Dustdevil

Ah yes, if you're from the UK. The #8 in arrivals, Americans, have plenty of gas at home. Half of it comes from Donald Trump's mouth, but that's more than enough to keep our heating bills low. And if not, we head to points south like Miami or--Better Call Saul!--southern New Mexico.

If it was a plastic door, why would the cops need bolt cutters to get in?

Six family members, oooh lucky you! No offense but it sounds almost like a Filipina's house.

You've shown class by not getting defensive and upset and instead analyzing.

Gross. Men can find whores anywhere, even in Saudi Arabia.

I'd say in the context of East Asia, don't marry a Japanese or Korean. The cultural differences are too great. It would take a long article for me to explain everything, but suffice it to say I recommend Chinese women (not from Malaysia, though) and do not recommend Japanese or Koreans. Yes, Japanese women are beautiful, but so are all the others, but living together, the two cultures clash too much.

"Ironically the Thais still call Bejing - Peking." No, they don't. Native speakers of English say Beijing and Guangzhou, not Peking and Canton.

Well, nobody says Peking or Canton anymore. Those are the old names. Everybody says Beijing and Guangzhou, as they should. What you're talking about is current names with their English translations. For example, nobody says "Oh, I took the train from Roma to München."

In emails and messages, everyone calls it "BKK."

U.S. news outlets call it Myanmar. Having worked in East Asia and the Middle East with all the Commonwealth nationalities in addition to Americans, it was obvious to me that while everyone knows it's Myanmar, Burma and Myanmar are used more or less interchangeably, because of the country's vivid history especially in the context of WWII.

True, only 26 letters, but within the 5/6 vowels are about 24 or so vowel *sounds*.

Have you ever been to the city? It's perfectly acceptable to refer to the city as Saigon when you're in Saigon. I know because I visited a gf there often. I also knew students from Saigon in the U.S. They called it Saigon even though as international people we all knew it's officially Ho Chi Minh City.

English has lots of etymological connections to Latin as well. That's one reason Latin used to be required in schools.

That's what I said-- "for geopolitical purposes."

And nice things in the U.S. that even Europe doesn't have, like 24-hour supermarkets with far greater choices of goods and cheaper prices.

Oh, I have. Several times. Had a gf there. Apparently you missed the sidewalks that are unwalkable and the 50+ motorbikes at every street corner, and the fact that it takes a car 45 minutes to travel about 10 or 12 km from the center market area). Also been to Hanoi; I remember it being much easier to walk around there; in fact I'm sure of that.

It's probably the reason so many young women have flabby bellies there despite the fact that they don't get much to eat.

NO--a non-Muslim of either gender marrying a Muslim must normally convert to Islam both by government law and family honor. I know this from 19 years in the Middle East and two years in Malaysia.

I have a British friend who's retired in the Algarve region of Portugal (southeastern coast). It looks like the ideal place in Europe to me.

Sounds great--no need for a local bank account as long as you can access cash with your home country's ATM card. Keep a home-country address in order to continue online banking. And the women are, of course, amazing.

I've seen a lot of these shallow world-retirement rankings published in the States. Mostly all they figure into it is the cost of living. Hey--let's go retire in Islamabad, the cheapest major city in the world.

Malaysia also offers an arrogant Muslim mindset and ill-mannered Chinese Malaysians.

For geopolitical purposes, the entire Arab world + Israel is referred to as the Middle East, regardless of what the atlas says.

Guam or Saipan

I am shocked--shocked to discover there are ladyboys in Thailand.