[transgendernews] [News] [Hong Kong] Inside Wan Chai, Hong Kong's Red Light District
Autumn Sandeen
Excerpt: Most of these sex workers appeared to be transsexuals.
Several of the shemales openly advertised themselves as ladyboys,
while other prostitutes with ...
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Inside Wan Chai, Hong Kong's Red Light District
March 3, 2008
Hunter Walker
Gridskipper
http://gridskipper.com/363087/inside-wan-chai-hong-kongs-red-light-district
Hong Kong - Not far from central Hong Kong, the Wan Chai
neighborhood has earned a reputation as one of the world's best red
light districts. The area is much tamer today than it was in its
heyday during the Vietnam War, when visiting American servicemen
spurred a boom in Wan Chai's brothels and massage parlors. Although
the area these days is far from the den of sin it was when it was
immortalized in print with the 1957 novel (and later movie) The
World of Suzy Wong, if you walk along the stretch of Lockhart Road
just South of the Star Ferry pier at night, you'll see loads of
ladyboy streetwalkers and semi-legal girlie bars. I visited Wan Chai
to take pictures, check out the clubs, and meet the people who buy
and sell sex in Hong Kong.
As I walked through Wan Chai, several streetwalkers soMost of these
sex workers appeared to be transsexuals. Several of the shemales
openly advertised themselves as ladyboys, while other prostitutes
with ...nly advertised themselves as ladyboys, while other
prostitutes with clearly visible Adam's apples were less
forthcoming. One transsexual streetwalker was practically begging me
to go with them to a nearby alley. As I declined, the price kept
dropping even though I repeatedly stated that I wasn't interested in
paying for sex. The hooker seemed desperate and drug-addled.
The area is also filled with a thriving bar scene, including
ordinary watering holes that are popular with Western expats and
seedy night clubs promising "models" and "dancers" where sex is
obviously on sale. Women sit on stools in front, calling out to
passersby. There are purportedly ladies of every nationality
available in Wan Chai, but I almost exclusively saw Thai and
Filipina women with a smattering of Chinese girls mixed in for good
measure. Some of the clubs also had older madam-types out front who
tried to entice me to stop in their bars as I walked through the
street. All the sex workers and pimps on the street were very
nervous about having their pictures taken, and it was difficult to
snag even long-distance photos of the brothels.
In front of the "Waikiki Club" I was approached by a woman who told
me her name was "Mona." Mona said she was from Bangkok and had been
working at the bar for about four months. I asked if she planned on
going home and she said she would be finished with her job there
after six more months. I asked if she liked working in Hong Kong and
she shrugged and began telling me that I smelled good. We were
joined by a middle-aged woman who called herself "Mama" and told me
I should come in and see "her girls." I asked her what went on in
her club, and she told me that I was a "nice boy" so she would "take
care of me" and the ladies at Waikiki "do sex real good." I asked
her how much it would cost to get laid, and she only replied that I
should come in and buy a drink and she'd get me a "special price."
"Mama" also told me that I could take one of the girls to a nearby
hotel. She said there were a car and driver ready to spirit me away
with the woman of my choice. I said "no thanks" and as I walked off
the "Mama" followed me down the street for a good distance trying to
get me to turn back.
My next stop was the New Makati Pub & Disco, a conventional bar next
door to the Waikiki, where I found several businessmen having some
after-work drinks. I bought a Jack & Coke and approached a group of
suits who were chatting in English. I asked them if they ever
visited the brothels in the area and most of them looked at me
skeptically over the rims of their pints. One of the men perked up
and, with a knowing smirk, asked me if I needed any
"recommendations." I told him I'd buy him a drink if he was willing
to speak with me about the Wan Chai sex club scene. The man who told
me his name was Jack (his name and certain identifying details have
been changed for the purposes of this post, but the name he gave me
was similarly single-syllabled, and I suspect it was an alias). He
was a twentysomething who claimed to be in the midst of spending a
year in Hong Kong working for an American bank. Jack told me that he
used to frequent the brothels in Wan Chai, but he'd since "learned
from his mistakes." He said most of the madams will try to "hustle
you" by getting you to pay an exorbitant fee for drinks before
listing a variety of additional fees for the sex acts.
According to Jack, "you're better off using the escort services in
Hong Kong . . . the girls are prettier and even though it sounds
more expensive, it costs about the same." I asked Jack if he had a
specific escort agency that he preferred to use and he would only
tell me that "there are a lot of good ones in Hong Kong." (I guess
Gridskipper readers will have to stick with our Hong Kong Escort
Guide when they're in the market for companionship.) After less than
fifteen minutes, Jack was working his way through his third drink on
my tab, and I felt emboldened to ask him how he felt about
participating in the notoriously violent, dangerous, and
exploitative world of prostitution. I said I was curious to know if
he was ever bothered by fears of STD's or worried that he was
supporting violent pimps and/or human traffickers. After a brief,
awkward silence Jack said "This whole world is fucked, you can't
even buy clothes without giving money to something bad." He then
quickly changed the subject by asking me about myself. Jack appeared
to have been disturbed by my question, but at the same time, I
couldn't help but think that he had made a surprisingly good point.
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~~Autumn Sandeen~~
Transgender Advocacy And Services Center (TASC) of San Diego
Planning Group Member
transgendernews YahooGroup News Archivist/Moderator
On the web:
- The View From (Ab)Normal Heights (http://abnormalheights.org)
- Pam's House Blend (http://pamshouseblend.com)
- Ex-Gay Watch (http://www.exgaywatch.com)
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The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined
nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.
--Martin Luther King Jr.
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