Naturist dining, the French way

(Photo courtesy of tweeter anpnaturiste75 as shown at Taiwan's Apple Daily website)

Eating in the nude  might still sound strange or even dangerous - due to the risk of hot substances like soup and coffee spilling - but is making inroads into the culinary scene.
Of course, any naturist has eaten naked before - at home or at naturist resorts. When I visited a Croatian resort about a decade ago, my biggest surprise was that you could actually not be naked in their restaurant, but luckily they had a beach bar and a pool bar where that was not a problem, and it shouldn't be anywhere.
The new trend is that nude or naturist dining is expanding outside the relative isolation of the naturist resort into the "mainstream" - unfortunately still textile - world. After an experiment with the Bunyadi in London earlier this year, we now have a full-time naturist restaurant - the O'Naturel in Paris.
The media reports, which you will find easily if you search online, all mention the somewhat temporary appearance of a naturist park near Paris, a phenomenon which has been more than temporary in nearby Germany.
O'Naturel works only with reservations, is only open for dinner from 7:30 to 11 each evening, and closes on Sundays and Mondays.
Due to the nature of our society, the privacy of the customers has to be guaranteed by heavy curtains outside, while inside there are seats for 40 guests.
As a naturist myself, I am more concerned about the quality and pricing of the food. According to media reports, prices for a dish start at 32 euro.
Every attempt to bring more acceptance for naturism in society at large, whether by opening a new resort such as the Phuan Naturist Village from my previous post, or launching a naturist restaurant, is a worthwhile endeavor that deserves our support.
While our ideal that non-sexual social nudity becomes completely acceptable, and that we therefore can walk around and dine or brunch naked whenever and wherever the weather allows, might still be far away, a venture like the naturist restaurant brings it one step closer.
The restaurant's website is www.restaurant-onaturel.fr and of course, they also have a Facebook page.
You can find the Chinese-language Apple Daily Taiwan report at https://tw.news.appledaily.com/international/realtime/20171107/1236617/

Thailand's latest naturist village: Phuan

Thailand has taken yet another step forward to cement its position as the leading destination for naturists in Asia.
This month, the Phuan Naturist Village opens its doors to guests in Sattahip, the next town on the coast about 20 km south from Pattaya, which itself is a mere one-and-a-half-hour bus ride from Bangkok and from its international airport, Suvarnabhumi.
Of course, Pattaya itself already has a naturist hotel, the Chan Resort, in an alley or "soi" off busy Thappraya Road, the street which links Pattaya to the Jomtien area to the south.
While the Chan Resort is a hotel building with swimming pool within reach of public transportation and the lively city, Phuan Naturist Village is more of a resort with 5 bungalows, 4 villas and a swimming pool with waterfall set in the countryside.
The website www.phuannaturistvillage.com also says there is a game room, a fitness room, karaoke and sauna, and the pool is 7 by 17 meters large.
According to a story on a Dutch naturist website (https://www.puurnaturisme.nl/home/nieuws/12263-vier-zussen-starten-naturistenresort-in-thailand), the village was founded by four sisters, who chose the name 'Phuan,' which means friend in Thai. Nevertheless, the website itself says it was one young Thai woman who was 'converted' to naturism, talked to her friends about it, and persuaded them to open a naturist resort together.
Anyway, we wish them all the luck.
It's great for Thailand to be able to lead the way on naturism in the region, with a vibrant naturist association and already several naturist resorts spread out over the country from north to south. The country has become an example for the establishment and expansion of naturism in a country which on the surface, looks like it might not welcome the practice.