kunjet

I don't appreciate the banter about me or others.

What I have been sending to others is my friendster profile. ///Edit by PB///

I'll leave it at that.

I recently had a couple discussions about being gay in Thailand with both foreigners and Thais so I thought I'd pose some statements here that people could respond to.

Gay identity is different in Thailand than in the West, they don't identify as gay here.

The only Thais who identify as gay are educated, wealthy, and westernized.

Only men in Bangkok identify as gay, in the rest of the country, they just have homosexual sex but do not identify as gay.

Very few of the guys who work in the go-go bars say that they are gay.

Thai men are not as hung up about what they will do with their bodies.

Thai men are not embarrassed to say that they are bottoms.

Thai gay men cheat a lot / are playboys.

The word "gay" can be used to mean many things, including: masculine, effeminate, versatile.

Online I have found many references to Thailand as a gay paradise. But I also found references to Czech Republic, Hungary, Brazil, Greece, North Africa, South Africa, the Caribbean, etc.

Is Thailand a gay paradise? For whom? Compared to what?

In theory, we are all American. And while I can be critical of the US, I am a proud American. I carry a blue passport after all. But 1) we are not always treated the same, 2) we have different histories in the US based on our origins, and 3) one of the qualities that makes America interesting is that various communities are allowed to maintain their differences. Though the analogy is not tight, I wouldn't propose calling all EU citizens European anytime soon.

I'd like to ask an off-topic question here and, once again, it's not meant to bait or inflame anyone. Why do Americans feel the need to differentiate themselves by origin? In this example Asian/Korean/Vietnamese American? If you're born in the USA can't you just be an American?

What Thai words are being used to describe being gay, transgender, etc. I am especially interested in the particular connotations of different words. I've been told, for example, not to use "kathoey," as it can be offensive.

What Thai words are being used to describe being gay, transgender, etc. I am especially interested in the particular connotations of different words.

Sorry for the redundancy in posts, but my previous post was deleted so I don't know if there were responses.

I am not looking for sexual partners.

I am interning in BKK for the summer living with my long-term partner. We are both Asian American (Korean and Vietnamese) and looking to meet other Asian Americans or Asians from other countries in BKK. It's harder to find each other as we don't stand out as much as farangs and aren't as ubiquitous as Thais.

Feel free to reply if you are farang or Thai as well.

We are both academics interested in social theory (yawn), contemporary art, and popular culture. We go out to the bars often.

We also welcome any suggestions on Korean and Vietnamese restaurants, especially if they are relatively inexpensive.