I had finally arrived in Thailand. Despite all I have heard about the sex trade and the lady boys, I was by no means prepared for what I saw. Patong Beach, the town that is the most famous for its nightlife in Phuket, lived up to its reputation. I arrived late at night and the partying at the clubs and bars were in full force. After dropping off my bag at Patong Beach Backpacker Hostel, I wondered around town. All the main streets were packed with bar goers of all ages and Thai girls were everywhere pressuring you to sit and have a drink. I wondered down one side street which was a mistake. As I walked further and further down the street, I noticed everyone was a guy or a lady boy. Recognizing I went down the wrong street, I quickly back tracked and got out of there. I found the bar seen very creepy. There were 80 year old men dancing with Thai girls who looked 18. Every bar, young girls would come up to you asking you just to sit down. I’m all for parties and having a good time, but this was too much as it was so sleazy. There were a few bars that seemed more normal and more fun like Rocky City which had a live cover band. After witnessing the nightlife, I made my way down to the beach where I witnessed people sending of flying sky lanterns. This is basically a hot air balloon made with paper that is lit like a lantern and sent off into the night sky.

The next day I relaxed on the beach out in the hot sun. The white sand beach was amazing just as many had said before. The water was hardly refreshing as the water temperature was around 30C. The beach was covered by beach chairs looking like your typical resort beach. Vendors walked up and down the beach selling drinks, clothes and lotions. On the beach, you could also rent jet skis.

When the heat was too much to bear, I returned to the hostel where some backpackers were watching movies. There I met Nick the Norwegian, Kelly from England, Alix from California, Adam from Sheffield, Mike from British Columbia and a couple of Germans. There was talk about a ping pong show where girls do various things with the vaginas. These “things” included blowing a whistle, shooting balloons much like a blow dart, ejecting ping pong balls, ejecting fish, inserting water with Coke coming out and many more weird stunts. Most people at the hostel had seen or heard of these acts before, so the Germans and I decided to experience it firsthand. As weird it was and as impossible as it seemed, they did it.

The next day, I made my journey to Koh Phi Phi. There wasn’t much to Patong Beach and it was not how I envisioned it. I said my goodbyes to the new friends I had made at the hostel and continued my journey.