Stickman's Weekly Column › January 19th, 2025

Stickman Weekly, January 19, 2025

Mystery Photo

Where is it?

Last week’s photo was taken of the Ploenchit Market. If you haven’t heard of this market before, it only started up a few months ago, and is found under the expressway near where Sukhumvit Road ends, and Ploenchit Road begins. A few of you reminisced about the bars which used to operate in that space, when it was first known as Buckskin Joe Village and later as Soi Zero.

This week’s photo is tricky and is very much for experts, and old Asia hands. You’ll really impress me if you can tell me the location of this week’s photo which a friend took a couple of weeks ago.

Stick’s Inbox – The Best Emails From The Past Week

Thoughts on gogo bars today.

I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents about the gogo bar situation in Bangkok at the moment. I personally haven’t had any issues and almost always have a great time in Nana Plaza gogo bars. I’m not weird or socially awkward so the girls seem to enjoy my company and have a good time. 3K is almost always what I get quoted for short-time, so no issues there. I will say the 2-drink thing stinks but it seems to be the cost of doing business at the moment. What actually bothers me more is the mamasan trying to broker the short-time / long-time rate. I always put an immediate hard stop to it, and say it’s between me and the girl. They always back down.

In 2025, 2,000 baht makes you a Cheap Charlie.

The guy who gives a girl 2,000 baht in the morning? What a cheapskate! He’ll be the guy complaining that Thai girls prefer Japanese and Korean guys these days.

Living in a different universe.

I had to chuckle when reading the email regarding paying a Vietnamese escort 2,000 baht for spending the night. Whether Vietnamese or Thai, to pay only 2,000 baht for a night’s stay is incredibly cheap. I think 4,000 baht is a bargain. I must be living in a different universe.

African drug dealers v Indian watch salesman

I don’t agree that the African drug dealers are in your face. I have made 5 trips to Bangkok since the pandemic and I think African dealers have approached me 3 times. Each time they were friendly and non-threatening, and each time they left me alone when I ignored them. A well-known Bangkok expat told me he believes the Africans have an arrangement with the police on the north side of Sukhumvit Road in the Nana area, and that deal includes an understanding that the dealers don’t make trouble with tourists. I find the Indian watch salesmen much more annoying. One afternoon on Soi 8, a friend and I were drinking at a street-front table. Three times in one hour we were approached by watch vendors who shoved their wares within inches of our faces and persisted when we asked them to leave.

Beware Frenchies on Asoke.

I was assaulted on Asoke Montri on Saturday, January 4, at 3 AM. As I often do after enjoying a couple of drinks at Penny Black, I decided to go home but stopped for a Singha on Asoke. There were two ladyboys with a young French guy. I said no to the ladyboys and the French guy told me to go away. I stayed a little longer because I didn’t appreciate someone telling me to get lost. I wasn’t rude, and just said no to him. While I was walking away, he assaulted me with three punches from behind and knocked me down in front of the 7 Eleven. I was shocked and I was hurt. I decided to walk away and head home, which was a mistake. While trying to cross the street about 500 metres up Asoke, the same guy came from behind with his phone telling me to say on video that it all was my fault. I just excused myself because I didn’t want things to escalate. He punched me again without any warning, and I fell on the street. A Thai guy on a motorcycle stopped and brought me home, otherwise the French guy would have continued to punch me. I thought about going to the police but decided I didn’t want anything to do with them. Not that I am guilty of anything, I just don’t want to file a report with them. I now avoid Soi Cowboy and take a taxi at night when I go back home. Please report this so that others can be aware of this individual.

A Stickman reader was assaulted here by a French ladyboy lover, just a few steps from Soi Cowboy.

This Week’s News, Views & Gossip

On Top, Nana Plaza’s newest gogo bar, opened on Friday night. For a much anticipated bar, there was little fanfare. Reader review coming soon.

Also on the top floor of Nana Plaza, Butterflies has resumed its pole dancer shows with performances at 10 PM, 11 PM and midnight. This show is more about acrobatics than a sexy / sensual performance. (A few thoughts on shows in gogo bars further down.)

Talking of Nana Plaza, there are two Nana Plaza gogo bars which seem to delight Stickman readers more than others and which are said to have a decent lineup of ladies at this time. The two bars are Twister and Geisha. Reports from these two bars have been consistently positive for some time. Along with Billboard, Butterflies and Spanky’s, these seem to be the top 5 bars in the plaza – in no particular order – according to Stickman readers. If I had to stick my neck out, based on Stickman readers’ comments, Spanky’s is the bar more readers talk about than any other, followed by, funnily enough, Sexy Night. In the case of the latter, Sexy Night is many people’s favourite bar, but not necessarily considered the best bar in the plaza.

There has been a lot of conjecture about what happened to the exhibits at the Patpong Museum. Some people – including one fellow connected to the owner – told me that all of the exhibits were taken away and disposed of. However, that may have been wrong. I have been informed that the exhibits are in storage and remain under the control of the (incarcerated) curator. There is a new sense of optimism and genuine belief that at some point the Patpong Museum will reappear. Fingers crossed that the museum curator’s appeal is successful and he is out and about before we know it, and the museum is operational again.

Soi 6, Pattaya.

Last week I wrote that bar trade in Bangkok was not where you’d expect for the time of year. So perhaps I should not be all that surprised that there have been similar comments from Pattaya. Word from some bar managers in Pattaya is that business tanked this week, especially on Walking Street. Most pundits have been predicting a booming high season, so what has happened? Bars being somewhat quiet in mid-January don’t make sense, especially when most hotels are full. I don’t know what’s going on. My best guess is that the demographic of visitors to Pattaya is changing.

It doesn’t help that some Pattaya bar areas have been told that they must close early, not what you expect in Party Town. The Las Vegas Beer Garden on Soi Diana is one such bar area, and is currently closing at 1:00 AM. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the band’s last song is midnight.

Speaking of the Las Vegas Beer Garden, the price of bottled beer has increased to 85 baht….which still sounds like it’s very cheap to me. Bottled beer had been an insanely cheap 70 baht, amazing value for a smart new venue that is less than 12 months old.

My former partner in crime, the dirty doctor, hit Pattaya for a few days. He’s happily married these days and fooling around behind his Mrs’ back is the last thing on his mind, but he still likes to tease himself in the bars. For something different, he decided to have a couple of nights out on soi 6 – and was amazed at what he found. Soi 6 might be known as something of a sneak-away place for locals, but according to my friend it offers plenty for a good night out. A diehard Soi Cowboy fan who seldom ventures anywhere else, he was amazed at the vibe on Soi 6 which he was said was more fun than Cowboy has ever been. He’d heard the reports that Soi 6 was in decline but said that was not what he experienced. Bars were packed with girls, many of whom are new to the business. Despite reports of soi 6 being firmly on the map for Asian naughty boys, that is not what he observed at all. According to the dirty doctor, there were few Indians and even fewer East Asians. His estimate was that all Indians and East Asians combined would not have made up even 10% of the punters on the soi. And even then, many of the Asians were just walking the soi while Whitey was inside spending, and playing. Over the two nights he was on Soi 6, peak hour ran from 2 hours before sunset, until about two hours after. So I guess around 4:30 until 9:00 PM or so. After that, the vibe mellowed and he felt anyone looking for a party might be better off to head elsewhere. He had more fun on Soi 6 than he has had in Bangkok in a long time. For those looking to play, expect to pay 500 baht barfine which includes use of the premises, with ladies quoting 1,500 – 2,500 baht for an hour of their time. Lady drinks run 165 to 185 baht. While there are a lot of ladies on Soi 6 new to the bar industry and many of them are in their early 20s, most are mums. As the doc said to me, “It was their pussy that got them in to trouble, and it is their pussy that will get them out of trouble!”

Emsphere under construction in 2016 in the space that was once Washington Square.

Back in Bangkok, Sukhumvit soi 22 is so much busier than it used to be. The massage shop-lined soi with one of the worst strips of pavement in the general lower Sukhumvit area, footfall on the soi has exploded over the past year. What’s that about? It coincides with when the giant Emsphere opened on the land which used to be Washington Square. You can enter / exit Emsphere from soi 22. This is one soi which feels so much busier than it used to be. It used to be a fun soi to explore with its many side alleys where you could find all sorts from an amazing, long-running vegetarian Italian restaurant to guesthouses to a gogo bar to Muslim eateries to massage shops to no-pretence-on-the-premises-knocking-shops. Venues would come, venues would go, and the girls would float around the soi, going to wherever paid them best. Many places opened with no fanfare and some favourites were only known to locals. There were so many side-sois, so much for the adventurous punter to explore. And it all happened under the nose of the Marriott Marquis, Bangkok’s largest hotel, and its thousands of guests. Yes, soi 22 has always had a lot of places to stay – and more are opening all the time with a new 4 Points by Sheraton due to open any day. But it never felt like a touristy soi. That’s all changed. Lots of new places have opened and there are more choices of place to stay – and it feels like Tourist Central. I was right when I titled a photo essay back in 2016, The Bright Future Of Sukhumvit Soi 22.

Two bars in Nana Plaza with a great lineup of ladies don’t seem to be, for whatever reason, doing as well as might be expected. Those two bars are Mandarin and Red Dragon. Most are in agreement that each of these bars has a bunch of lovely ladies and Red Dragon is a beautifully done out bar – and one of my favourites in the plaza. At the same time, I keep hearing that these two bars are not as busy as one would expect. The question then becomes why? Could the double lady drink nonsense possibly have something to do with it?

Shows in Las Vegas, on the top floor of Nana Plaza. The bar closed many years ago.

Earlier in the column I mentioned that pole dancing shows have resumed in Butterflies, on the top floor of Nana Plaza. Gogo bar shows these days are something I struggle to get my head around, especially in a bar like Butterflies which is one of the very best bars in all of Bangkok. Why interrupt regular service with something that feels – let’s be really frank here – out of place?! Shows in bars are great, if – and it’s a big if – they are done well. How many of the shows performed in bars today actually enhance the bar experience? I choose to visit a bar because it has sexy ladies dancing. They’re great to look at and even though I will not be partaking, I like the vibe of sexy ladies dancing and the whole sexual vibe. So why are some of the shows in the bars these days acrobatic? I am in a strip bar, not a circus! Who can remember some 10 odd years ago when What’s Up in Pattaya had some amazing shows. Yes, they were amazing, but let’s be frank here – they were hardly sexy at all, rather they were acrobatic. What’s that all about? Yes, the performers were great – but how relevant is that in a gogo bar. It’s kind of like having a sexy girl in a bikini get on stage to perform a magic show. I really don’t think it’s what punters came to see! It wasn’t always this way. For sexy shows, the benchmark was Angelwitch at its peak, which had a selection of short shows that were so good that they enhanced the experience and elevated a really good bar to a great bar. The girls who performed the shows practiced endlessly, they had a choreographer and some shows featured audience participation. Angelwitch filled up at showtime, every night of the week. Shows in gogo bars today hardly enhance the bar experience. Many customers don’t know what to make of shows. Look around and it’s obvious some are weighing up whether they should move on to another bar. There have been some timeless shows like the body paint show which when done well can be mesmerising. Turning back the clock, the shower shows in G Spot also had that magical combination of being sexy, but classy. No bar has come close to matching the awesome shows of Angelwitch at its peak with Dave The Rave on the mic, “Ladies and gentlemen, you’re sitting in the right place at the right time, welcome once again to Angelwitch showtime!” So, what’s the lesson for Butterflies? Acrobatics may be fun for a minute or two, but in a gogo bar, I think shows that are genuinely sexy, sensual and erotic work best.

African Drug dealers perch on Sukhumvit, offering contraband to passersby.

The African drug dealers have made it on to Thai social media which makes me think they won’t be around much longer. My Mrs mentioned it this week and needless to say, the Thais are shocked. They are asking why this hasn’t been featured in the press or in an exposé on national TV. And, once again, Whitey doesn’t come out of this looking good, with some Thais commenting that “No Thais buy from them, it’s all foreigners.” The story of Africans peddling drugs on Sukhumvit feels like it might soon be coming to an end.

One of the supposed benefits of cryptocurrency is that it’s meant to be safe(r than cash in the bank). Thailand news junkies have every reason to question that. It feels like not a week goes by without some foreigner in Thailand reporting to police that they have been robbed of a large amount of cryptocurrency. More often than not, it is young guys from former Communist countries in Eastern Europe, Russia or China. I guess the Commies lost trust in the system and like the idea of holding cryptocurrency themselves. Put a gun to my head, demand the passwords to my bank accounts and you’re only going to get a couple of grand because that’s the maximum that can be transferred out in one day. And in all likelihood, the bank will refund me the loss if I gave out my password under threats and extreme duress. Good luck recovering your crypto after Ivan Russianakovslav and his cronies put a gun to your head.

There’s been no noticeable change to the number of African ladies on Soi Nana following the fracas on the soi last week when videos did the rounds of African ladies getting in to it amongst themselves, and one getting pummeled by a couple of Thai ladybeasts.

The African ladies on Soi Nana are most visible late at night, after the bars have closed.

Not one of my friends in New Zealand has ever sent me sexy photos of their girlfriend or wife. But a couple of my friends in Thailand have done just that. It’s no big deal, right? Many visitors to Thailand share photos of their favourite Thai bargirl. But I’m not talking about paid companions, I’m talking about someone’s wife, a lady who has never stepped foot in a naughty bar, let alone allowed themselves to be seen naked by a stranger. A friend in Thailand recently shared a bunch of photos of his very sexy wife. In fairness, she looks sensational – but I’d really prefer not to have seen her like that. And she doesn’t have a clue I have seen the photos. I need to unthink those photos of her because when I see him in Thailand, I usually see her – and I don’t have a poker face. If after many years trawling the bars you finally settle down with a lady who never had anything to do with the industry, you have to change your ways.

While I get it that it can be fun to take racy photos of your good lady, or even a girlfriend who is keen and willing, irrespective of whether you share the photos or not, give some serious thought to how you’re going to protect access to them. If the photos happen to leak, there’s no putting the genie back in the bottle. Once they’re out there, they’re gone! And unless you’re good when it comes to computer security – and I mean really good – they could get out there. Nude photos you took of your other half ending up online is a big deal in Thailand and your relationship falling apart might be the least of your problems.

Photographer Dave The Rave would never share nude photos of his Mrs. It’s an odd Thailand expat phenomenon.

It’s a shame that decent / authentic versions of many Thai soups and curries are so hard to come by at restaurants in my corner of Farangland. Most Thai restaurants here seem to concentrate on stir-fried dishes like chicken and cashew nuts, along with deep-fried appetisers – that you don’t even see that often in Thailand. Soups and those curries that take hours to make are hard to come by here. And if you do manage to find them, hardly anywhere does them well. A scorching tom kha gai on a cold New Zealand day would be a treat, as would an authentic massaman neua or khao soi gai or any of a myriad of other Thai soups or curries. But I’m damned if I can find anywhere here that does them well.

I imagine many of us have a Thailand food poisoning story, or two. I’ve been crook from food in Thailand a few times but actual full-blown food poisoning? Not sure. Maybe. Funnily enough, it wasn’t from food I’d had on the street, or even in a restaurant. It was food prepared in my very own condo. And, no, it wasn’t a meal I cooked myself because I never cooked once in all my years in Thailand. Rather, it was a meal the mother-in-law made. She was down from Korat and got the idea in her head that she would cook American fried rice due to the son-in-law being a foreigner. Americans, Kiwis, same same, right?! She was, like many Thai women of her age, very handy in the kitchen – but something went wrong that day. All 3 of us were crook that night and for the next couple of days. The Mrs and the MIL went to hospital and were both put on a drip. I stayed in the condo and waited for it to pass…..quite literally.

Khao soi gai, a dish you seldom see in Thai restaurants in New Zealand and when you do, it’s a let-down.

Two weeks ago I wrote how Immigration at the border crossing in Nongkhai would not allow those who had exited Thailand to re-enter the country the same day. That is no longer the case with a regular reader doing just – exiting and re-entering less than an hour later.

Foreign residents tend not to have the best impression of the local constabulary. I follow the news in Thailand fairly closely and there are a lot of reports of petty / non-serious crime such as pick-pocketing or low-level scams. What I like about the Thai police is that crimes of this nature which are often considered minor issues in the West are actually investigated. In my corner of Farangland, more often than not police will do nothing more than issue a case number (essentially for filing / insurance purposes), but never actually investigate. In Thailand, these sorts of crimes are investigated. In my part of the world, you might not even be able to report an incident or a crime at a police station or on the phone. Instead, you will be steered towards an online portal. I like it that Thailand still takes petty crime seriously.

With some vendors charging 70 or 80 baht for a single coconut – some of which don’t even look that fresh – you might be better off ducking into 7 Eleven and getting one of the Malee brand coconut water bottles. At 25 baht for 350 ml, it’s a bargain. When I am walking around for hours taking photos, I drop in to a 7 Eleven store every hour or so and grab a bottle.

These small, inexpensive coconut water bottles are so convenient.

Thailand-Related News Articles

Quote of the week comes from a friend, “Thailand used to believe what happened in Thailand stayed in Thailand, and then the internet happened!”

An enraged Bangkok taxi driver slashes the face of a customer who slammed the cab door.

A Thai woman is saved by an American man as she attempted to jump from a bridge in Pattaya.

Chinese are rethinking their plans to visit Thailand, citing safety concerns.

A British grandma roaming around a Bangkok hotel naked for 4 hours must have thought she was working in Granny A Gogo.

In Pattaya, a Turkish crypto bro is robbed by a fellow Turkish crypto bro.

In Pattaya, there have been multiple reports of motorcyclists riding past Indian pedestrians and slapping them.

The mercury dropped to 15 degrees Celsius this week and Bangkokians shivered!

The UK’s Telegraph says Bangkok is the definitive city of the 2020s.

Police arrest a young Pole in downtown Bangkok who thinks it’s no big deal to pinch a Thai woman’s bum.

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Where is it?

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Closing Comments

This week’s mystery photo is one of the most difficult I’ve ever included, so I am genuinely intrigued to see how many of you get it right. In recent months, one fellow has been the first reader most weeks to get the photo right. Why is he the first to get it right so frequently? It might just be that the time of publication – which these days tends to be between 7:30 AM – and 8:30 AM Thailand time is convenient for him. This fellow lives in New Zealand’s bogan heartland, West Auckland, where the column goes live around 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM local time. He told me last week that every time he gets the mystery photo right, he celebrates with a piece of cake. If his current run of success continues he’s going to be a rather well-rounded fellow with all of that cake. So to preserve his waistline, I cranked the difficulty level up to maximum this week. So, clever readers, where is it?!

Your Bangkok commentator,

Stick

Stick can be contacted at : stickmanbangkok@gmail.com

Stickman Weekly, January 19, 2025

Mystery Photo

Stick’s Inbox – The Best Emails From The Past Week

More Readers’ Emails

This Week’s News, Views & Gossip

Thailand-Related News Articles

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Closing Comments

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