Matt Owens Rees

The title above probably gave you a little chuckle. In Thailand, there’s a clever little hack for couples who need a quick hideaway: the maan root, literally “curtain room” — ม่านรูด.

In our series, Beyond the Bamboo Curtain, the word “curtain” suggests we’re peering into a Thailand that we don’t always see. A bamboo curtain that hides things from us.

In this post, we see a different use of the word. The “curtain” that’s pulled across a room after a couple, with a lover or a prostitute, drive the car into the parking space in front of the room where their romantic ritual is about to start.

My expat friends were talking about this over some beers one lunchtime.

Picture this, I said, you pull into a tiny parking spot, a girl slides a curtain behind the car, and suddenly you’ve got a private bubble where nobody can see you. Inside you’ll usually find a shower, a surprisingly spacious bed, and sometimes a mirror on the ceiling.

To Paul’s question, I replied, “Because a lot of Thai people still live with — or right next to — their families. So a curtain motel becomes the fastest, fuss-free way for a couple to snag a moment alone without anyone raising an eyebrow. A simple way for couples to escape from the family home where every move is watched.

All rooms have showers and a large bed. Some have mirrors on the ceiling, show porn movies, and are sexily themed.”

I reminded my drinking buddies of a genuine quip from Marilyn Monroe, the American sex‑icon (1926‑1962).

“It’s not true that I had nothing on. I had the radio on.” 

Classicsixny.com noted that “modern stars still study Monroe’s style and energy. Her curves, bold red lips, and classic makeup are still copied today.

Madonna, Lady Gaga and Kim Kardashian all recreate her look, quote her lines and pose in versions of her iconic photos.

They aren’t just borrowing fashion; they’re tapping into a legacy of femininity and power.”

George jumped in, “Thailand has long been sold as the “land of sun, sand, sea and sex”. The slogan has stuck for decades, and the economy feeds on that image.

Because the country profits from sex tourism, the trade enjoys a surprising amount of tolerance.

Official promises of reform may surface, but the cash keeps flowing.

The government knows the industry adds to GDP and isn’t keen to shut the tap.

Hotels and restaurants won’t turn away paying guests on principle – they’ll keep welcoming the wallets, whatever the owners’ motives.”

Andrew, always more serious than the reset of us and a lover of statistics, estimated the number of sex workers at around two million. Not all are Thai, and most are not forced into the trade, contrary to many Western assumptions.

Supporting parents and older relatives, he said, is a cornerstone of Thai culture. Every girl regularly sends a sizeable slice of her earnings home. She sees it as repaying the love and care she received as a child – a way of returning the gift of her mother’s milk.

Soliciting is illegal only when it happens openly and shamelessly or causes a nuisance to the public. The wording is vague, letting interpretation shift with the political tide.”

As I noted in Thailand Take Two, providing escort or massage services isn’t illegal.

After my interruption, he carried on,

“Pole‑dancing is even praised as a cultural art form. Recruiting bargirls to drink with clients isn’t against the law. Scantily clad girls sitting outside a karaoke club and smiling at potential patrons commit no offence.

Calling out “Hey, you handsome man” isn’t solicitation; it’s simply an expression of appreciation for a man’s looks.

Young women wearing numbered tags and sitting in a “goldfish bowl”, waiting to be chosen by men in rows, are officially unconnected to paid prostitution. They sit behind a glass screen, watching TV and gossiping.

Bitchiness, back‑biting and bursts of belligerence are common; jealousy and mood swings can spiral into aggression. Their boredom breaks only when their number is called and they dash for a towel and soap.

Beyond the flashier nightclubs, tiny bars pepper every Thai town. Here the girls gather, giggle and gossip. Some hunt long‑term relationships with farangs to secure a better standard of living for themselves and their families.

Marrying an older foreigner may be a small price for enhanced stability. A silver‑haired suitor can provide the security she silently seeks and subtly secures.

Other women juggle several men, carefully ensuring the partners never cross paths. When a lover lives abroad, she expects regular remittances into her bank account.”

A silver-haired partner offers quiet security that many young women silently seek.

Andrew’s remarks were accurate and amusing. He is clever with words, once he gets going. I Jumped back in and spoke of some true stories I described from Thai friends I know.

Siriporn’s short trousers left little to the imagination when she visited a government office; “polite” dress was mandatory. The Thai phrase mai tuk tong (not correct, not acceptable) was used as a gentle rebuke. Peter, however, liked the display and showed her off to his friends, reveling in the large expanse of bare thigh.

Siriporn’s closest friend, Phla (Thai for “fish”), met her at a go‑go bar in Bangkok many years ago. Both were popular pole‑dancers. Phla married a UK property developer twenty years ago and moved to Chiang Mai. Her husband funded English lessons; she became fluent enough to read a childcare book when her first child was born.

Phla is open about her past and hinted once that her father and his friend had sexually assaulted her as a child. Her husband later set her up with a business hiring out designer handbags to ladies who wanted to flaunt luxury at social functions but could not afford the price.

I last saw Phla at her husband’s funeral. She told me she planned to travel to the UK to transfer his assets into her name. I didn’t reveal that he had, in his will, gifted those assets to his ex‑wife and two daughters. I haven’t heard from Phla since; apparently she did go to England.

Goong (Thai for “shrimp”) grew up in an upper‑middle‑class family in Chiang Mai. Her father was a successful businessman who once met the late Queen Elizabeth II. Goong moves in hi‑so circles, mixing Thai and foreign acquaintances, and can appear a touch snobbish. She seeks solace in alcohol and nightlife; her confidence borders on self‑centredness.

My neighbour Fon chatted this evening about the farangs that frequent the girly bars. “Why don’t they seek genuine dates? Is a girl in a short skirt and displaying a lot of thigh really someone they want to form a relationship with?”

Many foreigners indeed associate with sexy‑looking bargirls without wanting lasting friendship. In Thailand it is natural for men to sleep with multiple partners, just as women accept husbands and boyfriends sleeping around.

Respectable Thai women enjoy being bought gifts and will make subtle hints if they want something.

Asking directly for money or a gift signals that she is not interested in a future together. The question to ask yourself is whether her request is for services or whether she wants genuine affection where you care for each other.

Fon added that the average Thai woman is modest, greng jai (considerate) and does not want to appear forward or demanding.

Sex is for the bedroom with the lights out. Trying new positions or experimenting with what would be regarded as mutually satisfying activity in the West is seen very differently in Thailand. A no‑holds‑barred approach to a couple’s sex life may happen here but would be unusual.

Although Thais dislike the immodesty of the girls who work in the sex industry, they understand and accept their reasons for choosing that vocation.

The girls in the bars have little respect for their clients; they know the men have no caring attitude (nam jai) towards them. That outlook is hard to grasp, given that the girls themselves have shown no sense of modesty in their blatantly inviting approach to their clients.

Deep down the girls want support, stability and respect – perhaps even love eventually. They know most customers will never give them that. “Caring” is a better description for “love” in Thai culture.

Most Thai females who engage in the trade do so to send money home to parents, repaying them for raising them. Longer term, they want security and a caring attitude from men rather than romantic love.

In Thailand, the currency of care often outweighs the currency of love.

Has it surprised you that there are cultural reasons why the girls work in the sex trade? Did you know Curtain Hotels exist in the alley ways of every Thai town and city? What are your views and opinions on this post. Leave a reply in the comments box below. I love to read your comments and other readers benefit from your knowledge.