Some weeks ago, i have returned one of the best trips of my life. To combine honeymoon, winter-break, and holiday we have chosen Thailand as our destination. Here is the long piece which i intended to publish before we took off to our honeymoon, but decided to wait and judge myself and share my own experiences and feelings.
Lucky for me, i am married to a person who is great in organizing trips. Having chosen the mainland, we planned the details and booked our flights and hotels almost 9 months earlier, which paid us off as upgraded hotel rooms once we landed in Thailand. Was i excited? Well, we have chosen Thailand, because it was a country we have both never seen and we would have a chance to escape from the dark and depressing winters of Sweden. So, yes, i was really excited. However, that was not the only feeling i had. From the moment we decided to go there until we spent some days in Thailand, i had to challenge myself against all the facts about human trafficking, sex slavery, and animal abuse in this exotic Asian country.
Since 1960s, prostitution is not legal in Thailand. However, being born in a country where they teach you the hard way that written rules doesn't mean anything unless they are enforced, i was not very optimistic about the situation in Thailand. Besides, i had all stories and facts i have read, listened and watched about the sex slavery and human trafficking. (see what is human trafficking here.)
Thailand in high season has two faces. In day time, especially in islands, it is almost impossible to imagine how the cities/mostly certain districts are turning into hubs of the night life.
In the small village called Rawai we were surprised that there were even bars, as it seemed very small to us. Some of the bars seemed as typical sports bars and it was fairly easy to spot somehow "family-friendly" bars. But then, even those bars had a crowd of female/transgender workers (difficult to distinguish for me whether they were only barmaids or not) and mostly individual (or group of 3-4) middle-aged men or bachelors. And, i would still say the bars that we have chosen in Rawai did not irritate me in any ways to my surprise. Overall, we had great time in Rawai. Great food, perfect weather, hotel's stuff were extraordinary; always smiling and ready to help. They even helped us to catch one lizard that slipped into our room one night :)
Once we transferred to Patong, we realized how great Rawai was: A down turn in our feelings. Day time Patong was Alanya/Turkey all over; crowded beaches, very commercialized streets, locals' only aim is to get as much money as they can, nothing exotic.. etc. Since we have chosen the city in order to stay only 3 days and have boat tours to some islands much easier, we were happy. Not surprisingly, the islands we have visited were amazing.
One night , we tried one of the bars that one guide book suggested as family-friendly. (Of course it was a sports bar) It was right in the beginning of well-known Soi Bangla, and we realized that everything we heard about this place was correct. Normally i would say i did not see anything different than anyone would see in any touristic holiday destinations in Europe, But! All-over the street there were children, men and over-age women (over aged to work in sex industry, i guess) promoting private sex-shows, and later we learned online that mainly trafficked women were involved in these shows.) The shocking part was for me seeing all those middle-aged and even elderly men with young women/transgenders. Although mostly Thai women are working in these bars there are a lot of women also from other Asian countries, such as Laos, North Korea, China, or even Russia. It was of course not surprising to see no locals hanging out in these bars, unless they run the establishment. It was very disturbing to even think what many of these women are going thorough, having trapped in sex business, which even local authorities are not trying to put an end to.
Then, we travelled to Bangkok. Luckily, we knew how to survive in a metropolis. We stayed in Bangkok for 5 nights. Being a tourist who is against human slavery and animal cruelty, our touristic activities were reduced to tourist destinations such as; temples, parks, city center, boat tour and shopping. We did all these and more. We visited some really nice restaurants, wandered in small streets where there were no tourists. Now, i think that, 4 days would be enough to explore the city.
In Bangkok, it is easy to realize that you are in a big city; shopping malls and food stalls everywhere. It is a polluted city in many ways. It is crowded, air is dirty in a way that you feel when you breathe, there is noise everywhere you go. But after Patong, at least it was quite exotic. One of the first things we were surprised was the sign in metro and skytrain, which basically says you should give your seat to those in need: monks, pregnant, elderly and children!
While monks are more visible in everyday life in Bangkok, it was the children part that took us by surprise. I learned that children are one of the most valued part of society, mainly because they are seen as the future of the country. Unfortunately, it doesn't take long to realize the similarities between Turkish and Thai culture in terms of valuing children and mistreating them at the same time; both at home and within society.
Nights in Bangkok, were a little different than in Patong, mainly because in big cities it is much easier to hide all the nasty business in small districts and areas. However, as in everywhere, massage business in Bangkok has its share in pleasing male customers. While in Patong, small massage saloons that were tired of the questions have written "NO SEX" on their shop windows, in Bangkok it was much easier to see who are and who are not in the business. Or; by the time we were in Bangkok, we were already familiar with social profile in general. Also in Bangkok, there were many beggars and homeless; mostly children.
Still, what we have seen in Patong, was also visible in Bangkok; Western looking middle aged men with young Thais. But, since in Bangkok we deliberately abstained from Night life, what we only came across at night were 5-10 women in front of local bars on our way back to our hotel, which was in the center and relatively close to an area that is known for its night life. Naturally, this does not mean that all these women are victims of human trafficking. But, as a woman, i cannot imagine how someone would have a dream of being a sex-worker. (Here is a documentary about a Thai girl who travelled to Bangkok; Pla)
After returning to cold and safe Sweden, i have digged into the subjects mentioned above and found that many people are pleased to explain the sex industry in Thailand, as it is a result of social acceptance. It is reasonable to think that; religion and culture that is formed around it provide a certain level of acceptance to, for example; polygamy and sex change, but; it is the economic motive and lack of legal arrangements as well as enforcements that are letting the sex business, human trafficking and slavery to grow. I believe, many people do not realize that smiling and making the "customer" happy is part of sex workers' job. Even a person who is a typical white/blue collar worker, can develop symptoms that make them believe there is no way out from their situation, given that they are unhappy in their work or life in general. One can easily fail to think that; all these smiling, beautiful, caring women can be living with learned helplessness. Moreover; poverty, lack of proper education, unemployment and mistreatment of children lead many young girls and boys to travel to touristic cities with the hope of better future, and if they end up in sex-industry there is still a hope for meeting a man that will save their lives. If you have never given a thought to this, here is a chance.
I am guessing there are also boys and men who are trapped in sex industry, and certainly in human trafficking, but that was not visible to my tourist eyes. Furthermore, the bigger picture is worse than what is vaguely written here as holiday experience. The former economist side of mine tells me that demand creates its own supply. Though, prostitution has its own twist when the demand to buy someone else's body is punished. (example of Sweden) Not knowing may be a bliss , but worse, if one knows and still exploits others' desperation to bring joy to their lives. It is shocking to realize each action we take in our warm and happy lives might have an impact on somebody across the world; cheap clothes and technological products that we buy, smoking, our love to chocolate and coffee, and sometimes even curiosity. So, i chose to be part of the solution, at least by being informed and by informing others, if nothing else.
All in all, these were issues i was aware of before i have travelled to Thailand, and i am happy that we still went there to see what is hardly being talked and written; beautiful landscape, nice beaches, great food and naive people. (So, the next trip will be some years later to islands where there are almost no tourists )
Lucky for me, i am married to a person who is great in organizing trips. Having chosen the mainland, we planned the details and booked our flights and hotels almost 9 months earlier, which paid us off as upgraded hotel rooms once we landed in Thailand. Was i excited? Well, we have chosen Thailand, because it was a country we have both never seen and we would have a chance to escape from the dark and depressing winters of Sweden. So, yes, i was really excited. However, that was not the only feeling i had. From the moment we decided to go there until we spent some days in Thailand, i had to challenge myself against all the facts about human trafficking, sex slavery, and animal abuse in this exotic Asian country.
Since 1960s, prostitution is not legal in Thailand. However, being born in a country where they teach you the hard way that written rules doesn't mean anything unless they are enforced, i was not very optimistic about the situation in Thailand. Besides, i had all stories and facts i have read, listened and watched about the sex slavery and human trafficking. (see what is human trafficking here.)
Thailand in high season has two faces. In day time, especially in islands, it is almost impossible to imagine how the cities/mostly certain districts are turning into hubs of the night life.
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| Hotel's view in Rawai, Phuket |
In the small village called Rawai we were surprised that there were even bars, as it seemed very small to us. Some of the bars seemed as typical sports bars and it was fairly easy to spot somehow "family-friendly" bars. But then, even those bars had a crowd of female/transgender workers (difficult to distinguish for me whether they were only barmaids or not) and mostly individual (or group of 3-4) middle-aged men or bachelors. And, i would still say the bars that we have chosen in Rawai did not irritate me in any ways to my surprise. Overall, we had great time in Rawai. Great food, perfect weather, hotel's stuff were extraordinary; always smiling and ready to help. They even helped us to catch one lizard that slipped into our room one night :)
Once we transferred to Patong, we realized how great Rawai was: A down turn in our feelings. Day time Patong was Alanya/Turkey all over; crowded beaches, very commercialized streets, locals' only aim is to get as much money as they can, nothing exotic.. etc. Since we have chosen the city in order to stay only 3 days and have boat tours to some islands much easier, we were happy. Not surprisingly, the islands we have visited were amazing.
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| Ko Phi Phi Don |
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| Ko Phi Phi Don |
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| Sea turtle - Similan Islands |
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| Similan (Coral) Islands |
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| Sign in Coral Islands / respect! |
One night , we tried one of the bars that one guide book suggested as family-friendly. (Of course it was a sports bar) It was right in the beginning of well-known Soi Bangla, and we realized that everything we heard about this place was correct. Normally i would say i did not see anything different than anyone would see in any touristic holiday destinations in Europe, But! All-over the street there were children, men and over-age women (over aged to work in sex industry, i guess) promoting private sex-shows, and later we learned online that mainly trafficked women were involved in these shows.) The shocking part was for me seeing all those middle-aged and even elderly men with young women/transgenders. Although mostly Thai women are working in these bars there are a lot of women also from other Asian countries, such as Laos, North Korea, China, or even Russia. It was of course not surprising to see no locals hanging out in these bars, unless they run the establishment. It was very disturbing to even think what many of these women are going thorough, having trapped in sex business, which even local authorities are not trying to put an end to.
Then, we travelled to Bangkok. Luckily, we knew how to survive in a metropolis. We stayed in Bangkok for 5 nights. Being a tourist who is against human slavery and animal cruelty, our touristic activities were reduced to tourist destinations such as; temples, parks, city center, boat tour and shopping. We did all these and more. We visited some really nice restaurants, wandered in small streets where there were no tourists. Now, i think that, 4 days would be enough to explore the city.
In Bangkok, it is easy to realize that you are in a big city; shopping malls and food stalls everywhere. It is a polluted city in many ways. It is crowded, air is dirty in a way that you feel when you breathe, there is noise everywhere you go. But after Patong, at least it was quite exotic. One of the first things we were surprised was the sign in metro and skytrain, which basically says you should give your seat to those in need: monks, pregnant, elderly and children!
Nights in Bangkok, were a little different than in Patong, mainly because in big cities it is much easier to hide all the nasty business in small districts and areas. However, as in everywhere, massage business in Bangkok has its share in pleasing male customers. While in Patong, small massage saloons that were tired of the questions have written "NO SEX" on their shop windows, in Bangkok it was much easier to see who are and who are not in the business. Or; by the time we were in Bangkok, we were already familiar with social profile in general. Also in Bangkok, there were many beggars and homeless; mostly children.
Still, what we have seen in Patong, was also visible in Bangkok; Western looking middle aged men with young Thais. But, since in Bangkok we deliberately abstained from Night life, what we only came across at night were 5-10 women in front of local bars on our way back to our hotel, which was in the center and relatively close to an area that is known for its night life. Naturally, this does not mean that all these women are victims of human trafficking. But, as a woman, i cannot imagine how someone would have a dream of being a sex-worker. (Here is a documentary about a Thai girl who travelled to Bangkok; Pla)
After returning to cold and safe Sweden, i have digged into the subjects mentioned above and found that many people are pleased to explain the sex industry in Thailand, as it is a result of social acceptance. It is reasonable to think that; religion and culture that is formed around it provide a certain level of acceptance to, for example; polygamy and sex change, but; it is the economic motive and lack of legal arrangements as well as enforcements that are letting the sex business, human trafficking and slavery to grow. I believe, many people do not realize that smiling and making the "customer" happy is part of sex workers' job. Even a person who is a typical white/blue collar worker, can develop symptoms that make them believe there is no way out from their situation, given that they are unhappy in their work or life in general. One can easily fail to think that; all these smiling, beautiful, caring women can be living with learned helplessness. Moreover; poverty, lack of proper education, unemployment and mistreatment of children lead many young girls and boys to travel to touristic cities with the hope of better future, and if they end up in sex-industry there is still a hope for meeting a man that will save their lives. If you have never given a thought to this, here is a chance.
I am guessing there are also boys and men who are trapped in sex industry, and certainly in human trafficking, but that was not visible to my tourist eyes. Furthermore, the bigger picture is worse than what is vaguely written here as holiday experience. The former economist side of mine tells me that demand creates its own supply. Though, prostitution has its own twist when the demand to buy someone else's body is punished. (example of Sweden) Not knowing may be a bliss , but worse, if one knows and still exploits others' desperation to bring joy to their lives. It is shocking to realize each action we take in our warm and happy lives might have an impact on somebody across the world; cheap clothes and technological products that we buy, smoking, our love to chocolate and coffee, and sometimes even curiosity. So, i chose to be part of the solution, at least by being informed and by informing others, if nothing else.
All in all, these were issues i was aware of before i have travelled to Thailand, and i am happy that we still went there to see what is hardly being talked and written; beautiful landscape, nice beaches, great food and naive people. (So, the next trip will be some years later to islands where there are almost no tourists )
