The Road Less Traveled
Katoeys in Pattaya
By Pattaya Pete
When the Editor of this wonderful publication informed me of this month's theme, that being of the Thai phenomena of Katoeys in Pattaya it really brought back memories of the first time I arrived "in country". Unlike a lot of guys who find Thailand through their friends or Travel Agents that give them a "heads up" on where to stay or go for entertainment, I knew absolutely nothing about Thailand and its "diverse" night action or culture. In fact I had been living on a Singaporean owned island and came here initially for Scuba Diving. I know that sounds almost the same as someone saying they came here for the culture and food but really, I came here through the "back door".
I think we all remember our first encounter with the wonderful Thai cuisine but it was the second encounter I really remember. I remember I met "her" in Patpong. Of course those were different days back then and Patpong had the world's most diverse entertainment. If I had been here longer I would have realized that she was a bit taller than the average Thai woman and her beauty was so striking, she was what some would say, too good to be true.
Once home, I proceeded to take souvenir photos and everything seemed to be going quite well. That was until my hands wondered South of the Border. I was shocked and I felt as if my heart fell into my stomach. I felt deceived, betrayed, embarrassed and just plain stupid. Of course I was extremely homophobic coming from a strict religious background and feeling a man's private parts was simply unacceptable.
I had a Martial Arts background at the time and trained on the island I was living on but even that didn't prepare me for the barrage of kicks I found coming my way from what seemed on the outside to be a woman. After about the third kick that found its way to my head I unleashed a fury of punches and one kick that had her realize I was a bit crazed from the whole incident and she hastily made her retreat.
It took me years to get over the incident and I would find myself walking on the other side of a street inhabited by Katoeys.
Almost 20 years later I have come to realize certain truths about Katoeys. Firstly, unlike Western countries like the UK or the U.S. the Lady Boys of Thailand could be described as strikingly beautiful or even compared to a work of art. The level of surgery found in Thailand is capable of transforming the most plain guy into a beautiful female butterfly. That coupled with hormone treatments and a natural propensity for being slim and fit and you've got to be very adept these days of being able to know.
*For your own information, there are only three sure fired ways to be able to distinguish between a man and a woman in Thailand. The first is the Adams Apple. You don't usually find a naturally born woman with an Adams Apple. However, I understand there are now operations that can remove this apparatus. The second feature can be found on the back of a woman just above the buttocks. There you will find on a woman two slight indentations that could be compared to dimples. Some are less profound than others but they are most of the time there. The third feature is one a friend of mine taught me just recently. If you extend your arm with your hand faced upwards, you will see that unlike a man, a woman's elbow will have a noticeable rise right where the bicep connects with the forearm.*
Secondly, you will most probably find Katoeys to be friendly and relatively straight forward if you come off with the right approach. Sure, there may be a bad apple in the basket but I have had some great conversations with Katoeys and if things happen and you've treated them with respect, there's a very good chance they'll be in your corner if you need them. Thirdly, they are quite comfortable with their sexuality change and if they had unlimited access to financial means they would most probably do a complete change over as they really feel they are women not men which is why they will prefer you calling them in the feminine sense, i.e. she, her.
On closing I would just like to say that, Katoeys are a big part of Thai society and should be respected and learned before coming to any pre conceived notions based on appearance only. Thailand is a land of contradictions and duality and Katoeys are just another unique aspect of this complex landscape.
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