Bangkok Buzz

Bijoy Gupta (r) lectures Shekhawat on what to expect in Bangkok

Bangkok may be four months away. And a lot can happen between now and then (ref yesterday's post). But already there is an unmistakable buzz about the tour, much of which borders on the ludicrous, if not complete insanity.
What began with polite queries on the itinerary and costs have led to the Club now getting split horizontally and vertically. One group is eager to go on this 'first-ever phoren trip', if only to earn the much desired “sikka” on their virgin passport. There is another set of members who have been to Bangkok at least once in the past and are not too keen to go again.
There is a third group as well – those who have never gone there but claim to know every street, by-lane and alleyway of Bangkok (and Pattaya) like the back of their hand. They are the ones who are raising a lot of laafs in the Garden these days. Based on hearsay and with loads of imagination, they are painting a ‘paradise on earth’ with exaggerated accounts

Kiran Prakash retrieves his lost umbrella,
only that it has changed colour... and gender!

of the Thai capital.
“There are ek-se-ek hotels everywhere and you can order whatever you want there,” Bijoy Gupta narrated to Shekhawat today. “Forget the massage parlours – all that you get in Mumbai also. What you don’t get here are those beautiful creatures, neither male nor female. They are trans-genders actually, but look nothing like them. Those pretty little things would satisfy all your desires. You will totally forget who you are.”
Shekhawat snapped at him saying he had already “seen” Bangkok (another fast one) but would like to go anyway because his wife has not been there yet. Gupta went on to describe the red light areas, free availability of psychotropic drugs, cabaret shows… when Karuna Waghmare butted in to endorse all he had said, but added: “Paris is better. You have cabarets there also. But when you order two bottles of beer there they’ll serve you six and not charge extra!”
Karuna has of course, been a globe trotter in her time and unlike most of us, is better placed in making value judgments on world cities. Her advice was that Bangkok is a good starting point for a taste of international lifestyle and culture: “It is an inexpensive destination and gives you value for money.”
Bihari Milwani:
Don't ask anyone. Bangkok jao aur khud jaan jao!
Karun Sharma:
The buzz is booming. Bhaswati Bose has struck a good deal and it would be great if this trip gets loaded to capacity. It must be fun listening to Karuna Waghmare about her experiences in various cities. The Big Laaf family has 7 Birthdays in the 7th month of year. We are in the seventh heaven to be enjoying so many birthday parties, plus the Eid party.