"Um, didn't we agree never to go in there again? We didn't like it last time."

"Yeah, but you know how so many things have changed in the past five years? Well, maybe this place has changed too."

"All the changes we've seen have pretty much sucked."

"So, maybe this place changed for the better!"

I very much doubted that, but having finished this debate with myself, I climbed the stairs to enter Orchard Towers, Singapore's famous "Four Floors of Whores."

I'd left my hotel minutes before and had no plans to hit Orchard Towers. I just happened to walk past the place. I had a pretty good idea I was in the right neighborhood, though ... I'd been propositioned on the street within minutes of leaving my hotel at 9PM - and half a dozen more times as I walked up Orchard Road. The women were a bit worn looking and I declined.

Orchard Towers is something like an old fashion Asian shopping mall. There's a central stairwell surrounded by small shop fronts and bars. Going up the escalator to the second floor, women in massage shops called and waved to me. Nothing too appealing.

I walked into the first thing that looked like a bar. It was reasonably crowded with women, but it was as dark as a Jakarta discotheque. I refuse to pick up girls anywhere their looks can be obscured by heavy makeup in darkness. I was doubly concerned about this particular establishment as a fair number of the girls didn't really look enough like girls - if ya know what I mean.

The bar next door was well lit and friendly, but it was also devoid of customers (including women). The female waitresses did their best to intise me in, but after having spent $30SGD ($20USD) on a Singapore Sling earlier that day (expensive but outstanding), I was not that interested in a drink.

I wandered off to another bar that advertised a live band. I was curious to see where the band might be from. I had been really impressed with some of the performances in Pattaya and wanted to know if the group was from Thailand.

Inside the bar it was quiet. A few women lounged around but the place was really empty. A mamasan/waitress informed me that the band didn't start until later. Seeing me gaze around with a disappointed look, she encouraged me to check out the downstairs club. With a shrug, I made my way to the stairs.

Two girls grabbed my arms the moment I hit the bottom step. They gave me a big, eager smile. I smiled back but they weren't my type (my type being somewhat younger and more attractive).

The downstairs club was pretty much packed and lit well enough I could see who was there. I ran a gauntlet of hands reaching out to me as I made my way around the room.

A pretty thing caught my eye as she caught my sleeve. She was Vietnamese and was eager to leave the bar and go to my hotel. I chatted with her and her friend a bit before asking her how much for long time. She pulled her less attractive (and heavier) friend to her and replied "Four hundred dollars. Each. Two lady." Jeepers! After my time in Thailand, I had a hard time justifying a quarter that amount. I wished them both luck and moved on.

Seeing nothing appealing, I walked back out into the mall area and checked out the massage shops. Again, nothing caught my eye. I wandered around some more but had to agree that Orchard Towers hadn't changed from my last trip five years earlier.

On the street, I approached some of the women to get an idea as to price. The going rate for long time seemed to be somewhere between one-hundred and two-hundred Singapore dollars ($65-120 USD). Curiously enough, every woman I approached turned out to be Vietnamese. One, in a possible attempt at differentiating herself from her cousins, tried to pass herself off as Cambodian (I knew enough Khmer to put that charade to rest).

Had I more energy, I might have moved on to the Geyling district to see what was happening there, but after departing Thailand, fooling around with sub-par and expensive babes held little interest for me.

Oh, how I miss Thailand's go-go bars.

Oh, one other item of note. I noticed that Singapore had a couple of bona fide sex shops right on Orchard Road. Thinking I might pick up a few toys for next time, I visited two of them for a look. The shops were small but lined with racks of lube, vibrators, dildos, tame BDSM stuff, inflatables and what have you. A lot of the products are made in the US, but quite a few were Chinese. So, I'm thinking I can get a really good deal, right? No way! Their products were easily twice the price you'd pay in a US shop.

It seems that Japan is the place to buy your marital aids.

Wombat88

I agree my friend. As I stay at the Hilton accross the street it's easy to get sucked into the 4 floors of BS. I had one good time there a year or so back and got lucky (see trip report) but other than that...it's a rip off and the girls will rip you off. To tell you the truth I have had great luck going to normal clubs. Thanks for the update.. Walnuts