WTF happened to PATPONG?

[Guest]

I don't know why people use Tuk Tuk at all. They are the lowest in the pecking order for me and only use them as a last resort. First I take Skytrain if its before midnight.

Instead of Tuk Tuk I would much rather take an airconditioned meted taxi, and listen to met 107 on the radio during the ride over. This at a lower price even.

Sometimes it take me a few rejections from the bastards which I hate, but I find someone who wants my bizness eventually. So many taxi's doesnt take long. If it during a high traffic time, they don't like going so i will negotiate with a motorbike taxi which will get me there quicker.

Personally I like Patpong, brings back memories every time I'm there. Its raunchier, seedier, and gets me in a decadent sleazy mood. I usually find myself going to more obscure bars in search of ladyboy, or even hang out by the sidestreets in between Patpong I and Patpong II looking for trouble.

The streets definitely have more an air of danger than soi 4, but that adds to the excitement for me. I'm entertained when two working togeter come up to me and give me a rub and find nothing in my pockets. One of them actually asked me "where your money"

[TTChang]

 I agree, most times tuk tuks just aren't worth taking.  Gagging on traffic fumes, for what?  Most tuktuk drivers would rather sleep than take fares.

But I'm getting fed up with bolshy taxi drivers, who spend the trip sighing loudly when we get to a traffic jam, or drive erratically just to piss off a customer .... or start asking my LB date whether she has a cock etc ...
The other day one driver told my LB that the market she wanted to visit was closed.  When she told him not to try falang tricks, he then said 'we take tollway'. We told him 'no need'.  Then he told us he didn't know where the market was!    Then we got out!

Occasionally I enjoy a tuktuk ride speeding down Wireless Road, or it's useful for winding through a gridlock in Chinatown, or on festival nights waving down a tuktuk with 200 baht (laughing at the queues waiting half an hour for a taxi).

[pacman]

There's only one way to get around Bangkok, sitting on the back of a motorcycle.

5 times quicker at a quarter the price. Never be stuck in a traffic jam again & for the promise of a tip, they don't even need to use the road.

I was at the Narai in Silom one night when I realised I was being picked up to go the airport in 10 minutes. It was at least 3 kilometres away & Silom was gridlocked, nothing was moving.

Nothing that is except for the motorcycle taxis. I grabbed the young guy out front of the hotel & offered him 100 baht if he could make it in time.

First we went down Silom at 100 km/hour on the wrong side of the road, then he crossed against the lights & continued all the way down the footpath.

We made it with minutes to spare. I will never forget that ride, better fun than sex & equal in excitement to anything I have done in my life.

I guess you had to be there but if you weren't on a motorcycle, there's no way you could have caught me...

[halla]

(pacman @ Jun. 07 2009,15:17) There's only one way to get around Bangkok, sitting on the back of a motorcycle.

First we went down Silom at 100 km/hour on the wrong side of the road, then he crossed against the lights & continued all the way down the footpath.

Yes, yes, YES! That IS the way to get around!

As for the taxis from Patpong, just head for Thanon Rama IV and you'll be in a metered taxi within minutes. Not even a problem finding a metered taxi during the Silom Songkran madness (when they shut down Khao San Road).

[doug]

the day patpong shuts down, i will be there to dance on it's fucking grave. i hate that damn street with a passion.

i predicted last year that nana was on the way out, and certainly patpong is going to die before nana, so i wouldn't be surprised if that street is gasping it's last few breaths.

there is A LOT of interest from developers seeking to upgrade two of the last prime downtown locations that still cater to the "old sexpat trade" that most Thais would like to leave behind. with the toursim trade down it might finally encourage some of those old mafia pimps to finally part with their property and ride off into the sunset.

of course, the sex trade will just pop up on some other street, but mark my words, it's days are numbered in downtown bangkok. those locations are just too valuable and there is just too much money being flashed around by developers who are hoping to "buy low, sell high" while the tourism market is hurting.

[jadeite]

Doug, your misjudged and yet so confident prediction about nana shutting down shows how little you know and understand how things work here. This prediction and basis for it is even more of a joke I am afraid to tell you. I doubt anyone takes seriously someone who characterizes patpong as catering to "old sexpat trade". Have you even been there? It is evident to the most casual observer the business is not in the bars, it is the night market. How many people that waltz patpong go into a bar? No way even 1%. There goes your credibility again. Don't bother morphing your predictions to take such facts into account, it won't work.

Expats mostly dislike nana / patpong which takes even more creditibily away from you if that's even possible. Why didn't you mention soi Cowboy and it's incredible locale even?  Blows a hole in your "last two prime locations" theory. You either don't know how much time is left on Nana's new lease or you are stupid enough to believe in Thailand someone could kick out the tenants of a perfectly legal lease.

People like you who predict nighlife closure are a dime a dozen. Many with the same predictions preceded you, all armed with 100% positive proof in their mind they would be right. After you finally realize you are wrong and drop the torch there will be plenty of others that will follow in your footsteps posting the same laughable predictions all over again. But hey, why don't you keep a blog so you can keep us posted on how much time is left? That would be entertaining.

[Guest]

(doug @ Jun. 08 2009,22:18) the day patpong shuts down, i will be there to dance on it's fucking grave.  i hate that damn street with a passion.

i predicted last year that nana was on the way out, and certainly patpong is going to die before nana, so i wouldn't be surprised if that street is gasping it's last few breaths.

there is A LOT of interest from developers seeking to upgrade two of the last prime downtown locations that still cater to the "old sexpat trade" that most Thais would like to leave behind.  with the toursim trade down it might finally encourage some of those old mafia pimps to finally part with their property and ride off into the sunset.

of course, the sex trade will just pop up on some other street, but mark my words, it's days are numbered in downtown bangkok.  those locations are just too valuable and there is just too much money being flashed around by developers who are hoping to "buy low, sell high" while the tourism market is hurting.

doug do you have any sport predictions? or anything I can bet on the opposite result?

[pacman]

(jadeite @ Jun. 07 2009,12:18) I've seen pics from the 70's and 80's patpong and as far as I can see it is better now than any of those 3 decades. I would say it hit its peak about 10 years ago. The differences is back then there was no closing time, nudity / paste ons were found in downstairs bars, upstairs bars actually had some attractive girls, some watchable shows could be found, even more reasonably priced than now, and girls could be 18 instead of 20+ like now.

Don't worry about property developers buying up Patpong, remember the hierarchy of Thailand is dead set against the portrayal of Thailand's sex tourism image.

The danger of a repeat of the 80's when they closed Patpong overnight will always be there while that anti-sex sentiment prevails.

In the weeks following the closing of Patpong, it was only the argument that those who lived from the proceeds of the night life industry had few options to work, that saw some of it continue. The Kings Group must be very well connected.

(The money that the girls working in the bar scene of Bangkok remitted back to Issan had been keeping most of the North East of Thailand alive & fed. Not much has changed.)

I highlighted the line jadeite wrote about the peak in Patpong being 10 years ago. No it wasn't, not even close.

Perhaps he missed this line from my earlier post :

spare a thought for the demise of the greatest complex of bars in the known sexual universe. Spread over 4 blocks with bars alondside clubs next to restaurants, sex shows upstairs & short time rooms scattered around, Patpong was a thriving gathering for 1000's every night of the year.

I hope that an ex-pat who lived through the whole debacle can give their own view on this. I saw Patpong before & after but why it happened, I only learnt by asking locals.

[Guest]

I never know what to expect at KC3. I have had great times and bad times including being accused of not paying my bill as I left the club. The last time I was there was about 4 weeks ago. Many girls, mostly not attractive and very few customers. The girl who sat with me, uninvited was very aggressive and trying to convince me she was a "real girl". Why would I go into a lady boy bar if I wanted a real girl? Anyway, the talent was low but in great numbers. I left alone after only two drinks. I am not planning to go back soon. Guess, Obsessions, Cascades etc. seem to me to offer a better atmosphere, better girls and more relaxation.

[Guest]

TT, on my last two trips this year I have gone to Obsessions early, like right at 8PM only to find that Candy has already been barfined. I guess the new boobs are paying off.

[Hilbie Paratodos]

if nana closes im writing obama a leter asking were the audacity of hope went? i wish we could mix amsterdam and thailand, could u imagine smoking a spliff in the warm night air in bangkok stoned to the bejesus, its such a drunk vibe there, i find that if i dont drink in thailand i almost dont understand whats going on around me, and when i smoke there i feel like im on an alien planet- but as far as theese places closing, i doubt it-

[jadeite]

No question to me Nana is better than patpong, but you don't have to go back too many years when maybe it wasn't. Temptations didn't exist. Cascades had no ladyboys. Guess bar didn't exist. Casanova was only aggressive cyborg ladyboys. That left just Obsessions, which was very good as it is now. The street wasn't as good as now for ladyboys either. But some of the other bars in Nana had a ladyboy mingled in here and there. It is more segregated now. I still enjoy patpong and cowboy too. I think variety and choice is a good thing. It's not one vs another to me.

[Guest]

barfined fanta from cascade recently and asked her to be my tour guide to patpong. took a taxi and the fare was about 70bath. Went to one of the KC bar(i'm not sure 1,2 or 3) but fanta mentioned that most are post op. The bar was full
with japanese customer at that time. One funny thing that fanta mentioned was that those post op are quite sensitive with the word ladyboy. So to be on the safe side all should be addressed as lady. If you u mentioned ladyboy, then boxing will happened thats what fanta said and it almost make laughed   , Overall the place is good if u like post ops coz there are some japanese doll stunners as well. Later went to another KC bar which is only preop. The bar is much smaller almost the size of temptation nana. Only a few customer at that time, didnt see anyone i fancy so only stayed there fo a while. IMHO patpong still have a lot to offer in terms of post-op gals. For pre-op i'll just stick with nana

[indianajones]

Just walk away from Patpong and get a taxi from Rama 4....


Not rocket science

[jet712]

A few thoughts on Patpong.

In a rush of nostalgia I visited last month for the first time in 12 years...my very first trip to LOS was in 1997 and my first experience of the P4P scene took place in a short time hotel in Patpong with a GG I picked up there.

I got a taxi meter from the entrance to Soi 4 as far as Soi Convent in Silom for 70 bath...I wanted to check out an old haunt there before venturing down to Patpong.

When I finally arrived in Patpong I was completely taken aback as it was nothing like I had remembered or perhaps imagined it. The place was dirty, depressing, lacking in any atmosphere and expensive. I did a recce around the place and decided to have a beer while I weighed up my options. Found a beer bar (part of the King group I think) where there was a band playing....paid 180 baht for a beer !

I eventually mustered up the courage to visit KC3 and didn't stay for long. I sat near the front and tried to have a good look at what was on offer but of course I was soon the subject of the advances of a number of girls, one of whom would not leave me alone. I agreed to buy her a drink but made it clear that she was not my type. She told me that 70% of the girls there were GGs or cut ladyboys. I did see Odette (the original) there and one or two other girls who's faces I recognised and I had my eye on a femboy type who was strutting her stuff on the catwalk but I just found that I couldn't relax there with all of the desperate attraction I was receiving so I decided to cut my losses and leave.

I took a taxi back to Nana...the guy asked for 200 baht and I just laughed at him. Told him I had paid 70 baht to get here go we agreed on 100 baht.

I'm always inclined to give a place a second chance and maybe I'll make a return visit next time but to be honest I'm much more comfortable and relaxed in NEP or Soi Cowboy.