Suiken

so no one so far have any unpleasant experience after moving to Thailand? any regret, missing friends, family back home, food etc? is everyone all already in Thailand or are thinking about moving?

question how much would it cost a month to hire a thai chef? just wondering, for personal use not for business or hotel

Hi guys it seems to be our dream to move to Thailand, however could you guys that already living there tell us some negative sides about Thailand? Like horror stories/bad experiences living there? such as sold your house and everything in your home country and already moved to Thailand, but later realize you are still used to your home sweet home, friends there and all the relatives etc. But then if you move back it will cost a lot and you are stuck in Thailand with no money to move. Or moved to Thailand and not used to the culture, language and whatnot, depressed and drink everyday. No friends and relatives in Thailand etc, Got scammed by thail girls or whoever and lost your life savings. Any horror stories that us newbie should know about? thanks

I have already heard criminals come to hide in Thailand etc, where do they hide? Pattaya? Chiang Mai? and why do they all come to Thailand ? Law here is less harsh or they can pay them off or what? I plan to retire in Thailand maybe in Bangkok or Chiang Mai, and this doesn't sound too safe for me!

If you are seriously fearful over this, I humbly suggest you aren't Thai expat material. Your chances of falling victim to foreign criminals here is miniscule compared to the real dangers of

-- being run over by a car/bus

-- being in a fatal motorcycle accident

-- jumping off a balcony

-- becoming obese (its hot here and the food is good) and dying of heart attack, cancer, stroke etc.

-- exposing yourself to the horrible environment here which causes very high cancer rates, lung disease rates, etc.

Welcome to Thailand!

nicely put, I guess just be yourself and dont' piss off the wrong people. Could you elaborate on the last one? the horrible environment part? specifically on Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Phuket, I think those area ain't bad?

I have already heard criminals come to hide in Thailand etc, where do they hide? Pattaya? Chiang Mai? and why do they all come to Thailand ? Law here is less harsh or they can pay them off or what? I plan to retire in Thailand maybe in Bangkok or Chiang Mai, and this doesn't sound too safe for me!

so guys, what don't you like about living in Thailand? what are the downsides that you can tell to someone who is planning to come? thanks

can someone go into more detail on those? is it true.

Nothing seems to work........again, stressful........I have never been around such incompetent people.

It is gaining a reputation, not as the land of smiles, but as the land of xenophobic thieves, liars, and cheats.

It is no longer mysterious and exotic........at least not for me.

The place has changed, especially over the past ten years.

It used to be expat friendly....now it is not expat friendly (the visa and business rules reflect this). In fact, many of us have the impression they want us all to pack up and leave (many of my friends have already left and others are contemplating it).

The cost of living has gone way up (it is no longer the bargain it used to be).

Pollution--both air and people--has increased in Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Phuket, Hua Hin, and Pattaya-Jomtien (this has caused stress.........in the past it was far less stressful).

Corruption at all levels has increased.

Xenophobia has increased.......no question about it.

Sanook factor has diminished.

Nothing seems to work........again, stressful........I have never been around such incompetent people.

It is gaining a reputation, not as the land of smiles, but as the land of xenophobic thieves, liars, and cheats.

It is no longer mysterious and exotic........at least not for me.

I find other Asian women far more attractive and interesting than Thai women.

Other places surrounding Thailand have benefited greatly from Thailand's mistakes and are becoming more attractive as expat retirement destinations.

Need more?

care to go into more detail about this? I would like to know, thinking about moving there soon

so how soon can we expect wal mart and costco? anytime soon?

I used to go to villa but it's expensive, CF is kinda far from me....what are some other supermarket that's decent and not too expensive?

thanks for the responses

so for the tourist visa entry, I have to exit the country every 90 days and just repeat? for this visa can I own condo/house, open up a bank account etc? any limitation on this visa that I need to know about if I wanna semi retire in Thailand.

so they no longer have investment visa eh? like for 3 million baht house and you can get a visa and live there

nope not 50 yet and no relative in Thailand

hi guys I am wondering which visa can I get, I am planning to semi-retire in Thailand, I might stay there for half year to a year and fly back and forth between USA and Thailand, maybe eventually just live in Thailand but if it doesn't work I will move out. So I am wondering what kind of visa should I get? I am not 55 yet so I can't get the retirement visa...what are my options? thanks guys