rickudon

Sounds like me 12 years ago..... I wanted a small hobby style farm income and had some good ideas - all came to nothing. 1. Bell peppers. when i first arrived, they could cost as much as 100 baht each. Surely it would be a winner? Soon found out Isaan climate too hot, lucky if they grew bigger than fingernail size. And died off in hot season. 2. Duck eggs. F-in-L did this and seemed to make a small profit. I did it for one year, and money from eggs just about paid for the food the ducks ate. 3. Fish farming. I had training in this, so knew what i should be doing. stocked a pond with 2 fingerlings per sq. metre, and started feeding. But wife, because she is Thai, knows best and put 3,000 more fish in. Pond now overstocked and fish stunted. spent 8,000 baht on food, a year later got 1500 baht back for fish..... some were probably stolen, but fish were far too small. Also water was poor quality, growth was always slow in all ponds we had bar one. Tilapia fingerlings should grow to over 500 grams in less than a year, but ours would take 3 years! (and sometimes survival rate very low). We get a modest income from running fishing lakes. Tried many vegetables. Soil was mainly clay. about 50% of vegetables tried either failed to grow, suffered disease and pest problems or cropped poorly. Some vegetables would do much better in cool years, but would do well once in about 4 years. Only vegetable i tried that worked most years was Okra - but couldn't find a market, Thais not keen on it. After a slow start, have had limited success growing limes, now harvest enough to feed extended family - my lime trees grow extremely well, look much healthier than those grown the 'Thai way'. Mine organic. Eucalyptus usually quite successful, but not a monthly crop. And bare in mind that if you want to change to anything else afterwards, restoring the land is a major exercise. And not a big earner. As to what will work, depends on your local climate, soil, water, drainage and security. Can only experiment small scale and see if anything works. There is no magic answer, if there was, all the Thais would be rich!

My wife doesn't have a birth certificate, the amphoe couldn't find a record of it - we needed it to get our daughter a UK passport. Wife having thai passport, ID card and in the blue book didn't matter to the Amphoe. Wife had to find a teacher at her old school who would vouch that she attended there to get a replacement document from the Amphoe. Amazingly, still a teacher at her old school who remembered her 35 years ago! Thai bureaucracy can be pretty ridiculous. The daughter has school reports from her old Thai school? Then good chance the school will provide the 'proof'.

No witness required?

The one aspect of whether you should get health insurance that has not been mentioned, is cost versus income. Many of us moved to Thailand for the cheaper cost of living, but paying insurance premiums means an impact on your quality of life options. Some of the premiums mentioned here are over 50% of my annual income - getting health insurance would mean having to choose whether to eat or turn on the air-conditioning. Or feeding the wife. I would be reasonably happy to spend 10% of my income on health insurance, but whenever i have got quotes, it was around 25% plus. That would have meant burning through my savings (which i did have to anyway, to attain a reasonably comfortable existence here over the first 5 years), or only existing, not living. So, i have chosen to 'self insure'. Over the last 12 years, this has meant a saving of about 2 million baht in premiums, against an expenditure of around 60,000 baht (including one potential health emergency which resulted in a quick return to the UK for diagnosis). If i had used my savings to maintain my lifestyle and pay health insurance, i would now be broke. A gamble, yes, but paying off so far. By the time i will be in my 80's, insurance premiums could exceed my annual income. Health insurance is for the rich.

So many people say get a job. Not that easy. Age 64 (or there abouts), heart condition, no recent employment history, no address. Most applications will be ignored. And an alcoholic. I found it damn difficult to find a job when i was just 55 and recently made redundant. The only job i could get involved some lifting and physical work, i ended up at the chiropractor (not free) or in Physiotherapy every few months. In my last year of work i was signed off on sick leave more than 50% of the time. I gave up, took early retirement and came to Thailand. Fortunately i have survived here for 13 years without any major issues and have enough pension money to live comfortably if not lavishly. But major surgery like the OP would wipe me out. Reality - getting somewhere PERMANENT to live is an issue. Rents have gone through the roof. He would be dependent on help from his local council, if he can find one which will take him on (you have to prove a connection to the area). Also because he has been living outside the UK, no automatic benefits (JSA, universal credit, etc.) will be paid for 3 months. Those first 3 months will be a struggle. Some financial assistance may be found, but not a given thing. Yes, the local council has a responsibility, but they are hopelessly overstretched. Do not know how much the OP has left in cash or what monthly income he has if any, but if he cannot survive 3 months it will be a struggle. A van, if he can afford it, is a possible thing. As for living on the streets, even in the summer temperatures can fall below 10 degrees Centigrade in summer; i remember night fishing some years ago and 3-5 a.m. it was COLD even in summer. I doubt if the OP would survive 6 months with his age and health. I feel sorry for the OP, but he has some tough decisions to make. My advice to everyone - circumstances change, and you need to maintain a lifeline to your home country if it has a decent social system. 3 important things to maintain.... 1. A bank account. You cannot open a UK bank account without an address and utility bills, and without one you cannot rent accommodation. 2. Maintain an address - either with relatives or friends, it helps (with point one, for instance). 3. Keep enough money there to survive 3 months - if you have been living abroad, you are a non-person for those first 3 months (my son experienced this TWICE on returning to the UK, after living abroad for over 6 months).

Their lice.