I tend to agree with him on the subject of expats; there is something generally low-quality about expats in Thailand (well to be precise Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya) and Cambodia (PP, SR, SHV). When I last visited Vietnam, I found a vibrant well to do expat community, they seemed to be generally supportive of each other and very welcoming, and generally professionals rather than wasters. Which is odd because Vietnam offers pretty much everything that Thailand and Cambodia offer at a similar price...

Though I went to Northern Thailand recently and found a great expat scene (not in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai - where the Bangkok failures seem to head) but across Isaan. Lots of nice little towns with incredibly cheap living costs but sadly, also a bit too limited (the cities not the people) for my current tastes and difficult to secure a long-term visa in (no Thai language schools for ed-visa and I'm not old enough to retire and don't need a job).

But the problem with Stickman is really that's he's not a youngster any more. 30 years of visiting the GoGo bars of Thailand? That would make anyone miserable. His columns have been samey and dull for years now. There's not much about bar girls and the bar scene of interest to say. Unless you're actually wrapped up in that scene - why would you care that so and so had fallen out with so and so or that rents had gone up and that the numbers of hookers are in gentle decline? He should have had the courage to step away from that and start to open up the rest of Thailand in his columns... his advertisers would have stuck with him, his site is top of Google for an awful lot of search terms now.

It pretty much sucks for a sex-tourist in BKK now. Sukhumvit has changed a lot in the last 5 years. It's almost as cheap for Farang to eat, drink,& get laid in the West. His website has gone the way of the DoDo.

A lot of it is who he hung out with I guess. I know online workers who are health fanatics, eat paleo diets, work out and don't use the bars. Many are fanatics about improving themselves. They use online dating if they want to meet anyone. Stickman can't see beyond his own little world.

As someone who used to live, and grow up (moved to Bangkok at 19) I kind of agree.

Thaialnd has not been the same for a long time.

I recently went back for a weekend, first time in 4 years, and I have to say overall it was boring.

For stickman who's website revolves around the "nightlife" there is fuck all to report. We went to both cowboy and nana and they were shit. We had such s better time in hillirays on soi 4. The go go scene is dead and there is nothing to report or its to dodgy to report on it with the new owners of the plaza.

I say good on him, get out while it's hot and all that bullocks.

I think him and his site are a victim/reflection of the changing scene. Much as those of us who were fresh off the plane in the 90's and new to the nightlife experience would avidly read Trink's column in The Bangkok Post, Stickman built up an Internet version of the same. Personally, even though I Used to read his column, I always felt Stickman was unoriginal and masqueraded as an experienced long time expat who really only copied the Trink format after seeing a gap in the market, and good luck to him.

I agree with PR that the bitterness shines through is his comment below, because you could argue that he's criticising what might be regarded as a sizeable base of his original readership that helped make his site popular, if he'd made that sort of comment at the time I wonder what the reaction might have been.

I also wonder whether there is a side to it where he's now realised that he may have wasted good career earning years by getting sucked into the nightlife scene so heavily, like many before him, and as times have moved on he's been left behind holding a product that Is to a large extent redundant/tired/irrelevant to those now visiting. I personally always enjoyed his photographs and some of his little photographic trips around Bangkok have been good reads, and thought that could have been a way to slightly diversify his site.

I was in Bangkok a couple of months ago, ate in The Old Dutch at the end of Soi Cowboy which appears to be marking time ready for a more commercial takeover, strolled up the street and thought how sad. I'm more sad than bitter that the place I first spent a wide eyed afternoon soaking up the raw street atmosphere in the company of friendly stunning slim beauties has gone in favour of a more sanitised thoroughfare of snapping tourists. Time and the nightlife seen has naturally moved on and you've just got to accept it and live with the good memories and find pastures new.

I think Stickman's stuck and finding it hard to move on, based on the indication that he hasn't given up the site. He can't kick the habit, maybe he should rename it Stuckman

exactly

if all you have on your CV for the last 10 years is running a badly designed website about bangkok prostitutes, then you are in a tricky situation, how do you move on? it would be fine if you still enjoy going to the gogos but he constantly says he doesn't. plus when you are an expat you often hang out with people who are very successful. people who own proper businesses, have decent jobs on the full expat salary package. only natural to feel a little jealous and that he made a mistake in what hes done

of course, he may have other things going on that he doesnt write about, i'm just basing this on his online persona