• Gay Thailand and Gay Asia oldest and most visited forum. Click here to visit Gay Thailand forum.

…dancing with the devil in the city of angels…

~ Ramblings, Rumblings and Travel Tales: Bangkok and Beyond

…dancing with the devil in the city of angels…

Monthly Archives: April 2011

Gay of the Week: The Donald

30 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Gay of the Week, It's A Gay World

≈ Comments Off on Gay of the Week: The Donald

Tags

That's Gay

Trump

Donald Trump For President. Now That’s Gay!

Normally I anoint a celebrity who isn’t but I wish that he were as Gay of the Week. In the time honored tradition of internet blogging, I do my best to start or contribute to gay rumors about a hottie who hasn’t yet admitted to himself that he prefers dudes. Actually, my Gay of the Week posts are usually just a flimsy excuse to post some Hollywood hunk’s shirtless pix. But you already knew that. And no one complains.

This week’s Gay of the Week winner isn’t about sexual preference, but instead a homage to the phrase ‘That’s So Gay.’ It serves aptly for both the anointed and some recent news. Donald Trump, celebrity, billionaire, and Hair Club For Men drop out, is teasing America about a possible run for head honcho. Yup, I know, the thought does bring on the snickers. But in a recent poll of Republican voters, The Donald is leading the pack of presidential candidates. And no, that’s not a late April Fool’s joke.

Evidently the Republican faithful feel the need to find a crazy worthy of a run against the total whack jobs being offered up from their Tea Party compatriots. Guess they feel it is too soon to run the other Bush waiting in the wings. A meeting of the minds, or maybe that’s a meeting of the mind, could even mean a Sarah Palin/Donald Trump ticket, though I’m sure a concession would have to me made so that they could run as President A and President B instead of one of their egos having to settle for the Vice-Presidential slot.

My country’s political landscape just keeps getting weirder and weirder. Donald Trump as President makes as much sense as electing Arnold Shwarzenegger as Governor of . . . oh, wait . . . we already did that. But no problemo. Jesse ‘The Body’ Ventura – also an ex-Governor – is hinting that if Donald gets the nomination he’ll throw his hat into the ring, too. Ridiculous. Next thing you know some fool will think we could elect a black man as President.

I’m a little concerned about America becoming the laughingstock of the world. But then we already managed to synch that title. Trump as president is a scary thought. Or, it could be quite amusing. We already broke the world, how much more damage could Trump possibly inflict? Trump as President and a tramp for First Lady. Seems appropriate. I’m going to have to register as a Republican this time around, just to make sure Trump gets the party’s nomination. And I’m not alone in my efforts of support. Gary Busey, an idiot savant without the savant capabilities, in his own right has already promised his active support. I expect Charlie Sheen to offer up the power of his tiger blood to ensure The Donald’s election, too. Throw in Lindsay Lohan’s support and that could just be the ticket to nailing the ticket.

It probably really doesn’t matter who we elect, Dick Cheney will continue to rule our country. We just need to get used to the fact that we are now a capitalistic dictatorship and live with it. Or maybe the people will unite and do the right thing for a change: banish term limit legislation and just elect Bill Clinton to a lifetime term as leader.

I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy: What Bugs Me

29 Friday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Dancing With the Devil, I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Chiang Mai, Wats

Doi Suthep Buddha

Sometimes a relationship requires divine intervention.

There are little bumps in every relationship. How you deal with those minor problems defines the relationship, and can have an impact on its longevity. I’m not talking about major transgressions, but rather petty annoyances. Those little things your partner does that bug you. You can ignore them. At least for a while. But if you fail to address the problem, that annoyance festers and pretty soon you have a major blow out.

There are probably a lot of things that Noom, my bar boy friend and current love of my life, does that would annoy me. But things that normally would irk me, with Noom, barely register as a blip on the screen. Partly because I love the dude. And partly because I only see him while on holiday when I’m in a much more mellow and lackadaisical mood. A good example is his total lack of a sense of direction. The boy can get lost going to the bathroom in our hotel room. We often take the BTS to MBK. Even if we are going to Siam Paragon. Don’t ask. I think it is tradition. So we’ll get off at National Stadium instead of Siam and Noom will head off for the mall in the wrong direction. Every time. I’ll tap him on the shoulder, jerk my thumb back the other way, wait for comprehension to dawn and off we’ll go. That kind of thing normally would bug me. But with Noom, I find it endearing. As I do with most of his little idiosyncracies. But on a recent trip to the Kingdom, he pulled a new pony out of his bag of tricks that drove me crazy.

Part of the fun with Noom is that every trip I make to Thailand I get a new Noom. The underlying sweet and gregarious Noom is always there. But sometimes it’ll be a new hairstyle, sometimes a different attitude, one time he’d decided he was a bodyguard, another a soon to be tour guide. He delves deeply into whatever role the minor change has wrought. I’m never sure the Noom I’ll find when I land. Fortunately, the muscles always remain the same.

On this trip, giving you the good with the bad, he started calling me Honey. I didn’t even notice. One of my friends we were travelling with pounded on my shoulder in aggravation saying, “Noom keeps calling you and you’re ignoring him. Can’t you hear him calling Honey?”

My bad. He normally tries different versions of my name. I like the one that ends in about ten s’s. I wasn’t listening for ‘Honey.’

Noom sees his work as a bar boy as bidness. Part of that bidness is ‘taking care’ of his customers. I still am, and am not, a customer, so he still makes sure to take care of me. Sometimes that means nothing more than refusing to allow me to carry any of the bags of stuff we’ve bought. Even if he is already loaded down like a pack mule. Other times it is grabbing my arm when we cross a street; a bit condescending, but it comes from a good place. For some reason on this trip he decided I was incapable of ordering my own food in a restaurant. So he’d order for me. In Thai.

The first time was at Dick’s Cafe. I wasn’t very hungry and ordered cashew chicken. I like the cashew chicken at Dick’s. It is unlike the dish served anywhere else. Kind of a dry, spicy, almost a chicken wing version. Even though I knew Noom would eat half of it off my plate, there would still be more than enough to satisfy my appetite. So I didn’t want rice. But he ordered rice for me anyway. Which then got sent back. Next night, wherever it was we ate, I was hungry and wanted rice, ordered rice, but Noom cancelled the dish. Guess I should have eaten the rice the night before when I had my chance.

Chiang Mai Buddha

The patience of Buddha . . .

We moved up to Chiang Mai with my friends and stayed at the Montri Hotel. First afternoon, having just arrived, we decided to eat at the hotel. The menu was in Thai, English, and had pictures. Noom asked what I wanted. I pointed to the BLT and to a plate of fries. I got a tuna sandwich and potato chips. Yup, the next set of pictures above what I’d ordered. I can and will eat pretty much anything and anywhere, but once you’ve ordered your food, well there are expectations. Even in Thailand.

We went through two more days of the trip, two more days of eating, and two more days of Noom ordering for me and getting it wrong every time. Enough. Time to address ‘our’ problem. Back home, in a relationship with another Westener, this would be easy: “Dude, quit ordering my food for me, you can’t even get it right!”

Possibly a bit of hurt feelings, but that would be the end of it. But that is not an option with a Thai. No matter how badly something is bugging you. Correcting a Thai in any manner is a major no-no. Saying anything that he may infer as meaning he is stupid is a major sin. Actually using the S word to a Thai . . . you may not live through that. So I had some thinking to do. How to tell him, without telling him.

I’m usually very sensitive to this concern and go out of my way to never come close to using the S word in dealing with Noom. Once, not thinking, I’d corrected him on his pronunciation of Om. Noom has decided he is a Hindu because he prayed to Ganesha and the elephant god brought him me. (That would have been my clue to switch to Christianity). Most people pronounce Om as ‘oam’ like in the word loam. That’s wrong. That sound is all at the front of your mouth. Om is the sound of creation and said properly travels through all three zones of your mouth. So it is Aum, not Om. I realized my blunder before I even finished explaining, but no problemo. Noom didn’t take offense. Instead he replied, “Yes, I know. But in Thailand we say Om.”

Silly farang. But in this case I knew I wasn’t going to get off that easy. I spent the day mulling over my options, had another meal I did not order that night, and laying naked in bed together that evening told him I had something important to talk to him about. We always have our ‘important’ talks while naked in bed. That too is a tradition. One I can get behind. The compromise between the truth and an outright lie that I’d decided on was first, to immediately take all blame. And apologize. That part worked fine. I even made sure my head was lower than his and made a not too successful attempt at using a high octave sing song voice. Yup, learned that one from the local boys. The last half was a bit more hazy using his ‘take care’ duty and applying it to my similar duty at home and with my friends. I explained that because I am always the one taking care of everyone else, when he does instead, it throws me off my game. I know. Not inspired. But it was the best I could come up with. Part III was using ‘ordering at restaurants’ as an example: my need to order for myself without ever mentioning his failed attempts over the last few days. Okay, I suck at this. He wasn’t fooled. He got a bit testy and said, “Find. I order for you not never in future.”

Mai Thai

And the menu doesn’t help.

He was a bit put out, but not really mad. And I had avoided the S word coming into play. So I apologized again and we cuddled together to drift off to sleep. End of problem and by morning things would be okay once again.

And so it seemed. When we woke up the next morning he pulled the sheets off him to lay there exposing his taut body and hard dick. I’m never sure if it is just that he is proud of what he worked up over night, or that he knows I love looking at him in that state, but we begin most mornings that way. That’s why I love Thailand. Eventually, we got dressed and headed downstairs to meet my friends for the buffet breakfast.

Noom and I have done the buffet breakfast thing too many time to count. We’ve fallen into a comfortable routine. I get coffee for both of us, he grabs juice and picks a table (he’s very picky about where he sits). If bread needs to be plopped into the toaster, I load us up, and if there is an egg cooking station he gets us both an omelet. This morning, while I got coffee, he moved the girls to the right table (he’s so cute!), and we proceeded through our normal routine. But when I got to the table, no juice. Well, no juice for me. Just Noom standing there with a ha ha ha look on his face. Okay, maybe there still was a bit of last night’s discussion in the air. “I not know what juice you want,” he confirmed, ignoring his knowledge that I only drink orange juice in the morning.

But then he whipped a glass full out from behind his back and laughed. As tempting as it was to bitch slap him, I laughed too and things seemed to be okay between us once again. The girls looked on bewildered, deciding it must be some testosterone thing. After breakfast, with new touri to Chiang Mai in tow, we grabbed a baht bus and commandeered it for a trip up to Doi Suthep. I lied to Helena and told her it wasn’t a wat. The cooler hill temperatures enticed everyone to come along for the ride.

When we got there, I told the girls Noom and I had something to do and would catch up with them at the top of the stairs. Used to small surprises being prepared for them in this manner, they were delighted another was headed their way and started the long haul up the 309 stairs. Of course, Noom and I veered right and took the elevator instead. When they finally arrived at the peak, Helena exhausted and swearing she was gonna stop smoking, they didn’t find our ‘surprise’ quite as funny as Noom and I did. Pretty Boy Chris had beat them to the top by a good ten minutes and had been exploring the entrance area.

Doi Suthep Offering

Doi Suthep Offerings

I think I mentioned before that Chris is cheap. He saw the ticket booth for foreigners, but didn’t see anyone collecting tickets so he asked if he really had to buy one. Cheap, and sacrilegious to boot. I lied and told him there were guys inside who walk around checking that you’d paid. Which there are not. Which he discovered after shelling out the admission fee. And which he whined about for the next week and a half. But everyone agreed Doi Suthep was a must-do for touri, and were glad they’d came. Even Chris admitted it might possibly be worth the 30 baht admission fee he’d paid.

Noom made them participate in the Buddhist ritual of walking around the gold stupa three times (Helena dropped out after the first circuit). I bought one of the brass bells with a brass bodhi leaf clapper that you can hang at the temple after borrowing a marking pen from the vendor and writing your names on it. Institutionalized graffiti. Cool. The girls and Chris made their marks while Noom went on the hunt for the one he and I had placed last year. I was concerned the bells get the same treatment as floral offerings do at shrines, promptly thrown into a dumpster to make room for more. But he found ours, not where he’d originally hung it, and was a happy camper after replacing it in its original spot.

Everyone got busy ringing lines of bells, striking gongs, and posing for picture with Chiang Mai spread out below. We headed back down the stairs as a group and Noom molested the little hill tribe girl posing for pictures for a buck as he always does. He loves little kids. And they love his muscles as he tosses the little ones in the air while mom watches on unhappy about the whole thing cuz she knows that Thai boy isn’t going to let go with a tip. When Noom and his new playmate both quit giggling and were on firm ground once again, I slipped mom 100 baht, and all was forgiven.

eating insects

An insect for every taste.

Time for lunch. I’d found a new place to try. At the foot of the mountain is a series of waterfalls where the locals have built open air wooden restaurants so you can dine while looking out over the forested scene. This is not a touri stop. It’s where visiting Thais go for a bit of fun and a bit of food. Which quickly became evident from the long table full of cooked bugs, a few dozen platters filled with insects of all sizes arranged next to the dirt path leading out to the restaurant hut. Noom was still doing his Pretty Boy thing at Chris and I’d been routinely razing him about not having balls. Thinking eating a cockroach had something to do with being a man, he picked out a large roach for an appetizer. Noom immediately plopped one of equal size into his mouth to show it wasn’t a big thing. And I leaned over and told him he had to brush his teeth and gargle with bleach before I’d let him kiss me again.

Our waitress led us out to the hut across precariously laid wooden planks, edges barely meeting, into a rickety shack beat by the sun, semifallen with a distinct downward slant. Thin sheets of plywood were strewn about the floor. Well, no, they were the floor. You’d feel a distinct bounce, far too much give for safety, with each step you took. Wood railings of equal strength protect you from sliding off and plunging hundreds of feet to the dried riverbed below. You’ve heard of adventure tourism, this was adventure dining. Each time the waitress brought stuff to our table, water, napkins, silverware, Helena would move to other side of the hut to provide ballast.

bug hut

An Adventure In Dining

Chris ate his bug in three crunchy bites while we looked on and gagged. I give him credit, he took it like a man. We all made some jokes about what he wouldn’t be willing to put in his mouth. Then the fun was over and it was time to order as the waitress passed out our menus. Shit. No English. No pictures. The menus were only in Thai. And Noom got the most satisfied smirk on his face I’d ever seen. Ah, well, the best laid plans of mice and men . . .

Showing no mercy he waited patiently for me to ask for his help. I had no choice. Especially considering the dishes on display out front. I had to man up and eat crow to avoid being served crow. Or worse. No other options available, I asked him for help. The moment he’d been waiting for. And he took great delight in savoring it, “OOOOOH, NOW you want me order for you!

And so he did. I got basil chicken with lots of chillies, one of my favorite hot and spicy dishes. He made sure the girls were satisfied with their food too and we had an incredibly cheap lunch making Chris happy in the process. That night at dinner when the menus were passed out, without a word, Noom reached over and took mine away. For dining at least, a new pecking order has been established. Now, part of my enjoyment on my trips to Thailand is that at any given meal, I have no idea what I will be eating. It’s up to Noom. And I’m good with that.

Chris shows a cockroach who’s boss:

cockroach snack

cockroach eating

eating bugs

>>> Next ‘I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy’ Post

<<< Previous ‘I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy’ Post

Related Posts You Might Enjoy:

I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy: The Butterfly

I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy: The Butterfly

Bugging Out

Bugging Out

Bangkok’s Creatures From The Black Lagoon

Bangkok’s Creatures From The Black Lagoon

It’s All Relative

28 Thursday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Thailand Travel Tips and Tales, Tips

≈ Comments Off on It’s All Relative

Tags

Money Matters, Transportation

gas pump gauge

Ah, the good old days.

I’m busy planning my next trip to The Land of Smiles. Well, not too busily, and so far the plan is a hazy June, maybe July, possibly August. It’s not a trip that takes much planning. I do it every year. Just need to pick out the weeks and then decide where else I’d like to spend a few days. It’s not the best time to visit Thailand. It’s hot, humid, with a good chance of rain. Though with global cooling, predicting rainy seasons has become iffy at best.

Half the world is on holiday at that time of the year, so there are always crowds to consider. Planes fill up quickly, as do hotels. It is not high season in Bangkok, so hotel rates are reasonable. But the airlines don’t care where you are going: it’s holiday time to them and that means it’s time to gouge their customers for as much moola as possible. As airline service has gone down, airline fares have gone up. Throw in the peak travel period and all of a sudden the trip to Bangkok from California is running over two grand. Pricey regardless of the reason. Or the season. I’d put the trip off until the airlines’ peak season prices drop, but by then I already have my autumn trip in the works. And that is too far away anyway. Thailand is calling. Once again.

I filled my car up with gas today. For the first time I paid over $4.00 a gallon. $4.01 9/10 to be exact. I think that since gas is now over $4.00 they can go ahead a drop that 9/10. Rounding up to an even penny would make sense. And that 1/10 would probably add another billion dollars to their year end profits. With the cost of gas being high, most people use it as some sort of base to determine if other prices are too high or not. I often hear as justification for a high price, “Yeah, well, gas runs over $4.00 a gallon now”.

Bread is now $3.89 a loaf. Ouch. But, yeah, well, gas runs over $4.00 a gallon now. They want $1.69 a pound for onions. For onions? But, yeah, well, gas runs over $4.00 a gallon now.

I tried that ‘yeah, but . . .’ on for size to justify EVA’s fare for my June / July / possibly August trip and it didn’t help. I don’t care what gas costs, I paid $1,500 for that ticket last year. Knowing that in my mind the cost hurdle needs to be jumped or I’ll never book a ticket (until it is too late and the price is even higher) I ran some calculations using my new $4.00 a Gallon Gas Price Index. And then promptly picked out a three week period and booked my ticket. EVA assumes the roundtrip milage from SFO to BKK is 16,010. Being a proud American, my car gets 22 miles to the gallon. At $4.00 a gallon, the gas for driving to Bangkok would cost me $2,910. So I’m actually saving $480 by flying. What seemed outrageous, is actually a cheap flight.

And when my friends ask how much my ticket to Bangkok cost, I’m gonna tell them $3.34 a gallon. They’ll be envious.

Monk Shot! #18

27 Wednesday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Monk Shot!, Travel Photography

≈ Comments Off on Monk Shot! #18

Tags

Monks, Photography

Mae Sai Monk

Buddha Not Like Guns

There is a bustling market at the Burma border at Mae Sai where everything imaginable is for sale. Long lines of locals waiting to board buses and tuk tuks for the ride across the border, too. And lots of monks.

Not my best photograph of the day: it was a quick shot, no time to do much other than point the camera and shoot. But the expression on this monk’s face was just too perfect.

Going To The Chapel

26 Tuesday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in It's A Gay World

≈ Comments Off on Going To The Chapel

Tags

And More!, Markets & Shopping

Royal wedding barf bags

Souvenir for the masses

I guess it’s the tiara and lacy white ball gown that holds such an attraction to the non-royal queens of the world, but outside of Britain, Prince William and Kate’s upcoming nuptials are a bit of the ‘eh’. But the gay blogosphere is all a twitter, so I have no choice but to add my homage to the royals’ wedding day.

My invitation to the event has still not arrived so it looks like I will have to settle for an appropriate souvenir to honor the occasion. With so many offerings, the choice is difficult. But what could be more appropriate than a limited edition Royal Wedding barf bag? For a mere 3 pounds the regular model comes in his and her colors of red and blue. Upgrade to a royal purple and kingly gold for an additional 5 pounds if you live your life like a queen.

Everyone is waiting with baited breath to see the dress Kate will wear at her nuptials. I’m more interested in seeing how much more hair William has lost over the last month. Time has not been kind to Prince William, I hope Kate will treat him better. A timeline of his looks is featured below. He is pictured : preteen as an adorable Diana look alike; a studly royal in his early twenties; and in drag during last year’s Halloween festivities:

Prince William

The many faces of Prince William

Prince Harry, whose entire life is a case of always the bridesmaid and never the bride, will not be attending the wedding festivities and will instead grab some throne time while the rest of the royal family is away.

Prince Harry

Prince Harry celebrates.

Gems, Scams, and Greed in Thailand

25 Monday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Thailand Travel Tips and Tales, Tips

≈ Comments Off on Gems, Scams, and Greed in Thailand

Tags

Markets & Shopping, Money Matters, Stupid Tourist Tricks

Gem Scam

Now That’s A Jewelry Chest!

Google returns 1,280,000 pages on a search for ‘Thailand Gem Scam’. A search on ‘Jake Gyllenhaal Naked’ will bring you 2,290,000 results. Larger numbers, but you’ll have a much better chance of participating in the former than ever getting to see the latter. The Gem Scam in Thailand is a tradition. Everyone knows of it, and every day another few dozen suckers fall victim to it. If this is news to you, go do that Google search. And then search on ‘Thailand Gem Scam’, too. Explaining how the scam works is not the purpose of this post. Telling you why buying gems and jewelry in Thailand isn’t necessarily a scam is.

The Gem Scam is a con game. All cons rely on the exact same thing: greed. That, and cash, is your part of the scam. A bit of stupidity doesn’t hurt either, but greed rules the day. If you do not fall victim to your own greed, you also will not fall victim to this con. So maybe forget about Googling ‘Thailand Gem Scam’ and instead start repeating your new mantra: I will not be greedy. I will not be greedy . . .

The fact is the gem and jewelry business in Thailand is a major industry world renown for the quality of workmanship, quality and cut of gemstones, and low prices. You can get excellent deals in Thailand on jewelry. How good of a deal really depends on the purpose behind your purchase. But let’s go back to the scam for a minute and clarify. If you are greedy and stupidly fall victim to this con you will not be buying a worthless piece of glass represented as a flawless diamond (That’s the Cambodian Gem Scam). What you will get for your money is a poor quality stone at an incredibly high price. Really, all that happens is you over pay for the merchandise. You’re still a sucker, but then so is the poor sap who barters his heart out to nab that $100 deal on a fake Rolex at Patpong’s Night Market. So really it is more a case of you being a bad shopper than the seller running a scam on you.

You can easily be as bad of a shopper for gems and jewelry in Thailand without participating in all the trappings of the Gem Scam. Even a reputable shop will gladly let you over pay for your purchase. As with most purchases in the Kingdom, all prices are negotiable. The seller is always going to start high, it’s your job to get him to go lower. Do you job right, and you can walk away with a great deal.

The least greed prone purchase for jewelry in Thailand is the toui on holiday who drops into one of the hundreds of jewelry stores in Bangkok, sees a piece he loves, feels the agreed to price is reasonable, makes the purchase, and goes home with a pricey souvenir that he’ll enjoy for years to come. He may have gotten an incredible deal, or he may have over paid. Doesn’t matter. The purchase was made for the enjoyment of the purchase. End of story and everyone rides off into the sunset with a smile on their face. And more than likely, he bought a quality gemstone at a better price than he could have realized back home.

If you keep the greed factor out of a casual purchases you’ll seldom get burned. At least not badly. If however, you are tracking down that elusive $500 ruby worth $5,000 back home . . . uh, did I mention greed yet?

Thailand gem scam

SE Asian Rubies Are Precious

Paying a few hundred dollars for a piece of jewelry as a casual purchase is as safe in Thailand as it is back in the States. When you get up into the $1,000 range, there is a higher chance you’ll overpay for the piece. But that’s your fault. How many $1,000 purchases do you make without doing a bit of research first? Do you know the relative value between an amethyst gemstone and a topaz? Do you know why one sapphire gemstone will cost $300 while another of equal size and cut runs $1,000? If you are travelling to Thailand and plan on buying an expensive piece of jewelry, do your homework first. Then you’ll know what you are buying and you’ll be in a stronger position to negotiate a fair price. Knowing where to do your shopping helps, too.

The large jewelry superstores that cater to the touri trade are not your friend. Their business relies upon the gullibility and lack of knowledge of their customers. And, of course, a bit of greed. They’ll tell you that they have the best prices because they cut the stones and make the jewelry on-site. You’ll even get to see the work being done when you are whisked past the cutters on your way to the showroom. They may in fact do some, possibly all, work on site. But ‘best prices’ means best prices for them, not for you. Most of the stones they use are of low to average quality. Almost all of the colored stones they sell are heated, dyed, or radiated to enhance their color. Those with the most vivid color are usually lab grown. Treating gem stones to enhance their color, and increase their value to consumers, is standard in the industry all over the world. It’s not a Thai scam. But the prices they ask are for stones of much higher quality. If you can’t tell the difference, you will overpay for your piece of jewelry. Buyer beware.

If you keep your wallet in your pocket, visiting one of those humongous gem malls is a fun, educational, and inexpensive daytime outing. Any taxi or tuk tuk driver will be glad to take you as they’ll get free food and gas vouchers for delivering you to the store. An even cheaper option is to pick a place out and give them a call, they will send a car to collect you free of charge. Once there, you’ll be given a free drink and assigned a salesgirl. The first part of your tour will be a brisk walk through the ‘factory’ where locals are busy cutting and polishing gems and doing finish work to settings. There is no money to be made here, so your salesgirl will not want to dawdle. Too bad. Take your time, watching the craftsmen at work is quite interesting. She won’t appreciate your interest but has been trained to be quite knowledgeable about the work being done and will begrudgingly answer all your questions. When you can no longer avoid her desire to move on you’ll be whisked into the showroom.

Your salesgirl will lead and follow you through the cavernous showroom sizing you up and trying to get you to buy the most expensive pieces. You are under no obligation to make a purchase. But go ahead and admire the jewelry on display. Pick out a $40,000 ring and try it on – how many times do you get to see what your hand looks like dressed in a piece of jewelry that costs more than your car? (Uh, but don’t pull a Lindsay Lohan and accidently walk out still wearing the piece. The Thais are not as forgiving about situational alzheimer’s.)

The jewelry is usually cased by type of stone, so you’ll get to see the range of colors and cuts each displays. The cheaper stones, and those set in silver, will be toward the exit, a last ditch effort at prying a purchase out of you. But wait! There’s more! When you exit the showroom you’ll enter another showroom, this one filled with silk, carved wood, cheap strings of beads, perfumes, and anything that could possibly entice you into spending a few bucks. These knickknacks will be as overpriced as the jewelry you just saw. If you really are interested in buying jewelry on your trip, this outing will show you what is available, you’ll have determined what the top price is, and will have been educated, to some degree. Now go find a real jeweler to make your purchase.

Bangkok gem scam

The Beauty of A Star Sapphire

The reason you can get a great deal at a reputable shop is due to several factors. Thailand was the leading nation in the stone cutting business until India, with an even cheaper workforce, took over. Cutting is still inexpensive in Thailand. Precious metals are priced by weight in Thailand; back home you’ll also pay for workmanship. Sapphires mined in Thailand are a great deal: local source, lower cost. So are rubies, though most are smuggled in from Burma (both sapphire and ruby come from the same stone, corundum, btw.) Many common stones such as garnet and amethyst are mined in Thailand, and Afghani stones like topaz and aquamarine are brought in by the tons. Diamonds, however, will cost the same as back home. They are not usually a good buy in Thailand unless the rate of exchange is extremely favorable (which it is not right now).

One of my favorite gemstones is the grey star sapphire. This gorgeous gemstone is not as common as the blue star, which is more available and often fake. Telling the difference between a real star sapphire and a lab grown one is easy: lab grown stones’ star shows on the top of the stone. Look at a real star sapphire and the star comes from the interior of the stone. The best stones throw the star under any light and at any angle of viewing. The more work you have to do to see the star, the cheaper the stone should be. A grey star sapphire is a good stone to use to determine how reputable a place is. Overpriced dealers out to gouge rarely carry this gem; it is not very popular. So even if you are not interested in buying a piece mounted with a grey star sapphire, ask to be shown what the shop has and you’ll know how reputable of a store you are dealing with.

The one gemstone I’d warn you against purchasing is jade. Buy jade in Thailand and there’s a good chance you will get scammed. Almost all jade comes from Burma. Most is shipped to China for cutting. Asians know jade. Westerners do not. But the magical word ‘jade’ commands a high price, even when the stone is of low value. And it might not even be jade. Other stones can legally be sold as jade if a descriptive word is used first. Old Jade, New Jade, and Soochow Jade, are common terms and all refer to serpentine. Unscrupulous dealers will rename almost any green colored stone ‘jade’ of some sort. If that’s not confusing enough, there are two different stones properly known as jade: jadeite and nephrite. One is expensive, the other cheap. Most Americans, when they say jade, are thinking nephrite, the cheaper stone (but are willing to pay the price of jadeite).

gem scam Thailand

Most consumers can’t tell the difference between real jade and their . . .

In Thailand your best deal will be on sapphires with rubies running a close second. Amethyst, garnet, citrine, and topaz set in silver are also great deals and less expensive than sapphire and rubies. But your absolute best jewelry purchase at a cheap price is silver, No stones. Just silver.

If you shop at one of the major silver dealer areas in town and buy just a few pieces you can get the wholesale price, similar to what jewelry dealers get back in the States on bulk wholesale sales. The cost will be valued on weight, you do not pay for the workmanship involved. The average price per gram runs between 20 and 25 baht – though current wide fluctuations in the silver market means this changes often and usually upward. How much you buy and where you buy it will make a difference.

The cheapest place to buy silver jewelry are those Tiffany booths that have sprung up at all the night markets. Not Tiffany; not silver . . . please go back and study the greed mantra.

One of the major silver dealer areas is along Charoenkrung Road by the Oriental Hotel. Their prices are the highest in town. They’ll even admit as much to you. Pratunam Center is home to numerous shops specializing in silver and most offer low, low wholesale prices. And it is nice they are all under one air-conditioned roof. Shop around and ask what the wholesale baht per gram price is so that you know what your purchase should cost before getting your wallet out. There are a few shops on the ground floor, but most are located in the basement. By far the best silver shopping area in town, however, is Khaosan Road.

I’m sure there is some historical significance as to why so many silver dealers congregate in an area devoted to the backpacker crowd, but the reasoning is beyond me. If you are going to shop for wholesale pricing there, do not look like you are sleeping in the area too. The merchants do not like backpackers and if they think you are one they’ll run you out of their shop. Or refuse you entry in the first place.

You can get wholesale pricing at these places by spending as little as $50. The trick is to ask what their wholesale price is when you walk in. If you allow them to quote retail to you, they’ll never come down to the wholesale price level. This is a great place to do your Xmas shopping or stock up on office gifts. You can buy a dozen sterling silver earrings for as little as $3 per pair; back home the same earrings would run you $20. Silver chains and chunky silver bracelets are great deals too. And there are a lot of pendants available, even those with inexpensive gemstones are incredibly cheap. The best prices though are on hill tribe silver.

gem scam bangkok

Sterling Silver Jewelry Is A Great Buy In Thailand

Thai silver usually runs about 5 baht per gram cheaper than sterling (.925). Hill tribe silver actually has more silver in it than sterling silver does. So it is cheaper. Thai logic at work. Most dealers in the area carry some hill tribe pieces; a few stores specialize in it. You won’t get as good of a deal as you will up in Chiang Mai, but you can still walk away with a piece that looks like it cost $100 but which you only paid $25 for.

The added advantage of buying silver jewelry in Thailand, for Americans, is there is no duty on silver from Thailand. Coming back into the country you are allowed $800 worth of goods, duty free. Anything over that a tariff is charged. Unless you loaded up on silver. Then there is no duty fee on your ‘overage.’ (The same holds true on loose gemstones, those not set in a piece of jewelry. But, you’ll pay a high price to have them set back in the States, so the duty free aspect of bringing them back home with you is a nonstarter.)

Part of Thailand’s Gem Scam is being let in on a special government authorized and blessed sale. No such thing exists. But there are two large gem shows held each year in September and February, usually at the IMPACT Center. It is easy to get in by registering on line even if you are not in the business (lie). The dealers will not be interested in selling you a single piece of jewelry, but there is an amazing selection at these shows and you may want to consider polishing off your Xmas shopping list with one stop shopping. The deals are almost too good to be true.

Unlike the Gem Scam. Then, the deals are too good to be true. For most touri, buying jewelry in Thailand is not a scam. But if you are interested in that $5,000 ruby for a measly $500, drop me a note . . . have I got a deal for you!

Related Posts You Might Enjoy:

Jade: The Imperial Gem

Jade: The Imperial Gem

The Definitive Guide to Tipping in Thailand*

The Definitive Guide to Tipping in Thailand*

The Art & Science of Bartering

The Art & Science of Bartering

Bonus Shot: Curiosity at the Wat

24 Sunday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in Cambodia, Travel Photography

≈ Comments Off on Bonus Shot: Curiosity at the Wat

Tags

Cambodia, Photography, Wats

angkor wat child

Who’da thunk a doorway could be so fascinating?

Moms was busy asking Buddha for help, leaving this little Khmer kid to amuse himself. I was as fascinated with his antics as he was with this simple doorway at Angkor Wat. He spent a good half hour stepping through and then back again, peering out in one direction and then turning around and checking out the opposite view, never moving more than a foot or two away from his new find. He had a cute face, and those incredibly large eyes Khmer kids all seem to have, but this pose, from the back, seemed to best convey his sense of wonderment with his little world.

Gogo Peeps

23 Saturday Apr 2011

Posted by Bangkokbois in It's A Gay World

≈ Comments Off on Gogo Peeps

Tags

Gay GoGo Bars, That's Gay

Peeps gogo bar

Hope you all find the perfect basket for Easter.

← Older posts

THE BEST IN THAILAND:

gay massage in Pattaya

GUIDED NIGHT TOURS BKK

gay nightlife bangkok

4 hours SAUNA TOUR

gay sauna bangkok

Index By Category:

  • Dancing With the Devil (376)
    • Gay Gogo Bar First Timers Guide (12)
    • I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy (128)
    • Tales Of The Big Mango (18)
      • The Boys In The Bar (18)
    • The World of Thailand's Gay Gogo Bars (94)
  • Gay Thailand (202)
    • Bangkok’s Best Hotels For The Gay Guy (3)
    • Blogs & Message Boards (167)
      • Blogs (19)
      • Gay Thailand Message Boards (102)
        • Songkran ‘14 Special Report (11)
      • Sunday Funnies (90)
    • Gay Thailand Sexpats & Addicts (13)
  • It's A Gay World (1,178)
    • Gay of the Week (24)
    • Holiday Gift Guide (14)
    • Out This Week (19)
    • Photo Of The Week (21)
    • Smells Like Science (66)
    • The 12 Gays of Xmas (54)
  • Nude Dudes (1,405)
    • Absolutely Thursdays (110)
    • Aloha Friday (59)
    • End of the Week (181)
    • Eye Candy (141)
    • Hump Day Is Bump Day (58)
    • iPhone Fridays (107)
    • Jocks (59)
    • Monday Meat (54)
    • Monday Muscle (112)
    • Moving Pictures (34)
    • Selfies Sunday (57)
    • Stay In Bed Sundays (106)
    • Take It Off Thursday (56)
    • Tighty Whitey Tuesday (106)
    • Twinky Tuesday (56)
    • Wednesday Wetness (108)
  • Thailand Travel Tips and Tales (309)
    • Bangkok's Skytrain For Dummies (5)
    • Buddhism 101 (11)
    • First Timers Guide To Shopping In Bangkok (7)
    • Sex Break (11)
    • Tales (30)
    • This Is Thailand . . . (45)
    • Tips (143)
    • Top Ten Bangkok Experiences (9)
    • Wats of Thailand (42)
  • The Road To Rio (1)
  • The XVII Asiad (26)
  • The XXII Gays of The Winter Olympics (22)
  • Travel Commentary & Photography (294)
    • Travel Commentary (20)
    • Travel Photography (274)
      • 7 Shots (20)
      • Bali (10)
      • Bangkok (70)
      • Cambodia (28)
      • Chiang Mai (49)
      • Luang Prabang (17)
      • Malaysia (11)
      • Monk Shot! (70)
      • Phuket (2)
      • Ubiquitous Plastic Stool Shot! (36)
  • Travel Tales from Beyond Thailand (40)
    • Bali (2)
    • Bora Bora (1)
    • California (1)
    • Cambodia (13)
    • Hawaii (4)
    • Hong Kong (3)
    • Laos (9)
    • Malaysia (2)
    • Mexico (1)
    • New Orleans (1)
    • Singapore (1)
  • XXX Games (71)
  • Recent Posts
  • Good-bye Bangkokbois
  • Selfies Sunday #59
  • End Of The Week #186
  • Say, "Cheese!"
  • naked island dudeAloha Friday #59
  • TIT: The Times They Are A-Changin'
  • nude asian dudeTake It Off Thursday #59
  • Photo Of The Week #23
  • nude asian dudeHump Day Is Bump Day #59
  • The Road To Rio: Going For The Lin
  • naked asian twinkTwinky Tuesday #59
  • I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy: Eyes Wide Shut

Favorite Travel Tales:

Ad
The 7 Shot Rule

Ad
Angkor Wat: Still Life in the Still Life

Ad
Old Fisher Guy

Ad
Ideas That Don't Travel Well

Tags

And And More! Attractions Bangkok Bangkokbois Beachball Blogs Cambodia Chiang Mai Coming Out Gay Bangkok Gay GoGo Bars Gay Thailand Gay Thailand Forums Hong Kong Hotels and Restaurants Ladyboys Luang Prabang Malaysia & Indonesia & Singapore Markets & Shopping Money Matters Monks Movies & Television Muay Thai Nude Dudes Offs Olympics Photography Phuket Scams Stupid Tourist Tricks Tawan Bar That's That's Gay Tip of the Hat Awards Transportation Turtle Ass Awards Wats Yi Peng

FAVORITE GAY THAILAND STORIES:

Ad
In Search of Love, Money, or a Big Dick

Ad
Tony The Tiger

Ad
A Night At Nature Boy

Ad
I Fell In Love With A Bar Boy: The Day The Music Died

POPULAR POSTS:

The XXX Games: Naked Olympic Athletes Celebrate The London Games

Gay of the Week: Channing Tatum (and his penis)

This Just Not In: Joe Manganiello’s Penis Is Really, Really Small

Nude Thai Boxing

Gay Of The Week: Two Samoan Men And A Penis

First Timers Guide To Bangkok Gay Gogo Bars

First Timers Guide To Shopping In Bangkok: Part II - Pratunam Market

Sex In The Locker Room: A Not So Straight Man’s Fanttasy

Bangkok’s Tawan Bar: Muscle Men Central

Gay Of The Week: Dakota Cochrane (And The UFC)

THE XXX GAMES:

PICTORIAL INDEX TO BANGKOK GAY GOGO BAR FIRST TIMERS GUIDES

PICTORIAL INDEX TO BUDDHISM 101 ARTICLES:

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Buddhism

PICTORIAL INDEX TO I FELL IN LOVE WITH A BAR BOY POSTS

The XXII Gays of The Winter Olympics

PICTORIAL INDEX TO THE BOYS IN THE BAR TALES

The 17th Asian Games of the Asiad

Archives

  • February 2016 (1)
  • April 2015 (22)
  • March 2015 (58)
  • February 2015 (54)
  • January 2015 (52)
  • December 2014 (66)
  • November 2014 (39)
  • October 2014 (45)
  • September 2014 (74)
  • August 2014 (52)
  • July 2014 (57)
  • June 2014 (55)
  • May 2014 (56)
  • April 2014 (65)
  • March 2014 (53)
  • February 2014 (75)
  • January 2014 (55)
  • December 2013 (67)
  • November 2013 (53)
  • October 2013 (48)
  • September 2013 (56)
  • August 2013 (61)
  • July 2013 (55)
  • June 2013 (64)
  • May 2013 (63)
  • April 2013 (63)
  • March 2013 (65)
  • February 2013 (62)
  • January 2013 (59)
  • December 2012 (81)
  • November 2012 (63)
  • October 2012 (73)
  • September 2012 (70)
  • August 2012 (98)
  • July 2012 (99)
  • June 2012 (73)
  • May 2012 (73)
  • April 2012 (71)
  • March 2012 (77)
  • February 2012 (64)
  • January 2012 (72)
  • December 2011 (52)
  • November 2011 (44)
  • October 2011 (43)
  • September 2011 (38)
  • August 2011 (40)
  • July 2011 (38)
  • June 2011 (40)
  • May 2011 (37)
  • April 2011 (39)
  • March 2011 (62)
  • February 2011 (54)

Recent Comments

  • Mrjorie on Monday Meat #5
  • Mrjorie on Aloha Friday #59
  • joy on Monday Meat #5
  • gray-haired boy by the sea on Good-bye Bangkokbois
  • Joey on Aloha Friday #29
  • ok on The 10 Bar Boys You’ll Off In Bangkok
  • Jon on How Do You Say Humongous In Sudanese?
  • Jon on The 2nd Gayest Thing You’ll Ever Put In Your Mouth
  • Jon on The 2nd Gayest Thing You’ll Ever Put In Your Mouth
  • Jon on Getting A Straight Boy to Go Gay
  • Joe on Bangkok’s Tawan Bar: Muscle Men Central
  • Robert Alvarez on Pictures That Move Me #2
  • Robert Alvarez on Can’t You See I’m Busy?
  • Daddy_lover on Bangkok’s Tawan Bar: Muscle Men Central
  • dookie on Bangkok Gay Gogo Bar First Timers’ Guide Part V
  • Raven Starre on The Elephant Experience in Thailand
  • david hopkins on Good-bye Bangkokbois
  • Andi Cheok on Good-bye Bangkokbois
  • e. sexton on The XXX Games: Naked Olympic Athletes Celebrate The London Games
  • Ryan Billingsley on Gay Of The Week: Thomas Finchum Wants To Be Top But Settles For A Three-Way
Sawatdee and welcome to the new and improved Bangkokbois Gay Thailand Blog! Okay, so it’s not necessarily improved, just hosted on a new site. And it’s not just about Thailand, though that still is the main focus. And it’s not all gay either, unless you’re not and then you’ll think it’s pretty damn gay I’m sure. All of the penis might tip you off. Which means if you are not of the required legal age to be looking at penis other than your own, you should leave. And go tell your parental units they suck at their job.

But it is a blog and one out of three ain’t bad. Besides, Bangkokbois Pretty Gay Mostly About Thailand Blog For People Of Legal Age is just too wordy. But so is Dancing With The Devil In The City Of Angels, which is really the title of this blog.

As cool of a title as that is, Google just ain’t sharp enough to figure out that means this blog is mostly about Thailand. And pretty damn gay to boot. The penis part even Google figured out. Which is a good thing. ‘Cuz Bangkokbois Pretty Gay Mostly About Thailand With Lots Of Penis Blog For People Of Legal Age, I think, was taken by someone else.

Move along, there’s nothing to see here folks; pay no attention to that man behind the curtain:

  • Log in
  • Entries RSS
  • Comments RSS
  • WordPress.org

Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: Chateau by Ignacio Ricci.