M-whY

Deer, my 'Bond Girl' I had met when touring Phang Nga, was the first to respond. 'Call me when you get a chance,' she wrote, 'and maybe we can get together tonight to go out for some music.' I found a pay phone near a 7-11 and called her cell phone number, which she had included in her email.

"Hi, this is Mark. I met you a few days ago on the James Bond Island tour. Do you remember?"

"Yes, yes! I just sent you email this morning. I am so happy you called. I want to see you again, do you have any plans today?"

"No, I don't have anything planned for today."

"Do you have time in the afternoon? Meet me at 3:00pm, at [something something]." I couldn't hear what she was saying above the din of Khao San Road.

"Where?"

She repeated the name. Centon Sin Lao? Center Bin Lao? Central Pin Khao? I still couldn't quite make it out.

"A big shopping center," she said. "Just tell the taxi or tuk-tuk driver, he will know where it is."

She made it sound easy enough to find, so we agreed to meet at the information center inside. I hailed down a tuk-tuk driver.

"Centon Sin Lao?" "What?" "Center Bin Lao?" "What?" "Central Pin Khao?"

"Central? Shopping center?"

"Uhh, yes."

Half an hour later, I was dropped off in front of a huge shopping mall. But MBK Center didn't sound anything like Central Pin Khao. It was 3:00pm already, so I called Deer, telling her I was lost, and asking if I was near where I was supposed to be.

"Oh... you went the wrong direction. It will take you an hour to come back. I have to go to a meeting soon. I still want to see you. Can you meet later tonight? At Khao San Road, in front of Buddy Hotel?"

"Okay, sure." We agreed on a time, and I spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around Bangkok's huge shopping malls.

I was back at Khao San Road by evening, and at 9:00pm, headed to the Buddy Hotel, which thankfully wasn't hard to find.

"Hi Deer." That felt strange coming out of my mouth. Why did her name have to sound like 'Dear'?

She was already there waiting for me, dressed in a classy black outfit. I was glad I had the foresight to ditch my shorts and sandals for a pair of khakis and shoes. Neither of us had had dinner yet, so she took me to a restaurant nearby, where she ordered off the Thai menu instead of the English menu. The food that came out was superb. It's nice knowing someone who can speak the local language.

At this point though, I was more than a little confused. She was obviously dressed for a date and we were eating on the veranda of a small, cozy, restaurant. On the table was a coconut drink, with two straws. Some things she said caught me off guard. But if you recall, I had met her while she was on vacation with a male companion. I was also sure she was older than me, though I have to say, she looked young, pretty, and had a great figure. When I tried to coax a number out of her, she would tease, "Don't you know not to ask a lady her age?"

The night was still young and I figured my questions would be answered eventually. I picked up the tab, being the gentleman that I am, noting that despite the great food, this was by far the cheapest dinner I've ever bought a girl. We got in a taxi, where again I was grateful for her ability to speak Thai, and started making our way to the neighborhood of Silom.

"So how long have you known Nando?" I asked while we sat in the cab.

"I met him only two months ago," she said. Probably sensing my bewilderment, she continued. "Phuket was the first time we went anywhere together. With my job I never have time to take a break. Nando thinks I work too hard and call me one day saying he book a trip to Phuket for the two people. He tell me he already pay for the tickets, and if I'm not going, he's not going. Since he already paid, I thought I might as well go." All this, from the successful businesswoman to the tickets that Nando paid for, completely jived with what Nando had told me.

"I'm glad I went though, otherwise I'd never meet you," she added. "I thought you were Thai at first," she laughed, recalling that she had initially tried to converse with me in Thai.

Silom is home to Patpong, the notorious red light district of Bangkok. It's become more tame in recent years, evolving into more of a nightmarket selling bootleg cds and fake Rolexes. Still, plenty of joints offering "ping pong shows" continue to operate a thriving business. (If you're going to google what a "ping pong show" is in Bangkok, I suggest you turn on SafeSearch.) We ordered a couple beers at a bar packed with farang.

"I can't drink too much beer, it makes me drunk too fast," she told me while we listened to some live music. "I usually drink whiskey."

"I can't drink whiskey, I can only drink beer," I replied. The smell of liquor makes me gag.

She only touched a quarter of her drink, and I could tell it was already affecting her. I finished the rest of her beer. No point in wasting Heinekin, even if it did cost less than a Bud Light...

As we walked to the next establishment, we were constantly harassed by touts trying to drag us into one of the go-go shows. Shady massage parlors tried to attract the attention of men who came here for the skin trade, and scantily clad girls loitered on the street. Even with someone by my side, it didn't stop random people from coming up to me with three words on their lips, "DVD? VCD? Sex?"

"I can't come here alone," said Deer. "It would be dangerous for me."

"How often do you come here anyways?"

"Last time, maybe six months ago? I usually don't have time."

Plenty of legit nightclubs also do business here, and we stopped in one of them. We took a seat and had some more drinks. (Whiskey for Deer, Singha beer for myself). The dance floor began heating up around midnight, and I allowed myself to be dragged up. Deer claimed that she could only dance under the influence of alcohol, and judging by the way she moved, she had had just the right amount. All I could do was try to keep up, though I'm sure I made a fool of myself.

But we both had a good time. The crowd started dying at around 1:30am, and so that's when we made our exit too. A taxi back us to Khao San Road, where I'd get off, and she'd continue on home.

"Call me tomorrow when you wake up," she said.

Awesome. No more loneliness in Bangkok.

Thanks to everyone for their support and comments! Knowing people are reading keeps me motivated to continue the updates!