Phuket Travelers Net - a Harry Fox story

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If I ever saw a coffee-shop worshipper, Gerhart from Switzerland was one. Whenever he was on Phuket, he would spent hours after hours of night-time exploring the countless number of coffeshops on the island. Later he would ramble on for more hours about the beauty and the natural charm and the whatyagotnot of these wonderfully amazing girls.
So the next day I introduced Gerhart to Dao. It was like a setting out of a Hollywood Romance Movie. In the soft light of wrought iron lamps the well-kept lawn glowed like a green carpet. In the roofed outdoor section Gerhart was waiting for us already. There was a huge bunch of flowers on the table. Red roses for a blue lady.
When Dao and I entered the garden, Gerhart jumped out of his chair like a jack-in-a-box. Starry-eyed Dao approached him like a diva in slow-motion. A mild breeze made her black hair flutter like the wings of a butterfly. Unhurriedly Dao walked right up to Gerhart, dropped her eyes and gave him an impeccable wai.
As I said - pure Hollywood stuff. It took no more than ten minutes before the two dolls were so totally engaged in each other that I figured I'd might as well leave. And I did. I don't think they even noticed.
The next thing was to figure out what to do about Lek. What she really wanted was a husband. Not just any husband, but someone who would take care of her children as well. For a second I opted to make her Gerhart's mia noi. But just for a second. It would never work out. Or maybe it would - but not right now, while he was busy romancing a blue lady with butterfly wings for hair. I would have to ponder the matter.
There is no better place to ponder whether you should make a girl named Lek somebody's mia noi or give her a two-year scholarship for Christmas then the Kongo Bar.

The sun was sinking low. Its golden rays wrapped Soi Bangla in a flaxen blanket. The street was still comparatively quiet. I sat down at one of the tables close to the pool-desk and watched the girls play. It was to early for straight whisky, so I ordered coke and luhk manau with my Jack Daniels. One of the girls shot some good balls, I noticed. And speaking of balls - her physical appearance wasn't to bad, either. When she bowed down over the green and stood still for concentration, she was the very picture of vigilant beauty. All in all it was a pleasure to see her do her thing and when she asked me to join the game I gladly took the opportunity to show off my skills a little bit and to get closer aquainted.
As it happened, the girl's name was Tay.
"Thai?"
-No, Tay as in Katay.
Oh! Rabbit. I see.
-Yahs, she said and I make luhve like a labbit, too.
She stroke up a heartily laughter.
-But I play pool like a senake (snake).
I cannot say whether fair Tay made love like a rabbit. But she certainly did not play pool like a snake. As I said, she shot some pretty straight balls.
As I watched the spheres dance, a girl named Lek stayed in the back of my mind. Why could you not play the game of life like a game of pool? Every angle has its opportunities, every number has to go.
Tay was looking down her cue with concentration shining out of her eyes. Zonk! She set the white ball spinning perfectly, number six went down with a smack. I heard somebody calling my name.
It was Wolfgang, the owner of the bar. He grabbed my hand and shook it like the bodybuilder he is. That the German do a lot. Shake hands, I mean.
A couple of years ago the Kongo Bar had what must have been the strongest line-up of Patong bargirls ever. All the Kongo's seemed to be plump, muscular or heavy girls with a squeezer of a handshake at that time. Walking by on the narrow boardwalk presented a real danger then. If you refused to come in and the girls really wanted you to, they would just grab and drag you and bind you to the stake in the middle of the room.
Wolfgang laughed.
-Yes, he said actually we did have some strong women back than, didn't we. And didn't you actually date one of them, what was her name, Toy...Koy...?

I changed the subject. No need to go into details of old bygone times.
-I know this girl... I began.
-...and you love her too much, Wolfgang chimed in.
-Nono, it's like this...
I told Wolfgang Lek's story. Wolfgang listened and said, finally:
-Sure, bring her in. I have a place where she can stay, I'll even give her a basic salary. We'll fix her up in no time. Pretty soon she will meet a rich guy from overseas and all her troubles will be forgotten.
Tay the "labbit" was patiently waiting for our conversation to finish. I took my cue. This was it - time to hit the eightball.
Smack! Neatly and nicely the ball landed in the designated corner. Tay grinned. She had lost, she would have to pay for the beer. I kind of suggested that we could make an arrangement, where money did not come into play as such... But she refused laughingly.
-Samall manee (small money) she said, and had to agree. As they say: Nern poot siangdang gwah kham - money speaks louder than words. But it has to be a considerable amount.
For a moment I considered whether I actually should do some talking to little Rabbit with a considerable amount of nern. But I decided against it. Not right now, anyway. The evening was young, the bottle of whisky still full and the pool-table was waiting for another round.

A couple of days later in Soi Seadragon I met Lek again. She dug me in the ribs and said:
-You didn't come back to me that night. So now you love Dao, eh?
-Not really, I said it's just that Dao had this problem and she asked me to help...
Lek laughed.
-So you gave her some "help" and she forgotten the problem, eh?
I wondered whether it was possible for me to get across that I did not have any private relationship with Dao. On the other hand, it didn't seem important, either.
-So what about you? I asked. I told her about the job in the Kongo bar. Lek listened attentively. I was repeating Wolfgangs last worlds about meeting a rich farang, when Lek turned around. Somebody was just coming into the bar.
-Oh, she cried out, 'Arry, meet my new boyfriend!
It was Gerhart, the coffee-shop worshipper from Switzerland.
I must have looked rather stupid. Gerhart laughed and said:
-Close your mouth Harry! Your gold-teeth are showing!
-But, aren't you supposed to be with Dao? I gasped.
-Ah, yes Dao. Gerhart shook his head.
-You know what is funny. We had a wonderful night. The moon, the food, the champagne... Then Dao insisted in taking me to her apartment and I basically thought that we were - how do you say this in English "schon ein Herz und eine Seele".
-on the way to get married, I said.
-Yes, like that, on the way to get married. But when I tried to kiss her, she shied back and said that she had somebody in her life already. I went out to smoke a cigar on the banner balustrade of her balcony and suddenly I saw her!
He pointed at Lek, who beamed back like a Christmas tree.
-She is a neighbor of Dao's, you see. And the rest is going to be history, as they say.
-That's not exactly what they say, but I understand.
So what had happened to Dao, I wondered?
I was kinda busy for the next few weeks. But as soon as I got the time I went to see Dao in the little Soi off Sai Nam Yen. The house was still there, but Dao had gone. I asked the girls next door and they said she had gone to Bangkok.
Bangkok...?
Yes, her husband came and took her with her.
Her husband...?
The girls looked at me as the stupid farang I was. Yes, her husband! Didn't I know that Dao had a rich husband, who was in charge of Siam Commercials, one of the biggest trading companies of Thailand?
Right that instant I saw a familiar face peering out of a door further down the alley. It was Tay, the rabbit, who played pool like a snake.
-I didn't know you lived here, too.
-Yahs, she replied I see you, but you busy butterfly with Lek and Dao.
I wondered if I should try to explain Rabbit, that I had no personal involvement with neither Lek nor Dao but it didn't seem worth the effort. Looking at her smiling face - that bore no resemblance to a rabbit's at all - I decided instead that it would be much more worth an effort trying to see, if she really made luhve like a labbit.