True Stories: One Night in Bangkok, by Duncan Birmingham - Nerve.com
getting around

This was my first trip anywhere with a girlfriend. My female friends said the trip would make or break the relationship. My guy friends said I was bringing sand to the beach. Karen's friends said she was crazy to travel to another continent with a guy who wouldn't even leave a contacts case at her apartment. As excited as I was while packing, a little part of me wondered if I was courting disaster and should be traveling solo like I had talked about so often in my twenties.

So Karen and I landed in Thailand with a strict itinerary that included scuba diving, seeing a shitload of temples, and returning to Los Angeles not hating each other's guts. And to our surprise, we traveled along with no major emotional blow-ups or vacation horror stories. I felt a smug satisfaction as we approached the last day of our trip in Bangkok. The plan was to blow the last of our baht on knockoff jeans and an upscale curry dinner, then get a good night's rest before our morning flight.

But that afternoon, I flipped through my travel journal without finding any seeds for a novel. I clicked through my digital camera and found only the photos I imagine a million couples take each year on the same travel route, more family-album than Vice Guide to Travel — nothing in there to elicit awed, envious comments on Facebook. I'd shot my vacation wad with this trek and we'd had an experience not so different from one my parents would have.
The first vacation of my thirties, and all that was missing was the fannypacks.
The first vacation of my thirties, and all that was missing was the fannypacks.

Flipping through our Lonely Planet book for "off the beaten path" activities, the lame irony of the whole exercise frustrated me even further. Coming to a section on the red-light districts, I wondered aloud if we should check out a sex show. I felt sheepish telling my girlfriend I was even considering them — much less asking her to join me. So I reassured her I wasn't some kind of pervert and, quoting a couple innocuous lines from the guidebook, I promised her that I was only as game for it as she was.

"I mean," I added with all the maturity I could muster, "it is part of the culture."

Karen was nonplussed. "What do you want? Line-dancing and bestiality?"

What I wanted was to get my Graham Greene on. I remembered my old college roommate talking about his solo trip through Southeast Asia. The hostel hook-ups, Full Moon parties, firearms, drug deals with tuk-tuk drivers. Karen and I had seen too many temples and not enough cockfights. One story that stuck with me entailed my friend getting hit in the face with a live goldfish shot out of a stripper's vagina. Karen stared at me. "Is that something you really need to experience? Really?"

Before I'd thought of the implications, I said, "Yes. Yes, it is." She protested, but I pointed out that she'd picked the restaurant for dinner.



           

Share this article:


 

24 Comments

- lame -

EGM commented on 06/29

pretty cool

mdg commented on 06/29

lots of guys do that juggle in their head, wondering which is better - single hedonistic adventurer or hopefully happy married guy. and there is danger aplenty in the wicked world out there to fall into if you even half-try. i call this 'chasing a flame' for which you can burn down all your life and name. often i think it's best to stay well within the guardrails.

rjf commented on 06/29

Wow. I had so many of the same feelings and arguments on a trip with my gf to Rio. well done.

TJ commented on 06/29

EGM is a dick. Not lame.

JDW commented on 06/29

Love the Leo thing. Funny pop cult deets

Tim commented on 06/29

just cringed through that whole thing. that was waaay uncomfortable.

RZZ commented on 06/30

As a female, I found the story adorable.

rem commented on 06/30

been there many times. this did a good job and brought me back.

jim commented on 06/30

Sorry, I have to agree with the first comment--totally lame. Single hedonism vs. security in 'wuv' is *such* the false dichotomy, and Duncan's life is obviously all the lamer for believing that that's just the way things are. Some girls enjoy the same things you do, duh!

Gaby commented on 06/30

I didn't overthink it that hard, besides the fact that the narrator definitely made me laugh quite a bit

Kal commented on 06/30

wow. that's pretty much the definition of neuroses. made for very entertaining read though

LIZ commented on 06/30

Ridiculous. Did you seriously travel halfway across the world just to have "offbeat adventures to recount at dinner parties" and receive "envious comments on Facebook" as opposed to traveling for the sake of your own experience (especially since finding yourself in Thailand is one of the most cliched, overdone North American experiences possible)? This was one of the most adolescent, narcissistic articles I've ever read on here - does anyone past the age of 19 participate in activities solely to come off as cultured and artsy to random strangers? Be more pretentious.

SG commented on 06/30

I had way more "offbeat adventures" on my honeymoon in Central America than on the next trip to Southeast Asia (both with my husband) . . . but we were never looking for these things, they just happened upon us (for better and for worse - including being invited for a night out at the local gas station mini mart by some crazy young Nicaraguans (more entertaining than it sounds), and 2 car accidents in Laos in 4 days - not so fun but met some great people 'by accident')... on your next trip just chill out and let things happen, don't over-plan everything, and try to interact with locals if possible, this is the key to the truly "off the beaten track" adventures. . .

PI commented on 06/30

What? i don't think the writer's pretentious, sg--he seems to be poking fun of himself which i found very funny. i will say the situation was a bit contrived though

tt commented on 06/30

hahaha. funny shit. that's bankok to a T.

dom commented on 07/01

on the contrary, i think he realized too late that he had built expectations of adventure in his first major trip. Give him a break, he just wanted to experience what he'd only read and heard about. I think this is an honest account of his neuroses and he says what a lot of people are thinking subconsciously when they travel anyway. Of course he actually got what he wanted from the trip- at least one story to tell. Good style, engaging and it made me smile. Next time don't overthink your travels and they'll fall into place.

cf commented on 07/01

every time i almost felt fed-up with this writer, he criticized himself first which was effective. i feel like he's laying on his neurosis a bit thick for the article, but it was well-written enough that i liked anyway

cy commented on 07/01

a "shitload of temples" etc? he's so def playing up the "ugly american" thing for jokes most of which i thought worked

CAL commented on 07/01

i laughed through most of this! went on a couples trip that was very much similar. the pressure of vacations bring out the irrational.

jaki commented on 07/02

pretty hilarious. i had 2 forward to an ex.

ZOE commented on 07/04

Umm Karen why are you sticking around with someone who doesn't fully appreciate you? You seem way coooler!

EE commented on 07/20

useless prick, should have stayed home! why the hell did you go?? so lame!

AA commented on 08/01

it makes sense that this writer works for film because i found this very cinematic. i agree with the comment that the writer is playing the "ugly american" angle for jokes, most of which made me laugh quite a bit.

LILY commented on 08/10
 

Leave a Comment


Initials




We are ardently committed to free expression, but we do expect Nerve visitors and contributors to interact respectfully and responsibly. Blatant expressions of bigotry, sexism or hatred may be constitutionally protected on the street corner, but they're not cool here.


RELATED ARTICLES
True Stories: Brazilian Girls by Saul Elbein
Getting laid in Rio is harder than you think.
My Ten Favorite Fetishes by Kris Saknussemm
A lifelong sex researcher on his most unusual discoveries.
A Note From Your Drunk Date by J.L. Scott
I am extremely sorry that I…
On Jealousy by Susan Seligson
The green-eyed monster in the mirror.
Wildlife Sanctuary by Sarah Norris
Post-breakup, I kept strange bedfellows.
Pulling It Off by Steph Auteri
I dared myself to pose nude, but I had more to shed than clothes.

My First Time by You
"We'd spent plenty of time in the woods behind the playground..."
A Field Guide to "Cool Older Men" by Julie Klausner
Be careful with that Anthony Bourdain crush.
The Ten Most Shocking Moments in Survivor History by Scott Von Doviak
A decade later, we still remember when that guy fell in the campfire. /entertainment/
Miss Information by Erin Bradley
My boyfriend still shares a bed with his ex. Should I be worried? /advice/
Confession of the Week by You
"I slept with two different girls in the span of less than 12 hours (I did shower in between). Awesome, or sketchy?"
Dear John by Scott Von Doviak
Exactly how manipulative is this Nicholas Sparks adaptation? /entertainment/
The Top Five Funniest Superbowl Halftime Shows by Josh Kurp
Believe us, it gets much worse than *NSYNC and Aerosmith. /entertainment/
Twitter Movie Reviews by Various
From Paris With Love, Dear John, and District 13: Ultimatum.