Well, my holiday is now over and I've been back home with the post-holiday blues for some time. But in the same spirit in which advice was offered to me, I would like to report my own experiences so that others might benefit. I'm not sure the 'old hands' will learn anything new, but the newbies might find something interesting. Hope I dont send you to sleep!
My Malay-Chinese bf (who during this holiday acquired a new nickname, 'Everard' could only spend one week with me due to his educational commitments, so the plan was hatched like this...
Week 1 Siem Reap [Angkor] and Phnom Penh, on my own.
Week 2 Bangkok and Samui with Everard.
Week 3 Bangkok and Pattaya on my own
You will have noticed the first part of my holiday was in Cambodia not Thailand, so I have listed that part of my report in the Global Forum. This part of my report is just about Thailand, and starts at week two, in Bangkok.
If you want to read the week 1 report on Cambodia you will find it here...
Cambodia Reprt
WEEK TWO -BANGKOK
I only had one night alone in Bangkok before meeting up with Everard the following day.
I booked via www.hotel-club.com into the Royal River Hotel on the Chao Phraya river by Krung Thon Bridge and arrived about 9pm. I have stayed there before and like it very much.
This is a large, respectable business/family type hotel (I think) with no gay related business as far as I can tell. But yet another surprise awaited.
Firstly I was chatted up by the bell boy. He asked "you alone? ...come drink wit me later?" as he dropped off my bag but he wasn't my type, sorry mate.
Then I went down to the restaurant and was winked at by one of the waiters! How do they know I'm gay and not straight? I think I must have a gay flashing light on my head or something. Or more likely it's simply the way I look at them (that leering smirk).
Now this boy was different - he was definitely my type. The more I responded to his winking and mincing, the more he camped it up. Before long, he came and sat with me much to the amusement of the other staff, who kept shouting remarks to him which he dismissed with backchat and a lot of camp arm waving. I asked him what time he finished work (just in conversation you understand) and it was 2am. Then he asked me if I wanted any of the waitresses. Eh?
He said some are available for single customers.
Erm, nope! - I would prefer you, I said half jokingly. Big mistake.
Before I knew what was happening he had gone to ask his supervisor if he could finish early to go out with me! Suddenly the restaurant manageress arrived along with 'my' waiter and a waitress. She asked if I wanted to take out the waiter for the evening, and being in the mood to have a handsome, young companion, (but no sex) I said yes- just intending to have a drink, and remain celebate, you understand. I figured there was no harm in enjoying the company of a cute young gay boy for a couple of hours - better than being alone!
She explained that it would cost me BHT 1000 to take off both the boy and the girl, and since they were best friends they would only go together. Eh? (I still dont understand).
I said it was just the waiter, but her English was quite good and she explained that they were best friends and were under strict instructions that they must look after each other, and me, and bring me back to the hotel before going home. They were charged with looking after my safety (she said) for the evening, and they had to tell the manageress in advance to which bar they were going to take me. She also told me they could not stay in my room - it was against the hotel rules, so I guess there was an anticipation of more on the menu.
All I wanted was an hour or two to share a couple of beers with a handsome guy! Instead I got a boy and a girl!
Being in a happy mood, and quite flattered to be escorted by a dishy girl AND a boy, I went along with it. They were fun, polite, friendly and happy, but the boy clearly had more on his mind than a drink and a laugh. I explained to him more than once that my bf was coming to stay the following day, and whilst I found him (the waiter) very handsome, we would have to go our separate ways.
In the early hours the girl decided it was time for her to go home, so off she went. Then Mr Handsome decided we should go too. I was happy with this as it was late and I was getting tired, so we went in search of a taxi. He kept asking me to book a room at another hotel and stay the night with him, but apart from my self-made commitment to celibacy, I had grave misgivings about this - like Everard getting dark, jealous stares from said waiter in the dining room the following day? This was already bothering me, so the thought of taking another step deeper in the mire did not appeal.
I politely insisted he take me back to the RR hotel, and asked him if he wanted the taxi to drop him off somewhere en-route, but he ignored (or misunderstood) the question and got out with me at the hotel. He walked me to the door and stood there looking at the ground in silence. Oh my, I had done it again. I felt very uncomfortable. But I stuck to my pledge.
I gave him a goodnight peck, a ¡§sorry¡¨ and went to my room alone.
KILLING TIME - THE FORUNE TELLER
Whilst waiting to meet up with Everard following day, I had time to spare so I took a trip to Wat Pho next to the Royal Palace. In addition to the reclining Budha and the many other Budha's there, I saw the fortune tellers and it reminded me of a story I read in this forum by a contributor (I forget who exactly). He was obviously 'a believer' and had been back there more than once, so I decided to partake of the experience myself.
There was the fortune teller himself and a translator, and they did seem to take it very seriously, advising me to write down what they said, and stressing certain things as being very important to my future, and insisting that I ask them questions about anything that concerns me. I won't bore you with the whole list but they made one prediction that I immediately dismissed as nonsense.
I have a habit of carrying my important things - passport, camera, money etc in a small bag which I look after most carefully for obvious reasons.
I have used this method for many years and I am extremely careful about that bag.
Whilst talking to the fortune teller, my bag on my lap, hand gripping the strap, he told me to be careful with my things as I would leave a bag somewhere. I thought this was nonsense - very unlikely because I never let go of that bag for a moment. But I made a mental note to be extra careful with it just in case, and I wrote down much of what they told me for future reference, as they suggested.
GOLDEN COCK
From there I went back into town. I had seen an advert in one of the tourist mags for Golden Cock Bar in Soi Anuman Ratchathon, and I remember seeing others refer to it here in the forum, so I decide to find it, have a drink and a nosey. I found it. Or rather ...the staff found me - wandering around staring at the names on all the premises around there, obviously lost. A couple of boys approached me... "halloooo meester... where u flom? ...you lie boy? ...inside, many nice boy". It was Golden Cock.
Inside I went and was immediately disappointed. It was dark, small, scruffy, and the boys were too. I could make out one other farang in the gloom, being entertained by two boys. My escort sat me down and all the other boys came over two at a time to try their luck with their latest victim. I felt just like a fly in the spiders web - the whole family of spiders came to see what was for lunch.
Most of the boys were not to my liking, but one was, so as soon as HE approached, I smiled and invited him to sit with me. I ordered a beer for me and a coke for him. We chatted, held hands, and he tried to tempt me by placing my hand on a hardening part of his anatomy. I didnt resist - in fact I enjoyed watching my own hand being taken to where he knew it wanted to be.
But even if I wasn't meeting Everard, I would not have stayed there any longer then I needed to. When I finished my drink I made my excuses and left yet another sad looking boy. I guess it could have been several hours before he might get lucky again that day.
EVERARD ARRIVES!
It was time to go and get Everard.
It was Everard's first time in BKK so we did many of the usual touristy things. At first he hadn't wanted to go to BKK because back in Malaysia, he had heard such lurid stories of prostitution and lewd behaviour. All his friends back home told him he would be mugged, tied up and sold into the slave trade. (Tie him up? ...now there's a thought)
Where Everard lives there are no openly gay people, let alone gay bars, so he was curious and keen to experience them for the first time.
We made our way to the night market on Silom and then onto Duangthawee Plaza off Surawong Road.
As soon as we set foot inside the Soi we were harassed by touts enticing, cajoling, bullying and even dragging us towards their bar. It was overwhelming!
All we wanted to do was take a gentle stroll and look at all the bars from the outside before we chose a quiet one to sit and watch the world go by. Instead we found ourselves fighting off grabbing hands, people blocking our path etc. We didnt have time to look at the bars, only try to avoid the touts. As we got past half way, I think they gave up on us - they probably haven't seen such looks of horror for months. I wonder if they use the expression 'frightened rabbits' in BKK?
Eventually we reached the far end of the Soi and it was quiet there. We could either choose a bar there or turn round and walk back into the snarling gaggle of touts.
We chose to go into the Classic Boys Club.
It was almost pitch dark, only a few lights on the empty stage letting us see where we were going. We were guided to some seats in front of the stage and ordered our drinks.
There was a huge illuminated fish tank at the back of the stage. It didnt take long before boys started cruising past us smiling, but we ignored them.
This bar didnt have the kind of atmosphere we wanted, and we were just about ready to drink up and go when two guys wearing speedos sank slowly into the tank and started a hot swim routine that might have excited dolphins, sharks or other fish, but it seemed slightly rediculous to me. Their speedos didnt stay on for long, then they climbed
out and dried themselves ready for their piece de resistance - a F*ck show. OMG!
Neither of us had seen a F*ck show before and I'm afraid it made us cringe. Neither of the guys were to our liking, and it all seemed very 'staged', which of course it was.
I'm impressed the 'top'guy managed to maintain a stand throughout the whole act, and that the 'bottom' guy was able to take it so easily in so many ways. The pace of the thing was so fast that I could not possibly recall the sheer number of positions they raced through.
The F*ck show simply confirmed that our decision to leave was the right one, so as soon as it was over, I paid the tab and we scurried out, smiling politely. We felt relieved to have escaped unscathed. (Well, we're new at this!)
The touts were still accosting people at the other end of the soi, so at least we were able to stroll back slowly checking out each bar as we passed. We decided that the tables outside the bar at Dream Boyz looked safe enough, so we settled down there to watch the gay-world go by.
And it did. We saw loadsa ladyboys, one in a fur coat, one mincing along in a bikini, scary butch looking trannie farangs, and a local drunken lout taunting the visitors and waiters by throwing their bar stools around. Someone planted him one and chased him off eventually.
We had a couple of drinks there and relaxed considerably.
We noticed farang after farang coming to Dream Boyz voluntarily without being dragged in by touts, going upstairs and seemingly never coming out again. We decided that whatever was up there must be good. Maybe it was a disco? We decided to investigate.
We drank up and wandered past the doormen and up the stairs into a very large dark room. We were showed to seats right by the stage (nothing happening at that moment) and ordered our drinks. We thought there must be a dance routine coming, but eventually a weird trannie arrived and started taking the piss out of the guests. He thought he was being funny but we thought it was embarrassing. We were glancing at each other wondering again if we should leave, when thank goodness he left the stage and on came the dancers.
Except that they weren't dancers, it was another F*ck show, this time with 4 guys.
It was just as scary (for us) as the other show. Indeed, at one point they were performing their 'in-out, in-out and shake it all about' routine right above my drink at the edge of the stage. I left it, and we left the bar.
Sorry to you guys who like F*ck shows, but it aint for me unless I'm in it!
We decided to leave and went back to our hotel. Although it hadn't been a completely happy experience, it was an experience, and we still enjoyed the evening. It makes us smile every time we talk about it. We're so niaive.
EVERARD GOES SHOPPING...
The Royal River Hotel runs a bus service to the Central shopping centre at Pinklao and that was the first place we went.
I liked this shopping centre - very modern with loads of shops selling just about everything you can imagine. We had a look round all the usual fashion shops ¡- Guess, U2 etc.
This became our 'home' shopping centre while we stayed at the RR - we ate there a couple of times, walked around it for hours, and we both bought stuff. I usually leave lots of room in my case when I travel out to LOS and buy clothes etc while I'm there - IMHO the style and quality is good, and the prices even better!
I bought more than Everard did.
Why? Because Everard wasn't quite as impressed as me - he wanted Armani, Gucci, LV, BOSS, Chanel etc!!!
Once this was established, I could see it getting out of hand so I set him a budget, and explained that - once it's gone - it's gone!
We moved into the city centre next and visited many of the shopping centres recommended by Forum members. The best one according to Everard was Emporium.
It was here he found his expensive labels, and my plastic took a hammering. He tried to overspend the budget, but I refused point blank and he accepted it with a smile.
I think shopping is his second favourite pastime so it made him happy, and therefore I was happy too. His favourite pastime is... (fill in the blank).
Despite going to many high-fashion, expensive, designer outlets in BKK, I asked Everard at the end of the holiday which shopping experience he enjoyed the most, and his answer really surprised me.
He said the shopping he enjoyed the most was the time we wandered round Tesco Supermarket in Samui. We were looking for groceries, we were in no hurry, no pressure, no budget to adhere to, and we just wandered around for about an hour choosing simple groceries to eat and drink. He said it made him feel like we were a married couple doing our weekly shopping - that's what he enjoyed most. How sweet!
SAMUI
After a few days in BKK, we headed for Samui.
Again I booked a hotel through Hotelclub.com. We got the Fair House Beach Resort at Chaweng Noi Beach. It wasn't a gay hotel, but no-one seemed to pay much attention to us, and there was at least one other gay couple we spotted (and they spotted us too).
Our 'bungalow' was right by the beachside restaurant and nice enough. We hired a jeep for the duration of our stay so we could do a bit of touring, and travel into Chaweng town easily.
As far as the tourists are concerned, Chaweng seems to be a one-street town, and a very long street it is too. We enjoyed dining there, ten pin bowling, shopping, emailing and looking for the gay bars.
Early on we stumbled across the Amsterdam Bar and enjoyed the free cabaret there so that became our usual haunt. In fact we liked it so much we didn't look at any of the other bars !
What did we like about it? It was clean, modern, open sided, really good cabaret, cute bar staff and gorgeous ladyboys (far better looking than real girls). And they never tried to do a f*ck show thank goodness!
It was unpressurised, and the boys/girls all seemed to be enjoying themselves. For me the dancing boys were mouth wateringly gorgeous. I couldn't take my eyes off them. But at the end of the show, the girls came touting for tips while the boys stayed outside and watched. I think they were banned from stealing the limelight, but I could tell from their glances and furtive smiles that they were just as 'interested' as the ladyboys. Unfortunately I got into trouble with Everard for 'dribbling'.
I have to say that Samui was a bit of a disappointment for me. I don't want to criticise the island - it's just a matter of personal preference. I prefer Phuket - even Bangkok and Pattaya, but all for different reasons of course.
We did a bit of cruising round the island and saw quite a few tourist attractions - even the 'Granfather/Grandmother' erotic rocks. Everard enjoyed reaching out for his favourite plaything...
...and fell asleep during his foot massage
Sadly, soon it was all over. It was time for Everard (still hard at every possible moment) to return home, so off we went back to BKK for his connecting flight.
We decided to stay the last night at the Silom Tower Hotel, again booked through Hotelclub.com. We had a swim and a romantic dinner on the rooftop restaurant on our last night together. We were both a bit quiet knowing he was leaving the following day.
He cried genuine tears at the airport, and for a while I thought he wasn't going to catch his plane. But in the end common sense won out over emotion, he took a deep breath, tore himself away and made it in time. I rang his mobile while he waited for the plane and he was still upset. But soon he was gone, leaving me feeling quite down, so I went back to the hotel to decide what to do for my final week.
I had one more quiet day alone in Bangkok but I could feel a 'calling'...
PATTAYA
I have to admit that no matter how strong my feelings are for Everard, I still have the primal cravings of a butterfly. The thought of being on my own in Pattaya was almost overwhelming. Im a complete slut.
I phoned Mim's NS Travel in Sunee Plaza and ordered a taxi for the following day.
The car was OK, the driver quiet and safe, and the cost was fine.
Once I arrived my first port of call was Howard's Hotel to say 'hi'. As expected, although I only stayed there once previously, they remembered and made me feel just as welcome as last time. Even one of the boys passing by spotted me and came in to say 'hi' too. They are just sooooooooo welcoming in Thailand it's intoxicating.
Although I did try some of the boy-bars I found myself drawn to two particular places for a drink in the evenings. One was the massage place near NS Travel (enjoyed a relaxing massage from the ladyboy there), and the other was Howards. I felt so at home at both these places because I could enjoy a warm welcome, a drink and a friendly chat without any pressure. When lust overtook me, I went to a boy-bar instead!
One evening I walked around Sunee with my video camera filming the bars and the boys (but not the customers) and when I look back at my holiday film now, it is that piece of film that makes me smile and wish I was back in LOS. Pattaya is contageous! Needless to say, I just wish I was there again right now.
My last few days were soon over, and I had to return to BKK for my flight home. This time I traveled by minibus, again booked through NS travel. What I didn't realise as I waited for the minibus to arrive was that someone else had also booked another minibus for a few minutes after mine. None of the minibus drivers/escorts spoke English so you can imagine the confusion!
One of the things I don't like about using a minibus is that if it's full they put your bags on the roof rack. Their idea of making the cases secure is not the same as mine (!) and I was convinced some of them would fall off if we had to brake/corner hard, but no matter how much I pointed, explained, and remonstrated, it made no difference. Then to cap it all, as we neared BKK the heavens opened and the cases got soaked. Mine leaked and my travel clothes were wet, but at least it was warm!
I had a few hours before my flight so I decided on some last minute retail therapy!
I left my case at the airport left-luggage office and took a taxi back into town and went shopping at Central Shopping Centre at the top of Silom. I bought a few things and they gave me a 'Central' shopping bag to carry them in.
On returning to the airport later, I collected my case, changed clothes, checked in for the flight and accidentally left my shopping bag on a counter. (Not my important bag but my 'Central' bag).
I wandered over to Black Canyon Coffee (I love that place) for a meal, and just as I ate my dinner I realised I didn't know where my shopping was. Panic! Fortunately I was able to work out where I last had it so I rushed over to get it back. My bag had been found and taken to the Information desk where I managed to retrieve it. Phew.
But as I pondered how careless I had been, I suddenly realised - the fortune-teller had got his first prediction right. Spooky or wat?<
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__What, Me Worry?
