I was looking at the journal I kept of my first visit to Pattaya twelve years ago would be interested to read about the earliest memories of other contributors.
My first go-go bar was Moonlight, in Second Road- it was the first one I saw on my way from the Royal Garden Hotel (I could afford it back then!) and Boyztown. I recall how astonished and shocked I was; the dancers seemed so small- I'd never been to Thailand before- and soon became aware that even the policemen often looked like schoolboys. I remember the go go dancers of Moonlight in their short green gowns and am certain that when they danced they actually expended some energy; lots of it in fact. None of the sullen shuffling we see today. They danced in groups of three (I think) on two separate stages.
I sat down and ordered an orange juice (60 bht) and almost immediately, a young gentleman came over and, uninvited, sat on my knee whereupon he began to flirt outrageously. I was shy and embarrassed. Like many of the dancers, he was very femme (I didn't think in terms of ladyboys back then). I think he was wearing make-up.
After five minutes, he looked at the podium and said, "Ecthuse me, thir, I muth dan' now." He removed his gown, folding it neatly and putting it on a chair, patted it. Then he went to do his turn.
I believe that, back then, the age for bar workers was sixteen and I'd guess that most of the dancers were under twenty. In fact, if I went to a bar now and saw dancers like that, I'd get out quickly.