This blog discusses the social dynamics of dockside prostitution in Cape Town & Durban. It was written in advance of my book Sugar Girls & Seamen which you can now buy. But feel free to browse the blog as this material is distinct from the content of the book.

As a quick intro, I can suggest some of the more popular posts:

- What's the Deal with your PENIS?!

by far the most viewed entry, it relates to a painful penile ritual that some Filipino sailors engage in, the beading or pearling their penises. There's a picture included. Need I say more?

- Sailors, Prostitutes & Karaoke Culture

karaoke allows women with foreign language skills to show off their talents to potential clients.

- Tricks of the Trade

sugar girls sometimes use underhanded tactics to get money from their marks. This entry looks at hustling, robbery and drugging.

- Knives, Knaves & Babes

a look at violence between sailors at dockside clubs.

- What are These Girls Doing?!

locals stumble into a dockside nightclub and are confused by what's going on.

- Legal Prostitution at South Africa's 2010 World Cup?

deconstructs the proposal for legal sex work for the international soccer crowd.

- Navigating Risk: Lessons from the Dockside Sex Trade for Reducing Violence in South Africa's Prostitution Industry

why dockside prostitutes are safer than their colleagues in the street, brothel, and truck-stop sectors

- Anybody "Want" to be a Prostitute?

considers whether prostitutes want to perform sex work or not.

- Why Don't Prostitutes Abort Their Fetuses?

looks at the curiously high delivery rate of babies from Cape Town sugar girls.

- Sex Drugs Booze: Chemical Coping

how chemical crutches support the nightlife

- Double-Dipping

making money from sailors at the clubs and who have already left

There are plenty more posts which deal with all sorts of issues in the game. See the list on the right to take a look.

