Thailand Night Fever

Bangkok DJ Festival 2006

Top DJ’s from Europe are performing this week in the Bangkok DJ Festival. There is a special venue arrangement where Q Bar and Bed Supperclub are sharing the hosting honors. Both establishments are located on Sukhumvit, Soi 11 and this is an excellent idea for two venues to team up. The event is billed as two venues for the price of one and tickets for entrance into both establishments cost 1,000 Baht. The DJ Festival runs from November 28 until December 4 and you will be guaranteed among the best club sounds around today. Some of the top names include – AXWELL – HARDSOUL – STEVE LAWLER – LOUIE VEGA – DOC SCOTT. If you are into the club scene at all this is one event not to be missed. Check it out!

Nana News

There is a go-go bar that is sandwiched between Hollywood Rock and Rainbow 1 on the first floor of Nana Plaza, which has appeared to have inadvertently changed its name. The sign now reads “Lay Skool” which in all fairness is a pretty accurate description. “Lay Skool” has increased its number of dolly birds as they have steadily built up the number of go-go pole performers. The owners decided to pay higher salaries to attract more girls and it seems to be paying off. They are also definitely benefiting from the closure of Pretty Lady. Upon entering “Lay Skool” you will notice two things that really stand out. Upon these two prominent sights are stars in the making. It is worthy of a visit and you do not need to be an astronomer to see the stars.

Mighty Midget

The cheerleaders at Lollipop go-go bar in Nana Plaza are an enthusiastic lot and none more so than their midgets. Yes, you heard right they even hire midgets. Some of you eagle-eyed bird watchers will notice that the cute little female that I refer to simply as “Mighty Midget” is not outside cheering the customers into Lollipop anymore. Well, I have a surprise for you because “Mighty Midget” is now go-go dancing in Lollipop. So, for all you admirers and those just plain curious, you can visit Lollipop and see “Mighty Midget” strutting her stuff.

Free Wi-Fi Service

The Big Mango (located above Lucky Lukes on floor 2 in Nana Plaza) provides a free “Wi-Fi” service. While you are visiting Nana Plaza it is good to know that a free Internet service is available. I often check my emails whilst waiting for my food, which is very convenient on the laptop provided at the bar. There is a ten minute rule if somebody is waiting for the computer, but there is no time limit if nobody is waiting. It is good to see that The Big Mango cares about its customers and this is yet another positive move by this little haven.

Finnegan’s Quiz Night

Fairly recently a new bar opened approximately half way down Soi Nana. Opposite the street from Raja Hotel car park is the Irish bar Finnegan’s. Although only a small bar it has already become quite popular. It is furbished in a modern style and looks too new to be termed as a real Irish bar, but I am sure that Finnegan’s will get there. By get there I mean some of the immaculate new look needs to evaporate and this will happen as time goes by. As more and more Guinness starts to flow this little bar will gradually turn into an Irish pub, or as close as an establishment here can imitate one. Apparently, Finnegan’s serve an excellent pint of Guinness, but as I do not drink Guinness myself you will have to be the judge of that.

For those of you who wish to stimulate your grey matter, Finnegan’s hold a quiz every Wednesday night. The master of ceremonies is “Dashing Darrel” and the quiz starts at 8:30pm. Make sure that you are there on time to ensure a good seat.

Hot Spot

One go-go bar that has been very popular in the past is Erotica. As you ascend the stairs to get to the top floor inside Nana Plaza, Erotica is located on the left. Currently the top floor of Erotica, which used to be referred to as Erotica VIP, is not operational. However, some of their cute dolly birds have returned to the bar which will certainly brighten the place up. Erotica are low on quantity but are getting higher on quality. Although Erotica only has between 20 and 30 go-go pole performers, most of them are cute.

Pleasant Surprise

One night in Angelwitch in Nana Plaza, Khun Leigh decided to go home with a relatively new go-go dolly bird. After Khun Leigh’s meticulous deliberation they both agreed that it would be good to have some fun together. The next night the slender new dancer approached Khun Leigh with a ten baht coin. She was returning it to him after she had to borrow ten baht from his dresser for a motorcycle taxi. Thailand veteran Khun Leigh was pleasantly surprised and quite touched by the gesture. Quite often I find that many bargirls are labeled as bad people. Just because a Thai woman works in this infamous industry, it does not mean others have a right to label them as bad people. As a former social worker myself, we were constantly instructed to treat everybody as an individual. Labels are for products and not people.

Royal Respect

On December 5 it is His Majesty King Bhumibol’s birthday and the Thais assure me that it will definitely be a day of celebration and for paying homage. I think it is very appropriate for everybody to pay their respects to a truly great Thai King. Some businesses are telling their staff to put their Royal Coronation polo shirts on as a mark of respect. I will be wearing mine with pride.

THAI TIP – For only 100 baht you can buy a good quality Royal Coronation polo shirt from Pratunam (pronounced pra-too-narm) market. It is advisable to let a Thai buy it as to avoid an inflated farang price. By displaying your knowledge of Thailand and your respect for His Majesty King Bhumibol, this will in turn earn you respect from the Thais. NB. Many Thais wear their Royal Coronation polo shirts every Monday.

Please check the Home Page for the latest real time information about whether the bars will be open or not on December 5. With the current political situation it does remain uncertain.

Confused Climate

Well, so much for my theory on the three seasons because the weather is really changeable at the moment. Technically it is the cool season (high tourist season), but the climate here in Thailand does seem somewhat confused. Some mornings it is cool and cloudy and then the afternoons in Bangkok are very hot and humid. Humid, sticky nights can be interrupted by quite pleasant cool breezes that fade into the night like a phantom. Usually the cool season is the ideal time to visit Thailand because there is the least amount of rainfall and humidity. Hopefully this intermittent rainfall will lessen.

All this climate change has affected people and some Thais are still falling ill. Some of these viruses are so serious that I know of Thai friends who had been admitted to hospital with very high temperatures. So far so good for most of us land of sanuk veterans. But, any sign of a nasty virus and you should be straight off to the Doctor. Coughs and colds are common this time of year, so bear this in mind.

Lolita’s Sign

Walking past Lolita’s just off Sukhumvit Soi 8, I could not help but notice what was written on the sign outside. Considering the service their girls provide, Lolita’s are most certainly doing some serious advertising for their business. The two words on the sign could have a different meaning.

Photo Gallery Update

I am pleased to announce that the photo gallery “Eye Candy” now has a couple of pages for you to view. It will expand more in time but for now these photo gallery archived pages are a start. Also, please note that there are images in with the archived “Night Fever” columns that you can look back upon. I hope that this can only add to the appeal of this Thailand nightlife website. Recently I have taken some images, so these new photographs will be appearing very shortly. In the meantime enjoy the eye candy!

Pearl Of The South

The idyllic island of Phuket is known as the pearl of the south. She has recovered remarkably after the Tsunami disaster. In actual fact, some people believe that Phuket has never looked better. With new sand placed along the beaches as part of the meticulous clean-up campaign, Phuket has had a thorough makeover. The pearl of the south even produces its very own “Phuket Beer” which is now more widely available outside of Phuket. Tourism did make a substantial recovery until the recent coup and unfortunately Phuket has suffered yet again as a result. But, all is not lost as the popular nightspots are still going strong. Two top discos to visit are Tiger and Taipan. They remain very busy with plenty of girls hanging out in these hot spots.

In terms of go-go bars in Phuket I can recommend a good option and that is to visit Rock Hard. This lone wolf is owned by the extremely eccentric but likeable Larry. One thing is for sure if you manage to meet Larry it will be a memorable experience. Please pass on my kind regards to Larry if you decide to visit him. If you are looking for something different in Phuket, Rock Hard is the place and I think you will enjoy yourself. It will most probably consist of a party breaking out – you know loads of booze and babes. Don’t you just hate that?

There are other beach resorts here in Thailand apart from Pattaya, so if you feel like a change then by all means give Phuket a try. Phuket is not for everybody but it is without question a very classy and beautiful beach resort.

Bangkok VS Pattaya Dance Contest

The Dance Contest that Coyotees hosted last Sunday was a roaring success. This special event was promoted as Bangkok VS Pattaya. Bangkok was represented by Long Gun and Rawhide from Soi Cowboy, and Pattaya was represented by Diamond (from Soi Diamond) and Coyotees (Soi Marina Plaza).

What has become a popular trend is that these Go-Go Dance Competitions are so well attended that the venue fills up early in the evening. This is becoming the norm at these events and sooner or later it will be necessary to seek larger venues for “Best Of The Best” type bonanzas.

Khun Min and her team from Rawhide and Long Gun were very elegantly dressed for the occasion. Khun Min, the popular owner of Long Gun, Rawhide and Cactus Club in Soi Cowboy, unquestionably made a positive impression on everybody in Pattaya. The event was held in good spirits and the judging was impartial. Evidence of the fairness was brought to light when Apple from Rawhide was declared the winner. Second place went to Fern from Coyotees, and third place went to Am from Coyotees. The total prize money was 20,000 Baht.

Insomnia Club sponsored the event and the Insomnia dolly birds performed a dance routine to entertain the crowd during the interval. Also, free snacks and samples of John Smith’s Bitter were handed around the audience. I learned that Larry, otherwise known as “The Nutty Professor” enjoyed the free French fries. And no doubt all that talent in one venue had more than a few eyes popping out of heads.

There is a return match planned to be held in Rawhide in Soi Cowboy. I will inform you closer to the time, when I receive details of the event.

Party On People

Please send me details of any special events and feel free to send me updates regarding all aspects of Thailand’s nightlife. If you let me know where the action is then I will report it for the Night Fever fans. Party on people!

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Appreciations

My sincere appreciation this week goes out to Stickman, Dean Barrett, TJ, The Nutty Professor, Kev, John, Khun Soon Bai and Thai Oasis.

Epilogue

Acclaimed author Dean Barrett has a very entertaining website, where ole Dean also endeavors to flog his books. It includes a section called “Nightlife Roundup” which is a fortnightly column that Dean pens in his clever and amusing observational style.