Tokyo Versus Bangkok
My formative years were spent on our family estate, where the racy conversations we had with the butler centered on what the local farm boys were doing to our maids. Quite amazing, the range of object (besides themselves) that the lads were able to insert
into the maids.
Many years and several continents later, “Move your head to the side” Ssshhu. A dart whizzes past my ear and bursts the balloon floating behind me. The bar girl on stage had bent over with her head down near her knees to fire
that dart and the blowpipe was nowhere near her mouth. Wow, I had no idea they could do that.
You can see that in Patpong but you can’t see it in Kabukicho area of Shinjuku, Tokyo. Both have bars with shows and available girls but the Tokyo shows are more like theatre productions and are much tamer. In Patpong, attractive women
try to get you to go into the bars. Kabukicho is four or five times bigger than Patpong and its young western men telling you what beauties they have inside. More emphasis on soapy sex there. Didn’t see that in Patpong. You have to wonder
why these guys are working in such sleaze joints instead of being in college. Both areas specialize in extracting the maximum amount of money from their customers. Occasionally in Kabukicho you will be stopped by young Japanese guys, wearing immaculate
suits, with slicked back hair and cell phones. These are the Yakuza (mafia). Generally they stop you going into a Japanese only club. Treat them politely with respect and they will treat you with respect. You don’t see them in Patpong.
Yuki is a doctor who owns her own clinic and has a secret life as a dancer. Went dancing with Yuki in Babiron in Ikebukuro. It’s a Latin nightclub modeled on the much bigger Copacabana nightclub in New York. The ladies are drinking
their beer straight out of the bottles, just like good ole rednecks here in the States. Yuki give a me a long and elegant introduction in Japanese, to her friend Suki, then tells me in English “She likes to fuck foreigners.” Suki
later tells me that she likes foreign men because they treat her with more respect than Japanese guys do. Didn’t find a situation like that in Bangkok yet. Working on it.
Roppongi isn’t really part of Tokyo or of Japan. It’s a foreign enclave of clubs and restaurants that is similar than Nana Plaza and the Sukhumvit strip. Go to one of the “in” nightclubs there and as you get within
thirty feet of the door, some good looking young Japanese lady will bump into you in a very nice way (tits first) and say “Take me in.” These ladies are not hookers, they are just looking for a good time. Definitely not a situation
where a Catholic girl will tell you what she cannot do while you have her in the middle of doing it. There are a few hookers around but most of the Filipina and South American “imports” are plying their trade on the other side of
town in Sunshine City (Ikebukuro).
There is a ladyboy theatre called Kingyo in Roppongi. Their shows will amaze you with their dancing, make you feel happy and touch you with sadness, all without using any words. Who knew ladyboys could be so gorgeous. “Can I have that ladyboy for Christmas?” “Sure, you deserve each other.” Sarcastic bitch.
Bangkok matches Tokyo with its own ladyboy cabarets, Mambo Cabaret and New Calypso Cabaret. Glamorous outfits, over the top drama and dancing. Ribald humour that can really crack you up. Jeez, look at the rack on that one. Once my brother paid up front for one of those gorgeous girls, only to find out it was a guy, then did him anyway. I really don’t think I could do that so I’ll just settle for the ribald humour.
Nakamachi Dori, one block off the expensive and ritzy Shinobazu Dori, just south of Ueno station, runs through an area that is the counterpart of Nana Plaza. Plenty of imported Korean and Chinese “butterflies”. Plenty of young polite Yakuza too. They are more concerned that their “butterflies” don’t get a chance to run away than they are from stopping you entering clubs. While the ladies on the street may be stunning, once inside the club there may only be slappers available. (Sounds like Patpong) Across Chuo Dori, towards the railroad tracks, there are many small restaurants that offer good food at low prices (for Tokyo) and some expat bars. The expat bars are not as big or as good as Bangkok expat bars and don’t have the same good food either.
Under-age girls are hard to find in both Tokyo and Bangkok. In both cases you have to be able to speak the language to find them. It helps to have a local friend too. Given the present problems of the pop singer and of the Boy Scout leader, er, what was I talking about? Oh yes, I have to pick up the cat from the vet.
In general, Tokyo bars with adult entertainment tend to be either more artistic or more sleazy than the bars in Bangkok. The Bangkok bars provide down-to-earth entertainment, that is not so artsy-fartsy and have less basic sleaze. Given a chance, Tokyo businessmen head for Bangkok because they getter a better deal for their money. So do I.
Stickman's thoughts:
Nice report.
