Tonight I'll be leaving for Busan

2011-06-25T10:57:00.000+08:00

for a five-week summer school at a local university.

I'll miss you dearly...

Travelling to Bangkok: Patpong

2011-06-21T00:08:00.005+08:00

"Uh, no thanks," I muttered sullenly as I lifted my right hand to give the seemingly shady middle-aged man a dismissive wave. But, perhaps to the Thais the sweeping gesture indicates 'please follow close behind me and annoy the hell outta me', he didn't leave me alone. Quite, the contrary.

He took after me relentlessly like a cat hunting a mouse, all the while repeating the phrase biao yan, which means 'performance' in Chinese, ad nauseam. Before I was able to react, he thrust a sheet into my face. On it was the heading 'Puss* Show' in large bold print followed by an endless list of novelty acts the scantily clad girls in his strip club could do with their ~~vaginae~~ orifices: slicing bananas, popping balloons (wow, what powerful pelvic muscles), playing ping-pong, smoking cigarettes, writing novels (I fleetingly wondered if any were ever published); the list went on. I felt a sudden urge to punch the man hard on the nose.

Yes, this is Patpong, one of the most notorious red-light districts in Bangkok. Everywhere you turn, you're almost bound to bump into seedy-looking men who will work to cajole you into their nightclubs, regardless of your age and gender. Sneak a quick peek into those grubby clubs and you'll catch sight of girls and trannies standing on raised platforms in skimpy bikinis, gyrating their hips to the disco music blaring overhead. Unless you're more than keen to watch a puss* show, you might find the entire scene utterly appalling.

But, of course, I didn't give the man a bloody nose. Instead, I made a more sensible move; I lengthened my stride, seeking to break away. It took me miles to finally ditch him.

This pretty much explains the severe lack of photos in this blog entry. I was too busy fleeing for my life to slow my pace and snap a few shots. The only two pictures of Patpong I've in my memory card are this

and this.

They depict the slightly more decent part of the region, where neat rows of market stands are set up and a vast range of wares are displayed. Most of the items sold are counterfeit designer goods ~~and vibrators~~ that I don't encourage purchasing because you could definitely get fairer deals at other shopping destinations such as the Chatuchak weekend market. But I'll leave that for another post.

As for now, I'm just grateful that I'd walked outta Patpong unscathed on that humid night without having to see any banana-slicing-balloon-popping puss*** in action.

I've returned to Malaysia

2011-06-07T22:58:00.009+08:00

safe and sound.

Will fill you guys in on my awesome trip to Bangkok within the next few days. So stay tuned!

I'm flying to Bangkok

2011-06-03T01:40:00.004+08:00

in far less than 24 hours.

See you guys in five days.

Hello, there!

2011-06-01T20:20:00.003+08:00

Have you missed me?

saNcTuaRy for the FugiTiVe HeaRT

Tonight I'll be leaving for Busan

Travelling to Bangkok: Patpong

I've returned to Malaysia

I'm flying to Bangkok

Hello, there!