Pattaya Day 1: Ghost Town, Plan B, and I went out in the Daylight hours

[floridarob]

Landed last night from India. I’ll do an India post when I get home, covering the 4 cities there. Flew via Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways, both in business class.

Could’ve stayed all SQ and arrived 2.5 hours earlier, but I’m leaning more toward Thai these days. The staff just feel warmer, more natural, and the catering actually has flavor. SQ has gotten Meh. Not bad, just boring. Thai’s seats and interiors are definitely showing their age (aren't we all)  but I’ll take better service, better food, and Thai culture any day👍

Arrived BKK 5 minutes early, Gate C8… and yeah, the walk. Just kept going. And going. And going.

By the time I got to immigration, I was bracing for the usual mess, especially with  the changes to priority lanes, no Business class… and then:

Empty.

Not “a few people.”

Empty.😳

In 27 years of coming here, I have never seen that. I had the immigration lady laughing so hard because neither of us could believe it. Wanted to take a photo just to prove it existed, but yeah… those “no photos” signs are everywhere, didn't want to ruin a good thing 😉

Hit the ATM, asked the guy to break some 1000 notes into smaller bills, he says he can only do one. I said, no no, it’s fine… you can do two.

He did two.... Jedi mind tricks 😝

Luggage was out in about 30 minutes from door open to belt, thought it would be faster.

The driver from Mike Taxi was waiting at Door 3 with my name. The walk from Exit B to Door 3 was another weird one… barely anyone around. Everything just felt weird/different.

About 1.5 hours later, pulled into Pattaya and you could already see it: slow. Really slow. This was midnight on a Saturday and it looked like a Tuesday afternoon during low season.

Checked into the Venue Hotel, unpacked, got myself together, and headed to Cocka 2. Opened a bottle, had a few drinks… but Bars closing early, low energy, barely any customers.

Definitely quiet season right now.

One of my regular “backup” guys hit me up on Grindr almost immediately. Said he’d be up until 4am, had zero customers all day, and hadn’t cum either… so he was motivated and horny, a good combination 🍆 (that means he was horny, not he has a big one, lol)

And really, sometimes Plan B is the better plan anyway. There’s something to be said for familiarity. No explaining, no training session, he already knows what buttons to push...👉

Then I get a message from a guy I know from Soi 4 in BKK. Lost his job, needed help moving rooms. I told him, I don’t move furniture, not even for my best friends 😝. I knew what he was looking for $$$

But here’s the thing… I’ve known him for years. Never once asked me for anything. Actually he's gone out of his way for me plenty of times. We follow each other on social media, keep in touch. I was the one who reached out first to check on him after I saw his post about losing his job...

He asked for 2000 baht.

I told him the real proof I like him isn’t the money… it’s me going out in daylight, at the ungodly hour of 12pm, to a 7/11 to deposit it 🥺

Yes, I went outside at noon... I'll have to document this somewhere....

While I was out in that unnatural daylight, figured I’d try Sophia’s across from Dick’s.

100 baht for chicken basil with two fried eggs. Really good, and way better than Dick’s, by a mile.... And yes, that’s about 1.6 km for the non-Americans.

Day 1.

Slow city, empty airport, Plan B still reliable, and apparently I’m now the guy giving money and flying people between countries.

Getting older… and clearly not getting smarter.... can't even follow my own advice, maybe I'll become a Top again 😳

Anyone in Pattaya who wants to meet me or avoid me , I’m heading to Bangkok Thursday. Bringing someone I met in Bali for a few days, WTF?

 What could possibly go wrong.... 🤷‍♂️

I’ll get to that Bali post eventually  🤞

[Londoner]

My experience of the JC in March was similar.  Oddly though, The Agate was doing well- certainly better than when we were there in November.   The beachfront in the evenings was busy too,  though most the people we saw seemed  to be locals.  Can it be that it's just "our lot" who are staying away?  I watched , over a period of nearly twenty years, the massive decline in the number of visitors to Boyztown; I hope the same won't become true of Jomtien. 

[vinapu]

7 hours ago, floridarob said:

. Thai’s seats and interiors are definitely showing their age (aren't we all)

talk about yourself

[vinapu]

7 hours ago, floridarob said:

 

He asked for 2000 baht.

I told him the real proof I like him isn’t the money… it’s me going out in daylight, at the ungodly hour of 12pm, to a 7/11 to deposit it 🥺

 

I wonder is your good heart finally showed off or it's first sign of senility. Whatever it is, it's good deed and good karma will follow

[tm_nyc]

 figured I’d try Sophia’s across from Dick’s.

100 baht for chicken basil with two fried eggs. Really good...

Agree...  I like Sophia's a lot!

[hank75]

15 hours ago, floridarob said:

By the time I got to immigration, I was bracing for the usual mess, especially with  the changes to priority lanes, no Business class… and then:

Empty.

Not “a few people.”

Empty.😳

 

What time did you land though? I can testify that this week’s mid day arrival is still immigration chaos 

Edit: did some backward math and definitely it’s the time of arrival. Coincidentally I arrived Saturday too but in the afternoon, the queue was bad and the pick up zone was the usual scrum. Traffic into Bangkok was average, neither better nor worse than a weekday. 

[hank75]

15 hours ago, floridarob said:

I was the one who reached out first to check on him after I saw his post about losing his job...

What job did he lose? My impression was that if a boy leaves a bar he just moves on to another, even if he goes all the way to Pattaya or vice versa. Good of you to help him out. 

[vinapu]

7 hours ago, tm_nyc said:

 

Agree...  I like Sophia's a lot!

+1

best chicken with cashews in whole Pattaya

[floridarob]

7 hours ago, hank75 said:

What job did he lose?

He worked at a Soi 4 bar, not a boy bar, so to speak....  word is he's using drugs I found out, I go to BKK Thursday, I'll try to track him down while there to see for myself, not something I want to ask him in a chat 🥺

[vinapu]

4 hours ago, floridarob said:

I go to BKK Thursday,

when there do some community service please and check how Big Boy bar in Patpong 1 is doing . Please.

[floridarob]

16 minutes ago, vinapu said:

do some community service please

I already loaned (gifted) 2000 baht to the Soi 4 guy, taking the guy from Bali to BKK for 3 days.....  I'm about community serviced out,  but for Aunty Vin, Sure, if I remember 😉

[vinapu]

1 hour ago, floridarob said:

I already loaned (gifted) 2000 baht to the Soi 4 guy,

 

that the good deed indeed

1 hour ago, floridarob said:

 taking the guy from Bali to BKK for 3 days.....  I'm about community serviced out,

don't exaggerate, that's self- , not community service

1 hour ago, floridarob said:

  I'm about community serviced out,  but for Aunty Vin, Sure, if I remember 😉

that will be community service  again but don't feel pressed

[jimmie50]

9 hours ago, floridarob said:

word is he's using drugs I found out, I go to BKK Thursday, I'll try to track him down while there to see for myself

Hopefully your source is incorrect and you will find your friend doing ok.  Hate to see anyone caught up in drug scene.  I worry about all of these guys working in the bars and clubs becoming alcoholics.  Guess that is just one of many hazards associated with the job.  Again, hope you find your friend doing okay.