SAGuy

The Dawin verandah must have the best free LB show in BKK, especially if Dew and Suzie are working! Quite a few mongers just order in, as I have seen many girls take the walk across the street after receiving a text message. It adds a new spin to Uber Eats and Deliveroo! SAG

If you walk into the Trendy Building on Sukhumvit Soi 13, there is probably the greatest concentration of visa agents under one roof in the whole of BKK. I have used the agent in the shop on the right hand side as you walk in through the main door. It is about 3 shops in and is manned by 2 Thai ladies. They do all kinds of admin services (all visa types, drivers licenses, bank accounts, photocopying, scans, attestations etc.) and have always been highly efficient. Costs wise they appear to be charging the standard rates for the various services, so I would recommend starting with them. The older lady has very good English and knows all of the ins and outs. SAG

@ThaiHard had some problems with his posts not counting up, but that has all been fixed now by @ausmagoo and so all of the rest of the forum should now be accessible. As @ryeantpsychoaquarius the Trip Reports (TRs) are always a great section to read, along with the newbie section and the bar threads. A few hours invested reading these will really help you with your upcoming trip. Cheers SAG

Thanks for writing this report @Denbosch1971 this sort of info is invaluable for the other BMs. No hotel in the known universe starts cleaning at rooms at 4 p.m. as it means guests couldn't check in at 2 p.m. What a daft answer! After living in DXB for a long time, you get to understand why most customer service and hospitality jobs are performed by Filippinas and never Indians! The saving grace is that the room looks big and pretty nice, so not a total disaster. SAG

Welcome on board. This site is a gold mine of information and if you invest some time in checking the threads and doing a bit of research, it will reward you in spades and help you enjoy your trip even more. BKK is a great city and has a very different vibe to Patts. Enjoy your visit and let us all know how it goes. If you have any specific questions, just ask. The BMs are friendly and helpful and I would suggest starting off your reading with the newbie thread, which has loads of relevant information. SAG

I wonder when it will be made available worldwide? Even with an efficacy rate of only 30-40% it has to be better than nothing! https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cded26z16leo World-first gonorrhoea vaccine launched by NHS England as infections soar Image caption, Campaigner Max says he will definitely be getting the new vaccine Andrew Rogers & James Gallagher BBC News Published 8 hours ago England will be the first country in the world to start vaccinating people against the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhoea. It will not be available for everyone. The focus will mainly be on gay and bisexual men with a history of multiple sexual partners or an STI. The vaccine is 30-40% effective, but NHS England hopes it will reverse soaring numbers of infections. There were more than 85,000 cases in 2023 – the highest since records began in 1918. Gonorrhoea does not always have symptoms, but they can include pain, unusual discharge, inflammation of the genitals and infertility. How many people will choose to be immunised is uncertain. But projections by Imperial College London show that if the jab proves popular then it could prevent 100,000 cases and save the NHS nearly £8m over the next decade, external. Max, a sexual health campaigner, told BBC Newsbeat he would "100%" take the vaccine after being diagnosed with gonorrhoea twice within a year. "I think this is great that it's been announced", he says, adding: "It's going to take the pressure off the clinics, it's just a big win all round." Vaccination will start in August and will be offered through sexual health services. Public Health Scotland said it was also working on plans to launch its own programme for high-risk individuals. BBC Newsbeat has asked health bodies in Wales and Northern Ireland whether they intend to do the same. Is it effective enough? This vaccine wasn't designed for gonorrhoea. It's the meningitis B vaccine currently given to babies. But the bacteria that cause the two diseases are so closely related that the MenB jab appears to cut gonorrhoea cases by around a third. That will require a delicate conversation in sexual health clinics as the vaccine will not eliminate the risk of catching gonorrhoea. It is normally caught while having sex without a condom. But Prof Andrew Pollard, the chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), which recommended the vaccine, said despite it only being 30% effective, it was "worth having" and could have "a huge impact" overall. The decision is not just about the record numbers of cases. Gonorrhoea is becoming increasingly difficult to treat. Most cases are treated with a single dose of antibiotics, but there is an 80-year history of the bacterium which causes gonorrhoea repeatedly evolving resistance to our antibiotics. It's happening to the current treatments too and is why some doctors are concerned gonorrhoea could one-day become untreatable, external. The best way to deal with a drug-resistant infection is to never catch it in the first place. Dr Amanda Doyle, from NHS England, said: "The launch of a world-first routine vaccination for gonorrhoea is a huge step forward for sexual health and will be crucial in protecting individuals, helping to prevent the spread of infection and reduce the rising rates of antibiotic resistant strains of the bacteria." The people most affected by gonorrhoea in the UK are those aged 16-to-25, gay and bisexual men, and those of black and Caribbean ancestry. The vaccine – which costs around £8 per dose – is value for money when primarily offered to gay and bisexual men, rather than all teenagers. However, clinicians do have the freedom to use their own judgement and offer the vaccine to people using sexual health services they think are of equally high risk. People will be offered mpox (formerly known as monkeypox), HPV and hepatitis vaccines at the same time. Potential new antibiotic for treating gonorrhoea Don't ditch condoms, sexual health experts say Prof Matt Phillips, president of the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, said: "This is excellent news and a landmark moment for sexual health in England. "Gonorrhoea diagnoses are at their highest since records began and this has the potential to help us to turn that around." It is not known how long the protection provided by the vaccine will last or how often booster jabs might be required. The decision comes almost a year and a half after a vaccination programme was recommended by the UK's JCVI. Sexual health campaigners had criticised that long wait, but have welcomed this decision. Katie Clark, head of policy and advocacy at the Terrance Higgins Trust, called it a "huge win".

Thanks Jimmy, I'll try that also. SAG

Please add this defect to the software backlog In the past week I have had feedback from both @Safariman and @Pablo6789 that they couldn't send PMs to me, which was strange as I receive PMs every day from existing contacts. I tried to send a PM to @Pablo6789 and received an error message similar to the one below: I then tried clearing out the address in the To box and typing it again, which did work. I believe that this is a software defect, as it should work the first time, without having to repeat the step, and this will clearly confuse BMs. Can you please investigate this when you have the chance? Regards SAG

Very strange, as I do get messages every day, so was unaware of any problem until recently. Anyway, it has now been cleared out so hopefully all sorted. Perhaps the warning needs to be displayed more prominently? S

Thanks a lot Nick. I cleared out the inbox and it appears there are no longer any problems. What is curious though is that messages could still be received from existing PM contacts, but not from new PM contacts. This means that a user is not aware of a problem unless a new contact complains to them. Anyway, problem solved and thanks for the solution. SAG

Backstory Nan, who works at WN04, was off last Thursday and wanted to go out. When asked where did she fancy she replied: burgers, KFC or pizza! There is no pretence about Nan! I'm not a fan of fast food and so pizza seemed like the best option. Ordering pizza in BKK is like the proverbial 'game of two halves'. There is the mass market version, much beloved by the locals, which IMHO is a gooey mess of dough, stodge, oil and cheap cheese, all topped off with Ketchup! However, BKK also does boast some very good pizzerias and one of my favourites is Vesuvio. Vesuvio This Italian owned pizzeria serves authentic wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizza. There are no stodgy thick crusts to be found here! It is a small place, which maybe seats 15 inside and another 15 outside, so you need to be mindful of this when you visit. We were there just after 20.30 on a Thursday night, so the evening rush was over and there were free tables inside. It is quite easy to find. When walking into Soi 8 from Sukhumvit Road, it is located down the first side alley on the right hand side of Soi 8. About 30 metres in on the left hand side and there it is, bang opposite a very gaudy looking bar. The menu is to be expected and has all of the usual antipasti and salads etc. The choice of pizzas is extensive and there is one for every taste, even Hawaiian! The Italian mixed platter as a starter looked very appetising and the Roman tourist sitting next to us rated it highly. A good sign for an 'ethnic' restaurant is if they attract visitors from their own country and it is very commonplace to find diners from the 'old country' eating at Vesuvio. Nan went with the seafood pizza and I chose the ham and mushroom, because I am boring. Both pizzas came out within about 15-20 minutes and they are large! This is why I skipped the starter. The look on Nan's face was priceless as she was more used to the smaller sized circles of dough served up by Pizza Hut etc. To be fair to Nan, who normally has a sparrow-like appetite, she managed to finish off half of hers and had the waitress wrap up the other half to take back to WN04. She claimed she was going to give it to Tew, who had a bad month, but who knows? I then persuaded her to try the tiramisu, which I knew she would enjoy. That was demolished and so was a great suggestion! Summary A great place for authentic pizza. Most of the pizzas started at THB 370, although they have a lunch time special that runs until 15.00 where you can get 2 for THB 650. I try to visit there once a quarter and it has always been consistent. It was Nan's first ever visit and she enjoyed it very much. The quality of ingredients is very good and you can tell that the owner runs a tight ship in terms of standards. Service was very efficient and friendly, with 3 waitresses. The atmosphere is not what you would describe as romantic, like some trattoria-style restaurants, as it is too small for that. We were there for about an hour. All of the customers were farangs, including Italians, Brits and some Scandis. I would certainly recommend Vesuvio if you want that pizza fix and it is open for lunch and closes at 22.30. Nan's Pizza - Plenty of Seafood Toppings Nans Pizza again, but also a view of my ham and mushroom pizza The Bottom Line - I thought it was very reasonable for quality food Special Bonus Photo - Nan's Mai Tai at the bar we went to afterwards (the first of many cocktails!) Ciao SAG

I get a different display to that. Hopefully they will renew the security certificate pronto. It was working fine earlier this morning, as I made posts. SAG

Yes I also got this. It appears that somebody forgot to renew the security certificate and as it is a new month, it has now expired in some regions. If you click on show details and then go to site it will take you there, but obviously at your own risk. This doesn't appear to be a phishing scam, but rather somebody forgetting an update. SAG

Pies2U (www.pies2u.co) @Terry Tibbs had given me the heads-up on this new pie shop that had opened up between sois 28 and 30 and I had mentioned it a few weeks back. As I was in the area it would be a shame not to go and have a 'butchers' (excuse the pun). Pies2U is quite easy to find. It is about 6-8 minutes from the Phrom Phong BTS station and the nearest landmark is the Address condo building. The shop is quite easy to identify as it is painted in a royal blue: There's a large selection of on-premises baked pies and the owner is a professional chef and he runs it with his Thai wife. They also run daily specials: It is not just a pie takeaway shop, they also have a nicely laid out cafe, with chandeliers! Before ordering I made sure that they had all of the essential condiments: HP sauce, malt vinegar, English mustard. I'll leave the Ketchup for the heathens. I also ordered a coffee, which came with something quite eccentric. I'll refer to this as a Yorkshireman's take on biscotti: When it comes to food, I am a 'back to basics' type of bloke, so I ordered the meat pie set, which included mashed potatoes, mushy peas and strong thick gravy. I also ordered a meat pie and sausage rolls to take away. The main set was very filling and I couldn't manage anything else. The sausage roll pastry had a croissant texture to it and I am sure I could taste butter. Interestingly, they provide suggestions as to how to get the best from their pies: The Menu Summary Excellent quality pies. The pricing is premium and I spent THB 1,000 on 1 meat pie set, (very filling!) 1 meat pie, 2 sausage rolls and 1 Americano. WIR? Yes definitely. I would rate the meat pies as a 9/10 and the sausage roll as an 8/10 (I marked it down as it was the type that is more like a croissant than a standard sausage roll). The cafe and kitchen looked spotless and you could tell that the chef takes great pride in his work. There were 5 staff and the service was also friendly and prompt. The place was full of ex-pats, so I guess it has passed the acid test of authenticity and quality. Thanks very much for the heads-up @Terry Tibbs SAG

This may be of interest to the Brits. Just in time for the busy high season! https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2025/02/24/norse-atlantic-to-enter-london-bangkok-market/ Norse Atlantic will launch flights between London Gatwick and Bangkok effective 26 October. It’s been a long time coming for a route which has been seriously short of nonstop competition even with British Airways flight from Gatwick. “We’re excited to launch direct flights between London Gatwick and Bangkok, a top choice among our travellers, “ said CEO Bjorn Tore Larsen. Initially there will be a twice-weekly service, rising to four flights per week from the end of November. Schedules are as follows: ZO791 departs Gatwick at 1600, arriving into Bangkok at 1025 the following day ZO792 departs Bangkok at 1230, arriving into Gatwick at 1830 Norse will be deploying one of its Boeing 787s for the flights, with the service taking 11 hours 25 minutes on the outbound leg and 13 hours for the return journey. The airline says it also wants to tap transfer traffic – in other words those wishing to fly to or from Bangkok and the US or South Africa via Gatwick. However the schedules may not be convenient depending on chosen city pairs. Besides the competition to BA at Gatwick, Thai Airways and EVA Air also fly nonstop from Heathrow to Bangkok. Norse will operate the flights in a two-class configuration. Its premium economy could prove an attractive proposition for cost-conscious business travellers and upmarket leisure customers. As previously reported the carrier is also set to launch flights to Bangkok from Scandinavia this winter (a routing which was previously operated by Norwegian long-haul) and hopefully Gatwick-Bangkok will succeed. I say that because there is pent-up demand for London-Bangkok nonstop, with many leisure travellers currently unwilling to pay higher prices. Therefore many seek out low-cost alternatives with indirect operators like the Gulf carriers or Turkish Airlines or mainland Chinese operators. The former roster A380s from their Gulf hubs to Bangkok. Load factors are high as most of their passengers are connecting from Europe. Currently Emirates has up to five daily flights between Dubai and Bangkok, with four of these operated by A380s and one by the carrier’s 777-300ER. Mainland Chinese carriers cater to the budget market. So you take China Southern via Guangzhou or Air China via Beijing. In common with other airline Norse practises dynamic prices. So book early for the best prices should you want to visit Thailand in its peak season this winter. flynorse.com

MedConsult Clinic (www.medconsultasia.com) No I didn't wake up with 'drippy dick' or pissing razor blades! I've been using this clinic for chronic medication and it was time for a re-stock and also to get the second anti-Dengue Fever vaccination. So off I trotted to MedConsult which is located on soi 49/9, right in the heart of a very Japanese area. The clinic is on the third floor of the Racquet Club, which is located on the 9th alley off soi 49. A good landmark is the Sumitvej Hospital, located on soi 49 just a few minutes before the alley 9. I'd recommend MedConsult as the main doctor there is a Kiwi lady ('Doctor Donna') and it is run along farang lines. I'd say that 99% of the patients are farangs and it is a busy practise focused on work medicals, vaccinations, aesthetics, prescriptions and STD check-ups! It is low cost and so if ever you are in need of any of these services, I would recommend it, as it is highly efficient in my experience. (The blood tests etc. are a LOT cheaper than Pulse Clinic!). It is also open 7 days a week and has a big aesthetics section. I got the feeling it would be 100% fine to walk in there with a LB, no problems. SAG

As much as I enjoyed the pizza at Vesuvio, I could never say I would choose it over a LB! SAG

Great photos there @sydney69er I agree, Ottos in the second alley on the right off Soi 8 comes in second after Vesuvio IMHO. However, on evenings where Vesuvio is full, it is a very credible Plan B back-up. Ottos does have one advantage over Vesuvio though. The second alley where it is located is also where the infamous Lolitas BJ shop is to be found. Isn't BKK great? You can get a BBBJ and a decent pizza afterwards, all within 150 metres of each other). SAG

That does look like a great pie. I won't mention the ketchup... SAG

That's quite the difference from THB 4k. Japanese Encephalitis is also a rip in the UK. I remember getting vaccinated there - its a course of 2 and it was GBP 100 per shot pre-Covid. I always thought medicine was cheap in the UK? SAG

Good point! I've heard that, but don't know if its true or not. SAG

Its spreading quite fast. The course they use at MedConsult is QDenga which is 2 jabs with a 3 months interval. The cost is THB 1,999 per vaccination. BKK is still OK, but if you are planning on visiting your teerak in Isaan or Laos etc. its worth considering. SAG

Tourist to NYPD beat cop: "How do I get to Carnegie Hall officer." NYPD officer: "Practice lady, practice." To be able to see the more interesting threads and topics you need to have made a minimum of 5 posts. I also recommend that you review the newbies section as there's lots of info in that thread. Enjoy. SAG

Backstory My work requires meticulous planning, but when it comes to social occasions, the average Thai has better planning skills than me. So here I was at midday on Christmas Day, nursing a hangover and thinking where can I go for Christmas Lunch? I live on soi 13 and whilst having a lung torpedo on the balcony, I looked down to the soi for inspiration and saw two very easy options - The German Beer House or the Red Lion... OK that was easy, Red Lion it is. Crimbo Lunch By the time I got myself together it was around 1700, which was fine, as by my logic, most Brits eat Christmas lunch around 1500, so there should be some tables free. I crossed over the soi and walked in and luckily the theory was right. They also served until 2000 that night. There were 2 options: main course only for THB 595 or 3 courses for 895. I decided on the latter. The food options harkened back to the 1970s, which was fine by me, so I chose the prawn cocktail to start, washed down with a bottle of water as I couldn't face any more booze. For the main course they offered turkey and ham with all the trimmings. It was served on a very large plate, so what looked small,, was actually very large. You could not fault the serving size or the quality of the main course. For dessert I had the traditional Christmas pudding and another bottle of water. Service was excellent, it was busy and I was lucky to get a table, as it filled up with what seemed like a second sitting around 1730. I'd give it 8/10 for what was a last minute decision. Very good value and close(ish) to original food, as I remembered it. They also have a happy hour every day up until 2000 with cheap beer and they serve Baht Buster breakfasts, which I will give a try over Christmas, as they are served up until midday. The only 2 negatives I had (which were minor) were a. The prawn cocktail had onions in it, which I've never come across before and the raw onions overpowered the taste of the rest. b. The Christmas pudding was served as a slice. I have never seen that before either. I'd recommend the Red Lion overall and now have a go-to Christmas place for next year! SAG

Christmas Lunch 25-Dec-24 In what seems to have become a Christmas tradition, I decided to book lunch at the Red Lion on soi 13 again. The Red Lion is a traditional English pub that has become quite an institution in BKK over the years. They were running 3 sittings: 1300, 1500, 1700 and so I opted for the 1500 slot. (I fully understand why businesses have a sittings system for busy event days, but I always have a sense of trepidation, as on occasion this has been problematic. Luckily the people who were at our table had finished and left, so all was well). Just like last year, there were 3 courses and also a welcome drink. The 3 course option was priced at THB 950, which was very good value and considering that the Red Lion is just minutes away from where I live, the choice of venue was a no-brainer. For the welcome drink they offered Cava, Bucks Fizz, and Beer. After 3 heavy nights in a row, I couldn't face drinking again, so opted to give 2 glasses of Cava to my Christmas companion. The starters were similar to last year: pea and ham soup, prawn cocktail and a vegetarian option of Camembert spring rolls. There were 4 main courses: traditional turkey and ham, steak, salmon and a vegetarian cauliflower cheese. Desserts were limited to traditional Christmas pudding and trifle. The portions were very generous and the food was both authentic* and good quality. I really enjoyed the lunch and even my Thai LB companion, who was fearing the worst, seemed to enjoy it, although she struggled with the sheer volume on the plates. I placed an asterisk next to authentic as some of the ingredients on my plate brought a smile to my lips. I remember endless annual arguments between my sisters and parents about whether peas and Yorkshire pudding were traditional for Christmas lunch. My parents had a Victorian colonial outlook and it was considered heresy to serve Yorkshire puddings with anything other than roast beef. Thankfully traditions do change with the times. If you are in BKK next Christmas and at a loss as to where to celebrate on the 25-Dec I would highly recommend the Red Lion. This pub also serves very good all day breakfasts as well as other standard British pub food. I was last in there for a Scottish Breakfast about 2 months ago with @Kingdomguy and he gave the Lorne sausages two thumbs up. Photo 1 - Starters Photo 2 Main Courses