Bangkok’s naughty night life does have one area that can very easily meet the stereo type for red light districts. That place in Bangkok is Called Pat Pong. Of the three areas in Bangkok that are the center of the sex tourist trade, Pat Pong is by far the most neglected and thus the worst.
Pat Pong is located in the financial center of Bangkok surrounded by 30 plus storey buildings. Like all of the night life areas in Bangkok, they are located near major public transportation stations. Bangkok has an elevated Sky Train as well as a subway. Pat Pong is only about 60 meters from one of the Sky train Stations.
Pat Pong is one of the more famous areas in Bangkok often depicted in movies. One of the more recent movies that depicted Pat Pong was “Bangkok Dangerous” with Nicolas Cage. However in reality the scenes were shot in Soi Cowboy across town. Pat Pong Has a Thriving night market that helps to brighten things up at night thus providing a symbiotic relationship bringing more people to the area.
The Bars in Pat Pong have been neglected for many years with little if any money being invested for renovations, and a certain retro feel can be found inside the bars with some being quite tacky by today’s standards. The women that work Pat Pong are more hard core than the other areas. Although they are still working to feed their families, some may take advantage of someone who has had a few too many drinks. Because of this Pat Pong comes in a distant third when given the choice of the other 2 naughty nightlife areas. To be ripped off with little recourse tends to leave a bad taste in one’s mouth. The weekly nightlife columns have little if anything to say about Pat Pong and focus on other areas. Perhaps that is just as well to not lead people to a place that does not seem to meet some acceptable standard of respect for customers. Many of the Bars in Pat Pong are Thai owned, and have yet to grasp the concept of repeat customers. In a way it matches the same attitude Thai men have towards Thai women to simply love them and leave them. Pat Pong is the oldest and most well-known bar area and thus gets more tourists than any other – and so the need for repeat business is not great as per the other areas.
Pat Pong can also be a place where your wallet may suddenly belong to another. The night market offers a good opportunity for pickpockets as there is often a lot of bumping and grinding past people in narrow lanes in the night market.
However Pat Pong is not all dark, plenty of fun can be had as long as you watch yourself and not get caught in any traps. The bar owners mentality in Pat Pong is to get as much money as possible out of you as they don’t expect you to come back. They lure you in with cheap beer and then hit you with a bunch of unexpected very expensive extras like charges for shows that you did not ask to see. The other areas in Bangkok Like Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy do not have the same reputation.
The fact that other businesses survive because of the nightlife should never be forgotten. Restaurants and fast food outlets like McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, Subway all prosper because of the Pat Pong area nightlife. So to say that the naughty nightlife does not contribute to the local economy is totally wrong. Keep that thought in mind the next time you go out and eat.
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