Silom Road area, as well as being the
main business district of Bangkok,
contains probably the most well-known
red light district in the world as well
as being about the most well known area
of Thai Nightlife :
Patpong. Many terms
could be used to describe Patpong. A
t-shirt used recently to promote a
conference on world sex workers sported
a logo, "Patpong - more than just a
street". This phrase is not only very
apt, but makes us think a little more
about this street (actually 3 streets)
in Bangkok.
Despite never having been promoted
officially, Patpong has become one of
the worlds most famous (or if you
prefer, infamous) tourist attractions.
Almost everyone you speak to about
Thailand conjures up at least one image
of this most famous of streets.
In recent times, the image many people
have had of Patpong is the one
propagated by TV documentaries and
travel programs, an image that would
have us believe Patpong in Bangkok is
nothing more than a seedy rundown red
light area run by pimps and gangsters.
This is an image created by TV producers
to make their programs more appealing to
a mass audience of gossip and scandal
hungry TV viewers. Despite this image,
Patpong remains one of the major tourist
attractions in Thailand.
Today Patpong, with its night markets,
has become an area frequented by all
types of visiting tourists, including
families. The go-go bars and beer bars
still survive and still operate as they
always have done. In fact, today they
are as busy as they always have been,
and if you really want to see the
prettiest girls working in a go-go then
Patpong is where you must go.
Patpong attracts males, and some
females, from all over the world into
what many describe as a fantasy world
full of exotic girls and bright lights.
Every night you can see the madness on
the streets of people braving the touts
and crowds of the night market to find
their own little piece of magic in this
'field of dreams'.
Patpong to the many that work there has
come to represent a distinct area
separate from the rest of Bangkok. To
many girls working here, it's a sort of
home from home where they can relax and
feel comfortable amongst friends. Where
else in the world would you find
employees arriving at their place of
work 4 hours before they start just so
they can talk, eat and relax together
before the day begins? Many tourist and
expatriates find themselves drawn to
Patpong with no other reason than they
to feel at home here.
Patpong, a continual favourite night
time haunt to many, is once again
recapturing some of its former glory as
the number one nightlife area in
Thailand. There have been a few
contenders to this crown. Still, Patpong
reigns supreme despite the competition
and the image portrayed by the world's
TV.
More than just a street it surely is. To
some it's life itself, for others a
playground. To many it's a place of
employment, but most of all it's a place
like no other.
To get into a bit more detail, the main
two areas are Patpong 1 and 2, two roads
running adjacent to each other. Patpong
1 is home to the night market. The
crowds that the night market attracts
are the main reason that a lot of long
time residents stopped coming into the
area. If, however, you just ignore the
throng of people and get yourself into a
bar you will find the highest
concentration of beautiful girls in any
of the farang orientated nightlife
areas. Two of the bars in particular,
King's Castle 1 and King's Castle 2,
always have a great selection of girls.
The next road over is Patpong 2, home to
the famous Rififi, the Rififi bar is as
famous as any bar in Bangkok, the bar
stools could tell thousands of stories,
this is one of Bangkok's legendary bars.
There is no night market here and you
can also find some 24-hour beer bars.
Another go-go located here that cannot
go without a mention is Pink Panther
which seems to attract a steady flow of
good looking girls, certainly as many as
most of the better known go-go bars.
Soi
Thaniya truly is Bangkok's "Little
Tokyo", mainly catering to Japanese
clientele. It really helps if your
Thai's in good shape to explore any of
these bars.
A lot of people seem to think that a
farang speaking Japanese would be
preferable but as these girls are Thai
you can soon lose them if your Japanese
is really up to scratch.
If business is quiet, then it's possible
for a farang to enter one of the hostess
bars along this soi quite easily. Prices
vary but most of the establishments that
are not KTV bars are the usual hostess
type arrangements. You pay for a girl -
and there are some beautiful girls here
- to sit with you and drink. What you
will be charged for is "lady drinks" but
that's not what you are being charged
for. A lady drink is usually a block of
time anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes
depending on the bar. Expect to pay
between 300 - 750 baht depending on the
bar and your language ability for each
of these time increments.
As far as barfines go, if the girl is
willing to go out the barfines are in
the region of 1000 - 2500 baht and some
of the bars have short time rooms on the
premises. What you pay the girl is
between you and her in some bars and an
all-in price with an optional tip in
others.
Basically, Soi Thaniya is not
recommended unless you really know the
scene well or are accompanied by someone
who does. You could really run up an
astronomical bill without trying here.
PATPONG NIGHT BAZAAR
Mention the word Patpong almost anywhere
in the world and most people will think
of Bangkok’s famous red light district.
But in the evening it has one of the
best tourist markets in town.
If you visit it in the day time it's just
a simple insignificant street that links
Silom and Suriwongse Road. Around about
5pm the transformation begins. Out of
nowhere or so it seems, come large metal
trunks on wheels with all the stock.
Team of workers are frantically putting
together two aisles of stalls, metal
frames slotted together, board laid on
them to make the counter, cables thread
between them for the light, vendors
busily displaying their goods to maximum
advantage. By around 7pm the show is
ready to begin. Patpong is more about
theatre than anything else, everything
an illusion, nothing is real.
In the warm balmy night, tourist will
see an array of exotic watches, its says
Rolex, it looks like a Rolex but is it?
And then what price should I pay. The
vendor will tell you a tale that it’s
the latest model, the mechanism is
special and will start the bidding high.
It now up to you to cut him down in
price. He asks 1,500, counter with 600.
If you speak a few words in Thai it
helps but if you don’t just mutter Peng,
too expensive, and be firm.
A mistake
that a lot of visitors to Thailand make
is they convert the price being asked
into their own currency and then
consider how does that compare with what
I would pay at home. Of course it’s
cheaper but you are in Thailand and need
to think in terms of local prices if you
are ever to get the best deal.
I was once buying a shirt with an asking
price of 800 Baht and I negotiated to
200 Baht. Standing next to me was
another foreign visitor who was happy to
pay 600 baht for the same shirt.
Patpong has an excellent selection of
clothes, watches, leather goods and
shoes. For the tourist who is in town
for a couple of nights it's possibly the
most convenient and user friendly place
to shop. It’s not the cheapest anything
you can buy in Patpong can be bought
about 40% cheaper in Pratunam market
just off Phetburi Road but the shopping
experience is not as easy and will take
twice as long. That the choice, time
versus money.
Beware of the taxis waiting either end
of Patpong, they always have some tale
that there metre isn’t working or it’s a
fixed fare to wherever you want to go. I
just won't take them, either use a taxi
that’s moving in the street or if you
are staying close to a skytrain station
take the BTS home.
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