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There aren't that many tourists in Chiang Mai right now, b/c it's the low season and the monsoons are nigh. This makes tourism-related businesses, such as the alley full of nightclubs and bars in the picture below, ever more desperate for customers. (The photo is bad, but trust me, this alley is full of bars, thumping music, dozens of bar girls, and hardly a single customer.)


I'm not ashamed to say that Thai bar girls scare me. They've followed me for a block or more, saying, "Come to my bar" and "Let's have good time" while grabbing at my arms. The girls are invariably cute and dressed in skimpy little dresses (neither of which I'm opposed to as a general rule), but I can tell that their smiles aren't genuine. Their eyes are seasoned, a little stony, and above all, predatory. Makes me shudder. They -- I can tell -- are sizing up me and my spending power in a single glance. In most cases, I say No while walking away with a brisk, confident-seeming stride. In reality, I'm nervous and uncomfortable.

(**Tangent: I wonder if this is how attractive women feel when they walk down the street minding their own business, and strange men bother them? If so, I have a whole new respect for the downsides of being hot.**)

Here's the flip side: I've been told that many Thai bar girls are from poor families, often rural ones. Some of them are supporting other family members in addition to themselves, and their desperation rises in proportion to the declining numbers of tourists spending money on booze and food.

The moral of the story is that life is hard -- especially right now, with the global economic crisis -- and everyone is trying to do the best they can.

btj