KhunFred

Great report and the Bobby Goldsboro tune as background was a nice touch. I visited the Sanctuary about a year ago and found it surreal. The obese ladyboy, who apparently ran the place was a hoot.

The place on Soi Nana that you are referring to is the WHITE LODGE, not White Orchid, which is in Chinatown. I don't know anyone who knows anything about the White Lodge but it looks okay with the faux British architecture. You'll never know until you stay there.

I frankly can't imagine why anyone would venture into this bar. I don't go to Thailand for Eurogirls and it's obvious that this bar is run by the Russian mafia. They must be paying megabaht to the cops to still be in business. The negative stories about this bar are legion and STILL they are packed. What will it take before this bar is consigned to the twilight zone that used to be the exclusive territory of the "upstairs bars" at Patpong? If there are no customers, the bar will either go out of business or change its ways.

Here's the way I look at it. Scam or not...I do NOT have to do that for a living and for that I feel blessed. If I can lighten the load of some poor third world sap, then I feel better about myself. Most of the population in Thailand will never know the standard of living I enjoy, and I'm only a middle-class working stiff. I just feel like it's good public relations to "pass it along". Just my two bahts worth. :)