So, the more I see of Thailand the more I realize the extremes here. Here's my experience from the other night. I start in Bangkok on Khao San rd. where there are so many backpackers that people don't even approach you in Thai they start talking in English or in Hebrew. I go to buy a bus ticket to Chiang Mai in the north, and I know that the ticket should cost 350 Baht but sales lady talks me into buying a ticket for 550 because she tells me the other bus company in unreliable, and the buses are dirty, and break down all the time, and so on and so on. So I show up to the bus and find I bought the 350 ticket for 200 Baht too much, ok i understand its only 6 dollars but still. And so everything the woman told me was right, I'm so surprised we actually made the entire 14 hour trip. But after being cheated I meet some of the kewlest backpackers yet, from Israel and Germany. And I ended up traveling for the past 4 days with them and absolutely had a blast!
So we get to Chiang Mai and find a nice place to stay for 180 Baht. Then at night we go out to the bars and hop around a little b4 finding ourselves in a bar called Spicey at 4am. Well, to say the least this was the saddest most disgusting place I have ever seen with my eyes!!! I was shocked!! It was a club with maybe 3/4 Thai girls from the age of say 15 to 40 all working to get money from the foreigners. Well all the men in the club were dirty old Europeans that had absolutely no respect (and y should they if the girls are working that way) and just grabbing at the Thai girls (thank g-d they were leaving all the foreign girls alone) and half un-dressing them on the dance floor. Then there was one Thai girl who must have been on some crazy drugs jumping all over the place and almost attacking my friends. It was just disgusting, and she must have been 4 foot 10 or so and less than 100 lbs. Alright, so that experience was too much for me I wanted to vomit!!!
Then the next day me and my 2 friends decide we need to get out of Chiang Mai and book a minivan ticket to Pai. The drive up here was 4 hours and through these thick rain forest covered mountains with every other turn up the mountain showing an amazing view of layers and layers of dense green mountains. I could not believe I was in the same country!!! It was breathtaking and the mountain air was so fresh! Then we arrive to Pai, an amazing little town where it seems everyone knows everyone and the locals are in love with the backpacker community. Everything here is crazy cheap and you can rent a motorbike for $3/day and dive less than 15 mins in different directions from the center to visit amazing waterfalls, and a little canyon, and elephant village and fruit orchards. Then end your day at one of the local bars with all the backpacker friends you've made and share your stories from the day.
It's just incredible how you can have such completely different experiences from this crazy country!
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2 comments:
Wow.....so much variety in one small place... it sounds exciting ...... I am waiting patiently to see pictures of the newest duo that you have been traveling with. I'm sure it has made your trip a better one....I'm sorry you had to stumbled upon the "Spicey" bar ..... it's sad that young people have to make their living that way.....and we can appreciate what we have more.....Continue to enjoy you travels and also continue to write about them....It was great talking to you also.....Love, Mom :o)
Unfortunately what you probably witnessed was human trafficking. Most of the girls, if they look young are forced into selling themselves for sex because they were promised better opportunities from the men who took them there. They also have a HUGE crystal meth problem which would explain thier behavior. I would be disgusted too and its so sad that there is still this tupe of "slavery" in the world. You should look up one of the non profits that works with trafficking, they could help.
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