Thai Jealousy Is Real
After many years of wanting to visit China and Shanghai in particular I finally started the process of applying for a visa. This meant jumping through many hoops including an interview and significant expenses. However I managed to secure my visitor’s visa.
Fast forward to March 2019 and I flew to Shanghai. I took a taxi from the airport into the city to the hotel where I was staying for a week. I was excited to be in China and after checking in and showering I headed to a park by the river.
The River Park Photo Request
As I walked I noticed that I was the only European among thousands of people. I began taking some photos on my phone of the downtown area across the river. As I was moving around a young Chinese lady asked me if I could take her photo with her phone which I duly did. She then asked if she could talk to me as she was an English student and liked to practice her English. I said yes.
After 30 minutes of general chit chat she suggested that we go for a drink nearby. I agreed as she was fun and friendly. We went to a basic cafe and sat down. I’m not really a drinker so I ordered a Coke. She had a spirit of some description and then peanuts and savories were delivered followed by more spirits.
The Cafe Bill Trap
After around 20 minutes and her having five drinks I was well aware that this was a con and made my excuses to leave. The girl then got the bill and it was well over a hundred pounds sterling. I don’t panic normally and I knew there was no way for me to get away easily.
Being fairly streetwise I only had the equivalent of 40 pounds on me as I never take out any more money than I’m prepared to lose. I offered that and said ‘If you’re not happy you can call the police.’ After a debate between them it was agreed that my 40 pounds was enough. I left as quickly as I could and headed back to the hotel.
The Executive Lounge Escape
I had thought about doing a runner but realized that was a stupid idea plus I agreed to pay him so it wasn’t fair to not pay him. I told him I had some traveler’s checks. He suggested we take a taxi to the airport yes the airport we could cash the checks there. So I agreed and that’s what we did.
How utterly ridiculous. Looking back this had become a truly awful experience and was now costing me way too much time and money. I was feeling the stress but he wanted his money. I finally paid him and we returned to Patpong.
He asked if I wanted another. Ha ha are you kidding me?
Being Followed in Shanghai
Come morning I wasn’t happy about the way I was conned. So in the afternoon around the same time I went back to the park to see if I could find her and potentially ask for the money for the afternoon tea. Needless to say she was nowhere to be seen.
I noticed three Chinese men following me. I thought ‘Was it my imagination or was I really being followed?’ So I adopted an erratic walking pattern sometimes fast then slow then doubling back on myself. They were always there but never together and all had their eyes on me. I even made eye contact several times to let them know I was aware of them but this didn’t deter them one bit.
I was now concerned for my safety and was looking for an escape route. I was reasonably safe in the crowd but I couldn’t allow myself to get isolated. I sat on a low wall near the road. One of them sat next to me and offered me a cigarette but I shook my head and said no thanks.
Now I was trapped and I didn’t know what to do. As I mentioned earlier I don’t normally panic but I was coming close. I could smell the menace. We had a Mexican standoff I couldn’t move and they couldn’t act on their intent. What seemed like a lifetime we remained in deadlock.
Police Patrol Breaks the Deadlock
Then to my utter relief two police officers came patrolling by. I jumped up and walked alongside them under the watchful eye of the three men. I looked back and they remained where they were. I made my escape and went back to the hotel. Needless to say I kept well away from the park until I left Shanghai.
On a side note I did go to the park on Sunday to see the mums and dads trying to marry off their daughters. There were at least a hundred people there with signs advertising their daughters. Only in China.
Story Two Jealous Thai Girlfriend
I am nearing 60 years old and I frequently travel to Thailand. I first arrived literally on the shores of Pattaya having had to wait ashore from a speedboat that picked me up from my ship which was anchored right off Pattaya Beach. This was back in 1986 which represents a year I swore off all Western women.
Having set the stage I fancy myself as a bit of a seasoned traveler and am familiar with all the tricks pulled by Thai girls. Having said all that and set the stage let me tell you about a recent situation I had with a girl I met online who I will call Som.
I met Som on a popular phone app dating site. Som was a professional woman with a fairly good paying job in Bangkok. We got along fantastically online chatting and video calling every day and night with some of our sessions lasting a few hours. I was really looking forward to seeing her when I arrived and she agreed to meet me at the airport. To make that happen I sent her my flight itinerary along with hotel reservation information.
Meeting Som in Bangkok
So the meeting at the airport was brilliant. Som was waiting as planned looking stunning in a short mini dress.
Alone Beside Som
The first few days were great. However Som was spending a lot of time on the phone with work on calls video calls and chat sessions. At first it didn’t bother me too much but I soon found out that even when I was with Som I felt alone.
I commented on how it was starting to bother me to which she brushed it off. A few more days of this and it was really starting to affect me as I always felt alone but wasn’t alone. After a few more attempts to talk about how I was feeling with no relief from Som I told her that I was going out for a night of drinking by myself.
I could tell Som didn’t like the idea. When I told her why she simply said ‘Have fun’ which I knew she didn’t mean.
Soi Cowboy Night Out
So I went jumping into a taxi and had him drive me off to Soi Cowboy. I arrived around 6 PM and went to have a few drinks. No go go bars were open so I decided to have a few drinks at Oasis which has a front deck sitting area great for girl watching as they make their way to work.
While on my second drink Som sends me a text asking where I am and what time I will be home. I tell her I’m at the Oasis Bar and I will be home before 11 PM. She says ‘Okay I won’t bother you again. See you when you get home.’ At that time I put my phone on silent and was in a conversation with a guy outside Oasis.
A few hours passed and I was having a good time in a few of the bars drinking beer chatting with the girls and buying a few lady drinks in the go go bars. Nothing too exciting though.
At around 1030 PM I decided to flag down a taxi to go back to the hotel. Arriving back at the hotel at 1045 PM I looked at my phone to turn notifications back on and I saw there were about 20 missed calls and video calls from Som.
The Hotel Room Blowup
Just as I was about to reach the hotel door the phone rang. It was Som on a video call screaming at the top of her lungs ‘Where are you?’ I told her I was back at the hotel to which she just hung up. I got into bed turned on the TV and shortly afterwards Som came storming into the room.
She looked at me and said ‘I’m done with you.’ She threw the things I bought her in the trash packed her bags and left while I sat there in disbelief at how irrational Som had been.
Turning Lemons Into Lemonade
After sitting there in an empty room by myself and realizing she still had a room key to the hotel I decided to jump on Booking.com and reserve a hotel for that night around Nana Plaza. So I packed my bags and without checking out jumped in a taxi and headed to my new hotel.
I got settled in my new hotel room and then headed off to Nana Plaza. I figured I was going to turn lemons into lemonade. In fact I didn’t even take my phone with me on the off chance that Som tried to contact me. It was a great night in Nana and Soi 4.
When I got back to my new hotel room there were nearly 50 missed calls from Som. I told her that I left because of the way she had treated and acted towards me. She started crying and apologized for acting crazy but it had no effect on me.
The next morning I told her that I’d arranged an earlier flight back to my home country. In actuality I just wanted her to think I was gone so I could have some more peace of mind. I spent the next few days partying shopping and eating and had a fantastic time.
The Airport Goodbye
When I went to the airport on my scheduled day of departure Som was waiting for me with flowers and a note saying she was sorry. I told her it was too late. She started crying and tried to grab me to prevent me from going up the escalator towards security and immigration. I pulled away from her made my flight and arrived safe and sound back in my home country.
Som kept calling me and sending me messages over and over. She even went so far as to track down my daughter and try to communicate with her about me. That was too much so I had to call Som one last time and tell her that I don’t want her to call me or my daughter ever again.
Story Three Plum First Love in Thailand
My story goes back many years to 1977 46 years to be exact. This was my first trip to Thailand and I was very much looking forward to it. I stayed at a hotel on Silom Road I’m not sure if it still exists I couldn’t find it the last time I was in Bangkok last November.
Since that first time I have visited Thailand many times and have many good memories from all my trips to this wonderful country. Although I have many fantastic experiences to think back on my first trip will always stand out as something special mostly because I met my first love there. Although I was only 26 at the time I had yet to have a girlfriend.
Meeting Plum in Bangkok
My first encounter with the locals was a cute girl nicknamed Plum. The hotel taxi driver wanted to help and he knew the right place a massage parlor called New Bangkok. Here you could date a girl for a day by tipping her 500 Baht. It was only 2 PM so the massage parlor was closed but my driver knew the back entrance. So I was let in before most of the girls had settled behind the glass window.
After some time I asked the staff if they could recommend a girl who could speak good English. A smiling little sweet girl came forward and took me by the hand. We sat down and had a drink and talked for a while. I agreed with the manager of the massage parlor that I would date Plum for five days which would cost me 2500 Baht in total.
When we got back to my hotel room she gave me a nice massage. After a few hours under the covers we drove out to a Thai restaurant where we sat on mats on the floor and ate Thai food and watched traditional Thai dance. The evening ended at a nightclub where we watched Thai boxing and danced to a live band. By the time we fell asleep at 2 AM she had fully taken care of all my needs.
Visiting Plum Family
The next day Plum wanted to go back to the ‘Massage Clinic Doctor’ where she was scheduled for a checkup once a week. She told me the first time we were alone that she had received an STD from a Chinese guy and was undergoing treatment. I had to protect myself until her treatment was over. She suggested that I go along because I had previously been with another girl.
While Plum got her jabs I was examined and declared healthy. I was given a few green pills just in case.
She had convinced me that we should visit her family who lived in Bangkapi on the outskirts of Bangkok. We bought some food for her mother and some candy for her son. It was New Year’s Eve and in the evening we went to Happy Land with the family.
Floating Market and Pattaya
The next morning our taxi driver picked us up from the hotel and drove us out to Ratchaburi where we boarded a long tail boat and went to the floating market. Here we had lunch and Plum showed me how to eat with chopsticks. We then went back to our waiting taxi driver and he took us to Nakhon Pathom the largest pagoda in Thailand and then to a rose garden.
When we got back to the hotel we went out to eat at a Japanese restaurant before the usual end to a lovely day. The next day we passed the time shopping and going to the cinema. I can still remember the movie it was ‘Murder by Death.’
The next few days went by too quickly. She was a bright girl bought and read newspapers every day and sang old Thai songs for me when we relaxed in bed. Mind you that was way before mobile phones.
A few days later we went back to New Bangkok where I booked her for another five days. We had planned a trip to Pattaya but she wanted to visit her family first.
We went to Pattaya the next afternoon. Our hotel room smelled of DDT a chemical used to kill cockroaches. The next four days went by so fast. I knew that when she was hungry she would easily become upset. She told me at one time that she regarded me as more than a friend than a customer and I believed her because she gave me the girlfriend treatment. By this time I was in love.
When we came back to Bangkok Plum would visit her mother again and her work to collect her salary. I was on my own the rest of the day. When she came back she showed me a letter from a man in the USA. She wanted me to read the letter for her because she talked about him a few times and told me that he was eager to marry her. He had only spent two hours with her six months ago.
The Last Morning Together
I understood from the letter that he hadn’t heard from her for a long time which amused her. She couldn’t read or write any English. I suggested that she should write to him about her plans and not keep him in the dark. He was 20 years older than her but she was confident that she would love him in time as long as he kept faithful didn’t drink and didn’t hit her.
This was our last night together and a memorable one. The next morning during breakfast I took a few pictures of her with my Nikon camera. We didn’t talk much but just enjoyed each other’s company. When we said goodbye she gave me her address. I knew that I probably would never see her again.
After she left I listened to The Carpenters a cassette tape she had picked out for me. I stared at the ceiling for the next two hours. I really missed her.
A Miraculous Reunion
Two days later just before sunset a miracle appeared in a narrow soi not far from Patpong. I ran into Plum. She was more beautiful than I remembered and she was genuinely happy to see me. I followed her out to a small restaurant and she treated me to noodle soup.
We had a lot to talk about. She told me that she was staying with a man from Sweden at the moment he had paid twice what I had paid for her. We talked about going to Chiang Mai when I got my money. She was okay with that but had to go to Pattaya with the guy from Sweden so she would be free only from next week.
We stood for a long time at the counter before we said goodbye and she kept saying that she thought I was back in Denmark by now. I could feel that she was happy to see me as she caressed my hand and arms again something she used to do.
Chiang Mai and Final Goodbye
Finally my money arrived. My taxi driver was chatting away happily on our way to New Bangkok where Plum was waiting with a big smile and warm hug. I was on cloud nine.
The next week in Chiang Mai was wonderful. After a sometimes strenuous trip Plum’s brother met us at the bus station in Bangkok at 6 AM. He had a small car and took us to her house in Bangkapi.
In Chiang Mai she had talked about taking some days off from work and I could stay in her house until I got a flight home to Denmark. She would pay 200 Baht a day to her boss for each day she didn’t come to work and the four days I would stay with her would cost her 800 Baht. All in all she would lend me 2000 Baht until I could leave.
The next morning when I opened the Bangkok Post there was a big story on the front page about an assault 330 kilometers west of Bangkok. 500 Khmer Rouge troops had crossed the border and wiped out three villages. Plum then told me that breakfast was ready but when she heard about the Khmer Rouge she became upset.
The next day was my last day in Thailand and with Plum. On the way to the airport I gave her my address although I knew she would not write back to me. When the car stopped she looked at me with sad eyes and told me that she had been so happy to have me in her house.
‘It’s hard for me to say goodbye’ she said. I kissed her and touched her cheek. She stayed in the car and I waved goodbye for the last time.
The Last Day With Plum
Some may ask why I didn’t ask her to marry me at the time. I have no doubt that she would have considered it. I was living with my parents at the time and I was going for conscripted Army service two months later. No way I could take care of her and her family.
I wrote to her several times after this trip but got no answer. Turns out two months later she had married not the old American guy but a man from Australia who came to Bangkok one week later asked her and got a yes.
Years Later in Bangkok
Ten months later I was in Bangkok. I drove to the New Bangkok massage parlor to find that she had stopped working a long time ago. I drove to her house in Bangkapi and was met by her two sisters who spoke no English at all. It took me almost an hour to realize that she had moved to Australia.
After another misunderstanding I heard that she was in Bangkok at that time visiting her family. I couldn’t believe it but still married. After a few days she called me and we met. It was a bittersweet encounter.
She asked if I would take her to the cinema like in the old days. At the movies she asked ‘Can I hold your hand?’ We had to hold hands for almost two hours. I waved goodbye from my taxi as I saw her disappear into the crowd for the last time.
I’m now almost 73. I still have sweet memories of Plum and I think of her from time to time. I married eight years later and have a wife and two wonderful children. But I will never forget my Thailand girl Plum. I hope she had a happy life and I wish her all the best wherever she is.
Story Four First Timers Ladyboy Fantasy
This story recounts my first trip to Thailand when I was 25 years old. I was very excited to go and I have to admit I was more excited about finally meeting a ladyboy or two. This had been my fantasy for a long time.
What makes me laugh about it now is that I used to ridicule guys who shared their horror stories about their experiences and tell them to man up and not to be so stupid and naive. However as I tell those stories with the usual shouting and laughter I should remember that I wasn’t always so streetwise myself.
Songkran Arrival in Bangkok
When I landed in Bangkok I instantly felt the heat and excitement of the place. I was buzzing like all newcomers. I took a bus to Khao San Road and found a dirt cheap room for around 50p or around a dollar. It was shocking really. I could easily afford something better but I chose to go super cheap maybe simply because I could and it was a novelty paying so little for a room.
It was dripping hot outside since it was April. It was also Songkran and I had no idea about this at all though I was soon to find out that it was a water festival that all the Thais get involved in. I walked out to get some food and I must admit I was totally caught up in the culture shock of it all the sights the sounds the smells and the bar girls. As I walked past my first bar I got a bucket of water over me. ‘Welcome to Songkran!’ Ha ha. I nearly died of shock.
Patpong Rookie Mistake
I took a tuk tuk to Patpong as I knew this was where I could live out my fantasy. Once I got there I was so in awe of the girls outside the bars and clubs that I didn’t know which way to look or which bar to head into. I stood there staring at it all like the Bangkok rookie that I was.
Then one of the guys who was trying to get customers into the clubs approached me and asked me to come into his club. I started saying something like ‘I’m looking for ladyboys.’ It was at that point I should have walked away and just stopped for a drink. But of course I was new and let him take control.
He asked me how much I would pay and I gave him my price. Yes I know absolutely absurd right? The price I quoted was a lot of money but I was feeling so overwhelmed by the whole thing. So he took me to a short time room in Patpong and brought me two ladyboys to the room. I didn’t even get to choose them that was done for me.
The ladyboys came in and started to undress. I was super embarrassed. The fixer guy stood in the room and watched. I didn’t even have the nerve or foresight to ask him to leave. The actual event itself was terrible it was just one embarrassing maneuver after another. The ladyboys themselves weren’t bad it was just a cringe worthy situation to be in. Anyway it was done pretty quickly.
The Airport Check Cashing Trip
The guy asked for his money and the ladyboys asked for theirs. This is when it got worse. I promised the guy a certain amount just for him plus the ladyboys wanted their money too. I only had enough for the ladyboys. The guy said ‘Okay no problem let’s go to an ATM.’
I couldn’t argue with him as he hadn’t done anything wrong by that I mean I agreed to give him the money beforehand right? It was my own stupid mistake. Anyway my ATM card wouldn’t work. We tried a few times. It was Songkran and there was water being sprayed everywhere. My ATM card wouldn’t work and I was getting hassle to pay this guy.
I had thought about doing a runner but realized that was a stupid idea plus I agreed to pay him so it wasn’t fair to not pay him. I told him I had some traveler’s checks. He suggested we take a taxi to the airport yes the airport we could cash the checks there. So I agreed and that’s what we did.
How utterly ridiculous. Looking back this had become a truly awful experience and was now costing me way too much time and money. I was feeling the stress but he wanted his money. I finally paid him and we returned to Patpong.
He asked if I wanted another. Ha ha are you kidding me?
The Silver Lining
I found a quiet corner to sit in sulk with a beer. I remember walking around and I saw one of the ladyboys from earlier and she said I could go with her for free of charge as I’d already paid enough. I declined the offer.
I ended up taking a freelancer back to my room. I thought she was a bona fide woman but my fantasy came true when I was pleasantly surprised she turned out to be a ladyboy. I enjoyed my time with her.
When I look back I laugh at myself how nervous and scared I was and the stupidity of allowing this guy to totally take over. Driving to the airport to cash checks? My God what was I thinking?
I have been a regular visitor ever since and I love having a night out in Soi 4 and Patpong though I spend my time now in Krabi or Phuket. I understand how some guys end up getting fleeced. We men can be fairly stupid at times.
