CallMeLee

I woke up in a mild panic, thinking I’d slept through my alarm—but nope, it was only 8:45 p.m. Crisis averted. Still plenty of time to get ready before heading out to Surawong. First order of business: a well-deserved foot massage. A little treat to get me in the right mood for the night.It’s one of those simple pleasures that just never gets old. Relaxing, quiet, cheap. Bangkok doing what Bangkok does best. After that, I made my way to Dragon and Koi. It was already past ten, and from the outside, the place looked pretty dead—just a couple of customers inside. Still, I figured why not? Let’s check it out anyway. As soon as I sat down and ordered, one of the hosts came over like clockwork. You know the drill—“Where you from?”, “How long are you in Bangkok?”—the usual icebreakers. But this guy was different. His name was Pi, and he could actually hold a conversation. I was genuinely enjoying our chat, so I offered to buy him drinks. Turns out, Pi is from Myanmar. He used to be a science and math teacher back home and has a Physics degree (which, honestly, blew my mind a little). But because of everything going on politically, he left the country. He doesn’t want to be part of the current regime and ended up in Bangkok, trying to start over. He’s learning Thai and hoping to teach again—either here or when things get better back home. It was a heavy story, but he carried himself with such positivity. I really admired that. We ended up talking about all sorts of things—he showed me pictures from Myanmar’s version of Songkran, and I could see how proud he was. I actually had a great time, and when I left, I made a mental note: I’m coming back here for sure. On the way back, I passed by Atlas around midnight, but it looked kind of dead. So I pulled a U-turn and headed to Hotmale instead. Few customers, which was a relief—I never love being the only one with 10 boys on stage staring you down like you're the last chicken wing at a party. Hotmale had definitely changed since last year. New faces, new performances, and even a couple of drag lip-sync acts thrown in. The red jogging pants were gone (RIP), replaced by white shorts, and in one act, black underwear. No complaints here. I didn’t waste time and invited someone from the stage—James. And guess what? He’s also from Myanmar. I swear I don’t plan this, but I always end up with Burmese guys without realizing it. They’re just… really good-looking, okay? When I asked about long time, James kind of danced around the answer, giving me some vague excuse. I was this close to sending him back, but then I looked at his face again and thought—eh, maybe a short quiet night in with good company isn’t such a bad idea. I already had two consecutive long time offs during this trip so maybe time for a break. So a few minutes later we were in a Grab taxi heading back to my hotel.

The trip kicked off with two nights in Tokyo, and let’s just say it was planned with a certain kind of experience in mind. I decided to treat myself to a couple of high-quality overnight sessions through Saboten Escorts (https://mens-salon-saboten.com/en/staff/ ) And since I figured I’d be spending most of my nights at their location, I cheekily skipped the hotel and thought I’d rough it by using a train station locker for my stuff. It sounded practical on paper and honestly, kind of adventurous too. That said, reality hit when I realised I’d need to provide a local address on the arrival card. Concerned it might raise some red flags, I played it safe and booked a cheap hostel at the last minute. It worked out well—nothing fancy, but it did the job, and I still ended up saving quite a bit while keeping things simple and efficient. Kenji: And here's Taiga: For both nights, I booked time with Kenji and Taiga, and wow—I lucked out. My sessions ended up being booked in a hotel (Hotel Queen Annex), which might’ve been because the shop itself was fully booked. Whatever the reason, I was grateful. The hotel was spacious and comfortable and both Kenji and Taiga were incredibly warm and eager to please, even with the language barrier. What made the experience even better was the casual time spent outside the room. They were game for dinner and drinks, which made everything feel more relaxed and less transactional. Honestly, it was the perfect combo of physical fun and chill hangout vibes. I’d totally do it again, but two nights feels like the sweet spot—enough to indulge without going overboard. After Tokyo, it was straight to Bangkok. I’ll admit—I was a bit nervous that two intense nights in Japan would burn me out before even hitting Thailand. But the moment I stepped off the plane in Bangkok, I felt this surge of energy. It’s that unexplainable buzz you get just being in this city. Immigration was a breeze—no line at all. I got processed and stamped in literally under two minutes. The baggage carousel, however, wasn’t quite as efficient—it took about 15 to 20 minutes before any bags showed up. Not a big deal though; I used the time to get a local SIM card and pull out some baht from the ATM. By the time I got back, my luggage was already waiting for me. On the way to my hotel via a pre-booked shuttle, I took in the sights and was happy to see things feeling almost back to normal. The driver confirmed that tourism had been a bit slower than usual—probably due to the recent earthquake—but everyone’s optimistic that Songkran will bring a much-needed spike in visitors. Fingers crossed! This time around, I chose to stay outside of Silom, in the Narathiwas area. It’s a quieter, more residential part of Bangkok—not walking distance from a train station, but it has its perks. The area has everything I need within a few minutes’ walk: a 7-11, some okay-ish restaurants, cafes, and even a laundromat. After the buzz and sensory overload of Tokyo, I actually appreciated the slightly slower pace. Once I got to my room, I had that usual Day 3 jet lag creeping in. I was really tempted to just crash, especially after the last two nights of near-zero sleep. The bed looked way too inviting. I gave in and let myself have a proper nap, but not before setting an alarm for 9 PM. Jet lag or not, there’s no way I was going to sleep through my first night in Bangkok!

Trying out another hotel a wee bit away from Silom this time.

If they start looking for HR people to handle the recruitment process, let me know 😁

I’ll be landing in Bangkok on April 6th after a quick two-night side trip from Tokyo! Not the biggest fan of Songkran, but my schedule worked out this way—so here we are. If anyone else is in Bangkok and up for a meetup, let me know! Hoping for an exciting and eventful trip so I’ll have plenty to share in my trip report. Fingers crossed!

I just came back from my Tokyo trip and used this provider exclusively: https://mens-salon-saboten.com/en/staff/ Their roster is not as extensive as other shops but I left satisfied 4 out of the 4 times I visited. Shop is a quick walk from Shinjuku Gyoemmae station but I am unable to comment about their facilities as I was hosted in a hotel room nearby as they seem to be fully booked.

I'm pleading the fifth. 😁 I was sifting through the Japan forum planning a trip - then this piece of news disrupted my plans! Fingers crossed the new bar will be a success.

Any idea how tipping works in these places? I'm curious as tipping is not expected in Japan - and some might perceive it as offensive.

I think diamond emoji means something else? (i.e. crystal meth)

Your trip report is such a joy to read @sudoxi! Can't help but wax nostalgic about my first time exploring the boy bar scene many moons ago.

I've visited SSENSE quite a number of times during the last three years. I've always been asked to leave a review but didn't bother to post or update the first one I made. I agree that google reviews doesn't have much bearing for me for shops such as this ---- since it leaves out the detail that I am most interested in. The same can be said for rankings or the order their profile will be placed in the booking site. I will still scroll past their most decorated and awarded staff and keep scrolling down till I find the profile that makes my heart skip a beat.

Yeah. Will depend mostly on the duration. I know some customers who will stay cuddled up with their chosen guy for the entire night without intention to off. I'm hoping the boy will receive a tip commensurate to that. In my case, doing the vibe check, due diligence, expectation setting etc. doesn't take so much time. So if they failed the vibe check within the first 10 minutes, I immediately send them back to rotation with a 100 baht note. If I may add a question - what's the expectation when you call a guy from stage to join you? Should you buy him drink immediately or is it alright to chat for a few minutes to decide if you want him to stay for drinks?

Not a definitive answer but based from experience: They will stay as long as you keep the drinks flowing (which can be pricey unless you avail of their bottle service). They will leave everytime they have to do their stage work as their endgame is to be offed. Once the topic of being offed is breached and there's mutual understanding that it will not progress to that stage, handing them a tip is the universal code for saying thanks and you are sending them back to rotation.

Yeah, it's hard to imagine visiting Thailand without these iconic institutions! 😄 But here's the thing: if I go for the bar boy service during the day, that's dipping into my 'daytime fun' budget. Not that it means I’ll skip the nightlife—I’m still clocking in when the sun goes down! It's really the naughty massages that'll be competing and missing out on my Baht if I take the plunge with Option 3.

Yeah. I tried this option a couple of times (as per the boy's suggestion). Saves time and baht as well i.e. entrance plus boy drinks plus tips do add up at the end of the night. The only downside is you will miss out the entire bar experience --- if you like and enjoy those kind of things. Maybe you can mix it up. First few days visit the bar to scope the lay of the land then focus on your 'reliables' when the bar scene loses its novelty. There's actually a third option - meet the 'reliable' boy outside bar hours (they need to be at the bar around 8pm) and no need to pay off fee.