Patpongs, Sois, and Bars - Oh My!

Thailand is one of our favorite places. Bangkok in particular. What makes Thailand awesome is that it is just crazy all the time. There is a sense of freedom there that I have never experienced before in any country. This freedom trickles down to all aspects of life, including sexuality, sexual freedom, sexual identity, and gender identity. Nowhere is this more obvious than the sois of silom in Bangkok. 

A Soi is basically Thai for alley, from my understanding. The sois of silom translates to the alleys off silom street. Silom is one of the primary "going out" streets in Bangkok. The alleys are where all the craziness happens. The most famous set of sois are the patpongs, where you can see "lady shows" and other debaucherous entertainment. Our favorite Soi is one of the two solely gay sois in the area. The pictures doesn't do it justice, but you get the idea. 

Panoramic

Head on shots. 

We have spent hours just sipping beers and watching timid tourists acclimate to the no nonsense nature of the bars' street peddlers and "convincers" that grab you and drag you into their establishments. We like to consider ourselves experts at navigating these places by now.