Soi 33 Insight

Having spent a great deal of time (and even more money !!!!) down there over the last 2-3 years, I've come to know some of the Soi 33 girls quite well – mostly the Monet girls amongst others.

A lot of these girls seem to be hired by word of mouth and are often school friends of bar girls obviously lured in by the chance to make some good $'s/THB. A lot of these girls are at school – they tend to gravitate to Marketing courses. I've also found that many of the girls are in fact related, with cousins, sisters, second cousins etc having been hired under referral of their relatives already working at the bar. Maybe there's a small spotters fee payable to the girls, I don't know. I've also found quite a few of the girls have boyfriends who are the brothers of other girls working at the bar. Seems a very close-knit little community in a lot of ways. Say something to one, and I suspect all will know quickly. For this reason, can be very difficult to "butterfly" at the one bar. I don't want any of the little treasures to lose face over a silly indiscretion on my part either so need to tread wearily and smartly through the minefield if you know what I mean. Many of the girls seem to be from families in BKK, although certainly many of them poor families – I've seen some of their dwellings – absolutely amazing, chickens, dogs all living in the same room as the family. Many are from broken families.

Are they more upmarket than your average Nana, Patpong or Cowboy girl ? Some are and some are not – obvious answer I know. Soi 33 girls seem better educated. All / most with few exceptions are very, very attractive – most girls have the help of a professional make-up artist to apply the filler at the bar before we farangs arrive on the scene. (I've enjoyed arriving early for the happy hours and watching the before and after transition). These girls are generally looking their best when at the bar. The take-out can provide a different look, if not a little disappointing, although many would look good wearing a paper bag.

Those damn evening gowns provide a perfect means of inserting padding however. Don't get too worked up over the cleavage in an evening dress is my advice.

Whilst most are quite stunning, the more average ones (without stopping traffic, they would still turn heads in most western cities) I think are generally hired for their pleasant demeanour and limited conversational skills or sense of humour/wit. A few have neither and I wonder why they're there. Charity lady drinks perhaps as I sometimes feel sorry for them and buy them one anyway.

I've found most of these girls are looking for a real boyfriend. Some have taken a great deal of work and effort "to get to know" as take-outs / after hours. Several have shown up with mother and family at the front door after only a few meetings (!!!!!) – quite stunned with this at first, and sometimes hard to separate a genuine want to get the rubber stamp from their family to see me, or are simply trying to set me up for the obvious shopping trip etc – some the former, some the latter no doubt. (Very funny having to hide the condoms, smoking jacket and fezz in a hurry when opening up the door expecting to find my girl, only to be accompanied by her mother, sisters and cousins – just joking about the smoking jacket and fezz).

The big difference between your average Nana girl and your Soi 33 girl is that your average Nana girl is out simply to get you out of the bar, get your money quickly and get back to the bar for the next one. The Soi 33 girl generally loves and welcomes a paid out bar fine – these are not as frequent as your Nana bars and so seem to be genuinely quite special (take outs can be 3 times the cost of a Nana take-out on some days). Most of them prefer you take them out for a meal and dancing. You need to fully understand expectations of the take-out beforehand as there are a few girls who simply aren't prepared for anything more as they are in relationships – some Thai boyfriends and farang boyfriends (I suspect all can be had but for what price, that's the question, and is it worth it – no, is often the answer when other opportunities beckon).

Many of the girls have become very honest and open in communicating over time – one girl, when I asked how her farang boyfriend was, she asked laughingly which one ! – we all know the games bargirls play but I welcomed her frankness and honesty – I actually quite fancy her and, knowing her situation/style, would welcome an encounter as she is a stunner – she's on my objectives list for my next trip.

Needless to say there are some genuinely nice girls in the Soi, but obviously there are serious players as well.

I also note that there is a real drug presence down there. Mostly uppers to get them through the night – you can pick them – some mj after hours too. To their credit, a lot of the girls are very critical of this. A lot of the bad influence seems to come from behind the scenes with the Thai boyfriend influence.

Got close to a young 20 year old beauty last year who looked a 9.9999 through the haze of Johnnie Walker Black, gorgeous – unfortunately, she's on the downward spiral now at 21 (!!!), into drugs and under some bad outside influences despite my attempts to turn her around – sad but crazily inevitable. Paid for her to take an English course and encouraged her to take her job back at the Emporium – would have been willing to sponsor her the difference in income with appropriate supervisory controls but in so many ways the bar life is attractive to them and most of them would like to be "good girls" but can't be bothered.

It was wonderful there for a while over a period of time watching her body change from that of a youthful beauty with a hint of puppy fat to become a super slender toned beauty. I wonder now though whether that tone is the beginning of wastage. I suspect she'll probably age very quickly from here on.

Stick, the bill padding (and evening dress padding !!!) is a real issue at Monet but despite the negatives (and a big one at that), I'm still lured back to these girls. I don't run up a big tab and pay regularly to keep some level of control, although I'm sure some sneak under the radar the more comfortable you settle in. My length of stay in a session has probably also been reduced, so they're dishonesty costs them in the end.

For what it's worth, in 3 years of Monet attendance, I've never been provided a complementary drink by the management – poor customer relationship skills.

As a positive, I've found that at Playskool at Nana, as an almost nightly patron who consumes copious amounts of scotch and regular bar fines, the complimentary drinks have been regularly forthcoming which has impressed me. For this reason, with a stable of some real talented and fun beauties, Playskool is the best gogo in BKK.

Still, despite the attractions and benefits to be had at Playskool, I still find myself being lured to Monet and the Soi 33 experience.

Stickman says:

I still can't make my mind up about Soi 33, though I agree with just about all of your thoughts on the soi.