I've just returned from 6 weeks in South East Asia......with a decent number of "Babylon" visits under my belt. I'm 46 years of age.....so the beauty of youth has long since departed....if ever it was there to begin with! My visits to Babylon were extraordinary. To suggest it's lost its gloss is (in my recent experience) far from reality. The first time I arrived there (this trip at least) was way back in December. I showered, visited the gym for maybe 30 minutes, showered again.....and went walkies. Within seconds of entering the upstairs area where the "resting rooms" are located, I was 'encouraged' by a very cute young man to join him in a room. This was around 3pm (midweek) and the place was not very busy. We had a wonderful time.......and when I asked him his age he told me he was 20. I thought he looked a tad younger....maybe a year or two younger but anyway......

On successive visits to Babylon I had lots of fun ~ with both western guys and Asian guys. I remember Babylon when it was in the old premises on the corner of the soi.....and even though I may have been 15 years or so younger back then.....I'd argue I have more fun at Babylon now....than I did when it was in its original location.

Now I'm back in my home country.....and I miss Thailand. I miss Bangkok. I MISS BABYLON!

Babylon rocks!

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Babylon now 100baht entry for u25.Hotel rates reduced for season.

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Is there any update? Is farang patronage way down? I'll be there at the end of June. Hopefully the 100 baht fee for under 25 will draw a lot of nice young Thai.

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Babylon remains open, but with Rama IV and Sathorn impassable, and with red shirt action nearby, you'd be insane to attempt it at the present time. I'm told that there have only been a handful of customers in recent days.

If there was any time for a slow wank at home in front of some good old-fashioned cyberporn, this is it.

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-- Today, (17th.], the Thai companion - a m/c. taxi-driver - mentioned that sois Ngam Duplee & Suan Phlu have been sealed-off by the mil'y.; he lives in that gen'l. area and thus should know.
- So it looks like that the PINNACLE & the MALAYSIA HTLS. also B'LON. SAUNA are facing a noticeable drop in customers and thus their incomes.

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-- Today, (18th.), a'noon. I walked-along Rama IV. rd. from Soi T'light. towards MRT. Lumpini.
-- Just short of LUMPINI TWR., (where there was a mil'y. truck on the OUT-bound carriageway alternately b'casting. music or messages of exhortation.), I was stopped by armed soldiers and turned-back. True I saw some black smoke from burning tyres and heard a few small bangs, but surely nothing was that serious?
- Walking-back, just before MRT. Lumpini, my att'n. was caught by a small & brown carton, roughly 4 1/8".x3/4".x2 1/2". on the pavement. Picking it up I saw that originally it had contained 20x5.56.mm*. Ball M193. and came from the Royal Thai Army Ammunition Plant.
-- So I walked along S. Sathorn rd. and turned LEFT into Sathorn 1., (aka. Soi JUSMAG.),. Neither of the two mily'. piquets stopped me; in fact in the 2nd. one some young soldier with a pink towel wrapped turban-wise around his head was seated and jerking his head rhythmically to the music from his cell-'phone., we exchange glances and both laughed, as did his companions - no MORE problems, there!
-- I turned LEFT and walked-along Soi Goethe - the GOETHE INST. was CLOSED.
-- On Soi Ngam Duplee , from VINCENT'S towards Rama IV. rd. was a crowd of taxi., m/c. taxi. & tuk-tuk drivers becoming thicker the closer one approached the main rd.. A few members of the media were seen.
-- At that point a barrier-wall of tyres, about 7ft. high, was across the IN-bound carriageway. From its shelter some man carrying an hand loud-hailer was haranguing those on the other side; others, equally brave, either were throwing or using catapults, (slingshots.), to launch small bangers - say roughly 4".lg. x2".dia. - at the opposing mil'y.. Black was the dress-code's color, I saw no-one wearing red.
- The CIMB. branch on the corner had been ransacked.
- The PINNACLE HTL. was CLOSED.
- Walking back I was pulled physically against the wall, (same side as VINCENT'S.), and was told that there was a sniper in a nearby high rise bldg.. A bit farther along TV. camera toting men were photgraphing that bldg..
- HOTEL IBIS, O-HO REST'T. and a nearby 7/11. were CLOSED; the MALAYSIA HTL. was OPEN.
-- I turned RIGHT onto Soi 1., past an unmanned barrier of tyres that extended just half-way across the soi and in front of wch. was a large & white board with red & Thai writing on it.
-- By PANDANUS REST'T., at the tee-junc., someone had dumped a load of earth wch. would stop civilian vehs. but not mil'y. ones or pedestrians.
-- I turned LEFT, walked along Soi Nandha and so to BABYLON SAUNA, wch. was OPEN. I just looked-in but decided not to enter.
- In front of B'LON. Messrs RITTA's pers. were continuing to work on the high-rise, now higher than 37 stories.
-- I turned LEFT onto Soi Suan Phlu and walked along to look-at the former Immig'n. Bureau - unsurprisingly it was CLOSED.
- Turning back I turned-off down Suan Phlu soi 6 and saw that GQ. MASSAGE had been CLOSED for quite some time.

-- At the i'sect. N. Sathorn:Saladaeng I fell into conversation with one of the soldiers on duty there.
He told me that he was with a special duty & police parachute detail, recalled to duty after some17yrs. working for an hotel in HUA HIN as part of their security staff. I mentioned that I'd served in the British army for a few yrs. and was not without some slight experience of Internal Security duties, (as we called them - although, for the troops, that counted as 'Being on active service.'! Not that we rec'd, any extra pay for that privilege), and then enquired and was given to u'stand. that none of them had rec'd. any special trg. in how to handle crowds, either peaceful or riotous.

-- At the i'sect. Si Lom:Convent I was in time to see a smooth & black LandRover 'Vogue.' model drive-up - Thai registration.
A couple of navy blue uniformed men got-out and one of them opened the door to allow the passenger to alight: a tallish, (possibly 6ft. or so?), school-masterly looking type, I thought, neatly dressed in shirt & tie, and wearing glasses. Some 30 soldiers lined-up, with some he shook hands, with others he clapped comradely on the shoulder, to others he spoke - a politician to the manner born, I thought. Of course he was surrounded by a bevy of the media, whose questions he answered after his moment with the troops. While he was responding to the media a couple of young damsels who travelled with him were distributing plastic-wrapped gifts or comforts to the troops I enquired of another farang as to who he is? I was told that he's probably the Min. or Deputy Min. of Finance - another economics' grad. from a British university. My informant is Jock. from Inverness, (whence hail the: 'Four and Twenty Virgins!'), and who's working in the LoS. with some charity or other. Jock. is rabidly anti-Thaksin & red shirts. However, he did mention one valid point wch. was that no students appear to be participating in the present demonstrations - unlike previously. A point with wch. I agreed.

-- Back in the MORE homely Soi T'light. I was surrounded by the four masseurs from YELLOW MASAGE who offered me a special massage and at a special discount - an offer that I could not accept as I had but 80.Bh. with me, "Not sufficient even for a TIP.." I said regretfully.

-- 5.56mm. is approx. 0.219ins. - quite large enough to be fatal.
- Perhaps someone MORE up-to-date militarily than me would give us readers some info. on the type of gun that fires such rounds?

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With this kind of on-the-scene reporting, sextile, you need to get a gig with CNN (just give us a plug please!).

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Whacky Wiki says:
"5.56x45mm NATO (official NATO nomenclature 5.56 NATO) is a rifle cartridge developed in the United States and originally chambered in the M16 rifle. Under STANAG 4172, it is a standard cartridge for NATO forces as well as many non-NATO countries. It is derived from, but not identical to, the .223 Remington cartridge. When the bullet impacts at high velocity and yaws in tissue, fragmentation creates a rapid transfer of energy which can result in massive wounding but relatively low hydrostatic shock effects."

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Yannawa is correct. 5.56 mm is standard issue for any army, e.g. Thailand, that uses M16s.

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Continuing the Babylon discussion, it might just be that farang-oriented saunas everywhere (United States, etc.) are in decline, and are discounting prices. My theory is that younger guys are turned off by the older guys, and further, a tipping-point was reached on the mental illness (weirdness) in the places. But it seems that the saunas in Bangkok that are overwhelmingly Thai customers are still crowded. One farang living in Bangkok (who's an expert on saunas in Bangkok) said he never could figure out the mentality of Babylon (indicating it was totally weird, and he avoided the place). By the way, if I want to meet non-Thai Asians on my next trip (soon), are Babylon and Silom Soi 4 the best places to cruise?

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-- Have you considered DJ. STATION in Silom soi 2.? Although suggestions have reached me that some of the Thai patrons therein might be money-boyz?
-- Today, (07th.), a'noon. lots of eye-candy in SIAM PARAGON, too!
- Sunday, (06th.), late a'noon. plenty of student-type eye-candy spotted in CHAMCHURI SQUARE.

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-- Have you considered DJ. STATION in Silom soi 2.? Although suggestions have reached me that some of the Thai patrons therein might be money-boyz?

I can't stand DJ Station. I also can't be in there for more than about 40 minutes--I'm repulsed by the place. I think there are a lot of money boyz in there. But that's not my complaint: the place is unbelievably loud (I don't feel like screaming in order to communicate), everyone is in their own beverage-and-loudness-and-entertainment-oriented world (transfixed by the singing, etc. which I'm totally not interested in) and I don't feel like hanging out in there forever in hopes of MAYBE meeting someone. I met one Thai guy in there once--it happened very quickly and we were in my hotel room in about 15 minutes. But that was a clear aberation. I also think the place is a fire hazard (unbelievably crowded).

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And a further worry about DJ Station is what might happen should a fire break out. This has been discussed before and so I will simply say that any fire breaking out in any premises in that small and very narrow soi will inevitably lead to mass panic with everyone fighting to get out at the same time - and, I fear, several people being trampled to death.

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I actually think it's safer on second floor because I think I could simply hang-drop down to the street (avoiding the clogged stairway and clogged first floor). I can't believe how the stairway and entire first floor gets cram-packed with people (almost impossible to walk). I don't remember if the soi is so narrow that there would be any problem getting out to Silom Rd. I didn't see any flamable fire hazards in there--but I just hate how crowded and loud it is.

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For those who might be interested, there have been a number of posts over several years on Thaivisa.com/forum...gay people in Thailand on the potential fire danger at DJ including a number of pictures of the firestairs to the outside, which are a joke, the fire 'arrangments', and the electrics within the venue.

It's not only getting out of the place, if there was a fire, it's getting right out onto silom or Rama 4 that would also be a problem.

What would also be very problematic is gettting fire hoses and equipment right up that soi, especially with 1,00 screaming queens in high heels all wanting to be photographed etc.

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