This site is the work of two friends who love to travel, who ended up in Angeles City, and who asked themselves, “What the hell is going on here?”

We found some 200 night clubs clustered in a few square blocks along Fields Avenue in Angeles City, on the island of Luzon, in the Philippine Republic.

Called foreigner bars, they serve foreigners almost exclusively. Filipinos, other than employees, are rarely seen in foreigner bars.

The main attraction is the estimated 13,000 Filipina bargirls who dance and entertain the tourists who come here.

And come they do. Japanese, Koreans, Malaysians, and Singaporeans visit the entertainment district of Angeles City. Europeans visit, as well as Saudis, Israelis, Americans, Aussies, Kiwis, and many other nationalities. Mostly men, but sometimes women and couples come for entertainment, for sex and, as we shall see, for other, more personal, reasons.

Needless to say, this vivid scene attracts the attention of journalists and academics, as well as feminist and religious activists, most of whom portray it in terms of victimization of women, pedophilia, and, most of all, as a hotbed of human trafficking.

In fact, the bargirls of Angeles City would scoff at the idea of being victims. They are harmed, not helped, by the so-called anti-trafficking efforts of the professional rescue industry.

We visited, dined and spoke at length with the main players in the Angeles City bar scene—bargirls, mamasans, choreographers, customers, managers, workers in supporting businesses and others—recording their words and images in detail.

We let the actors show themselves and speak for themselves, so you, the reader, can decide for yourself what is really going on in this strange and fascinating place.

This blog is an on-going project. We hope it will be of interest to journalists, academics, policy makers, and the reading public concerned with women’s rights, globalization and life in developing countries.