Originally Posted by
Beachlover
The land of a hundred millions cute boys
Does anyone else find this slogan so alluring? If TAT used this in their advertising, Bangkok and Pattaya would soon be overrun!
Silom Farang uses it to describe SEA in his blog...
http://gayboythailand.com/bangkok-thailand/my-kingdom/[/i]
Well, you can't expect everyone to actually READ your posting before jumping on it with irrelevant criticisms, and you did actually type "SEA."
However, it has taken me many years to understand my old frenemy's reaction to hearing about Eric Allyn's now-defunct series of guides to Gay Thailand. Said Ralph (yes, 'twere Ralph): "He should be taken out and shot!" He was half-joking, I guess, but in those days I found it such a strange reaction that it stuck in my memory. And now, after many years, I understand what he was saying: Let people find Thailand on their own. Don't run big banner ads saying "Gay Paradise" or "100 Billion Cute Boys." It will just (ahem) bring in competition, and, worse than that, a very bad sort of tourist who cannot look around the globe and pick their own destinations, but who need to be herded along by guides who will "explain" everything to them.
It takes a bit of wisdom to realize that, having found a good thing, you should keep your mouth shut -- except for perhaps telling a few good friends. But even those friends may startle you by reacting with chilly silence, or forcing out, through clenched teeth, the word "sleazy."
Even worse, you may get long-term gay couples visiting Thailand, and that is almost always a disaster unless they avoid the gay bars like the plague. If they don't, it is INEVITABLE that they will begin comparing their well-worn companions with the cute guys on the stage and begin fervently wishing that they were alone -- just for a short time -- just for -- a week or two. In
My Way one night, I saw one such guy, sitting with his partner, who was actually covering his eyes with his hands to avoid seeing anything. I can't read minds (!), so it's anyone's guess what he was thinking: "O this is so sleazy!" or "Lead me not into temptation" occur to me as possibilities.
Well, I'm off to work on my new
magnum opus:
Farang Men in Siam: A Typology. A sneak preview: Type 1 is the Fresh Off The Boat Delighted Newbie. This guy walks around with a smile like some guy who has stumbled onto the secret of life. (This means he's already in love.) He'll typically be dragging around the newfound object of his affections with this huge grin on his face, and then do something tell-tale, like offering a deep and respectful
wai to the checkout lady at the supermarket. Yep, he'll go first! "After all, the
wai is just a friendly greeting!"
Still working on other types. Suggestions welcome, as always!