Anyone else notice the thread title has “how come” instead of “why” and “widespread” instead of “common?”
Fake IDs have been known to be used. Or maybe the ID is real, but the owner has loaned it to a friend who resembles her. (That happens not only in Thailand. I know one Thai lady from a prominent family who was raised in California. Her English is so good, you’d swear you were talking to an American farang if you only spoke to her on the phone. When she returned to Thailand sometime after university, she could speak Thai only slowly and with an American accent. She told me that back in California, she’d sit in and take Toefl exams for friends who looked like her, using their ID.) Also, local IDs are all in Thai and use the Buddhist-era years, although Arabic numerals are used. It is now 2554 in Thailand, so just subtract 543 years from the date listed. The best piece of advice I can give anyone looking to indulge is if there is the slightest doubt about the girl’s age, throw her back. Lots of other fish here.
Ladyboys are very much accepted in local society. They are discriminated against by some, but most people accept them. Some bars will keep a few ladyboys in stock. There are even at least four dedicated ladyboy bars in Nana Plaza: Casanova (that one’s been there forever), Obsession, Cascade and Temptations. Lots more in the seaside Gomorrah called Pattaya. I knew one bar owner inthe Patpong red-light district who hired a bunch because Japanese businessmen just love them. But then the Japanese tourist season ended, and he had to let them all go, because most of his other customers did not want them.
Be cautious of the ladyboy hookers. They may look feminine, but they have a man’s upper-body strength. (There used to be a ladyboy elephant-polo team called the Screwless Tuskers – really! – who somehow successfully argued they be allowed to play in the women’s division, to much protest from the real ladies. They disbanded shortly afterward though.) Many a farang has been caught unawares on the wrong end of a ladyboy whupping.
Very, very dangerous are the street ladyboy hookers, especially on lower Sukhumvit Road late at night. They often travel in packs, will surround you in a flurry of “Oohs!” and “Ahhs!” then swarm off, and suddenly you find your wallet and/or telephone and maybe other items missing. When I see a pack of them coming, I just clamp my hand over my wallet and keep it there without even trying to be covert about it. But I haven’t seen any swarms for quite a while now; I think the police may have clamped down on them. But they are still out there individually and have not been unknown to slip a customer a mickey. I have a thread here somewhere about an Aussie naval attache who was drugged by a street ladyboy he picked up and took to his hotel. The ladyboy made off with his laptop computer that contained some classified information. (He claims he didn’t realize it was a man, heh. :D) The ones in the bars can also be dangerous but generally not, and there are lots of satisfied customers.
As for encountering them in real life, they’re pretty much everywhere. Some look very feminine, and it really does take a practiced eye to spot them; others look like a man in a dress; some even look like Charles Laughton in a dress. It’s not at all unusual to have a ladyboy store clerk assisting you.
Hands down, one of the best resources detailing the Western-oriented bar/prostitute scene is Private Dancer, by local British author Stephen Leather. It was only available for years as a free download. Then he published it in hard-copy book form six years ago, a slightly more polished version that also includes an epilogue detailing what eventually happens to all the main characters in later life. Considered a bible by many, there have been half-joking suggestions to hand a copy to every male who enters Thailand. You can still obtain a free download here, from the author and completely legal. A fascinating read and very true to life. He uses real bars but changes their name. For example, Zombie Bar is Voodoo Bar in real life, Fatso’s Bar is Jool’s. The character of Big Ron is even based on the real-life owner of Jool’s, Big Dave. This book really hits the nail on the head.
Cormac262 above mentioned Stickman. He’s a local Kiwi (New Zealander) who writes a weekly Internet column. (He also operates a detective service in which you can have your newfound honey checked out to see if she really has given up the profession. Sadly, they almost always have not. Almost always.) By pure coincidence, this week’s column, “Thai Bargirls and Red Flags,” lists as the first red flag the very same buyout scam I mentioned earlier above. Right down to the same 10,000-baht fee. (The first photo on the linked page is of Soi Cowboy. The second photo, of the two ladies’ legs, was very clearly taken in Tilac Bar, the largest bar in the soi and a very distinctive interior.)
I’ve never been to Thailand and never expect to go there, but thanks to Siam Sam I’ve learned a great deal indeed. Many thanks!
My job is done. 