More of Sleazy Pattaya

It's too easy to write about the sleazy side of Pattaya, plus I don't need to write much because the photos do a great job in conveying why this is the sex capital of Thailand.

Walking Street is where many congregate among the neon lights, guys peddling the sex shows (they shove a piece of laminated paper at you which lists what goes on in the show, primarily women and household objects), and scantily dressed women try to entice passers by to check out the show/bar. A lot of the places have themes - Airline Club has women dressed as flight attendants in short skirts. There's a gangster themed place, another where the women dress in schoolgirl outfits, another with European women, etc. They do their best to distinguish themselves from other clubs.

Of course, this is all catering to the oversexed male who are typically old, fat, ugly and want to feel like they're 20 again with young Thai women (or men). It's pretty disgusting. The phenomenon isn't limited to white males. There are plenty of Middle Eastern and Indian men to boot. The number of Indian restaurants in the sleazy area confirms what I see.

Pattaya isn't just for straight men. There's Boyz Town as well as a number of other gay-oriented streets. The first night we were in Pattaya, we were walking home from dinner and hear some dance music coming from a vehicle. We thought nothing of it until the truck passed us. And there were three young men dancing away in skimpy outfits. They were quite a change of pace from the scantily dressed women. We weren't the only ones snapping pictures. They were stopped in traffic long enough to take at least one good shot. Not surprisingly, they were advertising a gay bar.

Ladyboys are popular here and caberet shows are a big tourist draw. Many look pretty darn good as a woman, such as these two seen on Walking Street. There was an ad in the weekend Bangkok paper for sex change operations for less than $2,000. Amazing!

We're getting immuned to what goes on around us. How sad....nothing shocks us anymore.

For more photos of Sleazy Pattaya, check out http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=14794&l=27497&id=1134000222

Hiya Pattaya

An hour and a half south of Bangkok and on the water is Pattaya. One would think it would be a pretty place....seeing that there is a beach. But alas, this place is sleaze city. U.S. soldiers used to come here for R&R during the Vietnam war and Pattaya has never outgrown their reputation.

Pattaya is full of men of all ages and sizes and their young Thai playthings. Not only old white dudes and their young Thai girlfriends (or pick-ups), but dudes with their young Thai boyfriends. Plus there are a lot of Russians running around and the women dress as poorly as the Thai women (high heels, short shorts).

Having dinner and watching the world go by is pure entertainment. There is a walking street full of bars, restaurants, jewelry stores and clubs. What a bizarre mixture.

The Beer Garden on one end of "Walking Street" has a sign that says "Single ladies welcome." Sure enough, there are lots of Thai women sitting on bar stools waiting for a sugar daddy or a "date." Note this bar is "Lucky Bar No. 3."

On the positive side, the food is cheap and good. Because of the wide variety of tourists that come here, there are restaurants serving Russian, Japanese, Italian, Indian, steak, seafood, Thai, Chinese, etc.

There are cheap massage parlors on each block (i.e., $5 for an hour Thai massage fully clothed) and facial salons everwhere. Dental clinics are also prevalent. Laser teeth whitening is about $300. I got a new bite guard for $140.

Shopping (my favorite topic) is also cheap, but so are the clothes. But silk items are inexpensive so I'll probably pick up some pieces before I leave. And definitely a visit to the tailor to custom make clothing is a necessity. Nothing beats a pair of pants that was made to fit you!

I am spending 3 weeks in Pattaya before taking off on a Thai beach vacation. I'm sure I'll have lots to blog about!

Placeholder for Bangkok

will post this weekend

Photos from India

I got too lazy to add India photos to my blog so here's a link to where they can be viewed (or click on the link from the title of this post):

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=12678&l=abbbb&id=1134000222

Next trip is Thailand in a couple of weeks. Hopefully there will be no technical difficulties and photos and comments can be posted in a more timely manner!