Will have a look tonight.

To me, this year, Pattaya feels quite different to me on this trip, especially along Walking Street and Beach Road. A much nicer energy. Coincidence? I think not. I used to visit Phuket regularly but stopped doing so a few years back because I found it unpleasant to be around both the tourists there and the locals. With regard to the OP, I agree that the subject is a bit complicated. Factors to be considered include quality of the tourist to Thailand, the business practices of the locals, and also the ethnocentricity of many of the Thai people. Thailand's adult tourist areas do not seem to attract the West's finest. It would be so easy for those in the tourist areas to conclude that Westerners are not smart and have absolutely no manners. I believe that there is a very marked difference between the tourists who visit Pattaya and Patong and those who are truly here for temples and beaches. I find it uncomfortable when I see visitors ignore the most basic of Thai values, whether it's going without a shirt, screaming loudly at a waiter in a restaurant or being intimate or suggestive in public. This is not occasional, it's the norm in the tourist areas here. The simplest of manners fall into the "Thai Culture 101" chapter of any travel book or on any website. The argument that "it's my money, I will spend it as I like" holds up when referring to unacceptable behavior by the Thais (such as pressure for lady drinks), but IMO, it does not justify culturally insensitive behavior toward our hosts. I think that the bad behavior of tourists in other countries does indeed put the issue in perspective, but I also feel that bad behavior elsewhere does not make the negative stuff that goes on in Thailand any more acceptable. I don't think that I will lose my love for Thailand any time soon and it will probably remain my first choice as a travel destination.

Good to know about the party!

Paradise has been somewhat quiet during each of my 3 visits there. But I did hear that it was really hopping the other night. IMHO it's got a really nice vibe with low-key but nice girls (mix gg-lb). The DJ has a great music selection - all types and he's a friendly guy. Music is not unreasonably loud. I really hope that things go well for them there.

Today, for the first time, I tried the Japanese style "smart" toilets at Terminal 21. Very nice angle adjustment. Good temperature control. The bum dryer also worked quite nicely. So while in Thailand, when nature calls, I suggest heading for the nearest Terminal 21

Western press, including the NYT, seems to be consistently getting (or maybe "giving") it wrong. They are clinging to the idea that a democratically elected government has been unjustly overthrown and leaving it at that. Very disappointing as there is so much more to this.

I always wanted to go to this temple and I kept putting it off. Sad news indeed. It looked so fantastic in photographs.

This thing is awesome

Looking back, I have to say that the photos from Guess 1 were absolutely instrumental in getting me to venture over to the darkside and they were instrumental in getting me to visit the bar. But what a shy puppy I was back then