Guest Posted July 29, 2001 Report Share Posted July 29, 2001 >Originally posted by spirit_of_town_hall: >The best internet bank account in the UK is >offering 7.3% www.smile.co.uk. Can a US citizen open an account with this bank, Peter? Is your money guaranteed by the government? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Long Gun Posted August 3, 2001 Report Share Posted August 3, 2001 quote: Originally posted by chocolat steve: this was covered in another topic about racism but I did experience difficulties in Bangkok being Black. My buddy I travel with (mate to you Brits, Aussies and Kiwis) is 1/2 Black and Latin but looks middle eastern to some. We had trouble checking into Grace Hotel and Nana Hotel until it was clear we were American. The lady at Grace told us plainly she does not service Africans Steve I posted this to Tbear earlier on Nanapong but will paste it here too. I've been pretty much out of reach of the internet recently and have just caught up with the last couple of episodes of your outstanding series of reports. I have to say that I'm sorry that it's all over and I'm looking forward to your next visit nearly as much as you. Incidentally, I have just got back from my first visit to Japan - what a fabulous country! A new (very well educated, very good job) friend who I met there via the internet, who has a Zambian boyfriend (but isn't entirely averse to a little adventure on the side), was telling me how much the Japanese girls are attracted to black guys. NB we are talking about 'good' girls here. You might want to consider a few days stopover in Tokyo if you fly with Northwest or similar ........ LG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted August 3, 2001 Report Share Posted August 3, 2001 Thanks Long Gun. I've actually been to Tokyo and had a Japanese girlfriend for a while in the states. Roppongi district is best I think as the ones that go there expect to meet Black gai-jins. Personally, Tokyo can go either way, they either love ya or not. Tokyo has the same problems Bangkok does. There are illegal Africans there on student or holiday visas and have a bad rep. If you're an America-jin you're fine, but Africans and also American military Blacks have a bad rep. However the ones that likes Blacks....boy do they!! They're into hip hop and the whole scene and although I'm in my 30s I can pass for mid 20s so the younger ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Long Gun Posted August 3, 2001 Report Share Posted August 3, 2001 quote: Originally posted by chocolat steve: Tokyo has the same problems Bangkok does. There are illegal Africans there on student or holiday visas and have a bad rep. If you're an America-jin you're fine, but Africans and also American military Blacks have a bad rep. Are the Japanese girls any better at differentiating between American and African than the Thai girls? I can understand what you mean about the dodgy reputation as a lot of the touts in Shinjuku seemed to be African, though they weren't too big a pain. Overall do you prefer the Thai scene to the Japanese one? LG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbear31 Posted August 3, 2001 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2001 You guys are killing my travel budget! So how does Japan compare to Thailand? T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Posted August 4, 2001 Report Share Posted August 4, 2001 My first trip to Thailand was actually AFTER spending time in Tokyo. IMHO, NOTHING beats Thailand. There is no scene in Japan IMO that compares in terms of price and availability. However, I think the regular, non BG scene in Tokyo or Osaka and Yamomoto and other places is good. Hip Hop is huge in Japan and they are very curious. I had a Japanese girlfriend in the States, born and raised in Tokyo, and she made the mistake of telling all about the Japanese girls and their likes and dislikes. There are chat rooms for girls looking exclusively for Black guys. The ones that have been at it a while will say at the end 'No Africans or Military men!'. In Japan Roppongi is best as the Japanese there go there expecting to meet gai-jin (farang in Japanese). For those who don't know, its a section of Tokyo and its alive at night with bars, clubs, and its known as the place where westerners are. There are a couple bars that are 'Black' meaning its where the Blacks in Tokyo go and the girls that go there go to meet Black guys. The names elude me at this time but I'll try to post it if I recall it. The last time I was there some military guys were acting up and the cops came. The place was packed, way over crowded, music was hard core rap, Japanese guys came also. They weren't gay but there to hear hip hop and see the 'hip hop' culture up front. Learn the latest dances, gestures, etc. The other bars in Roppongi are cool too. Lots of regular office girls looking to meet westerners. Every one gets blind stinking drunk too! They can drink! There were a lot of Russians starting to go there, but most of the westerners were 'salarymen' (business men) from America & England (some Aussies also). Shubuya, the shopping district (especially for electronic products) is not bad if you hang out in the stores, etc. Tokyo is notoriously expensive for everything also. Once the locals hear your accent they can tell if you're African if not by look. Non African Blacks tend to dress a little differently. Look like a business man and you'll be fine for the most part as the very young girls don't mind that as they will date older guys who have money. They have their own and will treat some times. I had some luck while I was there, despite my then girlfriend being around sometimes. Once they knew I was American and I spoke a little Japanese (nihongo o skoshi hanashimasu) they were curious and asked questions. However, over all as I stated Thailand over Japan for straight unadulterated boom boom but Japan does offer some value for non BG, regular girls. I've never really tried for too many non BGs in Thailand, why should I? Everything I want is only 1,000 baht away in a bar! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Indiana_Jack Posted August 4, 2001 Report Share Posted August 4, 2001 What can I say. One of the great trip reports! Filled with both good descriptions and humor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Long Gun Posted August 10, 2001 Report Share Posted August 10, 2001 quote: Originally posted by chocolat steve: There is no scene in Japan IMO that compares in terms of price and availability. However, I think the regular, non BG scene in Tokyo or Osaka and Yamomoto and other .......................... In Japan Roppongi is best as the Japanese there go there expecting to meet gai-jin (farang in Japanese) ........................... The other bars in Roppongi are cool too. Lots of regular office girls looking to meet westerners. Every one gets blind stinking drunk too! They can drink! ................. Look like a business man and you'll be fine for the most part as the very young girls don't mind that as they will date older guys who have money. They have their own and will treat some times ......................... However, over all as I stated Thailand over Japan for straight unadulterated boom boom but Japan does offer some value for non BG, regular girls. I've never really tried for too many non BGs in Thailand, why should I? Everything I want is only 1,000 baht away in a bar! Fair point, Steve, in fact several very good points. I have been struggling to catch up with myself and sort my thoughts out on Tokyo as a naive first-timer. Overall, I loved just about everything about the city but I would need to spend much more time there to get to grips with how it works. After 8 years in Thailand, and visits to Indonesia, Cambodia, PI, Vietnam, it can be easy to start to take the 'scene' for granted and assume that's how things everywhere in Asia. Japan is very, very different and all the more intriguing because of that. Hopefully some kind of report will appear in the 'Regional Sanuk' section, but I think I'm only writing it for my own benefit really. LG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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