Back online...for a bit at least

As we sit in our hotel room at 7 PM on a Tuesday evening, I look out the window at a pretty chaotic scene: Pattaya, Thailand. Someone had joked that it was the "whore capital" of Thailand and I blew it off - it really is the "whore capital". We are staying at the Queen Victoria Inn in the middle of the nightlife district (a respectable inn, btw). Outside, for an uncountable number of streets each way - "beer bars", or more aptly - the place where Thai women sell themselves to Western men. We are both kind of weirded out and I don't know if we are going to go out tonight...maybe just stay in and catch up on communications with family/friends. who knows.

So, we went to Hong Kong (thanks Jon!). That post will be coming soon, but I (Mike) wanted to comment on something that has been bothering me. In Hong Kong, I started to feel it, but in Thailand - I had this odd feeling that something was just off - something that I hadn't felt in China or Taiwan. While Lo-Lin and I ate our overpriced Indian/Thai food in Pattaya - the revelation came:

I don't want/like to bargain for basic services.

Don't get me wrong, I like bargaining for goods and extended services (ex. diving trips/clothing/DVDs/etc.), but basic taxi rides, grocery stores, restaurants, previously contracted services, or healthcare shouldn't have to be bargained for. In both Hong Kong and Thailand, I've felt like that every single thing I want had to be bargained for. For example, we contracted for a bus ride from Bangkok to Pattaya. Specific price including luggage and dropping off in the beach area within 2.5 hours. We take the 4 hour ride to an area outside of town where they drop us off and say thanks and leave - with local taxis nearby. After getting swindled out of another 100 baht ($3.3 USD), we finally made it to our hotel. Is it the fact that I'm white make people believe I am wealthy? Yes, I can afford the extra 3 bucks, but I didn't get what I contracted for. Jon and I had a good conversation about the Hong Kong jade market - tourism is down and the market is declining because you can only rip off tourists for so long before people stop coming (they have a notorious habit of selling non-jade to tourists).

On another note: Pattaya is very weird. We just returned (btw - about a 4 hour break in writing) from dinner and our street is hopping. The (maybe) girls are in close to nothing and there is a concert in the street OUTSIDE OUR WINDOW. Seriously, we can look down onto it with people singing along. Sleep will be at a premium later tonight.

Alas, I forgot the point. Pattaya is weird. The town is filled with a couple of groups of people that are ...just weird: ok, one group in particular: 45-65 yr. old white men. There are an overabundance of these white men prowling for Thai girls - and most have one, if not two, Thai girls on their arms. *cringe* I'm a bit lecherous at times, but this is over the top. EVERYWHERE.

ok. tomorrow is diving with Lo-Lin. I'm really looking forward to it, if we can get some sleep. Hopefully the ladies, white men, and ladyboys shut if off at a reasonable time.

I'll be sure to make a huge picture update next time of the last days in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Bangkok.