actually i was exoecting something else...what u describe i already know...many tourists seem to think that Thailand is so gay friendly and whore friendly and so accepting.....truth is that the easy gay hooker world a tourist inhabits is very small and the service providers are held in contempt by the middle/upper classes...thye poor tolerate it as long as its kept in the gay ghetto and as long as the money keeps flowing...
Spot on Latintopxxx,Originally Posted by latintopxxx
When I first settled here in Jomtien in September 2022, a very sexy professional Thai guy (in administration in one of the local Pattaya hospitals) asked me out on a date. He told me that he would pay for me and that he would pick me up on his motorbike outside the beach gate of my condo on the Dongtan beach road. He drove me over to the Sands Cafe at the bottom of Pratumnak. It was a nice dinner and he paid for everything.
I saw a very nice ring on his finger and I asked about it and he explained to me that it was stamped with the family emblem as he came from a Hi-So family in Bangkok.
I was still living in my temporary AirBnB in one of the View Talays - as I was still scouting with the local real estate agents to see where I would eventually call home.
My date was insistent that I consider Wongamat as the place to live for me.
I explained to him - I don't want to live so far away from all of the fun in Jomtien by being located in far away northern Pattaya. I did admit that the condos and beaches of Wongamat are stunning but with the Pattaya traffic I did not want to be isolated up there as the only gay in the midst of heterosexual-landia....
He became very upset when I insisted that I wanted to live within walking distance of Supertown in the Jomtien Complex.
He told me that he could not date me because if I would enter into the Supertown that I would be considered a Lo-So (low life type of person) and with his background he cannot date this kind of person as he needed to worry abut his family and their Hi-So lifestyle.
This was quite an eye opener for me but it goes along with what you wrote above.....
In the end, that was our last date....
God forbid we live near the medieval city of Supertown and tarnish our reputation. 555555555 hahahahaha
Last edited by bkkmfj2648; March 22nd, 2024 at 19:37. Reason: fix multiple typos
bkkmfj...I have to be honest with you...I'm having a very hard time digesting what you just said.
In all my years in Thailand I have never once heard a Thai make a statement like the one quoted above. I'm not calling you a liar, but would just like to emphasize the fact that the overwhelming majority of Thais - regardless if they're gay or srt8, would consider this type of statement to be in very poor taste, insulting, and confrontational. In short "Bad Karma".
Contrary to the opinions that you and Latin seem to share, I see gays as being widely accepted in Thai society - with little or no stigma's attached. Those working in the sex-trade industry have a different set of circumstances to work around for obvious reasons. Face-saving for the family being one of them. Regardless of how open Thai society is towards gays - prostitution is frowned upon in Buddhism big-time - but viewed by many Thais as a necessary evil especially when it deals with impoverished families.
I wonder sometimes if farang don't have the impression that all the gays in Thailand are prostitutes, when in reality gays who work in this profession represent a very small percentage of the total gay community. Maybe they should drag themselves off the bar stools in BKK and PTY sometime and visit the real Thailand.
Based on everything I've seen and experienced over the years, gays, including trans, toms, bi's, ladyboys, etc. are fully integrated and accepted in Thai society.
Regardless if you're interacting with with hi-so's, low-so's, mid-so's, or even a few soso's in Thailand, I think you'll find them all to be humble and friendly. It's just the Thai "Way". The hi-so guy you mentioned in your post would definitely be the exception.
mai pen rai
Dodger wrote:
bkkmfj...I have to be honest with you...I'm having a very hard time digesting what you just said.
In all my years in Thailand I have never once heard a Thai make a statement like the one quoted above. I'm not calling you a liar, but would just like to emphasize the fact that the overwhelming majority of Thais - regardless if they're gay or srt8, would consider this type of statement to be in very poor taste, insulting, and confrontational. In short "Bad Karma".
yes, it really happened to me as I wrote it.
The guy came across as a rich Thai snob who wanted to teach me that my decisions and motivations were incorrect.
Dodger, I agree with you that 99% of the Thai people who I have met are humble and friendly.
This guy was definitely the exception.
He came into my life as quickly as he disappeared with only his message to me to not be associated with the ilk of Supertown people.....
I've travelled all over Thailand with my partner and have yet to encounter anything like this. More relevant to the discussion, P.
is acutely sensitive to perceptions, aired or merely intimated about him and, by association, me. And, of course, as a native speaker he is more likely to pick-up on such things than me.
I would add, however, that the relatively small (for want of a better description) "hi-so" segment of Thai society may well have very negative views about us. Those educated in the US or the UK, for example, who may imbibed negative feelings about us, both Thais and falang visitors. And, bluntly, such people are not ones whom we encounter on our travels.
One of the things that made me feel comfortable on my first visit nearly thirty years ago was that the falang visitors (perhaps expats too- I wouldn't have been able to distinguish between them) seemed to be, in the main, well-educated and careful in their appearance and their general behaviour, Anecdotal but that is how I remember it. Similarly, I was struck by the exemplary manners of the young guys I met on thr scene, however under-privileged their background..
I was sensitive to this issue because, hitherto for decades, my annual holidays had been enjoyed in the sort of Caribbean hotels which required a jacket for dinner. Some of what I saw in non-gay areas was rather different.
arsenal (March 23rd, 2024)
There are a many many people who are generally unhappy by nature. Glass Half-full people. I know myself to be one of those and struggle against it.
I grew up in with critical parents who expected more from us kids than we delivered. I went into a career that valued critical people who found problems and fixed them, striving for "excellenc...." a condition that could never be reached. the result... me - highly critical, everything can be better.
But I have learned not to voice my opinion and to look to surround myself with happy people to keep me on the high side. I struggle the most when people ask for my opinion... how was your meal? how was the accommodation?
Retired at home - I'm bored, seeking projects to do. on vacation, I bury myself in sexual activities. what do I love about thailand (short list)? the people, the food, the accommodations.... a lot of other things are lacking (the weather). Colombia - the people/men, the weather.... Philippines the people...
where to retire? sigh, I need to keep looking and trying. did 3 months in colombia. want to try 3 months in thailand and 3 months in PH.
Armando (March 24th, 2024), bkkmfj2648 (March 24th, 2024), christianpfc (April 1st, 2024), Dodger (March 24th, 2024)
I'd have thought Thais educated in the west would in fact be more open to positive views - or at least actaully be more understanding. Just my view.
There's much discussion about hi-so and lo-so. Aren't the vast majority of Thais much more "mid-so"?
Back on topic. I've never heard any Thai express as bluntly the thoughts expressed in bkkmfj2648's post. Frankly though I have certainly heard similar feelings but expressed more in a less open manner. My impression is that most Thais just do not want to know about sexpat and tourist haunts. They know they exist but regard them as not for most Thais. As we are often told, Thais have their own gay haunts which expats and tourists know little or nothing about. Assume the same is true for the girlie bars.
oh what nonsense, no society accepts the fact that anyone especially foreigners can visit their country and usd their youth like disposable paper plates...especially when the youth are male, thats a double humiliatiion...females are made to be fucked...the only thing that allows it to flourish is poverty and the fact that the Thai ruling classes have always treated their peasants badly..add to that the fact that the Thai wealth is concentrated amongst Chinese Thais...do you think they care about ethnic Thais from some paddy field province up norrth...thats why you find male gogo bars openly renting out males...and thats why most of us love it here.
The educated classes see the lower classes as little better than a pack animal, born to do the heavy dirty work.
mr giggles (March 25th, 2024)
I understand Amando's point of view and he's correct that those educated in the west may be more open-minded....certainly towards sexual identity. But not about commercial sex, nor about any suspicion that there is an element of exploitation at work.
By the way, straying off thread for a moment, I've noticed that Thai and Asian visitor s to Thai hotels tend to be fless friendly and more authoritarian and demanding towards staff than we are. This suspicion is encouraged by those Trip Adviser reports which identify the origin of travellers' comments.
..no matter how western educated or how long they have lived in liberal spots like LA or San Fran...the moment they land back in Thailand their attitude becomes very much local...they know the only thing standing between them and the masses is their money and their money is linked to social relationships with other wealthy clans...the lower classes are there to be used..not to be liked or looked after...lookm what happened after a politician jumped on that badwagon...got banned & jailed...lets not mention the name..so plse stop pretending its a kond accepting all embfracing society..as long as you got cash you can do what you like ...and if you got connections its even easier..
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