Dispatch from Bangkok

[CurtisD]

As I begin this report I wonder if in the end it will be better positioned as part of the “Perfect Day and Night in Bangkok’ thread.

The trip roared away to an excellent start with a personal best time of 1 hour 20 minutes from touch-down to check-in. No taxiing delays, four people ahead of me at immigration, a slight delay for the bags but not bad and then no traffic on the road into town. All of which gave me plenty of time to wash away the dust of travel and decompress before meeting Bangkok Guy.

He and I have kept fitfully in touch since my last trip, with scintillating Line exchanges along the lines of “How are you?”, “I am fine” with a few stickers of rabbits cuddling bears thrown in from his side. Enough to let each other know we were still breathing.

I was looking forward to seeing him but also slightly hesitant. As it has been truly said, last trips favorite may not ring the bell on a subsequent occasion. So it was a moment of happiness when the same World-embracing slightly goofy smile, connected to the same warm eyes, sense of mischief and a hint of bashfulness announced itself in the lobby.

We adjourned to a nearby Thai restaurant to catch up only to find the kitchen had just closed and, as we wondered where to try next, it began to rain with the threat of a downpour to come. So back to the hotel at a sprint and caught up in the lobby over green tea and curry.

As neither my Thai nor his English has improved, catching up involved exchanging iPhones and looking through each other’s photos to discuss the ones that caught our interest. He had been on a couple of holidays in Thailand with the same group of friends one of whom, quite an attractive guy, featured prominently. “Your boyfriend?” His ‘no, friend’ came a little too fast, so while I believe him, he is quite straightforward, I think the wish is there.

His major news is that he is back studying full time, no more dancing, which pleases me as he is moving his life along in a constructive way. I also discovered that he is studying to be a chef, which makes sense of all the careful photos he takes of the food at better restaurants. I have learned not to start eating until the photography session is over. I had marked it down to some millennial social media thing, but it is professional interest.

Michelin recently gave ratings to Bangkok restaurants and this gives me the idea of making reservations for us at a selection of the chosen few. It might give him a few ideas and Bangkok is probably the only place where I might, at a stretch, afford to dine at a restaurant with a Michelin rating. He had no idea of Michelin, but liked the idea of trying out good restaurants. We agree to go to mainly Thai, as that is his area, but to also try French as he is curious and has never tried it as ‘it too expensive’.

With the mission for the morning established – which is why I think this may turn into a guide to things to do in Bangkok – we head to bed and happily reintroduce ourselves.

[traveller123]

I am sure your friend will enjoy a meal at La Table De Tee restaurant in Bangkok.

The food is artfully arranged on the plate, my Thai partner and I always enjoy it and it is reasonably priced at 1350 baht per person.

It is a fixed menu with choices on some courses.

http://www.latabledetee.com/menu.php

[Liam18]

I enjoyed your report. Thanks, CurtisD.

[zombie]

Yes, thank you CurtisD....waiting the next instalment...!

[vinapu]

 

The food is artfully arranged on the plate, my Thai partner and I always enjoy it and it is reasonably priced at 1350 baht per person.

 

Blessed are those who can call 1350 reasonable meal price for their wallets  will be always full .

[a447a]

Compared to what we pay in Australia for a "reasonable meal" 1350 baht is an absolute bargain!

[traveller123]

Blessed are those who can call 1350 reasonable meal price for their wallets  will be always full .

Ah but Vinapu, I live in Isaan with my partner.

When we go to Bangkok or Pattaya it is for a holiday during which we both enjoy eating good western food in a nice restaurant which is something we can't do in our home time.

Although I am often tempted we are monogamous (but I have a holiday massage) so the money we are not spending on offs gets spent in nice restaurants

[vinapu]

Ah but Vinapu, I live in Isaan with my partner.

When we go to Bangkok or Pattaya it is for a holiday during which we both enjoy eating good western food in a nice restaurant which is something we can't do in our home time.

Although I am often tempted we are monogamous (but I have a holiday massage) so the money we are not spending on offs gets spent in nice restaurants

 no need to be defensive, you can spend money way you like and that's none of  our business ,

 

it's just use of word 'reasonable' which prompted me to comment . Imagine somebody  ( me ?) putting in print " I paid reasonable 4000 for his long time with me" . Crucifixion at the ready for spoiling market for others !   

[traveller123]

 no need to be defensive, you can spend money way you like and that's none of  our business ,

 

it's just use of word 'reasonable' which prompted me to comment . Imagine somebody  ( me ?) putting in print " I paid reasonable 4000 for his long time with me" . Crucifixion at the ready for spoiling market for others !   

Sorry, I didn't mean my post to sound defensive, just meant to explain how I spend my holiday money.

How I spend my money doesn't stop me enjoying (and dreaming) about how you spend your holiday cash

[CurtisD]

I am sure your friend will enjoy a meal at La Table De Tee restaurant in Bangkok.

The food is artfully arranged on the plate, my Thai partner and I always enjoy it and it is reasonably priced at 1350 baht per person.

It is a fixed menu with choices on some courses.

http://www.latabledetee.com/menu.php

Thank you, this looks good. We will investigate!

[CurtisD]

We agreed to set the alarm for the morning as I had a Spa appointment for a Thai massage and he had class. However, in the event he remained the same sweet immovable lump in the bed that he was last trip. Something was lost in translation. 11am was my deadline, not his, and I left him blissfully curled in the duvet. If sleeping was an Olympic event, he would guarantee gold for Thailand.

The Thai massage did wonders and reinvigorated I bounced back into the room just as he exited the shower, also reinvigorated and looking to play. Bangkok Guy has several little quirks that make me smile quietly, one of which is his behavior when he wants to get me into bed. He makes sure he is almost naked (in this case a hotel robe loosely tied) and becomes bashful and coquettish. It works. After some pleasant tantric exercise he goes to class and I give a list of restaurants to the concierge and then spend the afternoon alternating between the pool and working in the room.

It was too late to get reservations that evening for any of the restaurants on the list and the concierge suggests we try Baan Suriyasai, which we do. It is in an old white-painted colonial house in Silom and it is gorgeous.  There are not many customers and with a choice of tables we select one upstairs in its own little room with a view over the courtyard. I tell Bangkok Guy that he is in charge of selecting the food, which he does in deep conversation with the waitress. Although I have no idea what is being said, he and the waitress are getting along very well, which I have noticed is always the case when he is interacting with fellow Thais. The radius of his charm extends beyond me.

Bangkok Guy carefully photographs each dish and then we eat. The food is excellent and, possibly this was his intention, captures some of the variety in Thai cuisine. Crab in a green curry, pork belly (strips of layered meat and fat) accompanied by two types of soft boiled egg in a vegetable broth and a dish of a crunchy dried fish and fried basil leaf mixture. We vote the pork our favorite and he tells me one day he will cook it for me, he can make it and the crab curry. Comfortably full we take a taxi to The Living Room at the Sheraton Grande to listen to jazz.

There is a really good jazz quartet playing to a half full room and we settle in with drinks, a Malibu and pineapple for him (this is similar to the cocktail the mixologist at Vespers came up with for him last trip, so it looks like he has adopted it) and I start with an aqua vitae to settle my stomach. When he smells it his face is a picture of shock. How can I put something like that anywhere near me let alone inside me? Best not to drink it but if I have to (I explain it settles the stomach) then drink it quickly so he does not have to smell it! He really does not like alcohol. My subsequent martini is less shocking but still well outside the bounds of anything he finds interesting.

After a while floating along with the jazz he seems a little restless. I ask how he is liking it – “no sing song”. Turns out that while we both like jazz he particularly likes jazz vocals, which by coincidence was what we encountered everywhere last time.

In the taxi on the way back to the hotel he surprises me by curling up on the seat and resting his head in my lap. I am touched, but also think I may need to watch and manage his expectations. I do not want to lead him into unrealistic expectations.

The taxi driver meanwhile is completely fine with all this. Taxi drivers are universally completely fine with Bangkok Guy who chats away with them while holding my hand (in taxis my hand belongs in his, in his lap) or leaning on me. Head-on-lap does not cause a ripple in the Bangkok taxi driver universe.

[a447a]

CurtisD, I love your writing style!

[CurtisD]

CurtisD, I love your writing style!

 

Thanks, I am glad you are enjoying it.

[CurtisD]

In the morning Bangkok Guy and I follow our own schedules. While he practices for Olympic gold in sleeping, I work at the desk in the room, my typing and coffee making not disturbing him in the least.

We have established good relations with our housekeeper who knows that the room will not be available to clean until the afternoon. The first day, seeing that there had been two occupants even though it is booked for one, she left it arranged for two. A bottle of water on each side of the bed, additional towels and soaps. I found her cleaning another room, confirmed that she was assigned to our room and gave her a tip that I explained was for the whole stay. She beamed. A few minutes later she knocked on the door. “This for whole stay?”  “Yes”  “I not clean whole stay, have holiday, my friend clean two days” she said offering me back the money to sort out this piece of accounting. I took out two days of tips and she left very happy (she now waves to me from down the corridor) and I will tip her friend when she takes over.

A little after midday Bangkok Guy ceases his exertions for gold and heads to the bathroom with much theatrical stretching. He has been sleeping in one of my t-shirts which rises revealingly with each stretch, which is the point. Satisfied that I have taken all this in he slips into the bathroom, sticks his head back out to smile at me and disappears into the shower. I think you know the rest of this story. It has a happy ending.

He heads off to class and again I spend the day between the pool and working in the room.

This evening Bangkok Guy is going to a market with his sister and cannot meet for dinner. We agree to meet around 10.30pm and go to a bar with jazz at the Landmark where he has previously heard good “sing song”. The late start gives me an opportunity to explore the bars and see for myself the changes since my last visit. While I know Bangkok Guy would visit the bars with me, I also know that there is a difference between what he will go along with and what he actually wants to do. I’d rather not take advantage of his good nature.

I start my bar Odyssey at 9pm. The set up – short time, many things to see - reminds me of a guide to hitting the high points of the Louvre in 30 minutes written decades ago for Esquire. The early start time will negatively affect what I find at the bars. That said, here goes.

Start at Moonlight, about which I have heard so much. Manager is concerned that I am arriving so early. “Please welcome, show at 10.30, look, maybe like boy now, anyway come back for show no charge again”. About 12 boys, a few on rotation, most sitting talking on the side. About five customers. Viewing from the bleachers I prioritize face, personality (as revealed on the face) and body in that order. All toned bodies but only one face gets my attention and I can’t see his number as he is sitting.

Next is G-Boys whose touts at the soi entrance had tried to get my attention earlier on my way to Moonlight. Now I am back and interested they are happy – their gaydar was right the first time! Around 20 boys of a variety of types and five nationalities according the mamasan, although I am not sure she really knows as the boy she told me was Lao informed me he was Cambodian. Two boys catch my eye, the one with a very handsome face looks a bit distant however. Mamasan tells me he is Vietnamese and top only. The other is the cute Cambodian. I tip mamasan and the Cambodian guy, who gets off the stage to accompany me to the door. 

Outside one of the door guys who is both attractive and well-spoken says they have another bar to which he will take me and he proceeds to lead me to my first ever visit to Screw Boys. Slightly shabby, five guys, three of whom look like they are still waking up. One guy is a standout. Muscular, handsome, a lot of personality as viewed from the bleachers – he cocks an eyebrow at me, a go-go first. I tip him as I leave.

Now to Jupiter where I get a seat a few rows back (closer vacant seats are reserved) and switch to whisky on the rocks as I am beginning to feel waterlogged after three lime juices. Many guys, all stunning bodies, only a couple of faces that appeal, one of whom is a guy I do not recognize from the last trip. Quite tall, #81 I think. He reminds me of an ex. #23 who I found very attractive in January is still attractive but has slipped from chiseled to a fraction gaunt. It has got to be stressful maintaining your looks for nightly appraisal.

Onward! In Twilight I go first to Dream Boys where after a warm welcome the host is deflated to find that I am only looking tonight. No finder’s fee for him. Although the drink was good (a very generously poured double, perhaps in the hope that alcohol would weaken my resolve) none of the dancers caught my eye so back out to the soi faster than expected where, looking around for the next stop on the tour, I see the sign for Classic Boy at the far end of the soi. I have never taken a boy off from Classic Boy, my impression being that the boys there need to eat more. Clients were becoming more numerous in each successive bar and now, a little after 10pm, Classic Boys was about three quarters full. About twenty boys, mostly small and veering toward fem, however to my surprise two guys caught my eye. One was a darker quite masculine little guy with an intelligent face and the other was slightly taller with a perfectly proportioned body softly carved from pale marble and a nice smile. I tip them both.

Back out on the soi, 10.15pm and I was about to enter the bar with the guys in feathers outside when it hit me that I should really freshen up before meeting Bangkok Guy. It was a sticky humid night. So ended the tour, curiosity satisfied and in the shower I reflect that I am very pleased to be with Bangkok Guy. 

When he arrives Bangkok Guy needs to change. It had been sticky and crowded in the market “Soo many people” and thinking ahead he had brought a change of clothes. I tell him about visiting the bars and he says “Oh?” with a smile. I get the feeling that the communication here is that he understands I am a human with faults and foibles and that this particular foible is one which I am permitted but which may be corrected at some point. 

We arrive at the bar at the Landmark to find a deserted grand piano and mic stand. Too late, so a quick change of plan and we are off to 360 at the Millennium, or we would be if we could find a cab. No one wants to drive over the river. We do what would have been the sensible first option, we take the skytrain. It is such a humid evening that between trying to catch a cab and walking to the train I am beginning to drip, to Bangkok Guys amusement. I gratefully dry down in the train aircon and when we disembark spot a cab with some relief. “But hotel not far, we walk” Bangkok Guy deadpans. We take the cab and he claims ownership of my right hand, holding it between both of his.

As usual the band is great, the view wonderful. But no ‘sing song’. This week it seems is instrumental jazz week in Bangkok. The vocalists are on tour. Bangkok Guy tries to take a selfie with the view but can’t get the angle he wants so I take it for him and unintentionally launch myself into a new career as his pictorial social diarist. I took multiple rapid shots as you do in a photoshoot and after he deletes the duds he is very happy with the remaining few, so my new role is sealed. The contract arrives soon.

Heading back to the hotel he gets a call. A friend wants to meet for dinner. He is hungry. Would I like to join them, or would I like to go to the hotel and he will be there later? Dinner with friend will not take long. I say I will join them. Bangkok Guy gives new directions to the cab driver, who drops us just down from soi Twilight. Dinner turns out to be at one of the tables on the footpath near the green bank with cash machines. My guess is that Bangkok Guy’s friend works somewhere nearby in the gay scene although I don’t recognize him from my bar tour. While his language, mannerisms and even facial expressions are Thai he does not look Thai. It turns out he is first generation Thai, his parents having come from India. Full assimilation in one generation, impressive. Over the years I have seen a number of guys at the bars who do not look Thai or who look mixed. I have also found that among the Thais with whom I do business, when you go back 100 or 200 years, there is more often than not some foreign heritage in a branch of the family tree. Thailand may have been successfully assimilating people for a long time. 

The footpath food is very good. A big bowl of tasty brown soup with two chicken legs, rice, noodles, sprouts and vegetables mixed in. 200Bt for three, a little over $2 each. The next day my stomach is totally happy.

[DivineMadman]

Outstanding report!  A minor suggestion, perhaps "Bangkok Guy" should be called "Lucky Guy."  You seem a very thoughtful considerate person towards him.  (for Thais "สุภาพ" "su-paap")

 

If perhaps you're still in BKK I just read a positive review of a dim sum special at Landmark Hotel Sept-Oct. (might possibly be lunch only, I can't remember)

[vinapu]

 

Now to Jupiter......switch to whisky on the rocks as I am beginning to feel waterlogged after three lime juices.

I discovered when bar hopping that taking tea of coffee  where on the menu eases up saturation with all that drinks. When completely full I order drink for mamasan instead of me, that way bar has business , mamasasn is happy and I'm less waterlogged as you neatly described.

[paborn]

I discovered when bar hopping that taking tea of coffee  where on the menu eases up saturation with all that drinks. When completely full I order drink for mamasan instead of me, that way bar has business , mamasasn is happy and I'm less waterlogged as you neatly described.

Vinapu, thanks - it's so obvious. I'm chagrined that I never thought of it. Even drinking nam soda to stay sober causes a huge bloat on an odyssey like this.

 

BY the way, this is an outstanding report. I love the writing style like a polite travelogue written for a sophisticated audience. I'm delighted you find us worthy of your prose.

[CurtisD]

Vinapu, thanks - it's so obvious. I'm chagrined that I never thought of it. Even drinking nam soda to stay sober causes a huge bloat on an odyssey like this.

 

BY the way, this is an outstanding report. I love the writing style like a polite travelogue written for a sophisticated audience. I'm delighted you find us worthy of your prose.

 

Thanks Paborn, it just seems to write itself this way.

[CurtisD]

The next day follows the now established pattern. I work and caffeinate while Bangkok Guy dozes. At midday the magic switch goes off and he rises, bathes, flirts and we end up entwined and happy in bed. He goes to class and I alternate between the pool, working in the room and a little shopping.

In the evening he arrives looking sharp in a dress shirt, pressed khakis and black sneakers, ready for his first experience of French cuisine. I complement him on his appearance – “borrowed, friend’s, borrowed” he says with a grin, pointing at his shirt, trousers and shoes.  And then “Mine”, pointing at his face.

The walk to the Water Library takes us down an alleyway past a local hole in the wall restaurant with plastic chairs. I suggest we should eat there, given how cheap and good the food was on the footpath last night. “We could” he replies, returning the ball to me with a level gaze and slight smile, before continuing with national pride that a politician would love to bottle: “In Thailand we eat good food cheap”.

Water Library’s décor is modern and chic. We order the tasting menu to enable him to try a variety of things and a German Riesling Kabinett which I think may be sweet enough for him to enjoy without making me choke. He really takes to the wine - “No alcohol” – and I warn him that the wine is in fact deceptive, carrying a full load of alcohol under the sweet honey floral flavor that he is enjoying (it is an excellent wine) and swirl the wine in the glass to show him the ‘legs’ that form, revealing the presence of the alcohol. He swirls the wine in his glass, observing the ‘legs’ but unsure how this reveals something that he equates with raw and harsh. He photographs the bottle and I hope I have not opened the door to a bad habit.

Each course is served with a flourish and a breathless description of its construction, which I ask to be repeated in Thai. It is then photographed carefully and eaten slowly and thoughtfully, well, at least by him. I am no gourmand and prefer a couple of solid courses to a long stream of small bites, with the result that while he savors I bolt down each course and then look at the plate in surprise – gone? We discover that he is not a fan of salmon, but discounting those two servings the meal is a hit …. although still not a match for Thai food. We both agree the favorite so far is the porkbelly with eggs from Baan Suriyasai. However, when the dessert arrives it is a modern French triumph. The presentation is superb, serious photography is called for and I am enlisted to photograph it from my side of the table too. We both eat it thoughtfully, working out what the flavors are and what is the mysterious powder in the tall glass compote containing the little mango sorbet sticks – lightly toasted rice powder is his guess.

We continue after dinner to the Bamboo Bar at the Mandarin Oriental where an excellent pianist is playing to a room at about one third capacity. Still no vocalist! Bangkok Guy decides he has had enough alcohol and gets a fruit juice while I get a Sazerac and we settle in to enjoy the music. Later we walk down to the river terrace where my duties as pictorial social diarist are invoked and I ‘photoshoot’ him walking around. He edits the results and is very happy. He looks me in the eyes: “Thank you very much, for everything”. He is sincere, although I suspect a smidgen of ‘In Vino Veritas’ is involved.

Back at the hotel preparing for bed I run through the planned activities for the next few days: dinner at another Thai restaurant, Thai boxing as I have never been (Bangkok Guy’s eyebrows migrate halfway up his forehead when he hears this, so he is onto it) and a Mediterranean meal the following evening. Something about Bangkok Guy’s indulgent hooded smile makes me think of the way I look at him when one of his quirks is amusing me, but of course that is different. “A lot of organize” Bangkok Guy says, smiling.

[traveller123]

CurtisD, you certainly know how to treat a guy.

Bangkok Guy is lucky to know you, you have great style which I suspect is not limitted to your writting

[DivineMadman]

Do keep up the reports.  I know that they take a lot of effort to write, and all the detail.  I know we're all so glad to read them.  Fun!

[CurtisD]

After an early morning email check I decide I can afford to take it easy this morning and cuddle up to Bangkok Guy, who a few minutes later shifts a little, followed a little later by my repositioning myself and so on through multiple positions of the Cuddling Karma Sutra until we finally lock together and drift into the morning like pieces of a warm softly breathing puzzle.

It is me who ultimately breaks the idyll to head out for appointments with a tailor and a designer who are both making things for me. I return to find a duvet mound on my side of the bed connected by the iphone charger to the nightstand. I peer into the mound and Bangkok Guy grins happily back, clearly now awake. Running errands has left me a little sticky so into the bathroom to shower and I see Bangkok Guy has been there, the shower is set to his cooler preferred temperature. Climbing into bed I explore the duvet mound and find Bangkok Guy coyly wrapped in a robe. His game today is for me to unwrap him. Christmas come early for adults.

The evening’s fine dining excursion is to Saneh Jaan for Thai food. The single large room decorated in big-city-sophisticated echoes and re-echoes with conversation and laughter. Although we have a great table, it is not an intimate space – this is dining as public display rather than a private occasion. We order drinks, a fresh coconut milk served from the nut for him and a passionfruit mocktail for me.  Bangkok Guy examines the menu and suggests that we get two dishes that match those we had at Baan Suriyasai so that we can compare and a couple of new ones. Each dish is photographed and as we are both hungry we eat heartily. In this first round we agree that Baan Suriyasai emerges the clear winner. The green curry is good – he makes sure to finish it – but as he points out, holding his photo from Baan Suriyasai alongside for comparison, it is beige-green rather than green. The porkbelly and egg dish is definitely a distant second. The eggs are large, hardboiled and cut in half rather than both large and small, whole and softboiled so that the rich yolk runs out into the stew. The green vegetable in oyster sauce tastes, to me, a bit of cooking fuel which I try and fail to communicate to Bangkok Guy. None-the-less it is the one dish he does not polish off. The fried rice and pork we both think is excellent. Redemption is found in the dessert menu, where the selection of traditional Thai desserts gets Bangkok Guy animated. We agree to try one he knows of but has never tried, a warm coconut affair with the consistency of a thick soup or a thin custard, served in a beautiful Thai porcelain compote. It is wonderful. In a less sophisticated establishment I would lick the bowl.

[vinapu]

 

... try one he knows of but has never tried, a warm coconut affair with the consistency of a thick soup or a thin custard, served in a beautiful Thai porcelain compote. It is wonderful. In a less sophisticated establishment I would lick the bowl.

 

I'm glad I don't have your inhibitions because I would. After all you paid for it.

[CurtisD]

Tonight is Muay Thai night. Bangkok Guy suggests we meet at 5.30pm but while I am having a quick coffee in the lobby he Lines me that he is running late. I reply “relax, not a problem” and get back “you ok?”, so I send back two stickers, one of a happy looking rabbit  holding up an ‘OKAY!’ sign and the other a thumbs up. Back comes a rabbit cuddling a bear. In the absence of Thai, sticker-as-a-second-language works.

We take the skytrain and then a ferry down to Asiatique. The sun is setting and the reflections of the lighted buildings and the apricot sun in the river are gorgeous. Disembarkation is delayed by a massive party boat which takes up the entire dock while the evening’s revelers board. We walk past stalls and bars and restaurants, one cooking crocodile on a spit which by some logic is paired with Jack Daniels, to the stadium where we buy tickets and Bangkok Guy is chagrined to find that our tickets are the same price, no discount for Thais. Tonight he is in charge, my only request is for air-conditioning, and for our pre-fight dinner he finds his way to a roast chicken place where we share a whole bird and a salad while a very good singer/guitarist plays in the background.

Then all hell breaks loose outside as a deluge of biblical proportions descends with accompanying thunder and light effects. Twenty minutes later we need to be on our way but the elements are enjoying showing we mortals who is boss and the torrential rain shows no sign of letting up. Bangkok Guy talks to the restaurant manager and signals “Come, we go” and I follow him to the covered area outside the restaurant crowded with sheltering refugees. The manager told him we could reach the theatre under cover, we just need to find the way, and Bangkok Guy rises to the challenge leading our intrepid band (well, me) with a few zigs, zags and doubling back safely to our destination.

The show is just starting and now I make sense of what he had tried to tell me in the restaurant. This is not regular Muay Thai. It is a show ‘Muay Thai Live: The Legend Lives’. After a momentary pang of disappointment I really enjoy it. It is a very professional production with excellent choreography, sound and light effects and it is well acted. It is a great education for a novice such as myself and a stage almost continually full of handsome buff guys (this is real functional muscle, not gym show-muscle) does not hurt. After the show there is an interval to take photos of the cast before two real fights and Bangkok Guy is down with the tourists snapping pics. He likes buff. The two fights show that the reality is scrappier and grittier than the elegant classically-named moves showcased in the production.  

It is still early as we head back to the hotel and I suggest we take in a show – maybe Jupiter? “You want? Ok”. We arrive just before 10pm. Bangkok Guy talks with the doorman who does his best to find us good seats in what is already a crowd, eventually bringing out two tall stools so we can sit in a gap to one side. I am not sure what Bangkok Guy told him, but he is very accommodating. More and more customers arrive, mainly Asian, so that by show time the area beyond and between the seating resembles a commuter train at rush hour. At the last minute the VIPs arrive to occupy the reserved seats next to us.

I suggest to Bangkok Guy that we each pick who we think is the hottest guy. As usual I like #23, who tonight looks great, to which he says “Yes, you like thin boy six pack” in a tone which suggests this is well-known. Watching his reaction to the guys I see his eyes and body follow #31, a buff guy who I guessed he would like, “You like?” “Yes” he says, shuffling on his stool as though he has just divulged a State Secret. He has clearly seen this guy around and fancies him. I suggest he should get him, “No, he straight, like girl, not like me, I not have money, if you give money you can have”. Thus the bar scene is neatly encapsulated. He sees my eyes following #23 and tells me I should have him, he does not mind, he will call him over. “No, tonight I do not want boy with number, want boy in Adidas”, he is puzzled for a moment and then realizes that he is wearing an Adidas shirt and smiles, “Still can have”. I agree variety is good, but I am happy with the one I came with. We both enjoy the show and I finally get to see the hula-hoop guy whose act is fun. 

Leaving Jupiter Bangkok Guys says he is a little hungry, am I? No, but I am happy to go with him to find something. He heads to the food vendors next to the bank with ATMs just down from Twilight and gets a Pad Thai to go, 50bt. I try a little back at the hotel and it is good. You can eat well cheaply in Thailand.

[CurtisD]

As many days followed a similar pattern which risks becoming repetitious in the telling, I will end this report with a summary of a few observations and lessons learned.

This was not a normal trip for me. It was the longest time I have ever spent in Bangkok, the longest consecutive number of days I have spent with the same guy, no butterflying and Bangkok Guy is the only bar guy I have taken to serious restaurants, the most I have done in the past is a skybar for a drink or two. I am very comfortable with Bangkok Guy, he is very presentable (I would take a bet that I could take him to any country, any place and, apart from the Spring/Autumn thing, no one would bat an eye or think he did not belong) and we both like jazz and good food.

With that as background, here are some thoughts/observations.

·        With the exception of Bangkok Guy (or his clone) I would not take a bar guy beyond a general restaurant.

·        The street food and general restaurant food is all you need. Seriously.

·        If you are into food, the up-market Thai restaurants are worth going to for a treat.

·        Up-market European restaurants should be avoided for two reasons. (i) While they are good, they hold up in a comparison with similar restaurants overseas, in Bangkok they lose-out in comparison to up-market Thai restaurants. (ii) There is a much higher chance of encountering Hi-So Thais whose presence will make your companion uncomfortable.

·        If you can find out in advance, select up-market restaurants where the seating is more intimate so that your companion feels that they are with you and not generally on display to the room. A good general rule according to Bangkok Guy and also helps avoid Hi-So sightlines.

·        The jazz scene is great but it needs a calendar so you can see who is playing where each night. I have not been able to find one.

·        The skybars and the increasing proliferation of nightlife beyond the gay scene is fantastic.

·        The gay scene is alive and well. Reports of its imminent demise are over-stated. The change is in the clientele who are now predominately Asian and younger. I enjoy the improved audience aesthetic. J

My experience of the pricing structure of dining, for two people excluding alcohol, is as follows:

·        Street food. 100-150bt. Simple good food. Tasty and you could happily live off two meals a day. If you off a guy and suspect he might be hungry, offer to buy him some of this. You will enjoy eating it too.

·        General restaurant. 500-700bt. For 5x the cost of street food you get air-conditioning, a more substantial meal and better quality. You could live off one of these meals a day. You may also get entertainment, for example karaoke or descent live music. You do not need more than this and your companion will feel well-treated.

·        Up-market Thai restaurant. 3000-4000bt. For 6x the cost of a regular restaurant and 30x the cost of street food you are getting multiple courses (Bangkok Guy and I usually had five including dessert), roughly 3-4x the amount of food? You are very full after this meal. There is a much wider selection of dishes, the food is excellent and the difference in quality over a regular restaurant is enough to appreciate. The ambience of the restaurant is also multiple notches above a regular restaurant. Menus and service are in Thai (and English) so your companion will be comfortable. You can boost his status and let him select the food. If you enjoy food and there is a guy you like, well worth a treat.

·        Up-market European restaurant. 5000-6000+bt. For 1.5x-2x the cost of up-market Thai you may have less fun. The menu will be in the language of the cuisine plus English. It will not be in Thai. The staff will not speak Thai unless you request them to and even then they may squirm. Your companion’s hand will need to be held through this. You also run a higher chance of encountering a party of Hi-So Thais who you will not differentiate from any other group of well-heeled diners but your companion will, and he will not be comfortable being in a direct sight line.

We had one Hi-So encounter and although he got over it – we placed him with his back to them and by the third course he found the food prep at the table too interesting to not film – the strength of his reaction surprised me, even though I know Thailand to be very hierarchical. We discussed it over drinks at Vespers the next evening and the nuances were very difficult for me to understand. As best as I can grasp it, he felt that the restaurant was ‘their place’ and as such they would not like him, a very poor person, being somewhere that was ‘their place’.

Our favorite restaurant was Baan Suriyasai, to which we returned.  To my mind it was the most traditionally classy in a beautifully restored old house with great attention to detail. We both thought it had the best food. Bangkok Guy additionally liked the fact that we got our own little room. “Just me with you”.