Grand Baht Auto – Pattaya City Stories

It all started one evening, in crappy Cheddar, which for a lot of you who've never heard of it, is a small town in Somerset, England. Me and my mate Jon had been invited there, to another mate's 21st birthday party. I'm 28
by the way and Jon's 22! We knew it wasn't going to be a great night because of the small venue it was being held at, so me and Jon decided to hit a couple of pubs first. The vodkas were flowing down well when the conversation about
women came up (as it quite often does). I started telling him about Thai women and how much different they are in comparison to English girls. I told him of the great times and experiences I have had in Thailand.

The last time I had gone there was September 2004. Jon asked me whether I'd ever consider going back there again. I said I'd like to and often think about it but don't really have anyone to go with. Most people I know are settled down now,
or can't afford the airfare. I said 'would you be up for going, because if you would, I think you'd really enjoy it'. With little hesitation he replied 'yes'. I said 'that's great, I've got a couple
weeks off at the end of November (it was September at the time), would you be able to get the money to go then?' 'Sure' he replied. So within a couple of weeks, I'd sorted out some cheap flights and a hotel that was very reasonable.
Those 10 weeks went by quite quickly and before we knew it, we'd endured the flight and taxi, taking us to Pattaya.

We got to our hotel (Sawasdee Seaview) and went to our rooms to freshen up for the first night that awaited us. I had said to Jon that when we go out at night, to expect a lot of attention, I said you'll feel like some sort of celebrity!
Jon knows I'm not a bullshitter, but I don't think he quite realised the amount of attention he was about to receive. Our hotel was located at Soi 10, so I thought as it's not too far a walk away, to go to the Pig & Whistle
for something to eat. I knew it was a decent place to go and at the same time, a walk down Soi 8 would really open Jon's eyes to the treats he was in store for during the next couple of weeks. We got 10 metres down Soi 8, when we were mobbed,
he looked at me and said 'what's happening?' I told him, that's what I meant when you'll feel like a celebrity! I think he was in awe of it all for the first night. I know I was the first time I'd experienced my first
night. I mean, surely there's nowhere else in the world quite like Pattaya! Jon soon got used to the attention and was clearly enjoying it. I knew from that point that he'd be returning again next year! So we enjoyed a meal at the Pig
& Whistle and then headed up to Soi Pattayaland, first stop was Jupiter a gogo. Heaven had arrived once more, a bottle of Singha and a host of gorgeous women, it can't get better than that! We stayed there for a while before heading towards
Angelwitch. I'd read a lot about this place online and from what I'd read it sounded quite impressive. It was definitely that alright! We stayed in there for a couple and then did a good tour of Walking Street, before heading back to
Soi 8, where we got ourselves a couple of ladies for the night. They weren't overly stunning but it was very late into the night by then so I guess the cream of the crop had already been snapped up.

We woke up quite late the next day, about 2.30pm I think. We said goodbye to the women, had a look round the stalls and shops before having something to eat and then getting ready for another night round the bars and clubs. Same sort of night
as the first one really, except this time Jon barfined a girl from 'Dollhouse a gogo'. Whilst we were in Dollhouse, I got chatting to some bloke called Dave, he seemed to be a Pattaya regular and like my mate Jon, he had a girl from
Dollhouse. Dave offered us all to go for a drink somewhere on Walking Street, it sounded a good idea so off we went.

Once we all got to the bar, I started thinking to myself, what the hell is going on here, I've not got myself a girl for the night yet. There's Jon with his girl and Dave with his girl and me sat here like a loner. I said to Jon and Dave I was
gonna go into Marine Disco and find myself a girl. So off I went, I didn't get very far before I decided to make a quick stop at Honey a gogo, a couple drinks in there and then Marine. I went into Marine got myself a drink, chatted to a few
girls but still didn't really see the one for me. The plan all along was for me and my girl (when I got one) to go back and meet Jon and Dave to resume the drinking. A couple hours had passed and still I remained alone, so I went back to
the bar to find them, but they had already left, so I just decided to make my way back to the hotel. At that point I thought I'd be spending the night alone. So I walked back along Beach Road, when I caught sight of 2 girls, one of which
called me over, I thought 'why not' so I wandered over.

In all my stays in Pattaya I have never gone with a girl that's hanging around by the Beach, I've heard a lot of bad reports, i.e. sexual diseases and thieving. At the same time though, I've got and use protection and most of my valuables
are locked away. The girl who initially called me over said she wanted to go with me, I said 'sure, what about your friend does she want to go with me as well?' I had found a perfect opportunity to get most blokes dream on the go here,
so I thought I'd try my luck. 'Yes, I go with you too' her friend said. Fair play I thought, so we got some beers and made our way back to the room, the security bloke looked at me as much as to say 'you lucky sod'. He
was right as well, I'm not going to go into full details of what took place after we got to the room, all I will say is that it was a memorable night!

Early in the morning the following day, the 2 girls said their goodbyes and left. I feel like a right sod really because I can't remember their names. I went back to sleep and gave Jon a ring when I woke up, somewhere around 2.30pm again.
He was still in bed too, his girl from Dollhouse was still there, they both went off for a bite to eat and I met up with Jon early in the evening. He asked me where I'd ended up, so I explained everything to him. He couldn't believe
what I was telling him, I said I couldn't really believe it myself but this is a land of opportunity! We were ready for a third night on the beers, this holiday was taking a familiar pattern, getting up about 2.30pm and going to bed between
5am – 6am. I suppose really, living by those hours was not really adjusting to the time for us too much, not when you put those times back by 7 hours!

Jon couldn't believe how on a lot of things Thailand is more advanced than England and the more they have on offer. I agree with him really, for a so-called rich country, they put us to shame out there. The Christmas decorations through-out
Pattaya and 'Happy new year 2007' lighting at Royal Garden Plaza puts our decorations to shame. Well it does to the towns near where I live. For a country which doesn't celebrate Christmas, that really takes the full on piss. Back
to matters in hand, night three was same old same, gogo bars and beer bars, except this time towards the end of the night we were both without women. We ended up taking a walk down Soi 7, since the last time I went to Pattaya, there seems a lot
more beer bars down there now. I had my eyes everywhere looking for the girl who I wanted to be with that night and this time I found her. Don't get me wrong that threesome was amazing but, they were girls that looked me out, this time it
was the other way around.

We sat down at the bar and immediately the girl I liked came over to me, she knew I'd clocked her! We got chatting, played some pool and enjoyed a few drinks. I'll refer to her in this submission as 'Candy'. Not at any
time did Candy start talking about barfines or 'I go with you', I'd made my mind up on that already! After an hour or so, we decided to leave the bar, I paid Candy's barfine and off we went. Jon decided not to barfine anyone
that night, I think he wanted to catch up on some sleep! Once back at the room Candy was just the same as she was at the bar, happy, fun to be with and could hold a good conversation with me. There are a few bargirls I've met before that
suddenly turn into a 'wet weekend' once they're back at your room, but luckily for me, Candy wasn't one of them. The rest of the night was fantastic and the next day with her was great fun. I was a bit concerned that Jon may
have felt the odd one out, as it was 3 of us. Not at all though, he thought Candy was great and he had a good day too. I decided to pay her barfine again that night. I told her to go and work and I'd be along later, me and Jon wanted to have
a few beers and take in the sights, but least tonight I knew there would be someone waiting for me come the end of the night. Sure enough, once we arrived at Candy's bar, she came running over to me, all smiles. So the fourth night pretty
much followed the same path as the third, Candy hooked Jon up with one of her mates, so he was alright for the night too.

A strong closeness was forming between me and Candy and call me mad, but at first I wasn't so keen on it. Why? Because I didn't want to go leaving my heart in Pattaya and then coming home feeling like crap and missing her. I never
came here for a girlfriend, I came here to play the field. I've met a lot of bargirls in the past and for the first time Candy seemed a genuine one. Well almost. She told me one lie and didn't deny it, the very first day she spent with
me, we were at my room, when her phone rang. It was obviously some farang the other end because of her speaking in English and walking to the bathroom to answer the call. When she came out of the bathroom, I questioned her why she had to go there
to answer the call. She told me it was due to a bad signal. I told her not to give me any bullshit because I'm not an idiot. She came clean straight away and said it was a friend from Australia. I said why not tell me that from the start,
I know what your job is, I know you meet hundreds of men. She explained that she didn't want to upset me/make me mad, I explained the only thing that upsets me is telling me lies, she seemed to understand me. Bear in mind that at this point,
I wasn't planning on spending more than a couple nights with her, so she could have just denied it. It came to night 6 and when I arrived at Candy's bar, I was greeted with the happy smiles and warm embraces. I'd been thinking all
night that tonight I would tell her that I couldn't barfine her because if I end up falling in love with her its not really good for me. That's what I did and predictably, tears is what I received, were they tears of sadness or just
pure crocodile tears? I'd like to think the first but I just don't know, but if the later then she prob deserved an academy award! She then questioned whether I loved her or not, I said 'no, but I do feel a lot for you'. I
can't just throw the 'L' word about after a few days and mean it. Once again, Candy seemed to understand that. I felt the ultimate sod for doing this to her, I did really like her a lot and to see her so upset was not a good sight.
I did think whether this was another bargirl act though and the thing is, if it was, it was working. Then all of a sudden I had a bright or (for some of you reading this) not so bright idea. I asked her whether she would like to get a tourist
visa and come and stay in England with me for a holiday (it would tell me just how genuinely she felt), she acted really surprised but also very happy. She said men had asked her many times before but she said no because she didn't like them,
she said going with men was part of her job but falling in love and going to their country was not. Candy told me she loved me and would love to come to England, once again, throwing the 'love' word around so soon, is something that
rarely happens in England so I was reluctant to believe that. The look in her eyes seemed very true to me though, a look that I've not seen before, Jon had picked up on this before. I barfined Candy once again, I was so happy when I was with
her and I'd love for her to come to my country and spend time with her, but I was annoyed at myself for allowing all this to happen. I set my stall out from the start not to stay with a girl for a long time and after my third night I'd
messed it up good and proper. I was happy though, that's the important thing, probably crazy as well but importantly 'happy'.

The next day, we headed down to Soi 12 (I think it was Soi 12) to this place that could give you advice on visas. We got inside and I explained that I wanted to try and obtain a tourist visa for Candy to come and stay with me in England.
The guy in there was very helpful, he wrote down a list of paperwork and various documents that Candy would have to provide. He said the main thing I had to do was to supply an invitation letter. Wow, what a piece of cake I thought. The guy then
started speaking in Thai with Candy and basically explaining the documents that she'd need to provide. I was just sat there looking at Candy and watching her expression change from excitement to heartbreak. The guy then told me that a tourist
visa would be extremely difficult to obtain as Candy did not have written bank records for the last 6 months. This guy was no twat, he knew she was a bargirl, he prob has dozens of blokes like me coming through the door every day with bargirls,
knowing the uphill task they face. I said to the guy that basically you're telling me it's virtually impossible for this type of visa, he said 'for this type of visa yes', Out of curiosity I asked him about a marriage visa,
he said that that was much easier to obtain. I thanked him for his time, left the shop and me and Candy made our way back to the hotel.

As soon as we got back to my room, Candy was in tears, she was devastated. I was gutted too but at the same time I wasn't surprised at how difficult it would be for Candy to provide the relevant documents. I comforted her but she kept saying how
much she loved me and wanted to be with me all the time. I wanted her to come to England so much, so much so, I decided to question her with marriage. I said 'what if we applied for a marriage visa?' 'seriously' she said. 'Yes,
but not this time, when I come back again in April'. 'Maybe you forget me' she said. 'Noooooooo, I won't forget you'. Candy told me men have proposed to her before but because she didn't love them, she refused.
'Yes, I marry you darling, make me happy' For doing this, had I taken a massive leave of my senses you ask. Well maybe I had but at the same time I was thinking of the future. 1) We get on so well 2) She speaks great English, so no language
barrier 3) I can see a great future with her 4) Where am I going to find a girl like this in England? answer? NOWHERE! 5) I'm really happy when I'm with her. Yes I was determined not to fall for a bargirl but I did, I really did! One
of the first things Candy done was get her phone and erase the farang names from her phone book (there weren't a real lot on there), any photos, everything, she asked me to get her a new SIM card if I wanted, I told her it was ok and that
I trusted her. Candy was also aware that if she told me one serious lie, I would walk away, this had to be an honest relationship from the start. I don't want to be taken for a fool.

I went and found Jon and explained what I had done. He was quite shocked but at the same time happy for me, he said that we seemed right for each other and reckoned Candy's love was true. (Before you ask, no, Jon wasn't pissed but
yes, he was a newbie!). We enjoyed an afternoon round the bars before going out for a meal and then a few games of bowling for the night. When we got back to the hotel later that night, Candy and I talked about getting a passport sorted. She said
that you have to go to Bangna to process one. I suggested that we go there the next day and get the ball rolling, so that's what we done. Quite straight forward really, just a 3 hour wait at the passport place involved. They said it would
be 3 days if we went and picked it up as soon as it was ready or longer if they were going to send it through. I suggested that Candy get a bus to Bangna and pick it up, I didn't want it getting lost. I thought if she went off to collect
that, it would give me and Jon a bit of time to buy some gifts for friends and family. After we finished at Bangna, Candy thought it would be nice if we called round and saw her sister in Bangkok. I said 'yes, why not', so we got a taxi
and headed there. Her sister was 29, although she didn't look it, we stopped there for a while and had a drink. Candy was explaining where we'd been and what our plans were. Candy's sister didn't speak a word of English and
I only know a little Thai from what I learnt on Pimsleur CDs, but she seemed a very nice person, all the while though I felt as if she was sussing me out. Candy said to me that her sister hoped I would take care of her and that I was not a butterfly.
One thing I notice about the women in Thailand is they seem to stereotype all younger men as butterflies or cheats. If I'm happily going out with a girl then there's no way I'd cheat or be a butterfly but they don't seem to
grasp this. After we said our goodbyes there, we got a bus to the bus station and then got another bus to take us back to Pattaya. This was the first time I'd travelled by bus in Thailand and from what I'd read I thought it wasn't
going to be a pleasant experience. In reality it was just like taking a bus in England, except for the toilet! When you're 6'2" its a bit of a nightmare clambering your way in and out of there!

Once back in Pattaya we went to meet Jon at his hotel room. Jon was alone but had spent the day at the cinema with a girl he'd barfined the night before. Jon started getting bored with Candy's mate, so I explained to him to just
come clean and tell her that you want a different girl. So that's what he did and he was much happier with the new girl. We'd met her a few nights previous and kept going to her bar since. One thing I didn't mention about my mate
Jon is that he looks a little bit like Wayne Rooney, in many bars you would hear chants of 'looney, looney'. Pui, the girl Jon was with now kept remarking on him looking like Rooney, she seemed to like it. I remember in one place I told
a Thai guy in a restaurant that Jon was Wayne Rooney's brother! He came back with a pen and paper and asked for Jon's autograph, I was in stitches! Anyway, after a long day at Bangna and then Bangkok, you'd think I'd be tired,
but no. I was ready for another night on the beers! Candy was quite tired and said would it be alright if she stayed at my room. I already had trust in her, but this was the ultimate test. Leaving her in my room with money, an IPod, jewellery
and various other things. I agreed that it was fine for her to stay there, I was sure she'd do no wrong. I had a shower and got changed, kissed Candy goodbye and then went off with Jon. We got ourselves something to eat and then made our
way up to Walking Street. How I love the nightlife in Pattaya. Towards the end of the night, we headed down to Pui's bar so Jon could pay her barfine again. We then made our way back to the hotel, I said goodnight to Jon and Pui and made
my way back to my room. My trust was proven right and there was Candy snuggled up in bed waiting for me. I was asked many times whether I had gone short time with another lady or do I want to change ladies. I reassured her that I only wanted to
be with her and that I was very happy.

When we awoke the next day, we all went down to the 'Pig & Whistle' (how British do I sound there!?!) and had some breakfast, well, breakfast food at mid-afternoon! Candy wanted to try a traditional fry up minus the fried eggs.
She explained that if she comes to England, she wants to make effort and try some of our food. I said not to worry as there's lots of Thai food on offer and that I'd make sure she was ok. Candy still insisted that she wanted to try it,
I think she was doing it more to please me which was quite sweet of her really. The fry up arrived and she managed it quite well, personally I think she'd prob eaten one before. Once we'd finished our breakfasts, we said goodbye to the
girls, Jon said he would meet Pui again later and Candy wanted to go and get some fresh clothes and would meet me back at my room in the evening. At this moment in time there was already a whole host of Candy's things in my room, 3 bags,
make-up, clothes, jewellery, it was like I had arrived in Pattaya with a partner to begin with! I went back to the room and had a shower, met up with Jon and then made our way along second road, stopping at bars and slowly making our way towards
Pui's bar. One of the bars we decided to stop for a drink at, I noticed a Scottish bloke sat the other side making a right @#$^#$@ of himself, loud and speaking aggressively towards the girls there. With that, he got up from his stool and
walked off towards the toilets, kicking a pole on his way. Jon had noticed him as well, we both commented on what an asshole he was, he must have been in his early fifties. We hoped he would return, pay his bill and piss off. We were wrong, he
came back got another drink and continued his degrading comments towards the girls. Personally I like receiving attention from women, this guy obviously didn't and just wanted a quiet drink on his own. Nothing wrong with that, but to ask
the girls in a more polite manner to leave him alone wouldn't be such a hard thing would it? This guy was really getting on my nerves now, shouting 'you're just a whore, a WHORE!' The girls we were playing games with could
see we weren't happy, they reassured us that this guy would be ok in a minute. I've never got into a fight when I've been out, not anywhere, but this guy was asking for a smack in the mouth and if I saw a bloke treating women like
that in England, I would have done it no hesitation. This was Thailand though and I didn't want to start trouble. If that guy didn't get a smack in the mouth from somebody by the end of the night I'd have been very surprised. If
he didn't get that then I hope he got fleeced…….wanker! I could see Jon's blood was boiling too, so we drank up and left. We got to Pui's bar, had a drink and a few games of pool and then went back to the hotel, got Candy and
then went to a few more bars. Jon was concerned that Pui and Candy wouldn't get on, Pui was only 17 and Candy's 26. So he thought because of the age gap there might be a problem, but not at all, they got on really well which we were
both happy about.

The following night Candy didn't want to go out because she wanted to wake up early the next morning and get the bus to Bangna to pick up the passport. She wanted me to go out though and enjoy myself. Pui came to my room to stay with
Candy and they planned a girls night in. Jon left his key with Pui so when she decided to go back to his room and wait, she could. Most nights we'd visit the same haunts, Jupiter, Misty's, Living Dolls, Honey, Angelwitch, amongst others.
We'd made quite a few friends in these places and right from the first night in Jupiter, one particular girl kept on and on to me that she'd like to go with me. I'll nickname her 'Cowgirl' because she was the only girl
in Jupiter in all the nights we went there to wear a hat and in my opinion the only one who knew how to dance! I always had a drink and a chat with her but I never had intentions to barfine her. This particular night was the last night Jupiter
was in operation, after that they were turning it into a boys club, so me and Jon thought we'd go in there and say goodbye to her. We started off in there and enjoyed a couple of Singhas, saw Cowgirl for a bit and then went across to Misty's.
What I will say about Misty's, is I never felt hassled into buying lady drinks all the time, I knew the mamasan in there too. She used to work in Honey a gogo when I was in Pattaya the last time, we always had a good chat with her, a genuinely
nice lady. The first night we went there, the bloke who runs it came up and introduced himself too, can't remember his name but he seemed alright. We finished our drinks there and headed into Honey for a bit, I noticed a girl that I hadn't
seen in there before, I'll call her 'Party Girl'. She looked a real hardened bargirl type. She had lots of tattoo's and many piercings, she noticed me looking at her whilst on stage, so when she finished dancing she came over
and sat with me. Jon was already chatting to a girl who he'd seen in there before. We all enjoyed a few drinks and had a good laugh before moving on to Living Dolls. By this point, I could feel the alcohol taking affect, so I just got a coke
in there and had a bit of a timeout! Living Dolls was busier than I've ever seen it in all of my stays in Pattaya. I was chatting to a rather large bloke in there who was telling me a number of months ago, he was brought in to run it as things
were slow. He was obviously doing something right! After we left there, we were strolling down Walking Street, when I decided to go and get some more fags. As I was going into 7 Eleven, Party Girl was walking out. I asked her why she wasn't
in Honey and she told me she'd paid her own barfine and asked us if we fancied going to The Marine Disco with her. That answered where we were going next, so we made our way into there with her. She had a few friends in there already so we
drank and danced the night away with them before walking back to our hotel. We stopped off at McDonalds and got something to eat on the way, I wish this 24 hour opening malarkey would happen in England! It was about 3.30am when we got back to
the hotel, Pui had already gone to Jon's room and Candy was sound asleep in mine. I didn't bother to wake her as I knew it would only be a few hours before she woke up.

I woke up to say goodbye to Candy and off she went to get her passport, I went back to sleep and got up late afternoon. Pui had already left Jon's room to go and get a change of clothes, he said we'd be along at her bar later. Jon
was getting quite close to Pui, they both shared a passion for films and seemed to hit it off well. As he was happy in her company, he decided to stay with her for the remaining 3 nights. With the women out of the way, we managed to finish off
buying presents for family, friends and ourselves before grabbing ourselves a bite to eat.

Candy returned early evening and she was so excited about having a passport and couldn't wait to show me. She wanted me to look after it and keep it safe with mine to take back to England. By doing that, I thought she was showing her trust in me.
If she was gonna pull a fast one all along, then surely you wouldn't be able to prise that passport from her fingers! Candy was not in fit shape that day though, she'd text me earlier in the day to tell me she had a stomach ache and
by the time she came back it was still very evident. She had a lot of trouble walking, I asked her what she thought had caused it and she seemed to think it was an indigestion problem. I seemed to think that it may have been the fatty, greasy
breakfast that she'd had a couple days ago. My body has been used to that sort of food all my life but she's used to much healthier foods that aren't so greasy. Whatever it was, it was giving her a lot of pain. Jon decided to go
and get Pui from her bar and then come back to my room and all stay in and watch a film. About an hour passed before Jon and Pui came back. Candy started telling Pui what was wrong with her and they both explained that Pui had had a similar pain
before and knew of some medication that would help. So she went to the pharmacy with Jon whilst I stayed and looked after Candy. Whilst they were gone Candy was sick a couple of times, I suggested that I call her a doctor but she assured me that
once she took some medication she would feel better. It wasn't long before Jon and Pui returned, by this time Candy was drifting off to sleep, but she arose soon after and took some pills. Candy said she was hungry, so me and Jon nipped out,
bought some food off the street vendors and got some drinks from 7 Eleven, we then stayed in that night and watched a film.

Throughout the night Candy kept waking up, she was in a lot of pain, it didn't seem like indigestion to me. I thought it was something worse, but by the next day the pain seemed to have eased somewhat. We decided to go to the cinema
in the afternoon and because Pui didn't have a camera phone, she wanted some photos of her and Jon together, so they got some of those done. Candy seemed much better and was ok to go out in the evening. We spent most of the night at Sois
7 & 8 and made a final visit to Angelwitch. I wanted to give myself a constant memory of what that place was like once I returned to England, so I bought myself one of their t-shirts that I'd seen there earlier in the holiday. We all
went to Candy's bar not long after. We had tried to avoid it for the later part of the holiday, but that was because we didn't want any friction due to the fact that during the early part of the holiday, Jon had spent a few nights with
Candy's mate. Luckily, she wasn't there and Candy confirmed that before we got there. There was no way I wanted Candy working in that bar again and we'd spoke about her jacking that in and going back home to look after her son.
Candy had mentioned before that she didn't like working at the bar. She told me that for her to finish work, there was a fee of 3000 baht. Was that a complete stitch up or is that what you have to do to finish a job at a bar? Some notice
that was! Along with the drinks, I paid this dubious 3000 baht and we called it a night. As the night wore on, Candy's pain was clearly evident again. On the short walk back to the hotel, me and Jon took it in turns to give her a piggy back.
We received a few strange looks from the locals, perhaps the Thai men would be too lazy to do such a thing, I don't know! We said good night to Jon and Pui and made our way back to my room.

During our final day, we didn't do a lot really, but on our last night, me and Jon wanted to say our goodbyes to the friends we'd made at the gogos and beer bars. In order to do this, as Thai women get very jealous, it was best
we went out just the two of us. Candy and Pui stayed at my room, they seemed happy to do this, we said we wouldn't be too long but we weren't going to tie ourselves to a time. It was an enjoyable last night but at the same time you kind
of wish that it was the beginning of the holiday and not the end! For the first time during the holiday, we paid a visit to Crystal a gogo. As the curtain was pulled back and we walked through, I've never received an ovation quite like it,
the girls went mad, whistling, screaming, shouting. It felt great. The blokes already in there gave us a look as much as to say 'what makes them so special?' I wanted to see if all men were in for that kind of ovation so I kept an eye
on the next newcomers. 2 older guys walked in and not a thing! This made me feel even better. A few of the girls from Jupiter had now got jobs in Crystal and recognised us, so it was nice to see them again. After we were done there, we went to
Classroom for a bit before heading off to Walking Street. We had lost complete track of time and it was quite late when we returned to our hotel. Once back, all of my clothes had been folded and ready to pack. The next day, when we were due to
leave, Jon said that his clothes had been folded ready too. Jon had got up earlier than me and had got us a taxi sorted ready for the airport. We were understandably saddened that we were leaving our girls behind, but this was the beginning for
me and Candy. We said our goodbyes and off we went in the taxi. We were both starving and the taxi driver must have heard us discussing it. He said that in an hour or so, he would stop and we could get something. Sure enough, he kept his word
and pulled in and stopped for 20 minutes or so. What a nice bloke for doing that, in England that would prob be an extra £20! but here, nothing. We made sure he received a healthy tip and off we went, back to our homeland.

Since I've come home, I've unfortunately (temporarily) had my working hours reduced from 40 to 24, so I (with Jon) will be returning to Thailand closer to July rather than April. So for the time being, due to financial reasons,
there won't be no wedding for me and Candy. In one way this could be a blessing in disguise, not go jumping head first into something and getting to know her more. I've spoken to a few friends and my family about my future plans and
they all say not to go rushing into something that could end up in tears. When I'm out in Pattaya, I'm living the dream, I'm making crazy decisions, but now I've had more time to think things through, everyone I've spoken
to seem right. Not only that, they all know me very well and are shocked that there's any thought of me settling down!

It's just over 6 weeks since we returned now and although I speak to Candy every other day and send her SMS, I find it hard to sustain a relationship over the phone. I think she thinks I'm some sort of cheap Charlie because I can't
send her any money every month, but if I could, I would. I sent her 15,000 baht and was prepared to send that amount monthly, but due to the loss of hours, I'm struggling now. I can't wait to return to Thailand and see her, but at the
same time, I know its not going to be the same as before, because the buzz of the nightlife will be missing! It's a hard choice because I really believe Candy is genuine and isn't working the bar. 6 weeks ago, if someone said 'Here
you are mate, here's a visa for Candy, off you go.' I would have snapped their hand off. Now though, although she has done nothing wrong (not that I know of!) I have had more time to reflect on things, in particular my feelings. So this
is either the first chapter of 'Grand Baht Auto, Pattaya City Stories! (With more tales of bars and ladies of the night to come) 'or' its a one-off and the next submission will be titled 'So I Married A Bar Girl!' Either
way guys, I'll let you know!

Stickman's thoughts:

I would agree with your friends and family who have advised you not to go rushing into anything. It is best to take your time before making a decision for life!