Staffing problems

During my final days in Bangkok, I took some time to visit the Saphan Kwai bars which are close to my hotel. What struck me was the poor number of boys staffing each bar I went to. In Charmming, there was even no boy available at all when I went, prompting me to turn my heels back without even ordering a drink – something I usually hate to do … Perhaps I want there too early : the boys now are very lax with working hours and often do not show up before ten o’clock … perhaps they are too busy to check their Romeo account ?

Be High gogo bar has been renovated and looks better than before. Still few boys, and still approaching even when uninvited, but the captain/waiter/mamasan is a cute young isan lad, who said me not to be available until bar closure. Drink 150 THB.

Not many boys in the other bars, and not really attractive in my opinion. I wonder if they do not keep the most handsome ones for their regular customers, as I saw very cute ones sitting in front of some places but not going inside to take care of customers … Perhaps I should have given some more time to visit Heaven Karaoke, who seem to have some well-hidden cuties ?

Times must be difficult as I saw big smiles and welcoming words from some bars owners that had ignored me before. Oasis at the end of the soi is now a TV repair shop, Waterloo is definitely a karaoke bar but massage is available on the premisess. Nothing changed for Adam, Street Boy, Staxx, Heaven and U-Turn ; one of the owners confirmed me that staffing was their main problem, due to social networks which boys prefer to use to make contact with potential customers. They now hire boys from Burma and Laos too, despite their patronage being mostly thai.

On a better note, I went two more times to Nine Spa (left when entering Liberty Garden Hotel from Pradiphat Road) : this is the place where boys have their pictures shown to you on a tablet. Second time was with Laem, and on the third time I wanted to choose a new boy but immediately changed my mind when I saw Song (that I had chosen on the first time) in the flesh. Both were very skilled at their massage, and at ending it in the happiest way. Rooms are clean and have their own (cold or lukewarm) shower, prices are very reasonable. From the pictures on the tablet, and some I could see « live », I can confirm that this shop is right on if you like your masseur young and slim. Curiously enough, they do not advertise much although they had a page in Thaimassageboy website some months ago.

A stop in Magic Hands near Malaysia Hotel did not turn out as good. I had no choice of the boy, and although he was nice, I could see clearly his face only when going to the post-massage shower. He had not given any clue to a happy ending and even did not agree to my invitation to shower together. However the premises are nice and clean and will deserve a further visit.

Back to farangland now, only to see the euro in free fall against the baht and the US dollar (used in Cambodia and Laos). This will lead me to more frugal choices – if possible ! - for my next visits to the area, even if I had secured some provisions to my Kasikorn account when euro had still a reasonable value.

Little Cambodia

I discovered a new interest in Jomtian bars, but in fact I quickly limited my visits to only one of them : BC Bar, near Poseidon Hotel. They have everything I could wish : nice boys, good lay-out and welcoming atmosphere. The boys here are mainly cambodian, so I could as a bonus test my basic khmer : not really conclusive, but trying was good enough to arouse some interest from the boys – especially those not comfortable with english or thai. As a beer bar, drinks are cheap enough but they add 30 THB for boy drinks, which are then passed onto the boy, so you know where your money goes.

I quickly developped a circle of three boys and had good time with them although they had of course a tendency to speak khmer together. One of them spoke good english and another fairly good thai, so we could hold some conversation beyond the usual sign language. Little by little, it became clearer for me why I am more and more attracted to cambodian boys : beyond their often browner skin, and their lean body (due to a healthier food I guess), I learnt that very few khmer guys have tatoos on their skin, as those are regarded in a very negative way by khmer culture. Moreover katoeis are much less accepted in Cambodia than in Thailand especially in the work environment, hence the fact that a majority of khmer guys behave like real men, whatever they do in bed. .

I offed one of the three guys for his good looks and his limited english ; if sex was so-so, I truely enjoyed his company. However on the following day, I wanted to take one of his friends ; he had no problem about this when I spoke with him. So we were once again chatting and laughing and drinking and I was flirting with the former boy as well as with the prospective one. However at some point the latter left the table without saying anything. I thought first he had gone to the toilet, then of a visit to the local tobacco seller ; only after half an hour, boy number 3 told me my new friend was « busy », he had got a phone call of a farang who wanted to have him that night.

Useless to say I left angry, but not without taking the first boy for another night together. If this farang happens to read this blog, I can only call you an asshole at least if you knew that « your » boy was promised to another one that night ; people with good manners don’t behave like that. As for boy number 2, the one who left, I will take great pleasure ignoring him next time I go – supposing that I can resist to his beautiful smile of course.

Beyond this disappointment, I miss the atmosphere and the boys there, and hope they will stay long. This bar has already a good patronage, but thai authorities likely give them a hard time more often than it suits.

Pattaya gay areas changing

How could a stay in Pattaya be only a matter of sea and beach when there are so many boys running around admiring your looks and your wallet ? With my boyfriend’s blessing, I could visit - alone - some of the dens of immorality which mark out the local streets. I even could negotiate some « free » nights in my hotel room, knowing it is so frustrating to find a gem in a bar and not being able to know him more intimately … I know there are often short term rooms for that purpose, but I never find them very romantic for a tryst.

I did not visit all Pattaya bars ; in fact I visited only some in Boyztown, and was really amazed to see how low some of them have gone. Vassa Bar was full of screaming ladyboys except for two boys who seemed not really at ease in this bunch, Dream Boys was average and Lucky 777 was pathetic, you find better-looking guys in every motosai row in Pattaya. I was alone in everyone of these bars, which is not a nice situation when you do not like what you see. I also happened to enter Wild West Boys in the middle of the show, as I had to get some change for the songthaew … only to realise that a visit to the next door Family Mart would have been more fun and less money for the same purpose.

Soi Sunee was as usual better. No hanky-panky this time with my favourite waiter in Eros Boys, the backroom is now closed and I was not in the mood to do the deed in public, unlike some customers ; this bar has a nice gang of boys too, anyway much better than it appears from their website. I kind of boycotted Krazy Dragon, not wanting to support bars which push the price up – they are generally quickly followed by other neighbouring bars.


Actually, I spent most of my evenings either chasing massage boys in Day and Night shops (where it is now commonly accepted that you can choose your masseur), and getting to know better the Jomtian Complex bars, that I had visited many times in the afternoon but almost never at night. Transportation was not as difficult as I had feared, so I went there three or four times, and this was a very refreshing change from Soi Sunee and still more from Boyztown area.

Sea, sand and sun

These ten days in Pattaya have been wonderful thanks to an almost continuous sunny and hot weather. I could indulge in my favorite daytime activity : lazying in the heat or looking at the world go by from under an umbrella.

During a first stay, I had observed that the new regulations had not changed too much the layout of Jomtian Beach, except for the chairs being more packed than before. Sure we now feel a little bit squeezed, but that was not much of an inconvenience as many deckchairs were unused. Vendors were still there, some of them absolutely gorgeous - especially among icecream sellers. I just had to get used to more and more families encroaching on "our" territory ...

Jomtian on Wednesday : an eyesore

I had the curiosity to have a glance on a Wednesday when the beach is closed, courtesy of Dear Leader. Well that was not a pretty sight : few people roasting in the sun, rubbish everywhere, and hideous heaps of unused deckchairs and umbrellas. How authorities can accept such a disaster is beyond me, everyone would be so much better with a 7/7 opening. Those who prefer clean and desert beaches have still 99 % of thai beaches for them, in addition to the wide spaces left between the concessions in the 1% remaining.

Chatting with one of the beach operators, he told me that the general opinion was that the beach could well be completely wiped out of every chair and umbrella within one year … only an isolated opinion of course, but should this nonsense happen, it would mean bye bye Pattaya, welcome Sihanoukville.

Boys holidaying at sea  - the thai way

My boyfriend and me also spent one Wednesday on Nang Ram Beach beyond Sattahip. Unfortunately this was on a thai public holiday and the place was overloaded with thai (and some russian) groups and families by noon. We left immediately, at least once we were able to move our car that had been blocked by some thoughtless driver. Lot of eye-candy of course, but I am not really at ease shooting pictures of young men in the middle of so many people.