After leaving the family hosted BBQ, Leo and I drove into the city to pick up Little and O who were just finishing their dinner at a restaurant.  From there we drove to the Khunying Mo (Thao Suranaree) monument.

The monument is situated outside the west gate of the old city.  Originally the city was surrounded by a mote which had four gates (north south east west) for entry and exit.  You can visit this Korat City Map web site where you’ll find a Google map that can be zoomed in for easy view of the monument.  Look for the square area and zoom in on it.   North of the monument is a circular outdoor stage and park area.  The four original gates still exist, and streets run through all but the west entrance, which is now blocked by the Khunying Mo statue.

First order of business was to stop and buy flowers, candles and incense so the boys could pay homage to Thao Suranaree.  While the boys were on their knees praying to the statue I walked around taking pictures.  I didn’t have my tripod with me, so it was difficult to get a decent shot of the famous lady.  This was the best of the bad, and it also shows the gate in the background.

Khunying Mo (Thao Suranaree) Monument

Once the boys finished paying their respects there was the ritual of group photo shots, with each taking turns shooting every possible combination of two and three people posing in front of the statue.  Once everyone was satisfied they had taken enough photos, we headed back to the car, but this time we took a route that passed through the gate.

Just before crossing to the other side, Leo stopped me and said he needed to explain something.  He told me there is an old tradition that when a couple passes through the gate it means one agrees to come live with the other in Korat.  As he is telling me this story I notice, out of the corner of my eye, Little aggressively dragging O to the other side.

After receiving fair warning of the consequences, we walked toward the gate.  Just before crossing the magic line I stopped and pretended to bump into an invisible wall that kept me from continuing through the gate.  This got a giggle from the three boys.  A few more photos were taken before we got in the car and drove to the disco.

Leo outside the gate

The Xsize Disco is located next to a much larger straight (mixed crowd) club called The Mix…go figure.  Xsize is a bit different from any other gay Thai 4 Thai club I’ve been in.  All the tables were standard height round pedestals, as apposed to the usual bar height square metal fixtures one finds in most establishments.  It wasn’t a very big place and most of the space was taken up by a large stage in the shape of an X.

Periodically throughout the evening, 5 or 6 coyote boys would get up on stage and dance, one at each tip of the X and one or two in the center.  Just like in a GoGo bar, they would rotate every few minutes so everyone got a good look.  Of course, each could be offed for the evening.  By my standards, only two of the boys were cute, and Leo told me all were screaming queens, but he didn’t know who was a top or bottom.

I didn’t go look, but Leo told me there was also a karaoke bar in the back with “straight” host boys that could be offed.  He said the boys had been imported from Bangkok, but didn’t know any more details.

Unlike the Thai 4 Thai clubs in BKK, cute boys were few and far between.  Leo told me there are a lot more cute gay boys in Korat, but they are all at the mixed clubs.

Around 12:30 they had a short ladyboy show that was mostly comedy and audience participation.  When the show finished they opened the stage for dancing and it quickly filled with ass shaking boys.

When we first got there Leo asked for his bottle of whiskey he had opened on a previous visit.  The bottle should have been three quarters full, but it had been tapped and there was only a quarter left.  Needless to say Leo was not a happy camper.  His brother, who works there, said it was probably the doings of the cashier, who is “no good”.  We quickly finished that bottle and ordered a new one.

When it was time to order yet another bottle, Leo said his friends had brought their friends and there were a lot more people tapping the bottle than he had planned for.  He suggested we not buy another bottle and leave.  It was only 11:30, so I suggested we get one more and leave after it was gone.  Leo was concerned about the cost, but with his brother’s 40% discount on mixers the bill only came to 1600 baht.

We ended up leaving around 1:30, but several in the group elected to stay and continue partying.  Later I heard that Little was a bit upset with O, because he got real drunk and started kissing all the boys in the club.  Leo said it was Little’s own fault.  He likes to poor heavy and get O drunk, and then complains when O looses self control.  The two were pretty smashed when we left, so there’s no telling what they ended up looking like, considering the club stays open until 4 or 5 in the morning.

About a week after were got back to BKK, Leo’s brother called to inform him he was out of a job.  Both Mix and Xsize are owned by the same individual, who sold the clubs to a new owner.  The new owner closed Xsize for remodeling and let all the staff go.  It is unclear what type of club will open in its place, but for now Korat is once again without a gay venue.

That’s it for day two.  Sunday was another full day that included a trip to the lake, and a look at an enormous new wat being built.