Harvey

For the OP, not only do you need to understand the acronym. You have to understand that just one LDOP ruins it for *EVERYBODY*

Wow, that cod and chips plate looks extraordinary. Thanks for the info, I'm hitting this place next time I'm in town.

Wow, this is like the photographic definition of comfort food. Thanks a million, EP. I must try this next time I'm in town. Edited to add: Out of curiosity, have you tried their cod and chips?

All the new media/social media stuff: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare/Swarm, Foodspotting, Vine. Airlines and hotels (travel for work a lot). - I like United Airlines android app and the Hilton app a lot. Seat guru helps me choose the right airline seat. Also, travel related, Yelp and Trip Advisor. Scout (GPS), Pandora, Skype.. And I use sound hound a lot because I can never remember names of songs so I end up signing it into my phone. Starbucks app gives me a free drink every 15.

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami (he's gonna win the Nobel Prize for Literature sometime soon). It's a big book (I like hard copy books vs e-book). The thing is almost 1,000 pages long.

Evil, I generally try to hit the HND-BKK flight on ANA that arrives about 1500. I have always beaten my checked bags into baggage claim. If you're arriving about then, you're golden.

Asahi super dry (nama biru) - on draft. My fave beer! :-) I'm dropping by next month.

Public kudos to Evil for the recommendation. I really enjoy eating roast duck. Had an mid-afternoon meal. Medium order of duck, rice, and a coke. The aircon section wasn't opened, so it was sitting outside watching the traffic and pedestrians get up and down Pattaya Klang. The duck hits a sweet spot of being good AND pretty cheap. I love duck and have had it in the great Chinatowns of North America (Toronto, San Francisco, NY, and Houston) as well as in Yokohama Chinatown and, of course, in China. I've had better in Hong Kong, but at a much higher price. I've had worse and more

+1 for yet another great report, Evil. Question: (For evil or anyone else that has eaten there). Anyone tried their pizza? A pizza Margherita and that tomato/onion salad would make a great meal.

Wow -- $789 round trip between Washington Dulles (IAD) and Saigon -- straight from the United website. Searched Nov 3-10, 2014 (at 12:13 p.m., Pattaya time). That's a good price. Routing Outbound: IAD-SFO-HKG-SGN Routing Return: SGN-HKG-EWR-IAD

Paid about $65/night USD. But I booked kinda late. If you plan ahead, you can get a one bedroom unit for in the mid 50s/night USD. Cheaper if you opt out of the daily breakfast. Or you can get regular studio rooms for cheaper as well. Harv

Here is the hotel's official website: http://www.atmindgroup.com/pattaya/ I've about completed a two week stay at the @Mind and here are some impressions. As always, YMMV. The facility is relatively new. I'm booked into a one-bedroom unit for which I got a good price on via Agoda. Everything works well and is in good working order. The front desk staff is particularly helpful, cordial, and effective at meeting your stated needs. The women working the front desk all wear that nicely fitted uniform shirt and short skirts that make you want to boff them all. The guys are a hoot.

I think there are a couple of different concepts being discussed in this thread. 1. Future and continuation of Ptty as a male playground. 2. Martin's discussion - which I found interesting - of the Thai constitution, public support for martial law, etc. On item #1, above. That ship has sailed a long time ago. Those that decry the ongoing changes are spitting in the wind. Look at all the huge condo construction projects. These will bring new populations into the zone. GGB and BBs are losing the fight for space to other, primarily retail, entities. My personal experience horiz

That moment when, after screening a thread title and being sure it's just snarky humor, you dig down and realize that it's all true. What a laugh. A couple of Russian "tourists of quality" were harassing a baht bus driver in front of Central Festival today and backing traffic up. Get 'em!

Wow, it's like a typhoon blowing in right now (8:20 p.m.) Torrential rain, thunder and lightning, high wind gusts. Yikes!

To echo Evil and Tequilareef, took a TG for drinks at the Hilton and scored lotsa admiring female murmurings and major buffalo falang "points"....if one could consider that to be an honor. Or not. We scored an outside seat/table and just drank and hung out. Tasteful house and trance music at just the right volume. Service that was attentive without being hovering. Certainly, if youre thinking of limiting your spending, this is not the place for you. My simple vodka tonics (with whatever they use as a well brand, not a call or premium) were 300. I don't even want to start with my girl-o

Austhai, i had a chance to meet Pum (Poom?) -- I think that's her name -- this afternoon. If it weren't for the fact that she's probably swallowed the load of every BM here, I'd marry that girl right now. My God!

Buy *money* with your mileage card, then use the money you bought to pay off your bill. Money meaning gold coins for sale, etc. You'll still end up paying a premium, but they'll be cheap miles in the end.

I assume you mean the soda. I've never seen it. When I'm hung over or don't want to drink, my go-to is a Lipo and soda. It has kind of a ginger ale-ish taste to me.

Number 4 is dangerous. The kind you end up sending money to and, eventually, marrying.

I call for a recount. Number 4 was robbed!

Ugh...reminds me of my high school cafeteria. No thanks.

Thanks for the 411. I will adjust plans accordingly. P.S. I want to steal your Landshark user name for a basketball board I participate in. It's a really good and funny one -- assuming you got it from SNL.

Very good and informative report. A real service to fellow BMs. I need to apologize. I meant to up vote your original post, but fat-fingered me accidentally hit the red button on my iPad screen. And I can't figure out how to undo that. Sorry. (This is the second time I've done this in a week. I need, perhaps, to stop voting.)

If anyone in Ptty has laid eyes on target, would greatly appreciate a report. Looks like I can put my current work project to bed by end of September, so looking to make early October reservations. Not keen to drag myself into town really needing a break and booking myself in a construction zone. If the construction is still going, will book myself somewhere else. Advance thanks for your help.