Phuket... I did!

This is the first post for ages I know. I've been sitting/laying on a deserted island beach for the last 5 days and have really struggled to find the will to spill pros onto a computer when the alternative is to spill Thai sand between my fingers!

So the last time you heard from me I was on my way to Phuket for some sun and relaxation. Well I found the sun but a group of fellow travellers and I had the misfortune to happen upon Pattong in Phuket, a beach town a bit like Clacton-on-sea crossed with Swansea's finest massage parlours. I've previously been exposed to the Thai sex tourists when I went to Ko Sumui in 2004 but I was never expecting this and never to this scale. What was funny though is that I have mixed feelings about the whole thing, let me explain. Firstly to set the picture imagine a beautiful long beach with white sand and crystal clear aquamarine water. Now line the street with dozens and dozens and dozens of bars, all with European names and all open fronted. Now in these bars put a sprinkling of Thai girls of varying age and beauty depending on the place and then warm the place up with some flashing lights and the lure of extended happy hours. Next get these girls to giggle, smile, wink and flirt with any guy that walks past. Got the idea?

What happens next is quite amusing. Many people walk past these places in search of the nice beaches and the seafront restaurants. However the other people, and they tend to be about 40-50 yrs of age and sporting speedos under an overhanging belly, get drawn into these bars thinking that the girls in them are actually punters and that they're genuinely interested in their company. What ensues is an interesting and mutually beneficial relationship. The guys who walk into the bars are made to feel good about themselves and the bars, including the girls, make a lot of money out of these hapless fat punters.

Basically what happens from that point in the night doesn't need much explaining but basically you will see a bunch of fat speedo wearing westerners cavorting around with Thai girls half, or even a quarter or their own age for the rest of their holiday. The men will spoil the girls rotten and in return they will feel better about them selves. It can even go further than that and often people will return year after year to see the same girls and as you know many of the guys will marry the girls. Many of the girls working in the bars tend to come from less affluent areas and often make a lot of money from the punters who tend to spoil them rotten over the duration their holiday. The bars, restaurants and tour operators don't care either as they're raking it in from the visitors pouring money into the town.

So is this wrong? If so who is at fault? Is it the western men who want to finally feel attractive to women? Surely they're just missing something and feeling desperately lonely, in need of someone who wont run away the first time they see them in a thong! How about the girls? Are they not just wanting a better life? They see the tourist dollars being thrown around and they just want a piece of it. They may never be able to afford the luxuries which Mr Speedo can lavish upon them which includes cruises, island hopping and 5 star hotels.

Now please don't get me wrong, this does not go on everywhere, quite the opposite. Thailand is filled to the brim with friendly and hospitable people who would never dream of stepping foot in a place like Pattong and would no doubt be disgusted with the image it is portraying around the globe. Equally there are many many visitors who visit the country and find its people to be so fun loving and friendly that they can genuinely fall head over heels in love with someone from Thailand. I have already met several of these couples including my dive master in Ko Phi Phi who found herself falling in love with a Thai guy on the island and that was enough for her to be with him for over 2 years on the island. And there is of course an old friend of mine who is now happily married to a lovely Thai lady in New Zealand.

Anyway think about it for a minute.