Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
My flesh trips have become less frequent during the past couple of years because of enhanced seniority (old age), but every so often the need arises. I tried booking at the deArni but they were full up with Asian tourists, as was the Tawana. I would have booked at Le Meridien even with their 500 Baht per diem wifi charge, but their windows do not open and I refuse to be in a room where I have to inhale my own second hand smoke. So, it was back to the Tarntawan, where I can open the windows, and where I was assured that my seventh floor Suriwongse room had been refurbished only five years ago, though there are now multiple cigarette burns on the carpet (in addition to numerous stains) and burns on the table (table and chairs the same since my first visit in 1998), and where the bathroom fittings must now be at least 20 years old. (Do be careful about the very slippery bathtub. One night I suddenly found myself flat on my back with the shower blasting my face.)
By the way, if youтАЩre in room 710 and looking for the Thai-English New Testament provided by the Gideons, it is not actually in the room. A former guest objected to its presence and tossed it on the ledge outside the room.
In the past, I could always make calls in Thailand using my Vietnamese 3G sim card. Now I understand that one needs to register these sims, or actually, was supposed to register any 3G sim before 01 January. So, out to the Seven to get a Thai sim.
Mostly Asian tourists crowding the Suriwongse area and it does look like high season. I canтАЩt speak on the Soi Twilight go-go bars as I no longer use them. From one who does know: Dreamboys was taking in at least 300,000 Baht per night from Christmas to New Year, but before that it was quiet. Their peak season drink price was 500 Baht, now down to 450 per drink. Off still 650, boy drink 450.
My first night I almost went to Silom Soi 8 to check out a massage place, but having just turned the corner near the Tarntawan, I was accosted by the lead massage therapist at Indra Massage. Their staff is usually tattooed, sporting facial hair, but that night there was a smooth faced, minimally tattooed young guy standing out front, so I chose him. Name of Bee, from Laos (he whispered that) and he provided one of the best full service massages I have ever had in Thailand.
Next morning I had an appointment at the to Bangkok Nursing Hospital which is now part of a group that includes several major health care providers. Eight hundred Baht for a consultation (no meds), but for me it was worth it simply because the specialist spoke English well and that is a rarity where I live in Vietnam.
Second night, off to the boy soi. Dinner at DickтАЩs with an ex-bf. I met him in 1998, when he was 23 yrs old. Food is usually quite good at DickтАЩs, but I am not keen on being surrounded by so many of my contemporaries. Felt like being in a non-assisted living facility, and in some cases, like being at a full care home. Two men shuffling down the soi using canes, a man dragging one leg after having suffered a stroke. A fellow diner at DickтАЩs was even older (76) than me.
Chose a boy at BonnyтАЩs who turned out to be the same one I met last year. Great twink body but still reluctant to let his hands minister to any place near the prostate.
The next night I located Thai Best massage in Silom Soi 8. Half a dozen disinterested guys chatting out front and a disappointing masseuse.
Sunday at the Siam Paragon to hunt down a waffle iron. Incredible number of shoppers and diners there. Long queue at the taxi station, where I had to point out to some Russian ladies that a queue is appropriately joined at the end, rather than the middle. Spent the evening with my laptop, contacting colleagues in Vietnam and California.
And, btw, the wifi is much better now at the Tarntawan thanks to the additional routers they installed. Most annoying aspect of internet use in Thailand is the messages from the RTP that they use to censor the gay porn sites. Also, my laptop could only get a distorted version of SawatdeeGay Network. I donтАЩt know if that was thanks to the RTP or just a quirk of my MacBook.
Monday night, Good Fortune smiled upon me at Bangkok Massage where I found a Burmese massage boy IтАЩd met two years ago and had been fantasizing about ever since. Once again a sterling performance, guaranteeing him an enduring place in my hall of memories. Tipped him quite a bit more than necessary because I think he's cute, and because he said he was from a small village in northeast Burma, no electricity, water only from a well. Or is that the Burmese equivalent of the Thai "buffalo me die, send money" ?
Tuesday, went over to Silom Complex to get Jockey briefs at Central and various items at Tops Supermarket. As usual on trips to Bangkok, I went to the Little Home Bakery on the 4th floor for their bacon waffle, but not as usual I found that within 2 hours after the meal I was suffering from food poisoning. A few hours shivering under the bed covers, a trip to the loo to expel the offending micro-organisms, and I was almost right as rain, but not fit enough to explore any further delights that evening.
My last afternoon in Bangkok, I decided on lunch at Starbucks, but had to cancel because there was a line extending out the door. Stopped in at the Montien Plaza and got a silk wall hanging. тАЬSpecial priceтАЭ of 500 Baht. At the airport the тАЬspecial priceтАЭ for the same item was 390 Baht.
So, of the four massages IтАЩd had during my weekтАЩs stay, two were excellent, one was fairly good and the fourth quite forgettable. ThatтАЩs about average, I think. Once a year in Bangkok suffices and as IтАЩve already done several trips to Phnom Penh during the past 12 months, IтАЩm now eyeing Siem Reap for the next flesh trip, despite very mixed reviews of the place.
I do hate the travel and the associated inconveniences, but I guess IтАЩll keep doing this just to assure myself that IтАЩm not yet 6 ft (180cms) under, or compactly contained in a funeral urn.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
By the way, if youтАЩre in room 710 and looking for the Thai-English New Testament provided by the Gideons, it is not actually in the room. A former guest objected to its presence and tossed it on the ledge outside the room.
Well done to that guest. The presumption that guests might want or even tolerate such material in their room is to be challenged. Or worse still, someone thinks putting this type of material in a room is virtuous.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
Long queue at the taxi station, where I had to point out to some Russian ladies that a queue is appropriately joined at the end, rather than the middle.
Good work again. We do have to sometimes make a stand against people exporting their uncivilised habits.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Bob, you seem to enjoy massages rather than offing boys from over -priced go go bars. In which case you'll enjoy Siem Reap. They have two excellent massage places, one in the centre of town and the other on the opposite side of the river.
Guys also offer massages in the soi leading to the night market, but they look a bit too young for me. And I don't think you'd have much privacy upstairs.
Anyway, nice report.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Just out of curiosity, why Phnom Penh that often? Visa runs? Vietnam still doesn't offer retirement visa, right?
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Great report as usual. If you don't object, I will suggest you to Bruce for inclusion in his "best poster" poll, with possibility to win a prize.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
I would have booked at Le Meridien even with their 500 Baht per diem wifi charge...
I've stayed in good hotels (by my standards) for less than than. Any hotel that charges for WiFi or joiners is on my blacklist.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Christian, I most certainly, most definitely, most unreservedly, most emphatically do object to any type of connection to Bruce's blog or to Bruce himself. But you were not serious, I'm sure. Just another example of your wry Teutonic humor.
Lego, my several trips to Phnom Penh were made for two reasons: One is that I'm a fan of a couple of massage establishments there, as well as a fan of the lovely but unavailable boys working at my usual hotel. Practically speaking, you are correct, there is no retirement visa available in Vietnam. Over the years I've had tourist visas ranging anywhere from 3 months to 12 months, though now 3 months seems to be the limit. One is expected to leave and re-enter Vietnam at least once during the term of each visa, to prevent the tourist visas from being used as retirement options, so in a sense, that is a visa run.
A couple of sidebars:
-Vietnam makes no attempt to censor gay or porn websites, though freedom of expression in other areas is severely limited in the country.
-Vietnam does not officially recognise same-sex unions. Such couples may now hold celebrations akin to a wedding reception and may now officially cohabit, two things which were not previously permitted. And, the government now allows transgender individuals to receive revised personal documentation (birth certificate, ID, passport) indicating their new gender.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Thanks bobsaigon2 for another beautifully written trip report.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
I was accosted by the lead massage therapist at Indra Massage. Their staff is usually tattooed, sporting facial hair, but that night there was a smooth faced, minimally tattooed young guy standing out front, so I chose him. Name of Bee, from Laos (he whispered that) and he provided one of the best full service massages I have ever had in Thailand.
Hmmm . . . your report on Indra Massage has aroused my interest. IтАЩve chosen to walk past the massage parlours in that soi many a time after reading previously bad reports stating: the masseurs are useless, that you couldnтАЩt choose the masseur, that the masseur doesnтАЩt perform the massage naked and that the masseurs gave the most cursory and unsatisfactory happy endings. Perhaps itтАЩs time I investigated things for myself. They surely couldnтАЩt be any worse than my last experience at Bonny Massage (see below).
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
Chose a boy at BonnyтАЩs who turned out to be the same one I met last year. Great twink body but still reluctant to let his hands minister to any place near the prostate.
Some members may recall my previous effusive report on my 10/10 experience at Bonny Massage. It could not have been better and I came away feeling as happy as a sand-boy. A few weeks ago, I went back, hoping to replicate that sterling experience, only to be sadly disappointed. This time round I had the polar opposite of experiences; a definite minus score would have been justified. The masseur was completely useless, a total waste of space. No тАШhappy endingтАЩ took place. In fact, things didnтАЩt even get off first base. The rather helpful manager/ receptionist had changed from my previous visit and the new guy wasnтАЩt the least bit interested in my complaints and insisted on full payment for the massage parlour and the minimum massage tip for the boy of 600 baht, i.e. a total of 1,200 baht. Hmmm . . . so much for customer satisfaction or customer service. I felt completely ripped off when, of course, I should have felt completely tossed off! Lol! What a contrast from my first experience where my report could not have been more enthusiastic. It only goes to show that the well-repeated mantra, a trip to a massage parlour can be a very hit and miss affair, is so very true. I fear however, it will be a long time before I return to that particular establishment.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bobsaigon2
My last afternoon in Bangkok, I decided on lunch at Starbucks, but had to cancel because there was a line extending out the door.
That line (queue) always happens when Starbucks offers a тАШtwo for the price of oneтАЩ deal. If you are not intending to take them up on that offer, you can by-pass the line and go inside to the counter, where there is a separate assistant dealing with normal priced purchases.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Thanks Bob; informative and elegantly written.
A couple of questions about massage. I've walked past Indira many times and have never given it a second glance but Khun Bee sounds interesting....did you have the massage in Tarntawan or on the premises? If so what was the room like?
And Bonny....do you have a name for the Burmese guy? I was under the impression (obviously wrong) that the mamasan provided the masseur , denying the punter a choice.
And as for Tarntawan, where I shall be next week, I was pleased to hear that the wi fi has been improved. Apparently, the settings sometimes affect the performance of certain lap-tops, in my case my cute little Chromebook, bought specifically for my Thailand visits.
Finally, I was amused by your experience with the Russian ladies. I witnessed the most audacious example of queue-jumping a few years ago in the airport, when a Russian family walked along a line of passengers (it was a busy afternoon) and plonked themselves at the very front. The Immigration Officer simply ignored them and signalled the other queuers to her desk, one by one. The family just stood there, impotently. No confrontation; very Thai!
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Thank you bobsaigon,first time i have read one of your reports.
Very well written,informative and entertaining.
I look forward to many more.
Re: Bangkok 7-14 Jan 2016 (G-rated)
Thanks for the kind words above. It's anyone's guess just how many more of my reports will appear. I just hope I can hold on till my driver's license expires in 2019.
Oliver, I had the massage with Bee at the Indra. I no longer allow the chi of my room to be disturbed by outside influences. Or maybe I just don't want to bother locking everything up before someone arrives. The rooms at Indra are small, containing a massage table with face well. I much prefer the places where they use a mattress on a raised platform. Hard for two people to have intimate relations on a massage table, unless both are petite, which I am certainly not. Rooms at Indra are secured only by a curtained doorway. They appear to be clean enough, unless your night vision is highly acute. There is an aging shower near the room. (Last year I left Indra in a huff when I was informed that the 250 Baht special did not include use of a towel. This year I just chose the 600 Baht/hour). I told Bee to remove all of his clothes at the outset, and after he finished my back, I indicated the path to my prostate. Once he had attended to that, I felt a very firm, very warm indication of what he wanted to follow.
The name of the Burmese boy at Bonny: Try NOT or NAUGHT or NORT. Of course his cuteness quotient is entirely in the eyes of the beholder. At Bonny's and Bangkok Massage, I just choose someone sitting outside who is to my taste and who can tear himself away from his iPhone.
As Jelly says, it's a very hit and miss affair, but if you are lucky enough.... Several years ago at Indra, I was tingling and palpitating for an hour after one boy finished his work on my nether regions, and that was just with his hand!
