Les Boys do cabaret

Les Boys are glad to be gay …

Mark Knopfler: Dire Straits: The Boys

Dire Straits’ number about a disco bar in Munich, Germany and its transgender cabaret rings in my ears as I write. It is an iconic and courageous piece, but not entirely true; boys are definitely not gay. At least those in Thailand are not, and the same goes for the rest of Southeast Asia in my experience.

Thailand is well known for its welcoming smiles, great cuisine, great winter weather, beaches, beautiful women, and rampant and mischievous nightlife. He is also known for his kathoey or lady-boys. Thai lady-boys range from the unbelievably beautiful, such as those found in Cabaret shows with their magnificent figures and sweet smiles, to the bitten and often repulsive (and dangerous) drag queens who lead a sordid life of street prostitution in the seedy areas. from Bangkok and Pattaya. And among them there is a mixture of charming and much less.

I have met and met many over the years. I have boyfriends friends. I move easily between them and feel comfortable in their presence. And they trust me. I was once the only man in the company of eighteen at a party. We drank and made fun of each other with bawdy jokes. And some were great “girls”. Baffling? A bit, but I survived the encounter, and I must add unscathed.

Can they fool me? Yes, I can and have often been. My wife claims that she always knows. It’s mostly the voice, but even if the “girl” is perfect and has a female voice, you will know. She says that lady-boys can be completely convincing for a man, but not for a woman.

But now they have no weapon

…. everything is fun now

Lady-boys have been known as the third sex and I believe that description. They are not homosexual. Gay men are men who like other men. Some katoey are actually transsexuals, men who yearn to become women. However, true katoey want to be female, but not quite. They indulge in a hormonal treatment that develops their breasts, increases the volume of their hair and feminizes the texture of their skin. They may have surgery for Adam’s apple reduction and to correct and alter other features. But, they do hold hands in genital reassignment. The big surprise between her legs is something they want to keep as it makes them unique; puts the boy in lady-boy.

For transsexuals, however, this phase is a stop along the way. They are passing through, a work in progress. They seek, and eventually undertake, the entire mountain of sexual reassignment. It is true that katoey does not want to go that far and that is why they keep their weapons.

One thing that boy-girls and transsexuals have in common is that, due to the cocktail of hormones and drugs they ingest, they have exceptionally high sex, which explains why so many work in the adult sex and nightlife industries. as escorts and hostesses, etc. They like sex, financial compensation is the icing on the cake.

So what kind of man goes with these ladies of the third sex? It would be too easy to dismiss them as perverts, latent gays, and freaky balls. In my experience they are normal red-blooded males who like a little spice, a little touch of kinkiness. They range from the single to the married, the curious to the engaged, and the shy for the first time to the addict. I know two men who left their wives for girls.

Let’s take Ian, a British guy I know. Ian is a former macho character of the Parachute Regiment, a man of men. At thirty-six he looks like a caged fighter. A few years ago, while a girl was hunting in the bars of Birmingham, England, she hooked up with a girl and fell ill. Then he came to Thailand and turned around. Now he often comes to Thailand, for girls and boys.

Then there’s Barry, an Australian friend who has a katoey wife. Now in late middle age, but not slowing down, Barry met Koy in Phuket three years ago. She is twenty-four years old and incredibly charming. I had enjoyed her company and cooking many times and had no reason to doubt her feminine credentials before Barry opened up and told me the truth. And since he is the quintessential male with two ex-wives and seven children, he gave me the scare of my life. I thought you were joking. “No, Koy is a boy.” he said with a wry smile. “But she’s the best girlfriend I’ve ever had.” Enjoying my reaction, he joked. “Oh, the girls are fine. But you can’t beat the real ones.” But of course, Koy is definitely not a boy. She is a lady-child.

What about me then? Where do I fit in? I admit that I am fascinated by pretty girls and I am very curious. But since curiosity killed the cat, I never let my fascination take hold of me. In any case, I am happily married.

Tony McManus

Chiang mai

Thailand