A package tourist encounter
Trip Start
Jul 05, 2009
1
12
28
Trip End
Ongoing
Hua Hin, Thailand
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Now I am not usually shocked or outraged by the sex industry and it was no surprise to me at all to see the streets lined with salivating balding europeans and scantily clad thai girls tottering around on spike heels... however... despite the free-thinking reputation thailands sex industry has with even the most conservative of travellers, I couldn't help feeling uncomfortable... There is something altogether pathetic about the giggling schoolgirls (and lets be honest, a fair amount of them are under 18. I should know- i actually spoke to them, which is more than most of their clients seemed to bother to do) hanging off the arms of sweating, Hawaiian-shirted tourists, who had earlier been living it up with their wives and kids in the restaurant round the corner. I find it hard to believe that if you took the money away that any of these girls would be seen dead with these men (oh don't get me wrong they do an excellent job of looking like they wouldn't dream of being anyone else, but we all know how easily men are fooled). I can't decide where to point the finger, nor can i decide where to offload my sympathy, but the whole spectacle left a distinctly bad taste in my mouth that not even Spain's victorious defeat of Germany could get rid of.
The next morning I awoke with the kind of stinking hangover that reminds you that you are definitely not 16 anymore, threw up in various toilets and vowed never to drink again. Thankfully, a 2-hour thai massage and a banquet of fresh fruit smoothies cleared my head enough to send me on the way to bangkok. Needless to say, I won't be coming back.
