Let's Go Haadyai Again! - By Peter Chan

In the 1970s, when I told friends I was in Haadyai, suddenly all eyes became wide opened and conclusions were quickly made. SEX was the perception. Has it changed since then? Depending on your background, your views may be different from mine but it's probably because we are looking at the same thing in a different way. If I am new to Haadyai, I probably thought the same way as you did but hopefully perceptions can change over time. Surely we all know we live in a world of sin but we don’t have to be sinners.

Photo 1: The 1974 memories are kept alive in my photo album including those of the late Michael Chua who wrote, “Dear big Pete, whenever you look at the photo think of the good times we had together and me.”

Haadyai, isn't it a big farang tourist trap? It was actually a big tourist town from the late 1960s through 2007 for tourists from mainly Malaysia, who were there for the weekend although some Singaporeans did go there. However Haadyai is unlike Phuket, Pattaya or Bangkok’s Patpong because Haadyai was never on the R&R list of U.S. servicemen involved in the Vietnam War; so the influence was never there. While you can find wild crowds of merry Westerners, street bars, katoeys, pole-dancing, lap-dancing, street walkers, and music (that increases in volume as the moon rises), the same cannot be said of Haadyai.

Photo 2: Left – Standing on Niphat Uthit 3 Road. In the background is the present-day Yong Dee Hotel and Yongdee Market. Middle – We’are on the way to the “chicken farm”. Right – The short and taller blocks of Novotel Centera Hotel (circa 2009). The shorter block was the original Sukhontai Hotel. The neon corporate hotel logo faces the Hadyai Junction Railway Station.

My recent trip to Haadyai was more heritage than anything else: of utmost importance was to locate the old Sukhontai Hotel where we stayed, 35 years ago. That day my luck was pretty good. I spoke with a Thai-Chinese money-changer and was told the Sukhontai Hotel (under new management and ownership) is now Novotel Centera Haadyai. I hurried off with my friend but a big surprise awaited me. The single 10-storey block became a part of an even taller tower block with a podium block. I was very happy on one hand and confused on the other. I could not figure out some of the old photos with the street names and nearby buildings. Once my orientation became better, nostalgic memories came back: our Minute steak at the Morakat (the popular Sukhontai coffee house), BBQ seafood, cha-cha-cha dancing, our first experience with fiery hot Thai chili padis, Mohan Rao’s hand trapped between the elevator doors, and not forgetting the night life in Haadyai. What night life?

We got educated about “chicken farms” and what was available as an after-dinner treat. We probably pissed-off the bell-hop (who acted as a sort of go-between) after visiting the “chicken farm” on the outskirts of Haadyai town. Despite generous discounts from the opening price of 1,300 bahts or so for an “8pm to 8am companion” our minds were made up. We were not into that kind of excitement. I still can remember the moment our tuk-tuk arrived at the “chicken farm”; a loud whistle brought all the girls together forming a circle as if ready for parade inspection. You won’t find chicks from southern Thailand, the vast majority of the girls selling their bodies (as is usually the case) were from the northeast of Thailand. Why would an 18 year fair-skinned girl do that? We got the standard answer: farmers and families paying off their loans in kind because the rice harvest was poor that year. Then there was the occasional Myanmar girl who was given a Thai nickname “Nok or Phin” - and she looked similar - but you will only discover that if you speak Thai. Generally, the Myanmar girls don't speak any Thai, or speak a very limited amount. “Lah” means he’s from Malaysia. If you hear “Cheap”, that’s from Singapore.

We went to check out a few night spots because we heard so much of their cabarets and unique shows. As these photos show, we soon learnt the "house specialty". Initial bubbling excitement soon became monotonous. We had many questions but few answers. It was easy to deal with the ala Rose Chan performances but suggestive non-stop couple-acts (and more couple to couple acts) and paraphernalia were very mind-boggling. Was it humanly possible to do it? It sure looked a tough way for any (Thai) (wo)man to make a living. Well I thought I found the answers when I had to use the loo - which also doubled up as the backstage changing room.

Photo 3: Left – Can you use your hands? Full suction power to pick up the coin (or suck Singha beer through the straw) and transfer it to another bottle? How could she ever do it? Another entertaining act we saw that night was one of using an artist brush to paint a “Van Gogh”. (Funny thing - Asians, especially couples, like to sit in the front row while Angmohs sit backstall.) Those who sat in front row got a rude surprise. The performer sprayed “water” by bending her knees/body backwards and resting her palms on the floor. Right – In the dark the audience could not make out whether the sexily-clad dancers were real women or "post-ops". Could you tell the difference? I think I might have the answers for both photos.

There has been an effort in the last few years under the leadership of Mayor Prai Pattano to clean the town up. The results can be seen with the new sidewalks and the removal of the overhead electricity cables, but it has gone a little further than that. Ever since the Muslim insurgency problems in the southern provinces flared up, Haadyai's tourist economy had to change. Today you can be forgiven when you mistake Haadyai for a Malaysian town because out in the open, many Thai Muslims and Thai Muslims of Malay origin are wearing the tudung.

Photo 4: Left – Everywhere you go, you find this new Haadyai cultural landscape. Right – I tried the “Korek Telinga” service at 50 bahts. Everywhere I went, I found foot massage services.

Before rushing off to catch the last train back to Padang Besar, we found time for one “last fling”. We headed for the spa because we know that in Singapore, a spa treatment can run into hundreds of dollars and you had to reluctantly purchase a package of 10 sessions in order to get the best deal. Here at the Preuksa Spa (ask for “Toy”), an hour cost me S$20 (S$1 = 23 Baht); in Singapore the equivalent of S$90 at a wellness and spa retreat. Come to think of it, even a doggy in Singapore gets a good body massage, so why can’t I pamper myself?

Photo 5: Doggy gets a massage at Bishan Park (Photo Credit: a Flickr user). Middle – The spa tariff from Peruksa Spa on Niphat Uthit 3 Road (Photo Credit: Ms. “Toy”). Right – One of the treatment rooms at Peruksa Spa. I slept for 3 hours because of the rustic ambience, the soft piano music and lavender-scented body massage.

Personally I am glad I found my old Sukhontai Hotel. When the group holds the reunion at this year’s end, we should have a good program lined up. Where else can you have a bowl of original beef ball kway teow soup for 30 bahts? Tired bodies and Singapore-made stress? I have the answer. Even Mr. Asdang Sukwises, the general manager of Novotel Centera has promised us the hospitality of a lifetime after he heard about how we crossed the Malaysian-Thai border to come to Haadyai 35 years ago. Now, it’s time to sit back and reminisce about Haadyai back in 1974:



In the concluding series, I will tell you more of our return trip through Sadao to Changloon, the nearest Malaysian border town 10km from Thailand.

What Games Are Our Children Playing Nowadays?

Just below the HDB block where I am living, there is a playground. There are the usual playground equipment for climbing and swinging, as well as kiddy rides.


As can be expected, many young children can be found playing there during the late afternoon when the weather is cooler.

I usually have to pass by this playground on the way to the neighbourhood market or food centre.

Yesterday, I was cycling to the market when I saw a little box on the ramp (arrowed):


It looked quite new. At first I thought it was a box of toothbrushes which someone had dropped. I took a closer look:


Even closer:


Closer still:


Alamak! The immediate thoughts that ran through my mind were: What was a pregnancy test kit doing near a children's playground? Could it have been used by an underaged but over-developed girl who also frequented the playground for other more innocuous games?

I looked around and found this thermometer-like thingy on the grass patch nearby:


I checked the results:


What a relief! She was not pregnant. However, she might not be so lucky next time.

But wait a minute! What if she was a married woman trying to get pregnant? If that is the case, I offer her my sincere apologies even though I am in no way responsible for the test results, whether positive or negative. Whatever the case, how could the user discard the used test kit so carelessly? What if an innocent child picks it up and thinking that it is a thermometer, puts it in his/her mouth? Yucks!!!

Stories about unwed teenage mums abound in Singapore. (Read one here.) In this age of the Internet, bored young girls can find attention in chatrooms where there are no shortage of predators.

So parents, please pay more attention to the games that your children play, lest they end up carrying the baby, literally.


Don't laugh, okay? It has happened here more than once before - the parents didn't know that their unwed daughter was pregnant even AFTER she had given birth!

On that solemn note, Happy New Year everyone!

Ann Kok Teaching Sex? Aiyeeeh! Even Dirtier!

WARNING: This entry contains mature theme. Minors please go away ....




Last Saturday, my visit to the barber shop was a hair-raising experience. My regular barber was cutting the hair of another customer. So I sat at the bench and waited for my turn. While waiting, I browsed through the magazines. These two magazines caught my eye because pretty Ann Kok was the cover girl of both magazines:




The magazine on the right looked familiar because Chris had reviewed one of the articles in it:

Incidentally, I wondered why Ann Kok is featured as the cover girl in so many magazines and yet I have never seen Patricia Mok featured as one:

Although Patricia is not as pretty as Ann, her complexion is alright and her acting is good enough to win her a Star Award recently.

Anyway back to the sex articles. The article on sex in the other magazine dated June 2005 is titled 'Poll: Sex During Periods - you love it!':

Inside, the article has a caption 'Would you have sex during your period?'

"No problem, say 70 per cent of the women polled. It's not that our men mind either". And the result of the sex poll is as follows:

24% says "Heavy flow? That's not stopping us."
48% says "I am hornier when I got my period."
62% says "It doesn't bother him one bit that I'm bleeding."

Don't ask me why the percentages add up to more than 100. The 'one man woman, one vote' system obviously doesn't work here. So why are most men not bothered one bit that their partners are bleeding? Maybe they felt that it is less messy than using a self-made sex toy modified from a watermelon or cantaloupe which a blogo-friend recommended?

Actually, Ann Kok wasn't giving tips on sex. The articles were written by journalists. But
sometimes I wonder if journalists really did a poll. Are the figures accurate and do they reflect the general consensus? If a poll was conducted, why not release details on the sample size used and the racial, age and sexual compositions of the sample? (I believe that Asians are generally more conservative about sex.) Was the survey done anonymously and how did they know if the participants were giving honest answers? How come their poll results are always so different from the ones that I have casually conducted with my friends and colleagues? My friends and colleagues mostly claim that they married conservative partners. One respondent even claims that there are certain things that she won't do. Hmm... maybe they are not telling me the whole truth? Or perhaps what they say and what they do are not quite the same?

It looks like every issue of such magazines has at least one such controversial and sexciting article. I believe that its purpose is not so much educational but to improve the sales of the magazine. I also suspect that it is the same reason why Ann Kok is always on the cover and not Patricia Mok.

Now we know what the Ah Sohs, the Ah Niahs and even our wives are reading in such magazines and why they must always rush out to buy a copy whenever a new issue is released.