I know only 1 older,single farang who lives locally, about 1.5 hours from Udon. He stopped drinking recently, is a chain smoker and lives with 2 dogs, he is ex military, and is finding life a bit of a struggle, particularly with the recent heatwave. I am married and live near him, I visit Udon once a week, 2 hours and I am fed up with it, the noise, heat and driving conditions. Nong Khai ,being much closer has a number of amenities, but is not really geared up for farang. The key here is to wake up each morning and have a task to complete, we have extensive gardens that keep me well occupied. As a non-drinker, non-smoker the thought of living in Udon, Bangkok etc in a condominium and spending my days at a bar is too difficult to contemplate.