Backpacking Asia in 1970s! Thailand!
 

https://www.fodors.com/community/asi...anged-1654138/

Continuing my belated trip report about my backpacking hippy days in the 70s...again curious as to how these places may have changed and anyone's similar esperiences.

I was solo traveler looking for exoctic places and did a year-long jaunt around the world with several months in Asia.

Thailand Adventures

I flew into Bangkok from Taiwan and spent a few weeks roaming northern Thailand. My memories are hazy what with Thai Sticks being everywhere by some things stick out:

Bangkok was a chaotic huge city which was way too modern for what I was looking for - yet it was exoctic - especially the foods and the people themselves- really nice looking.

First night in hotel I shared a room with a young German guy about my age (27) and no sooner than 5 minutes after we were in room a scantily-clad comely young Thai gal popped in and laid on a bed - it was enticing but we both deffered. But we did learn of the taxis that took folks around to brothels where young girls - very young teens were all behind a big glass window sitting there doing different things oblivious to onlookers.

But the cabbie asked if we wanted any in particular - neither of us was into child sex so demurred. We just wanted to see the spectacle and I at least was totally disgusted that this type of child exploitation was tolerated and so open. We told the driver no we wanted to go back to our hotel and then he asked "want boys"? Well we passed on seeing that spectacle.

Child sex tourism was evident everywhere - once waiting for a bus to Chaing Mai a young boy about 12 came over to where I was sitting and put his hand on my penis - in full view of other passengers and asked me "do you want me to go to Chiang Mai with you?" wow - a pedophiles nirvana.

And in Chaing Mai I did see lots of older foreign tourists with young Thai gals and guys.

Total disgusting of course. And again wondered why sex tourism for adolescents for sex was so open.

I do wonder if you see this blatant abuse in Thailand of today - I suspect not.

TBC - NEXT CHIANG MAI AND JUNGLE TOUR THRU THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE!

TBC- Chaing Mai and the Jungle Tour thru the

While prostitution is still readily available in Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket, Thailand has cracked down on child sexual exploitation. Many of the pedophiles moved to Cambodia, and Cambodia is also cracking down - fortunately. There are "tours" from European countries that bring groups of men to Thailand for sex tourism.

Looking forward to your experiences in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.

Well really have hazy remembrances of those two cities but both were neat. I do remember the Jungle Tour we took by jeep and boat for about 3 days thru the Golden Triangle - we visited several tribal villages and stayed in a couple. Then guide told us which villages were opium smokers and you could see folks literally laying all around town in a stupor - little work getting done. But in another village that was normally industrious he said they did not use it regularly. These villages were remote - taking a day to get to by Jeep.

One night in one village guide mentioned about if wanting to experience opium check out a certain house and it was a legendary opium den - several straw cots to lay on and a pipe to smoke it with - I recall an older local in there moaning not unhappy but just murmuring, etc. Kind of sad to think many of these spend most of their evenings and perhaps days like that. For me, it was a one-off experience as for others in our group - nothing dangerous unlike heroin and was yes quite sedating. Smoking opium in the Golden Triangle - a chance you only get once and no harm done - never cared to do it or hard drugs again.

Well, that's about it for my Thai memories - beautiful people all around. Most modern of Asian countries I went to except of course Japan.

I'm glad to read this, and yes, I've also researched on my own and Thailand is doing a great job at cracking down on child sexual exploitation and that is the way it should be.

Back to work on this soon