One thing, that every Farang in Thailand will notice, is the relatively large number of homosexuals.  The Thais call them Kathoy, more appropriate is however the English term that the Thais use opposite Farang:  Lady Men. 

 

There may be different reasons why there are so many Kathoys in Thailand.  One reason may be, that for many generations all young men will go for several months into a monastery, living there in a closed masculine community, and during this time are not allowed to come into contact with any woman.  On the other hand homosexuality has in Thailand never been against the law or the religion, and thus not banned as sin by the church or punishable by law.

 

There are two different groups of homosexuals. There are the people, who call themselves with the English term „gay“, and which are what we call queer. Then there is the large group of transvestites, which run around in woman clothes.  They are often found in first-class shows in the tourism centers, which would have success also in each big city in Europe, or also in Go-Go-Bars, where they usually dwarfing their female colleagues.

 

The Kathoys working in Phuket or Pattaya really do look like beautiful women, with their dazzling figures, large bosoms and splendid clothes, and one must have some experience, to recognize at first sight, what is there under their skirt.  So some Farang has gotten the shock of his life, when having invited a terribly pretty girl to go with him to his hotel room, will suddenly discover, what he has really got.  As rule of thumb one can say, that if one wants to invite a particularly pretty girl, one should check twice, or better yet feel her crotch, in order to be sure. It is also not completely harmless to enjoy oneself with a Kathoy.  They are known to be thievish and can be very much ruthless, if they don’t get what they want.