If you are traveling in Shanghai and would like to meet a nice, local girl with whom to share a quiet evening or two, you may do that. There is no law against it and more and more, it is not even looked upon as something strange. But if you’re looking to find a prostitute, you are asking for nothing but trouble and opening yourself up to jail time, deportation, robbery, or any number of the world’s sexually transmitted diseases.
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I don’t care who you are or where you’re from, prostitution is illegal in Shanghai. Not just illegal but VERY illegal. So illegal in fact, that you may notice a conspicuous lack of massage parlors around town. It’s true, there are none, and that’s because they were once found to be hotbeds for ladies of ill repute, much as it is in other cities around the world. China does not approve of this behavior, just like the vast majority of nations do not, so they took the necessary steps to shut them down, even if that meant closing all the massage parlors in a town where such a trade would thrive even on a legitimate basis.
If you are caught with a prostitute, you may be thrown in jail… in China… and the embassy will be powerless to help you if that happens any more than they could if you were caught stealing, murdering or selling illicit drugs… don’t do any of those things either.
I’ve heard first-hand accounts of hotels being raided in the middle of the night in search of prostitutes. If you need more fear of the legal ramifications, imagine what it would mean to your wife, boss or any future hopes if you were found naked in the company of a known prostitute. It could ruin your home life, your profession and insure that you may never be allowed back in China for any reason ever again, and that’s only if you don’t end up serving six months hard labor… think about that for a minute.
But even if you aren’t caught, there’s a good likelihood that the man, woman or business you’re wishing to hire to secure you an hour’s intimacy for the night, is being less than honest. Let’s face it, if they rob you, you can’t go to the police, can you? There’s less trouble and more money in coming in to your room, taking your wallet, beating you severely and walking away, than there is in handing you a demure lady of Asia. That’s a more sincere concern.
But what if the police don’t catch you, you aren’t robbed and you do get the rightly, much-coveted Shanghai lady, what then? China was one of the last civilized countries to begin blood testing and admit that HIV/AIDS is actually present. As a result, serious, life threatening, sexually transmitted diseases are much more common than you might think.
What good is a night of anonymous, inexpensive sex, if the ultimate price is your life and the infection you will bring to your wife, girlfriend and children?
The bottom line is, whether you are caught by officials or not, there is absolutely no reason why you would ever want to seek out or accept the solicitation of a prostitute in Shanghai or anywhere else. The trouble and danger you may face can take your freedom, every last penny you have, and even your life… and you’ll have no recourse if that happens.
