dpeterk

Back in 2011-12, I took a year off from drinking just to see if I could do it (and I did). We sometimes fall off the wagon but can also get back on. I'm sure the OP will get back on track and stuff. It's not easy but not impossible, either.

Not just Chinese but Korean and Japanese women who visit Thailand (and Bali) look for a fling during their stay. I guess it depends on vibe but the ones at bars, I would think, are accommodating.

I've never dated a Thai woman but my Pinay wife, through thick and thin, has been at my side. We've had our issues due to a variety of issues but I've heard many times that Filipinas are considered better wife material than Thais, though of course, that's just based on what I've heard. 

I hope the USA is on that list , if so i might take a some flights from BKK for a few days each , but getting a Visa for a couple days is not worth it.....

We will see

Per another report, Vietnam is working on a one-year tourist visa for Americans but has made no indication of WHEN that visa will happen.

http://www.travelpulse.com/news/destinations/vietnam-to-give-yearlong-tourist-visas-to-all-americans.html

I have to agree with the poster who says don't give her another chance to inflict damage. Your son is now far more important than your wife and move on without her. I also hear Thai women are a vengeful lot so guard against potential retaliation, too.

Sorry this happened to you.

I wouldn't go as far as saying Vietnam is better than Thailand (but that's another topic entirely) but Nam does have its advantages though for how long, one never knows.

If you didn't like Phuket because of too many Russians, well, Nha Trang isn't much different, though the economic crisis in Russia has reduced tourist numbers. Probably Da Nang is the better place and cheaper.

Dont like Philipines personally , but many farang i know do , They go for 1 reason.

Try Vietnam very nice

The Phils is what it is. After many visits there, I've concluded it's not a place to raise a family and such given the crime and lack of protection for foreigners. Lots of desperate Filipinas looking for a sugar daddy, though I would trust a Filipina far more than a Thai.

I went to Bohol and cebu for 3 weeks 2 years back. I loved it. People are friendly and open. I saw lots of similarities to Thailand hearing expats complain about girls, etc. I never had one issue while their, even walked from my hotel to a near by shopping mall regulary. I never even had any issues with Taxis unlike Bangok where I was attacked for taking a picture of a drivers info so I could report

him for refusing the fair.

Western food is much cheaper then Thailand for sure. Being able to communicate is a big plus. It is a much poorer country then Thailand with limited inferstructure but in most urbon areas you can find most things that you would want.

Security is a concern but I never had any issues at all. Maybe my view point is different because I skipped Manila, but I would consider the Philippines.

I like Malaysia a lot despite what most of the typical Thailand sexpats say it is a great place, I consider it my second home since I have visited so often over the last 15 years while living in Thailand. Each place has its own positives and negatives for sure. Cambodia is not bad just not for me.

3 weeks is hardly enough to give a useful opinion as to how life in the Philippines is.

I've been living in the Philippines over a year:

Western food is not really cheaper in the Philippines compared to Bangkok. Some is cheaper, some more expensive.

Overall much better food options in Thailand.

The street food in Thailand is much more abundant, more fresh, and cheaper.

Fresh fruit, which are on every street corner in Thailand, are almost nowhere to be found in Metro Manila.

7-11s in Bangkok are much better: bigger, more products, better and healthier food options, better air-con.

A condo in Metro Manila, same size, same quality, same distance from the business center, will be 20-30% more expensive than in Bangkok.

I currently pay in Metro Manila 25k thb (33k peso) for a 60m condo, which is not in the business center.

I used to pay 18k thb in Bangkok for a similar size condo, although it was older. And it was a 3 minute motorcycle ride or 15 minute walk from a BTS staition.

Taxis are a problem in Metro Manila. Many drivers will refuse to take you by meter.

I solve that by using Taxi Lines in malls, office busildings or hotels - the drivers never argue in Taxi Lines.

In small cities in the Philippines there are no taxis, only small Tuk-Tuk like vehicles, which of course do not have a meter.

Most Filipinos use Jeepneys, which are cheap, but slow, hot (they are open vehicles), and of course you get to breath all the polution.

Security is a much bigger concern in the Philippines, and security guards are everywhere: apartment buildings, office buildings, malls, banks, government offices, cinemas.

Seems like there are a hundred thousand security guards in Metro Manila.

If you need internet for work or business, you have a big problem.

I use two separate connections that cost me a total of 2,000 thb per month (2,600 peso), and still I have problems on occasion.

If you need to travel within Metro Manila, or would like to travel to another city: again, you are screwed.

Traffic is a nightmare in Metro Manila - less than 10km per hour on average. Sometimes less than 5km per hour.

Going to Subic, 110 km from where I live, took me 6-7 hours using the public transportation network.

I am married to a Filipina and considered living in the Phils but given how horrendous security and infrastructure is, I've passed on that. I need good Web speed and the Phils charges you a lot but the connections SUCK, SUCK, SUCK! And who knows, one day, someone sees me, a foreigner, and decides he wants whatever is in my bag and shoots me for it. Not a good country to raise a family in.

I'll add my two cents to this discussion.

I've gone to Boracay more than two dozen times and married a Filipina, but Thailand is the clear winner over the Phils. Manila is a nightmare and I've gone there plenty of times. The traffic is the killer for me, I can't stand having to spend an hour in a cab just to go a few kilometers. The LRT and MRT in Manila suck beyond imagination, and Filipinos can't get their act together.

The Phils, however, does have good islands, though the tourist infrastructure and getting to those places are tough. El Nido bests Boracay as the best beach in the Phils, though the latter is more fun. Coron is great for nature, and Malapasqua is gaining a following for its beautiful beach.

I've read about Thailand in another popular forum and yes, it seems Filipinas trump Thais in the wife dept.

They should consider Vietnam the people are so nice and more speak a little English. A lot of expats here are moving over there. I live here with my Thai wife and if she would I would move over there with pleasure.

The beaches along the East Coast are beautiful, far cheaper than Thailand, we have been there 3 times and going back soon.

Na Trang is so nice water is very clean food is ok not spicy like Thailand. Crim is very low the police make sure of that.

They should give it a go. They can spend couple weeks in Thailand and get a cheap budget flight over from Thailand and spend couple weeks there. Few days in HCM cheap budjet flight up to Na Trang, then cheap flight up to Hanoi which is to interesting markets all over the place. Book hotels over there through the Internet.

I've been to Nha Trang twice but the water is brown and not clear. I greatly enjoyed it both times but I hear it's gone down because of overspeculation and development and worse, a flood of Russian tourists, though their numbers have gone down due to the tanking of the Russian economy.

Sorry but Thai food blows past Vietnamese food any day, plus medical services are far better in Thailand than in Vietnam. I'm not saying Vietnam isn't a good tourism destination but I'd recommend Thailand over Nam in a heartbeat.

As for going to Thailand, well, if it was so dangerous, why was it the tenth most visited country in 2014? Of course bad things happen but well, considering the number of foreign tourists who visit Thailand...

KL isn't the most fun city but has its charms. I basically hit the malls and such, but trust me, DON'T hit Bangsar, that place was sooo not worth going to and such. Just a few restaurants and bars here and there, BLEH!

I've been to the Phils far more times than Thailand, and while I love the Phils, I have to say Thailand is still more advanced and the nation to beat in SE Asia.

Far more expats flood into Thailand than the Phils, and not just sexpats or the like. You have women going there and lots of them. Yes, things in Thailand aren't the same as they were decades ago but no place will stay the same forever, right?

If Southeast Asia has a strong man, it must have a sick man as well, and many say the Phils is the latter. Manila traffic is just worse than horrendous and the country seems to have learned little from their colonial past other than English. At least Hong Kong was put on the right path before its handover back to China, and well, I wish America would've stayed a bit longer in the Phils to instill a better political and economic system. Filipinos complain all the time about their country and its problems, but little changes. The Phils is more plutocracy than democracy.