Thanks to Muraski, Buick, and Ceenote for their reports or comments on Bangkok.

This is not an in-depth report on Bangkok's Sukhumvit area. Just some facts and a few personal experiences that might be of interest.

I have not visited the Sukhumvit area in four or was it six years. Last fall 2015, I did visit Bangkok's Pat Pong area for a few days and wrote a trip report about it.

I lived in Bangkok for a year in the early 1980s annd unfortunately could not find a decent job in Bangkok in order to stay longer. It was my dream to return to Bangkok to live forever. In 2006, I spent a month in Bangkok and recognized that it was no longer the sex heaven of the 1980s and, in fact, had fewer girls in gogo clubs and even fewer now than Pattaya.

A little self-description. I am in my early-70s and have little sex appetite, after 35 years of mongering. Although compared to Muraski, Buick, and Ceeenote, even in my younger days, I had nowhere their sex capability. Also, no ability to wander the night scenes more than a few hours. I have always had a physical limit of four beers, which with practice I might extend to six beers. So, that limits the number of clubs that I visit in a night. Also, being on a beer budget, I favor the clubs with happy hours. So, my bar-hopping is over about 10 o'clock, except when I stay later in a few clubs that lower their bar fines about midnight.

On my way to Pattaya, I decided for a change to visit Bangkok's Sukhumvit area for a few days in mid-June 2016.

ARRIVAL.

Suvarnabhumi airport, Sunday morning. Customs selected some "nothing to declare" passengers for baggage x-ray as they exited the arrival area into the terminal.

"Super Rich" money exchange has a booth in the airport terminal on the basement level, near the Airport Rail Link entrance. It gave about two baht more per US dollar than the exchanges upstairs. (On this trip, I exchanged US $1 for about 35 baht.)

Before entering the airport rail station, go to a machine, press the screen for English version, select destination, insert Thai bills, receive a coin-size plastic button and coin change. At entrance, pass the button over a screen of the turnstile. At exit, deposit the button at the turnstile.

The Airport Rail Link train emptied out at the airport terminal stop and security guards checked the empty train cars. Was there a security threat or merely regular procedure?

Cost to go to rail's Makkasan station (on soi Asoke) was 35 baht and took about 20 minutes.

Exiting the Makkasan station, going to the right and walking along a downward ramp that goes over soi Asoke, the walkway ends with another Super Rich booth on the right. Walking over soi Asoke placed on the correct or east side of the street for vehicles heading towards Sukhumvit Road.

Taxi's stopped along the sidewalk to pick up passengers. Cost to go to Sukhumvit and my hotel on soi 14 was 51 baht on the meter.

HOTEL.

I booked the Red Planet Hotel on www.asiatravel.com for 1,300 baht (about US $37) per night. It is on soi 14 about 100 meters from Sukhumvit Road, across from the mall Terminal 21. I wanted a hotel within easy walking distance of Soi Cowboy. Inside my room was a wall poster that said booking directly with the hotel chain's web site would get a discounted price.

At 9:20 am, I retrieved my 24-inch suitcase and walked passed Customs. At 10:30 am, I arrived at the Red Planet Hotel. I was prepared to wait in its lobby until its official check-in time of 2 pm. There were a lot of seats in its lobby and a couple of tourist newspapers in English and at the end of the short hallway to the rear there were two free computers connected to the internet. However, my reservation was recognized and the hotel had a room immediately available for my occupancy.

My hotel room was very clean, but relatively small with the queen-size bed taking up about 70 percent of the floor space. The room had no refrigerator, no closet (but a few hangars on a bar mounted on the wall, next to the tv), no electric hot water kettle, no chair, and no luggage rack. The room did have free fast wifi, a large in-room safe (large enough to fit easily my netbook) sitting on the lower shelf of a night stand. small flip-down table/shelf (next to the bed), and a 32-inch flat-screen television (with usb port that lacked ability to play film files on my usb stick). The cable television had relatively few channels in English, namely: a news channel called Live From Paris, ChannelNews Asia (Singapore origin), SyFy, Universal, and CI (Crime and Investigations). I do not watch other channels such as sports, music, and cartoon. No toiletries, except for a wall dispenser for liquid soap-shampoo, towels, and toilet paper. The reception desk has items for sale, such as bottled water, soda.

Nealy all of the hotel patrons were young Asian travelers, both males and females. I did not see anyone with a Thai working girl, although, when asked, a middle-aged Western male told me that the hotel was girl-friendly and he had brought girls in.

I recommend this hotel for a few nights' stay. Of course, you can stay longer if you can tolerate small incoveniences.

NANA ENTERTAINMENT PLAZA.

Some clubs open at 7 pm. A few clubs had happy hours. MERCURY's happy hours went to 8:30 pm and had Singha beer for 95 baht. It also had Leo beer for 105 baht all night. PLAYSKOOL's happy hours went to 9:30 pm and had Singha beer for 95 baht.

I was at NEP on a Monday night between 8 pm - 9 pm and did not see a lot of girls in the gogo clubs. Maybe they have more girls later at night and/or on other nights. On the ground floor, there were fewer clubs than years ago with several clubs, combined from two former clubs into one larger club. There seemed to be as many transsexual clubs as heterosexual clubs. Of course, a few female dancers in the heterosexual clubs looked like they could be transsexuals.

Checking out all the clubs starting on the third floor, I walked pass by the CASANOVA club in a corner of the 2nd floor. Several transsexuals were sitting or walking, I avoided eye contact and looked away. To pass one 6-foot plus (much taller than me) transsexual wearing high heels and blocking the walkway, I had to turn my torso sideways in the narrow space between the transsexual and the balcony railing, with my right shoulder forward as I looked away. S/he yelped and smacked my right shoulder with a palm strike. Automatically my right arm flinched into a downward knee block, as I covered my head with my left hand. My right fist would have hit him/her body, except the body did not move into my arm range. No more physical hits. I guess s/he did not like a heterosexual male who refused to look at him/her and managed to slip by. I kept walking. S/he did not follow me.

No more 2nd floor NEP for me on this trip. Maybe on a future trip, I will try NEP again later at night.

HOOTERS.

Outside of NEP, the nearby open-wall bars were filled with customers. Bars with available freelancers?

The restaurant end (on soi 4 or soi nana) of the Nana Hotel was replaced with a HOOTERS franchise. Too bad. The restaurant used to have a low-price buffet lunch.

By the way, there was another HOOTERS on soi 15, next to the Sheraton Four Points Hotel and across from The Manhattan Hotel.

SOI COWBOY.

A few clubs opened at 7 pm, but with hardly any dancers on stage. Happy hours for the clubs that have such hours usually end at 9 pm. Beer in bottle price was usually 90 baht. Examples: TILAC, CRAZY CAT.

Exceptions: LIGHTHOUSE, 80 baht. THE DOLLHOUSE, 95 baht for a tequila. SHARK, 3 pm - 8 pm, 80 baht.

No happy hours: KISS, beer price starts at 190 baht. BACCARA, beer price starts at 180 baht. CRAZY HOUSE (exit the east end of Soi Cowboy, turn right, walk 50 feet), beer price starts at 170 baht.

One gay club on Soi Cowboy, according to its outside sign, located at the southeast end of Soi Cowboy. A first for soi cowboy?

SOI 7 BEER GARDEN.

At 9 pm, Monday night, the bar was about 40 percent full of customers, mostly females -- nearly all aged 40-plus.

SOI 7, East Side.

All the restaurants and bars have been razed for to-be-built new construction.

SOI 7/1.

This dead-end street still had a lot of night life. EDEN (famous for three-some) and two Dr BJ places were in operation, with dozen-plus girls sitting outside to attract customers to enter. MAGIC TABLE was a new club for me, but it had only 3 girls dancing on low platforms and few customers at 9 pm, Monday night.

THERMAE bar.

Located at the basement-level with its own street entrance, between soi 15 and soi 17, under the Ruamchitt Hotel (years ago, this hotel's lowest-price rooms were dumps, but next-price-up rooms were re-modeled). It had the most girls of any Bangkok place visited on this trip. About 50 young girls (aged 20s, maybe a few 30s) on Monday night about 9:30 pm and about 60 on Tuesday night. They easily out-numbered the males, nearly all Asians.

Years ago, one night I walked into Thermae and stood sipping a beer among the crowd. Within a couple of minutes, four or five fat Thai ladies aged 50-plus sidled within a few feet of me. That turned me off from returning to Thermae during that trip.

Thermae opens 8 pm. Waiters will rush you the minute you walk in to order and pay for a drink or beer. A Singha cost 100 baht, but was worth the smiles I received from more than a few young girls.

About 35 years ago, Thermae was located a block to the west on the same side of Sukhumvit Road, under a multi-floor massage parlor and after 1 am, one entered through the rear of the building. It was a freelancer place, but was small and crowded mainly with males. On this trip, it was now much better and probably the most enjoyable place for me to find a willing girl.

Is it now a freelancer place and does it charge a bar fine? I guess yes and no repectively. I saw some guys walking out with girls and no waiter stopped them for payment. Unlike the L.A. Cafe in Manila, where a waitress will ask the male to buy the girl he is talking to a lady's drink for about 350 pesos.

PANTIP PLAZA.

I took the Number 2 bus (old, non-air conditioned) on Sukhumvit Road. Years ago, the cost was about 5 baht. However, going and returning, the bus fare collector did not bother to collect fares from anyone.

Pantip Plaza is the electronics mall in Bangkok. It has been re-modeled. New floors, re-arranged lobby, better lighting.

The pirated software and film/television dvd sellers have re-located from the front of the 2nd level to the back of the 2nd level. Also, some vendors on the ground floor, such a buddha medallion vendors have moved to the 2nd level. A lady named Nee 087-021-5347 sold films and television series at 60 baht per disc. Since there was a delay in getting the titles I wanted, she had them delivered to my hotel. I had to pay in advance. One film title was unavailable, thus delivery included a refund of 60 baht. She had recent titles, but not old titles. Note that the disc vendors in Tukcom, Pattaya priced discs at 100 baht each, with a free disc for every 4- or 5-disc purchase.

I forgot to pack my cell phone charger for Samsung cheapest model. Browsing the Pantip Plaza, I saw the same model at a booth near the down escalator on the 3rd level. I bought it for 600 baht from a middle-aged Indian male clerk. However, in my hotel the charger did not work. I should have checked it, before buying it. (Luckily, later I bought a generic charger at Tukcom, Pattaya for 250 baht from Ice Mobile, 2nd floor.)

SIDEWALK.

About 10 years ago, I met a late-20s girl somewhere between soi 15 and 17. We had short-time, which was okay. So, I was not enthused to pursue another Bangkok street walker.

Once I arrived in Bangkok after midnight on soi 3 and saw a lot of trannsexuals on the streets.

On this trip, my first walk in the afternoon along Sukhumvit Road in the afternoon near soi 14, I passed a modestly-dressed Thai girl. She was doing a Catholic cross with her right hand, while keeping her head down so that I could not see her face. I wondered if I looked like a vampire? I would like to try a blood transfusion from a healthy youth, because I heard that a scientific experiment with rats resulted in old rats acting like young rats after a blood transfusion.

EATS.

I thrived on subs at Subway (inside of Time Square mall on the ground floor), sandwiches and chips from 7-Eleven, and soi 14 food carts available until about 7 pm. If I had stayed a week or longer, I would have looked for cheap buffets and shopped at grocery stores with fruits and vegetables. I dislike sitting alone in restaurants waiting for food to be cooked or eating meals from a street cart that cooked with water from an unknown source (such as rice, noodle, soup).

AUSTRALIA.

News cable channels have shown Australia keeping refugees in camps outside of Australia after catching them trying to enter on boats and people voicing criticisms of Australia refugee policy. I met a friendly Australian senior in Crazy Cat, who said that he was married to a Thai woman and he was looking to move to Thailand when he retires in a year or two. His reason was that Australia was very dangerous due to the Moslems living there. Interesting, I had never heard this side of the Australia refugee issue.

Conclusion.

Bangkok was a good once-in-a-while change from Pattaya. It is a big city with lots of side streets to explore. A few hidden dens continue to exist. For example, a dead-end soi between soi 18 and soi 20 had four places with names such as Shag Bar, Gate 20, and Fox and Hound. Another example is a dead-end soi, off of soi 14 and 30 meters from Sukhumvit Road, which had a massage parlor at the far end However, I did not have enough time to check on older ones, like Lollipop on soi 10 behind Boutique Suite Hotel, massage parlors, and the late evening sidewalk scene and Pat Pong taxi's.

So, maybe I will visit Bangkok again to do more exploring -- if I can find a good nearby 3-star hotel for about $30. At the least, Bangkok meets my minimum for a visit, namely, a bunch of clubs with a few half-naked girls on stage for me to daydream about.

Keep on mowing.
GreenG

Thanks, Greengrasser. I always appreciate updates on wherever, plus new information.

I stayed at a place called Beverly 33 on Soi 33 Alley, not far off Sukhumvit on my last trip. They have serviced one bedroom apartments with a small kitchen, about 40 sq. m. for a little over $50/night (plus larger ones). Pool on the roof that actually gets a lot of sun. My wingman turned me onto it. He showed me that almost all the establishments along the soi had girls available, not just the teen massages next to and across from the building. Of course, they provided on-soi eye candy when leaving the building.

It's a few short blocks down Sukhumvit from the Phrom Phong BTS stop and The Emporium Shopping Complex (which has three floors of great restaurants). Most importantly (for me), go through the BTS and down the other side of the street, and you're at Mango Massage, Addict Massage, Bee Massage, etc.

I resisted my wingman's insistence on staying at Beverly 33--too far from Nana, I thought. But that didn't matter, and I was VERY happy there.

i can't imagine what bkk will be like once i hit 70 (hit 50 this year). after the changes i've seen over the last 10, anything is possible. i think the one thing we can all agree on is the go go bars have gone way downhill and the restaurant quality has gone way up. transport has improved also over that time but when you start at the very bottom of the scale, it doesn't take much to improve !!

who knows how long it will last but there is a new restaurant called 'dressed' in the exchange tower. on the second floor where the BTS walkway enters the building (from asoke station). the main focus is salads and you can create your own using a checklist of ingredients (not a buffet, they make it after you 'create' it). there is something like this in hong kong and i eat there everytime i visit. usually costs 150 to 200thb (i hate thai food and haven't eaten a thai dish in months).

the BTS is growing quite a bit. extending existing lines and building new one's. pretty soon you can get to don muang airport via the BTS. i'm not positive on the schedule but i've seen the construction along the highway and i'd guess a year or two max. in another 20 yrs, they may have high speed trains to the north so we can all visit our ladies up in isan.

on the topic of lodging, one of the cheaper places around (other than hostels) is the honey house 1 on soi 22. a buddy of mine stayed there last year and paid 6,000thb for a week and that included breakfast. they have TV's with HDMI inputs and my buddy bought an internet package so he could stream stuff through his apple TV. that is another thing that has really improved in bkk, the quality of the internet.

GG - could call on getting the taxi coming off the airport rail link. i see so many tourists go down into the MRT and i'm sure most of them are going to sukhumvit area. traffic looks bad sometimes as there are only two lanes going towards sukhumvit for awhile but then it opens up to 5 or 6 wide. going down into the MRT then transferring to BTS to hit nana or phrom phong can be a hassle with luggage. i often brag to people about how cheap that trip is, 35thb for the train and then another 60thb or so for the taxi. less than 3usd !!!!

ps. one of these days, hopefully within 20 yrs, they will have a taxi line at the airport rail link station so you don't have to cross over the road and catch one off the street !!!

Thanks, guys, for the hotel tips. I will check them out.

Buick, walking the railway link's ramp to the far side of Soi Asoke placed me on the correct side of the street for vehicles heading towards Sukhumvit. The taxis saw us passengers with suitcase and quickly lined up along the sidewalk to pick us up. Only requirement is to show them a map or the name of the hotel and its address in thai. Luckily, the driver understood my pronunciation of Sukhumvit and soi sip-si (14).

See my Nov 2015 report about Pat Pong. I took the subway/skytrain to that area. There were a lot of people, but I made sure to station myself with my suitcase close to the door. The only real problem was the entrance guard wanted me to open my suitcase. That would be a problem -- to find a way to cut off the plastic ties on the zipper locks, to unwrap the wrap-around luggage strap, and to re-pack my suitcase with all the stuff I was carrying (which might not be allowed, such as knives, eucalyptus oil to spray with water for bed bugs, blue pills, booze, etc). I distracted the guard by showing him a map of where I wanted to go and asking about which rail lines to take. So, I did not open my suitcase and walked on to the cashier selling fare.

I remember going from Bangkok to Pattaya in the early 1980s. Two-lane road with some traffic. I rode shotgun in a left-hand wheel drive car. So, I had to stick my head out the window and tell my friend-driver when he could pass the vehicle in front of us. I was unable to enjoy the scenic view of trees and local populations by having to continually watch the traffic.

"The Airport Rail Link train emptied out at the airport terminal stop and security guards checked the empty train cars. Was there a security threat or merely regular procedure?"

Regular procedure. Cleaning staff go through the train and tidy up. The guards keep people off while they do this. This is a common procedure in Japan as well, wherever trains terminate.

Personally, I never get off at Makkasan. I always take the rail link to the last stop, Phaya Thai, and transfer over to the skytrain there.