Same same or different ?

After a 10 years affair with Singha Beer, I changed my mind and turned to Beer Chang some years ago. I had the privilege to be the first customer to taste their new brand in Threezone Bar and must say I was very pleased with it. They call it Classic and I found that it tasted much better than the Singha Beer and also the former Chang … however some think that the Chang company changed only the packaging and not the liquid, so is there a chemist over here who could tell more ?

Speaking about drinks, I have closed the accounts of my trip and for the first time I spent much less in the bars and discos than before … an average 975 bahts a day as compared to 1300/1400 before. Not sure this is linked to my new fondness towards Chang Classic (which comes cheaper), but I did not go very often to the karaokes and did not set a foot in any disco, and this made all the difference … However the costs for eating have soared to an average 1120 bahts a day, thanks to my boyfriend being a voracious gourmet … Accomodation remained low at an average 870 bahts a night tips included, and transport was 510 bahts a day despite three air tickets (flight to and from Thailand not included).

Highest item was the boys (counting all tips from the 100 bahts for the guy sitting and chatting in a bar, to the gifts and tips for the boyfriend) : 3300 bahts a day, accounting for about 45 % of my daily expenses.

But after all, aren't they the main reason why we go to Thailand ?

Missed ones

It is already one month since I came back - boredom and sameness have taken its toll again after a one month stay in Thailand. Like before, phone calls with Tam, the net and the thai television will remain the only links with the place I love, and this probably for still ten months as I cannot see how I could go back before next October.

This trip was a nice one, and if I cannot say any more that the last trip was better than the former ones, I still have to wait for being disappointed. Despite all what you read here and there, Thailand is still the best place for single men who like hot weather, cheap prices and hot boys - and much more.

I could feel once again how easy it is to meet cute and willing boys not only in the bars but using different ways. I used Gayromeo for the first time and this was probably the best session in the trip – although without any romantism …

However I will forever think of another boy I had picked before the trip and whom I never could meet … he did not log in since October 17 th and we only had some short messages. He told me he worked in KFC Royal Garden so I went there to have a meal (which tells a lot about how badly I wanted to meet him)… no one to be seen. I guess I'll have to add him to the list of the missed ones – like the waiter in the hotel in Lampang and the waiter in the Nong Jai restaurant in Pattaya.

I will have to be bolder next time …

Last day in Paradise

This evening will be the 21st time I will leave Thailand to go back home. I never can get used to go through what is a real ordeal - and this is like that since the very first time. And the thought of a long and tiring flight is another sad prospect.

The last two days were spent with Tam in Bangkok after our nine days in Pattaya : this allows us to sort out all sorts of things like last-minute shopping, laundry, and for Tam the mandatory visit to an aunt in Minburi. This also makes the transition to "normal life" easier. And I have to say that it makes me love Bangkok more, as it is the place where I will have the last good time before all the hassle waiting for me at home.

Yesterday, while Tam was in the sticks, I had a short trip to Silom where I have spent a lot of time during this stay. I wanted to see Soi Twilight for a last time – as if I wanted to be sure this place was not a dream. And I also wanted a last massage …

The Bangkok Massage boys had almost dragged me to their den but I decided to walk on to see what was available. The Bonny Boys were not up to my taste and there were not a lot of them outside so I went on to the Red Massage some meters further. Three or four guys were sitting waiting for customers, including a rather small one with a shy but beautiful face … I went upstairs and asked to see all the boys, and about seven or eight more lads sprang from nowhere .. a good bunch of guys of all styles, but I chose the one I had seen first.

He came from Cambodgia and was 19 y/o ; the message was rather curious : I had asked for an oil massage but he did not use any oil at first. He quickly managed to spend some more time insisting on my buttocks while I was still lying down, and he moved my arms in such a way that my hand was located exactly under his naked groin … I did not need any persuasion to do what I had to do and his cock quickly showed that he liked it. I was liking it too and we cuddled some more time before I came.

I was thinking that the sex had been good but the massage very brief, when he finally brought oil and another towel and made an ordinary but nice massage for exactly the time I had paid for. After some more cuddling – but once again no mouth-kissing - it was his turn to send a long spurt of his liquids inside my mouth.

I rewarded him accordingly and hurried back to Saphan Kwai where I was to meet Tam. After another meal in Rakhang Thong, we decided to go to Sanam Luang again … bad choice as the demonstration by the yellow shirts was just breaking up. Nevertheless the night market was in full swing, and there were even some boys along the streets, among many policemen and all the demonstrators looking for their bus. Tam told me he had come across injured people due to what he thought being a crash ; only this morning we heard that this was in fact a bomb attack.

We escaped the place for our last night together before long. And believe me or not, I am almost weeping my tears when writing this.

Night Market in Sanam Luang

Randy devil

The best boy I had this time was not found in the bars : I finally could get in touch with one of the Gayromeo lads I had contacted before my trip.

His messages had been very straightforward and exciting : "can do everything", "I send you picture of my dick" and the like … not very romantic but we sometimes need to speak clearly, don't we ?

He gave me his phone number and we had an appointment in front of the movie rooms in Centre Festival (so very close to my hotel). Missed meeting as he failed to turn up, which did not came as a big surprise.

I called him back and we finally met in front of Tuk.com : he was only 40 minutes late … Small guy; seeming to be in a hurry … and curiously he spoke mostly english while our messages were all in thai. We hopped on a songthaew to my hotel and this was the big feast … a very passionate guy, who makes you understand what a sex worker really should be : kissing, fucking and being fucked, giving you the illusion he is really enjoying himself. It seemed everything could have been possible with this little sex bomb … exactly the kind of guy you would take for some hot group session.

From my computer screen ...

His age was officially 18 but I still wonder whether this was true … the ID Card had an almost invisible picture ("should replace it but no have time"). He had worked in Euro Boys before (where I have always found the boys to be quite experienced despite being on the youger side, special training perhaps ?), but I still wonder how one can be so skillful at having sex when being so young - or am I deluding myself about the young generation ?

Having seen this sex bomb on Gayromeo, I felt like having spent some time with a celebrity – and he did not refuse to have his pictures taken and sent on the net. He is often on line these times so you should find this little devil easily … don't expect too much preliminaries however, it's all about sex, and good sex. And beware the ID …

... to my bed

Out and about in Pattaya

Beaches, pool and shopping .. there was of course a lot more than this during my nine days stay in Pattaya … and it was roaming the restaurants and the bars. The typical evening schedule being : a good meal with Tam, and then me heading to the bars with Tam spending time with his friends – some have not gone back home yet.

Tam is always eager to eat thai food – although he cannot stand too spicy food which always allows me to make fun of this poor thai boy who streams with sweat as soon as he swallows some hot stuff. Not like his fellow countrymen, he also likes farang food and I had reserved our first night in Pattaya for a very nice meal in the Petite Planete Restaurant in Days and Night … This is a good French restaurant established since about 15 years which tells a lot. The pumpkin soup was a little too sweet for him but what he liked most was the Cotes-de-Bourg red wine I had ordered and which both of us enjoyed…

The other place we went most often was an open-air restaurant close to my hotel ; this delightful place is located along Pattaya 2nd Road on Tipp Plaza, which located between Mike Shopping Mall and Center Festival. Not gay at all – we felt sometimes like being given some funny looks by other farang customers – but with both thai and farang food being regularly good and plentiful and a very good atmosphere epecially at night. Like most eateries in Pattaya, there is always one waiter or more who is especially cute and enticing and I was beginning to have a special relationship (smiles, frequent glances … ) with one of them when it was time to leave.

Nong Jai Restaurant, Tipp Plaza in Pattaya

What about the bars ? I had visited some of them during my first trip so I tried to visit the other ones. All in all I was pleasantly surprised by what I saw especially in Boyztown area. I event took a boy there, which I had not done since a long time.

My favourite was by far Funny Boys, who had just got some new lads from isaan, and this is where I picked Golf, a very sweet boy just arrived from Nong Han in Udon Thani province … short time of course (sending Tam spend the night elsewhere being out of the question) but great time. Funny Boys had a wide selection of guys, some stunners, a nice noise level and the perfect timing for seeing the guys go on stage and dance without being bored by a too long shift.

Most of my time was of course spent in Sunee ; I "offed" a young guy from Villa Rouge Bar during the short time the bar was open as I had been completely enthralled by his face as he was sitting on the scene waiting for his turn to dance : 19 y/o from Nakhon Pathom, rather effeminate which is not really my style but he was soooo cute. And I went to most gogo bars there, except Look Boys which was open and had boys in front of it but no one inviting you to enter. Curiously enough I did not enter any other beer bar than Threezone – which had loads of nice freelance boys with new ones turning up almost every day.

Beaches

My holiday would not be a good one if I spent all my time in Pattaya. But it would not be a true one without at least some days in the sin city. Why ? Boys, of course, but also the sun and the beaches – I explained some months ago why I need a lot of sun-bathing - mostly for my health.

I was lucky this year as the weather changed around October 25th, while it had waited for November 10 something last year. Jomtien is not the proper place to get a good tan … the roof pool in my South Pattaya hotel was more efficient and Jomtien beach had to be left for relaxing and admiring the beauty of nature …

However I had a one-day trip to Kor Larn with Tam and another boy – the beach seller I met last year, who had never been there before. This time we hired a speedboat, hoping to escape the crowds … only to find ourselves on another beach with groups taking turns to land and to embark. By chance the afternoon was more quiet, but I guess I'll have to study carefully the map next time in order to go to one of the smaller beaches – if there is one left.

Haat Mae Ramphung east of Rayong

Another trip was made to Rayong with Tam and Phi Kho ; I had wanted to discover the beaches beyond Rayong since a long time and I was not disappointed. No need to go to the overcrowded and overpriced Koh Samet : on the mainland you will find miles of almost desert beaches (at least during weekdays), with clean and warm water and some delicious and cheap seafood restaurants – just check that that have fresh food … I surprised myself thinking that this was the kind of place I could well choose for a quiet retirement … but it would probably be too boring to stay there, as it is a long 100 km drive to Pattaya.

We also passed in the small fishing village of Samaesan which is the last one in Chonburi province before reaching Rayong. Besides a museum and a pagoda offering great views over the sea, Samaesan has no beach of its own and – to tell the truth – stinks of a strong fish odor. However I was said that some islands could be reached by hiring a boat and it would be possible to sunbathe and swim in the buff (information to be confirmed as I thought that these islands belonged to the Royal Navy). Also I could not help spotting some beautiful men in the streets of Samaesan : Burmese and Cambodian hired by fishing boats calling at the harbour.

Fishboat and fishermen near Samaesan

Samaesan is about 40 km from Pattaya through Sattahip and could be reached on public transport using Rayong-bound bus until the Samaesan junction, and then on a motorbike taxi. Of course better to have one's own wheels – especially if you should be lucky with the young fishermen …

Good boy

After five days in Chiang Mai, it was time to come back to Bangkok … and this time I was not alone as Tam was to stay with me until the end of my trip. Curiously enough, I was not feeling incomfortable with this despite the little restrictions it would bring to my cherished freedom : not being alone has its advantages too especially when your companion is a delightful mature boy who loves life, accepts your infidelities, and has the brightest smile in Thailand.

Air Asia was as efficient as usual for bringing us to Sawanaphum and the first evening was reserved for what Tam likes most : having a good meal. This country boy always amazes me for his wide knowing about thai food, especially seafood which is his little weakness. Saphan Khwai is an ideal place if you like a good meal : besides the many street stalls which are overrun every evening by a crowd of locals, one of the best choices is the Rakhang Thong Restaurant in front of Pradiphat Hotel : this is a semi open-air place where the food is constantly good and cheap, the service efficient, and the beer plentiful and I am always happy to go there with Tam, as I would not sit alone in this kind of place.

After a fantastic tom yam kung and some grilled fish with a delicious phanaeng sauce, we agreed to go to Sanam Luang : the market at night is a good attraction, although I prefer strolling around the magical square where the rent-boys are. So while Tam was wandering around the night market, I walked two rounds along the Saranrom park, and then along Khlong Lot before coming back to the Defence Ministry. At 10 in the evening, a lot of boys were standing there among the usual cars slowly driving around them and stopping from time to time for further enquiries. I did not feel intimidated at all and if some boys completely ignored me (there are more thai drivers than farang pedestrians in these areas …), other tried to strike up a conversation, the first question usually being "do you speak thai ?". I could have taken more than one and almost fell for a 18 or 19 y/o dark-skinned lad standing near the bridge on Charoen Krung Road. He looked like a little rascal and finally I thought it was not a good idea to go with a boy on the first night with Tam in Bangkok – I have to be a good boy from time to time …

Where the action is at night : near Defence Ministry

So we got together again with Tam (how have we been able to live for so long without mobile phones ?) and ended the night in the Saphan Kwai karaokes : Street Boy (almost deserted this time), Waterloo (great decoration and many groups of thai revellers including many girls) and finally Heaven.

On the second day, we did some shopping and I quickly understood that Tam would be very happy with a new digital camera. I bought it for him in Big C Saphan Kwai : not the most expensive one, as Tam has now understood that his farang's pockets are not so deep and he knows exactly what I am ready to pay for him and what I will refuse. We then paid a visit to Soi Twilight where Tam loves seeing at least one show in a bar … this time we went to X Boys and it was not too bad, and the quality of the boys there appeared quite good for me.

After the good deed I had done in the afternoon, I had less qualms about going out alone… and I went back to Sanam Luang : it was 11 pm and there were as many boys as the day before. I met Mike near the bridge on Kanlayanamaitri Road – a 19 y/o boy from Bangkok, with the looks of a soldier and the beautiful face of a half isan half southern guy. We had a short chat and I walked on along the khlong and then along the Park : many proposals were made by boys, some gorgeous but too young, some less attractive but all very polite and respectful. Finally Mike was still there when I came back at his location : we quickly agreed on the price – the usual 500 bahts - and he told me he did not want to bottom … OK for me and up we went into a taxi which brought us to a short-time hotel beyond Khao San Road : 200 THB for two hours, clean, TV with sex DVDs. The sex was good although the boy did not like French kiss.

I finally came back to the hotel at the same time as Tam. He had spent the evening with the owner of Threezone Bar (in Pattaya), who happened to enter Soi Pratuchai just when Tam and I were there sitting at Maxxis Café and talking about him …

All in all another great night in Bangkok before the last stretch of my trip in Pattaya.

Along Chiang Mai streets

Boys near Chang Phuak Bus Station

On the footbridge near Warorot Market

Some eye-candy along
Chiang Mai streets

Impressions in Chiang Mai

Five days were not enough to taste all what Chiang Mai had to offer ... and first of all there was the absolute cuteness of most of the boys met everywhere - the bars being no exception. I staid in the former Novotel Hotel (now branded as Mercure Hotel) which has a location that cannot be beaten for those who want to be close to the main gay area. Besides this you will be in a mostly thai area with the usual markets and street restaurants - by the way the one facing the entrance to Sri Pattana Market across Chang Phuak Road is a good one.

My first visit was for the row of sleazy bars near Night Bazaar ... someone had written that they were doomed to disparition but from what I saw they are quite active with sometimes more customers than boys ... how many bars can tell this in Thailand now ? Sure the guys seemed to be on the younger side, and also not really thai as far as their ID is concerned ... But the main problem is one I had already faced two years ago : these guys do not seem eager to mingle with newcomers : they stick to the regulars - who are quite a fair number. So you will have to be extremely insistent - or be content with the free eye-candy (some here are real stunners).

Chang Phuak (white elephant) Monument

Still better, go to the Chang Phuak bars where the gay life is, and you will have the choice with the new Power Boys (part of the new Lavender Hotel}, the recently reopened Adam's Apple or three older bars which are New My Way, Freeguys and Circle. However these bars are not within walking distance and rather difficult to find - especially the New My Way.

Frankly my preference went clearly for the New My Way and Freeguys : both have a 100 % male staff and I found many guys I could have liked to take, had I the opportunity to stay longer. Besides this, the shows are imaginative and with a lot of nudity although not really sex-oriented. The other places looked more ordinary for me although the show in Adam's Apple is on par with its neighbours.

If the boys here have the looks and the hormones, their skills or their will to please are more limited ; the both I "offed" (a small burmese guy in Freeguys and a 19 y/o thai yai cutie in New My Way) could not stay the whole night, and still more they refused any kind of French kiss ... They are obviously maen in all areas and they do not forget to boast about it.

Tam joined me for the Songkran Festival where a lot of farangs attended too ... and our reunion was duly clebrated with a fine meal near the Night Bazaar. Loy Krathong is absolutely wonderful in Chiang Mai with the lighted balloons everywhere in the sky, fireworks, joy and satisfaction in every eye, and of course the always touching ceremony of letting one's krathong float down the river. The only downside was the absolute lack of awareness by some thais, making the trip rather dangerous.

Back to Bangkok now for a short stay before the finals in Pattaya ; Tam will be with me from now so I guess I will have to be a good man ...

Following the Emerald Buddha's footsteps

Would you believe it ? The theme of my trip to the north was following the Emerald Buddha's footsteps ... this highly revered figure was discovered in Chiang Rai in 1434 ; it then stayed in Lampang and Chiang Mai until 1552 when it was taken to Luang Prabang. It is now in Wat Phra Kaew in Bangkok where it was brought in 1784.

North Hotel gay-friendly hotel in Chiang Rai

So my stay began in Chiang Rai and I visited of course the local Wat Phra Kaew as well as the countryside on a rented bicycle (the Merinda shop where Phahonyothin Road turns left to the south is a good place).

My hotel was the North Hotel in the Night Bazaar area ; 15 rooms and a guesthouse atmosphere, with really very small rooms but OK for two nights. This hotel has also a more or less advertised massage service with boys ; about 3 to 5 of them come at dusk and are available to offer their skills and more if needed.

This could provide a nice alternative should you not be able to find anyone to your taste in one of the two bars in town : Lobo Boys and Regency. Both are located in the immediate vicinity of the Wangcome Hotel and are very quiet, Lobo Boys also having a "for sale" sign in front. However the quality offered is quite decent in my opinion ; I took a guy in Lobo on the first night and he proposed a very satisfying massage in my room (for which you will have to pay the massage fee to the hotel) and could as well have taken another on the following night - but I had already used the in-home service.

I spent then one night in Lampang, a wide and green town also known for its horse carriages. Despite its not convenient location in the countryside, a visit to the Phra That Lampang Luang is a must : you should not miss an opportunity to visit this wooden wat which is said to be the oldest construction in northern Thailand. Besides this, the place (amphoe Ko Kha) where it is located is pleasant and the local population very welcoming. By the way the Emerald Buddha was not kept in this wat but in another Wat Phra Kaew in downtown Lampang.

I had very accurate information from a thai website about a house with boys. I could find the house - close to the Clock Tower in a small soi leading to the School number 4, and sure this was the place as it matched all the details except one : the house had been done up a little, whereas the information I had (dated July 2009) told about a rather old place. No boy was to be seen except the normal life of a thai family, so I guess I had arrived too late : the house had probably been sold and the owner (described as an already old man) had retired from the business.

Lampang taxis

To tell the truth I do not know if I would have dared to enter the place ; the website told about 4 or 5 boys, all of them aged 16 except one aged 19, and no room on the premises.... sounds a little bit hazardous for a lonely farang doesn't it ? Anyway this shows that Thailand has a scene that we do not know, with thai rules and thai prices (100 THB for the owner, 500 THB for the boy), and access to this information seems to be very sparse.

My hotel was the Kim City Hotel where for 600 THB you get a huge room - simple but clean. As a premium you gain the privilege to look at the waiter in the restaurant downstairs, who is probably the most charming guy in town : a dark-skinned well-built boy - about 19 y/o - with the innocent smile of someone who has still to realise how cute he is.

Next stop in Chiang Mai which seems to have a lot to offer these times... beginning with the Loy Krathong festival.

Ups and downs in Saphan Khwai

Coming back to Bangkok I continued my exploration of Saphan Kwai and thought it would be of interest for those who like to escape the crowds.

All the bars are still there except Eagle Bar (the one facing Karmanee Hotel) which closed aboy ten months ago. Not a lot of boys in the bars but the general quality has improved.

Gayromeo boy in Lampang

More than ever Saphan Kwai is really a hit-and-miss place. I went to Street Boys on Sunday to find two bored and not to my taste boys. And I went back on Monday to find a place with a least five guys, one of them being one of those that you cannot wait to take with you by fear of seeing him go with another customer. And so I spent part of my evening with Pon, a very energetic boy from Phayao ... and if you know what is said about the Phayao boys and girls in Thailand, you will have understood he was a cute one.

I also went to Talent which is a karoke bar located at the end of Pradiphat Soi 10, so in a more remote location ... Not many guys either but a good selection and a nice captain who will not pressure you to take a boy or even to have a drink ... what a change !

I had also visited the Be High gogobar, Waterloo karaoke bar (next to Street Boy, no sign) and Heaven ... everywhere there was at least one boy that I could have taken.

Big change of pace ahead as I am booked to Chiang Rai, Lampang and Chiang Mai ... cannot wait to look again at these beautiful northern boys.

Not so quiet

I have just spent two days in Pattaya and like everyone, I was impressed how easier it is now to cross Secomd Road than before ... Less tourists for sure, to the point that Sunee Plaza would be probably a deadzone without the all-year-long residents. 

I spent my first evening in Sunee in my old favourite Threezone Bar ; this is a place which does not get a lot of advertising and this is probably better. The thai owner is an absolute delight and he is loved by all the boys who have come one day in his bar ; money does not come in the first place for him, he just likes his job of welcoming boys and customers and providing a nice atmosphere for those who like to chat with other farangs, those who look for company, or those who just want to see the world go by.

This is where I met Tam in 2003 and some other special boys too. One of them was the lao boy I almost fell in love with two years ago. I had the chance to meet him again and spent one night with him : same easy-going guy with a great face and body if you like them slim and masculine.

Boy from Gayromeo

However I did not forget to visit some other places, and especially the new Mic My Boy gogobar where a boy I offed some years ago is now the mamasan ... I have to confess I liked the atmosphere there even if would not have taken a lot of the guys on scene mostly as a precaution. Next door Nice Boys is almost its clone but with a wider range of guys. Both bars very well patronized by the way.

I also spent one afternoon in Jomtien and dared to go a little bit further than the yellow chairs I usually patronize ; imagine more space than in Phuket Gay Beach, prices so low that you think there has to be a mistake, and a very welcomed quietness. No loud-speaking farang, no screaming ladyboy, and no heavy smoker to be heard or smelt, only a former beach attendant which is now a massage boy and who took care of me for a very long time. I guess I will go back, it is worth every additional step needed to go there.

My only disappointment was with the Gayromeo boys I had carefully listed for a meeting. I am still waiting for answers as all of them seem to connect now very occasionally, while they seemed to sleep with their keyboard when I was in my country ...

Tentations

I am now slowly recovering from the flight and am already completely immersed in what will be my new life ... unfortunately for only four weeks.

I have been busy for the whole of my second day with many things to settle and action to take regarding personal and uninteresting things. It appears that I will have to be in Bangkok on Friday morning so I am already in Pattaya now, one day sooner than expected.

Yesterday in Bangkok I had not lost any hope to find Art - the sexy boy from last year - so I went again to Silom and to Super A (undisputed sleaziest bar in Bangkok). Art was not there but I found Tom whom I had "offed" two years ago - as horny as ever. He told me he had "no money because no cutomers" but that was not enough for me : I love to change ....

I wanted to have a look to the street hustlers near Sanam Luang and went there with a taxi ; we spent some time driving through Chinatown where there is currently a big fair going on. There were not a lot of boys around Saranrom park, and I chatted with one of them who said me to be very careful of robbers - especially robbers on motorbikes. After this and due to rain, I decided for a last drink in the bars near my hotel in Saphan Kwai.

..... Gayromeo boy in Bangkok ...

There were only two boys in my old favorite Street Boys and not to my sapecs at all so I left very quickly, only to be hailed into another nearby place. The captain of this bar is the former mamasan of another Saphan Kwai bar and we have been knowing each other for a long time. When entering he pushed a boy to my table and I was happy to know better a young cutie coming from Udon Thani : about 18 y/o I was told, with a short but very strong body and a face to die for ... or to be jailed for. Checking the ID card of this delight, I saw that he was still 15 two weeks ago .... so I chose to leave him in the bar after offering a good tip for his time and the great songs he sang for me. There would probably have been no problem in my hotel which usually has a very relaxed attitude, but any other customer could have thrown me into a big shit.

So it was a second night alone - not really alone as I was already thinking of a Gayromeo boy that I will contact before my next stay in Bangkok.

Realizing ... once again

Finally I am here ... Despite the joy to come back being blurred by the rigours of the journey, I finally realise that the time has come for a new stay in the country I love.

The flight in itself was an ordinay one ; I saw my thai friend in Geneva when waiting for the plane and he asked me to settle some problems for him in Thailand, and I will happily oblige. And in Zurich I did not go to downtown because Zurich airport although nice is a little bit intricate for a newcomer, and I did not want to have to rush for my connecting flight. I also was thinking about the dubious atmosphere in Zurich Railway Station at night and my holiday would have been completely destroyed should have I been robbed of my bag, so I did not want to take any risk.

Zürich Main Station at night ; not this time

In Suwanaphum I was a little worried to be noticed by the H1N1 squad, as I was not feeling very good and a little bit feverish due to a cold I had caught in France, but they did not spot anything. And going through Immigration was a breeze with only three indian people in front of me who were quickly turned back because they had not filled in the immigration form. Waiting for the luggage took another 15 minutes and I was down very quickly to the new taxi stand. Tam was the first and only thai I phoned.

However I did not realise I was in Thailand again until going out from my hotel for the first time. This has to be the best time of the holiday, when you suddenly feel free from all constraints and you are a little bit dizzy about this new freedom. I discovered the soi life again with great pleasure ... the boys were arriving for work in the local gay bars, the laundry had opened a new shop where a girl bar was located (much more useful if you ask me !), as well as a new restaurant right in the middle of the bars. And I will then discover that the very cute boy who used to sell coffee in front of my usual internet cafe was no more there .. he had opened a restaurant on his own, the owner told me. Eleven months had gone by.

How about my first night in gay Bangkok ... due to a short downpour at 7 pm I feared that not a lot of boys would turn up in the Saphan Kwai bars so I decided for a trip to Silom instead. I drank a coke at Dick's Cafe where I had never seen so many people before. And in spite of repeated glances with a cute massage boy from neighbouring Bonny Massage, I chose to go to the sleazy places in Soi Anuman Ratchathon. I hoped to meet again Art - the boy I met last year in the now closed Golden Flower Bar, but he was nowhere to be seen. Lots of guys up to my taste in Solid Bar.

Not willing to indulge in a night long relationship, I finally chose the easy option and entered the Twinks Massage Place - which had received some good and bad advertising recently on the Sawatdee Forums. What I can say is that there are a lot of cute boys on supply here, mostly in the 18-20 range and mostly with nice tanned faces. The welcoming ladyboy was not so bad although a little bit insistent ... He announced that the 500 THB you have to pay was not a massage fee but the price for the room ... couldn't be more clear ! I chose a 18 y/o Roi Et guy with a very cute and smiling face but obviously lacking experience.

At last I had reached in Thailand and well ...

Countdown

At the beginning it was eleven months … you could as well have said forever …

And the time elapsed slowly, punctuated by daily and weekly virtual trips through the net … and then it became six months to go, and then one month … and to-day it is one week ; one week left before I land in Suwanaphum.

I checked that the same Swiss flight to-day arrived on time, and it did. I checked my bags and they are still there … although far from being ready. I checked my international driving license and had to rush off to extend it in case Tam would like to drive out of Chiang Mai. And where is this thread with the directions to this gay karaoke in Laksi which I promise to visit since at least ten years ?

I got some news and they are now no more virtual : there was a terrible downpour in Pattaya to-day, and the 'reds' will stage a protest in Pattaya on the 24th, just on the day I will come back from Pattaya to Bangkok. And the guys on Gayromeo are less and less virtual too, and more and more like the promise of a nice evening … or more.

Once again the time has come back when there is nothing really important in life except my family and THE next trip. It looks like this last week is going to be soooooo… long.

See you in Bangkok !

Adam's Apple

According to their newsletter that they just have sent me, Adam's Apple would already be open - contrary to what I wrote below. However it would be only a soft opening before the Grand Opening Party on October 9th (private party from what I read on Thaivisa.com), and probably a full closure on election days in Chiang Mai (October 4th).

For me the opening will be at the end of next October and I cannot wait to go and see their show ...

In-trend

The in-trend destination for gay sex tourists this year will obviously be Chiang Mai – and you know what ? In about five weeks I will be there too - although I usually carefully shun everything "in-trend".

First there is this Lavender Lanna Hotel / Power Boys gogo bar and other businesses, which are due to open in October among growing controversy. Some tell that this will be a great improvement for the town, others including gay activist Nathee Thirarotjanapong fear that the complex will be located in a too visible location and will bring a bad light on Northern culture, especially because of the wide advertising all over the world. What do I think of this ? Well, erased threads, heavy insinuations, banned posters and conflicting viewpoints do not allow to have any opinion on this when you are 9000 km far from the spot, except that many businesses are probably feeling that their interests are seriously threatened by the new venue. There is likely still more to this, as I understand that Chiang Mai is currently preparing local elections. What I know is I did not choose to come to Chiang Mai for this place and I am not even sure I will have the time to visit.

What is more interesting is the opening of Adam's Apple which is scheduled on Octobre the 9 th after a dress rehearsal yesterday. I have great memories from this bar and can only hope the format will not be too different. In the same Chang Phuak area, another sleazy place is said to open soon near Viang Bua Mansion (Happy Dicks is the more recent name) ; and there is also the older bars like Freeguys where I already know I will "off" someone because these Thai Yai boys are really my style.

What worries me is the fate of some other bars. Those in the small alley near Night Bazaar seem to be still there : they will remind me the sudden surge of adrenalin I felt three years ago when facing unexpectedly a young Tai Yai boy in the common toilets. A similar bar is Yum Boi Boi which had just opened in Santitham Plaza – also north of town. It seems they had available hosts, unlike other gay bars in the area which are more thai-oriented. However I just had the news that they have closed until early October ; hopefully this will not be a permanent closure, as they are said to have promising young lads.

. . . Yummy guys in Chiang Mai (thai-eyes website)

What is also new about Chiang Mai these days is the great updated information you can get on the net through nice websites such as the already well-known ratchada.com, and also asiancoop.com, chiangmaichimes.com (Nightlife section), thai-eyes.com and the gay section on Thaivisa.

Homework is so easier when you have good updated information . . .

Things to do

This morning I spent at least three hours choosing a hotel in Lampang where I will stay only for one night … and here I was once again roaming the streets of the small town, trying to locate the house of boys and another bar where there could be boys for rent … The hotel also had to be not too far from the bus station as I will use a bus for coming from Chiang Rai and for going on to Chiang Mai as well. And close to the song thaew which will bring me to the Wat Phra That Lampang Luang which will be the highlight of my short visit. Finally I will stay at the Phin Hotel which gets rather good reviews everywhere and is conveniently located in downtown Lampang.

So I am gradually working out the schedule of the trip, at least regarding transportation and lodging. The rest will be left to instant decision making depending on the boys I will meet, the rain, and a famous virus which hopefully will not destroy my so long awaited stay.

However this is the list of things to do for this trip …
- helping Tam to overcome his sadness after his mother passed away … he should like Loi Krathong in Chiang Mai
- climbing the Samoeng Pass near Chiang Mai on a bike (already on the list two years ago and left undone)
- recovering from my trip in one of the Suriwong massage places, preferably Twinks Massage on Soi Anuman Ratchathon
- exploring Pradiphat Soi 21 where a little advertised boys bar is said to have opened recently
- expanding the list of the provinces where I have already already spent at least one night … 20 so far and counting… good excuse to go to Potharam in Ratchaburi province …
- finding the gorgeous boy met on Romeo … 19 y/o and a body to die for, not working in a bar but in the @~~##88$` Restaurant in Pattaya - and trying to "off" him (he is not the guy on the picture above).

So many things to do and so little time ..

Emotional

I do not like to post links to songs I like because there would be too many of them and it is generally very boring for the readers.

This post will be an exception for a thai song that deeply moves me everytime I hear it. I first heard it when it was the the theme tune of a Thai TV programm about schools in the poorer areas of Thailand. And I burst into tears when my thai-swiss friend sang it in a karaoke in Saphan Kwai many years ago. This "rongrian khong noo" is simply one of the best songs I have ever heard.

It tells the life of schools in the mountains, far from anything and without too much money, where a lonely teacher dedicates himself body and soul to the education of the mountain children. It tells the will of the thai state to bring education into the remotest parts of the country, it tells the sadness of traditional life and culture being forgotten and in the same time the hope for a better life for these poor children.

It tells the feelings of my father and mother seventy years ago in the Alps ...

The lyrics of this thai song are simple and incredibly touching, and the tune is also fantastic especially in the version linked below with an amazing flute player. May I say that tears still come into my eyes because of such a beautiful melody ...



My School by Phongsit Khamphee
โรงเรียนของหนู (พงษ์สิทธิ์ คำภีร์)

Too long

Meeting my "sapecs"

Eleven months is really too long when this is the time you have to wait between two trips to Thailand.

Should I believe what is written on the boards, I should be cheated or assaulted at every street corner, laid up in bed by whatever virus, and stuck in an airport. Being a hardcore Thailand fan (should I write : sex tourist), it would take much more to give up a long-awaited trip.

What I fear much more is closed bars and too few boys – so just in case I opened a Gayromeo account ; I have to say I am favourably impressed by what I can see … no date for the moment (too early …) but a nice collection of boys who meet exactly my sapecs (specifications). And also some nice chats – some in thai, some in English with above average cute lads who are obviously looking for customers.

The schedule is now ready and flights are already booked … Air Asia had a promotion for flights priced at 700 THB including taxes … who could resist to that ? So it will be two days in Chiang Rai (I am booked at the North Hotel who is gay-friendly, ideally located and not expensive), one in Lampang just to find the house of boys I read about in the TMM webboard and five in Chiang Mai where I will stay in Mercure (former Novotel) : I had to weigh up the pros and cons of this hotel against the Viang Bua Mansion for a long time, but Mercure – although more costly – has a pool and is closer to the main street, which could be convenient at night. They also have a shuttle bus to the Night Bazar at night ; I just hope that the sleazy joints overthere will hold out till next October.

The remaining weeks will be spent between Bangkok and Pattaya – I am already dreaming about my next visits to the Saranrom street hustlers (no way I will be deterred to go there by some unverified reports), to some massage places near Silom and some promising bars in Sunee Plaza.

Sorry not to give any report for the time being ; be sure I keep in touch with everything going on in Thailand so that I can waste as little time as possible once I am there.

Mourning

Tam's mother has passed away … I had a phone call when going to work and I did not realise immediately, but had the confirmation when I phoned back four hours later. She was a heavy smoker and it was no surprise that she died of lung cancer - despite being still young at 58 y/o. 

She was a tiny and feeble woman that I had met twice when going visiting Tam's house in Phrae province. She had probably some worries with her only son when he was a teenager ; recently they were living in the same house and they seemed to go along very well again.

Tam seemed to be very greatly affected by this death ; I am too because this woman was a shy but very nice and thoughtful mother. And her death made me realise how lucky I am to still have my own mother who despite being 82 y.o is as healthy as ever.

Tam had got his good looks and his strength from his father but she had given him her sweetness and her honesty. I hope that he will overcome this event with the help of his friends and his family ; what I hope too is that he will not sink into discouragement, especially as the bad economic situation does not allow him to find a job which would have helped him to forget this loss.

He did not ask me for money but I sent some for helping him with the ceremony. We will meet again in Chiang Mai for the Loy Krathong festival, and though I still want to have some free time on my own, I think I will spend more time with him than last year.

Revival

Northern thai boy

More than five months since I last updated  … I have been really overloaded with work this year and did not have time to think of new subjects. In fact my only contacts with Thailand were through the news and the webboards. I also had some phone calls with Tam who is going well despite a broken arm, and also with the two boys from my last stay in Pattaya : the beach seller and the young looking freelancer ; both are now back home because of the poor number of tourists in Pattaya.

Things are going to improve for me and I should now have some more free time. Unfortunately I will go to Thailand only once this year, because of too short holidays. And I have now begun the process of planning and booking – the best part of the trip they say, but surely the most important when you do not want to waste your time. In fact I am already booked on a Swiss flight, a company I have never tried before and I am thrilled to test it for the first time (especially as I could have time enough for a drink in my favourite bar during waiting time in Zurich).

What stays in my memory after a Thailand trip is mostly the visits I make in the provinces, more than my stays in Pattaya. This year it should be up to the north once again ... In fact I cannot forget the wonderful Shan boys since my stay in 2007, and I also want to ride a bike in the mountains.

So my intention is to visit Chiang Rai for two nights, and Chiang Mai for four nights. Accomodation is not booked yet but I have read good reviews about The North Hotel in downtown Chiang Rai (they have a roof terrace too ..) and Wiang Bua Mansion in the northern part of Chiang Mai … close to Adams Apple which should have reopened.

I also will make a short stay in Lampang, for the horses and for the wat … and also to look for a house of boys which was mentioned on a thai webboard … just for my own general knowledge of course.

I have yet to think about how Tam will fit into the schedule … I would like him to be with me for the Loy Krathong Festival and will get out of my way to be in any other place than Pattaya on that day. Loy Krathong is so romantic in any place in Thailand except Pattaya where it has turned into a commercial fair that I want to avoid at all costs.

Now four months and a half and counting ...

Central Mall

I have read on the boards that the new Central Department Store has just opened in Pattaya ... a good news for me as the hotel where I usually stay in Pattaya is very close.

This said I wonder wether the sales attendants will be as cute as the construction workers who were there last November ...


BTW I have just introduced some minor changes to the blog layout ; I especially hope that it will be more Firefox-friendly than before.