mark45y

good idea! Hope thailand follows suit! less marriages over money and less murder over old dudes' life insurance. Less guys with girls their grandaughters' age.

Hard to imagine many guys, if residing in cambodia, get over 2500 US dollars, unless they're working for an international company.

Sorts out the riff raff pretty quickly!

Have you ever really asked yourself why it bothers you to see old men married to young women?

Makes you feel a fool?

It bothers some people to see people of different races, creeds and colors married to people of different races, creeds and colors too.

The motivation to discriminate is the same. Those people are not like you are they?

This will make a lot of dirty old men upset.

At what age do you feel the term, "dirty old man" is accurate? Is it only a function of age? Or men getting married?

Or just old men who want to get married? Or would "dirty man" be appropriate for a Western man coming to Asia for a bride but under the age of 50? Would old men be upset if they could not get married? Or just dirty old men upset if they could not get married?

What makes a man dirty anyway? Such an interesting post. It brings up so many questions.

The law has some merit. I for one am sickened by what I see here in Thailand all too often. Some old dude cruzing around with his young 20 something bride and the little baby in tow. Which I might add that baby inevitably grows up without a father after he turns over from old age . And men enslaving thier 'wives' as prostitutes in thier homeland is another problem.

However it also has some laughable conditions. $2550 per month is a joke.If a Cambodian was on $2550k a month they would be in the high society group in Phnom Phen. Also the age thing should be adjusted to an age differential as opposed to the 'cannot marry' for over 50 year olds. So what they are saying is that a 51 year old foriegner wants to marry a 49 year old Khmer then that it against the law. Please.

This post addresses the part of your post that says, “Which I might add that baby inevitably grows up without a father after he turns over from old age .”

Many cultures have a tradition of raising children with grandparents.

To take one I know about, Eskimos. The children were raised by the grandparents because the parents were off hunting to maintain the family.

I was raised by my grandparents. My grandfather had stopped working by the time I was 5 years old. He spent all day with me, teaching me the skills he had learned over a long life. We traveled the woods and streams of my homeland and I learned how to hunt and fish and grow crops. He taught me how to make beer and distill whiskey. He taught me how to shoot and track bear and deer. He taught me how to use a knife and carve wood and ivory. We were constant companions and he loved me far more than my father. And I loved my grandfather more than any other person in my life. He read a lot and passed that habit along to me. We didn't have TV so he told me stories at night. I never felt deprived because he was an old man and I was a young child. He had the time for me. He had the time to answer all of my silly childhood questions. Looking back at my childhood I don't know that it is not a better idea to raise children with grandparents than parents. The stress of working in the modern world takes its toll on family life.

Perhaps it is better to have a family unit home 24/7 in the raising of young offspring.

The old guys get my vote for the best way to bring up a young boy. A man gets married at 65 and has 10 or 15 good years with the children. That is enough for a good start for the offspring.

The law has some merit. I for one am sickened by what I see here in Thailand all too often. Some old dude cruzing around with his young 20 something bride and the little baby in tow. Which I might add that baby inevitably grows up without a father after he turns over from old age . And men enslaving thier 'wives' as prostitutes in thier homeland is another problem.

However it also has some laughable conditions. $2550 per month is a joke.If a Cambodian was on $2550k a month they would be in the high society group in Phnom Phen. Also the age thing should be adjusted to an age differential as opposed to the 'cannot marry' for over 50 year olds. So what they are saying is that a 51 year old foriegner wants to marry a 49 year old Khmer then that it against the law. Please.

This response deals with the part of your post where you write, “. I for one am sickened by what I see here in Thailand all too often. Some old dude cruzing around with his young 20 something bride and the little baby in tow.”

If you replaced the words “old dude” with race, creed or color they would be obviously discriminatory and some might call you a bigot. But somehow you think on Thai Visa age discrimination is fair game. I don't really know but I should point out you may be suffering from Gerontophobia.

Ken Dychtwald identifies seven markers that can make up this phobia in chapter two of Age Wave

If young is good, then old is bad

If the young have it all, the old are losing it

If the young are creative, the old are dull

If the young are beautiful then the old are unattractive

If the young are stimulating, then the old are boring

If the young are full of passion, then the old are beyond caring

If the children are tomorrow, the old represent yesterday

Gerontophobia is a common ailment in the West but less so in Thailand. But don't worry as you get older it will disappear on its own without treatment. I can almost guarantee that when you become an old dude you will feel much differently.

2) Did you notice, that some of them actually try and talk to you.

LOL. Yes, quite a few Russians have tried to talk to me in Russian. They seemed surprised I didn't speak it.

I didn't know Russians read Thai Visa.

so do most Farang men

Only the unlucky one.

Most Thai men (even if they have the money) don't pack up and go to Australia, Britain or America when they get old.

Assuming you are coming from Bangkok, fly in to U Tapao and charter a helicopter from U Tapao to the hotel assuming they have a helipad on the roof. Book a room at the hotel and don't go out, use room service.

Just wondering what company would schedule an event at that time?

Nice to know imperialism is alive and well and values we take for granted are to be denied others just because what they chose may not be to our liking.

Have you ever even been to Bahrain? The fact is they are being denied very little, and have seen a lot of improvements over the last decade. That doesn't mean they shouldn't try to make progress, but the Shia fundamentalist are offering nothing constructive to the future of Bahrain.

I spent some years in Iran before and during the revolution. I spent over 20 years in Saudi Arabia with quite a bit of time in Bahrain on weekends and short trips.

Iran is behind all of this and, if they can gain control, the freedom of Bahrain will simply become just another Islamic Republic with complete and total Sharia law, ala the Taliban and Iran.

I agree with Geriatrickid, Steely Dan, Hammered and Beechguy completely.

If you ain't been there, how do you know?

I agree with Hammered, only, completely.

Sharia law they have also in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

They will have a republic without a monarch. A parliament and a government with people they vote for.

The Taliban and the dudes in Iran are totally different. And Iran never had the Taliban, sunni extremists on their list of friends. The only States that ever recognized the Taliban Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan were Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates and there was that trip to Texas.

Taleban in Texas for talks on gas pipeline

BBC Thursday, December 4, 1997 Published at 19:27 GMT

A senior delegation from the Taleban movement in Afghanistan is in the United States for talks with an international energy company that wants to construct a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan across Afghanistan to Pakistan.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/west_asia/37021.stm

You have responded to the post without answering the question. Quote, "If you ain't been there, how do you know?" Have you ever lived there? I think it is a fair question.

US sending three more warships.

Kind of a waste IMHO

Think they will just waste fuel tugging about.

Wish instead they would send a heavily armed decoy of a yacht

Bet they would catch a lot more pirates with the decoy

Of course, creating the assumption that the pirates are of a lesser intelligent nature. What if they aren't?

One can make the point that the pirates are not brighter than the German U boat commanders in WW I and II when Q ships were used by both the British and American Navy.

that's where you guys get it so wrong. for women, good sex is a result of good communication between partners, if nothing else.

It is unnatural* for man to be monogamous. If good (accurate, truthful) communication were to exist between partners, it would go something like this; Male “honey we have had sex three days in a row and I really would like a different woman today.” Female “You heathen jerk, where is the butcher knife?”

Thank your lucky female stars that communication is less than factual most of the time.

Fibbing is good.

*Exception men posting on Thai Visa.

why do falangs in the country of origin wear long trousers?

Like in Scotland?

OK, the prudes amongst you may not like this, but I'll tell you the real reason.

It's because when farangs go into certain girlie bars, if they wear shorts, it facilitates instant 'ball-play'. Long trousers and jeans are very restrictive in this regard.

Try it, if you haven't already....

Is this where you found your GF?

That was not a nice response nor was it funny and would be reason for a "Yo Momma" reply. Bad adolescent behavior. The man was simply trying to educate you. You owe him an apology IMHO. Unless you are an adolescent and in that case it would be expected.

OK, the prudes amongst you may not like this, but I'll tell you the real reason.

It's because when farangs go into certain girlie bars, if they wear shorts, it facilitates instant 'ball-play'. Long trousers and jeans are very restrictive in this regard.

Try it, if you haven't already....

I have to tell you it is certainly not wide spread. In the small town where I live there are mostly Thai bars and a few pubs. Only 3 out of 10 do what you have suggested on a regular basis.

Yes, yes, street food with flies crawling over it and no running water to clean cutlery is much more sterile than a hot pizza fresh from the oven in an air-con place with a dishwashing machine.

The Manila pizza place I eat in didnt have air-con and probably didnt have a dishwashing machine. It was pretty classy though, at the time. The free doctor I saw (who, by the way, prescribed well-done toast and bananas, which worked incredibly well) said that nearly all the problems he saw stemmed from half-cooked food that was left lying around to be finished off later: like pizza toppings and BBQ buffets.

To be more precise about my diet here: I rarely eat meat at all and would never eat any sort of meat skewer no matter where it was from. I do eat plate-fulls of spicy seafood salads and noodles both from street vendors and cheap restaurants and none of them has ever made me ill. Probably because they dont hang around part-cooked for hours on end. Also seafood pad thai, seafood-balls and similar dishes, and lots of fried fish but not the sort that has a brown "batter" on it.

YMMV. I am not a doctor or a lawyer.

The street vendors don't have access to toilets with toilet paper, or clean towels and soap to wash after pooping. So the poop gets in the food. Unless it is cooked very well you get sick from the Thai vendors poop. The doctor in Manila would have known this also if he requested you provide him a stool sample. If the doctor does not get a stool sample he is only guessing what you have anyway.

Thailand is a good 100 years away from having any adequate standards of sanitation.

Can someone please help me with the appropriate Thai phrase for asking a street vendor for a stool sample? ...oh, you mean a sample of your stool.

I suspect some people have more sensitive systems than others... I've eaten some pretty dodgy things in some pretty dodgy places, and never had a problem. (touch wood... hey, I thought only Thai's were superstitious?)

Yak kee cup.

Not much has changed in wine and the vineyards that produce them...eh? Apparently you are not aware of the competitions that began in 1976 where California vineyards trumped those in France. In France no less with French judges. http://www.wineintro...976tasting.html

That is actually my point. There are people who can tell a great wine from a cheap wine. The people in 1855 who classified the French vineyards would have also been able to tell the excellence of Californian vineyards. The excellence of a wine establishes it's price not the reverse.

Finding out how to judge wines takes a lot of study and experience. It also takes a lot of cash. It is not some marketing ploy.

A person raised on Budweiser is not going to make a very good judge of excellence in beers.

Once you know about ales it is not much of a stretch to learn about other beers. There are German beers and British beers the rest are combinations or descendent's of those two brewing styles.

My basic point is that education or cultural values are necessary to appreciate good food and or beer or wine. I am not trying to dictate tastes but there is a difference between good food and average food. Som tom is not an example of culinary excellence nor is beer Chang beer. I could like som tom or Chang beer but I would never imply they great examples of excellence in cooking or brewing.

The napa vineyard that won was educated but set thier first foot in France prior to wining the blind taste test. They actually gained most of their knowledge from migrants with no upper education. They(Cali) have dominted every blind french tasting since. It does not take money or education to educate a palate. A plethora of less expensive yet quality wines have been produced since at much less the price you insisit upon. You have a good knowledge of British ale but know little about wine. I have yet to see you admit you were wrong in anything you consider to be your field of expertise. If lack of humility were a crime you would be doing life

I wonder why people don't read. I said “Education or cultural values.” If you grew up in a wine producing region chances are you will know something about wine. Viticulture is a complex subject. To produce an excellent wine from selecting the vines, growing and harvesting and aging and bottling. It is difficult to grow Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in Arkansas. The region is more like Germany and conducive to white sweet wines.

There is one person in Arkansas who uses a kidney machine to filter his wines. Technology can do wonders.

If you have been raised in the UK chances are you know something about Ales.

The world's most expensive drinkable wine was sold in auction in New York City in 2001 as a seven-bottle case, for $23,929 per bottle (a $167,500 total). It was a Montrachet 1978 from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, a white wine (curiously, red wines fetch much higher prices in auction).

Any list of expensive drinkable wines will be dominated by French wines.

In almost any international restaurant it is easier to sell a bottle of $1000 French wine than a $1000 bottle of California wine.

Why would I admit to being wrong when I am obviously right? To suggest that modern viticulture techniques are the result of listening to uneducated migrants is just foolish.

It is like comparing the building of a 16th century sailing vessel to the yachts that race for the America's cup today.

If you want an educated palate you must have some education. That education might come from years of experience pub crawling or a simpler and faster way would be to go to school. In the same vein all the education in the world is not going to replace hands on, experience. Not only do you have to do the book learning but travel to the areas where the product is produced.

I have no other way to describe it to you. If you want to find out what a $10,000 bottle of wine tastes like you have to drink one. That takes $10,000 cash. If you want to find out about good Ales you have to go the the UK. Guinness tastes different in Africa and Ireland. Sorry, but the only way to find out that is to go to Ireland and Africa.

If you want to taste Uno's pizza you have to go to Chicago. They tried to make a chain but it didn't work. It didn't travel well. I know I ate at 20 of them. Not the same.

The gentlemen who posted about English Ale in this thread have a wealth of experience over many years. If a young man wanted to find about English Ale he would be advised to spend some time with a group of them visiting different pubs and drinking and listening. That is very much like a college experience. Listen to the professor and then do the research.

If one wanted to brew Ale today or set up a wine producing business he would be advised to start in college and then get a job for hands on experience.

My original statement about education, experience and cash I feel is correct.

Of course you would get stared at and quickly judged does not matter race/color. Its how western cultures behave. Judge, label you so they can chastise you. The hard part for the woman you bring home, she is not going to understand it. Added pressure when trying to acclimate. I knew 2 men did the internet marriage, both went, met them, brought them back, married them and one failed in 6 months and the women left and went back home. The other lasted about 6 years, then she saw there were better looking men far better off then Jim the guy who brought her over and she left.

Sorry to get off tangent to the thread, just answering Rich

You think the Thais are not thinking exactly the same? It is not specific to Westerners, if anyone (not in the same situation) sees an older man with a far younger woman they have an automatic assumption - for good reasons.

I have a confession to make. I lived with much younger women in the States than I live with in Thailand. States 18 to 25, Thailand 35 to 40. All of my live in ladies in the States were younger than my youngest daughter. It enabled us to do a lot as a family because the ladies tastes were quite similar to my two younger daughters.

I have examined this and have come to the conclusion that in the States I had to make much more of a commitment to a young woman hence the live in part. In Thailand I live with a woman I feel at home with and if I want to occasionally go out with a young woman no problem.

I can go to a Thai dance or music club here and ask almost anyone to dance and not get refused. Back home I had to bring flowers, a ring and a new car to get an answer in the positive.

For me this is one of the big advantages of Thailand.

I know on Thai Visa I read over and over again how bad it is to see the old guys with younger women and how bad this is for the image of younger Falangs with age appropriate wives. Get over it. You young guys can go anyplace and find a job and meet a beautiful woman. Leave Thailand for your elders we don't have that many choices.

This is the last hurrah for what my daughters laughingly refer to as the longest generation in the history of the world. I grew up without a TV or indoor plumbing and now I have three computers at my desk and am in communication with friends and family all over the world at the press of a button.

If I could take my young stateside bimbo to the bastions of high society in the West and even introduce her to my mother and my mother's Palm Beach blue hair brigade, let me tell you there are absolutely no surprises in store for me with a women 35 years of age (30 years my junior in Thailand). And further let me tell all you other people who think you know all about Thailand, if your marriage or relationship is arranged by an important family in your social circle, be it high or low it will be completely accepted. Do good and it comes back to you (most of the time). A man gains respect here for not the same reasons a man gains respect in the West. Respect is hard to gain and once gained it is hard to lose. Age is respected more here than in the West and that is hard for young Falangs to realize and relate to especially when it works not in their favor.

Hey, what ever suits you, do what you want. I really don't care. Just don't try to convince the world that these types of relationships are normal or healthy because they/we will never accept that. That is all I am saying.

And for those who just can't take it anymore, in the immortal words of John Prine:

"bewildered, bewildered, you have no complaint.

You are what you are and you ain't what you ain't.

So listen up buster and listen up good,

stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood"

I heard that song (Dear Abby) the first time sung by John Prine in a bar in Chicago owned by Steve Goodman called. “Somebody Else's Troubles.”

Funny you should pick that song but leave out the verse,

“Dear Abby, Dear Abby...

Well I never thought

That me and my girlfriend would ever get caught

We were sitting in the back seat just shooting the breeze

With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees.

Signed Just Married”

I am confused by your reply. “Just don't try to convince the world that these types of relationships are normal or healthy because they/we will never accept that. That is all I am saying.”

What kind of relationships are you talking about?

I have not seen any sex slaves married to Western men in Thailand. Have you? What I have seen a lot of is fairly bossy argumentative Thai women coupled with submissive old white guys who mostly say. “yes dear.”

I was shopping at Lotus today listening to a 40 year old large Thai woman say, “Neip, neip” (shut up) to an older white guy while she loaded their cart with cosmetics. Not a lot different than one might see in the West. I imagine instead of a 40 year old fat chick telling him to shut up it would have been a 60 year old fat chick but other than that not much difference.

Now if you are saying that that is an abnormal relationship I would agree with you (and is one of the reasons I am not married). But I think the rest of the world thinks that is quite normal.

Also the way you phrased your statement, “Just don't try to convince the world that these types of relationships are normal or healthy because they/we will never accept that. That is all I am saying.” Are you the rest of the world? Cause if you speak for all of the people in the world I would really like to get your opinions about a lot of things as I am sure the UN would also. It would be a lot easier just to ask you than have elections and all of that stuff.

You probably know this but you can poach them in a pan of simmering water, not a full boil. Drop them in one at a time and use a ladle to scoop them out. Or in a custard dish with some butter in the bottom in a micro wave and a little water on the top, use a low setting and watch as they can explode.

Well, actually the last poisoned food was from a street vendor, after having seen almost everyone buying them, including local kids, none of them showing any problems afterwards, i dared to give them a try, those tipycall fried fish/meatballs, i just tasted them, in total it was less then a single ball what i had, but i felt so sick for 3 days, so no more of it for me and for sure, before that i got it from shell fish served at a local famous chain of restaurants, but this packaged food came as a surprise, i feel like i have a whole brick into my stomach and dizzy, from tomorrow i will get my food flyied into the country using "Markey's" private jet

I've had food poisoning a couple of times in Thailand and knew all about it! It hit v suddenly and I was continuously throwing up even when there was nothing left. Apologies to those who are eating!

The reason I mention this is because I think it might be worth your while seeing a doctor with a stool sample if it carries on for a couple of days. I came down with amoebic dysentery in the Phillipines and the distinguishing symptom I remember was being virtually unable to walk because of the pain - it felt as if I had a brick in my stomach.

The stool sample is definitely the way to go but if you don't live in a large city that may mean waiting at the local hospital for hours while in pain and pooping and throwing up. The treatment for most food poisoning is the same so I do the easiest thing which is to pop antibiotics at the first sign of a problem. I realize this is stupid but it is the easy way out. I have also considered getting a pressure cooker. Normal boiling does not kill everything where a pressure cooker does. The only reason I have not purchased one so far is I am afraid of my Thai GF using it. She might hurt herself. Pressure fryers are even more dangerous and do a great job on chicken but I have never seen a home model.

30+ years ago first set foot in SEA, 20+ years in Thailand, married 20+ years to a lovely Thai lady and still am, lived mostly in non tourist areas in the south and loved it. But .... time changes things as time also changes people and I made the move back to my homeland 4 months ago. No regrets whatsoever. Sure, miss a lot but I 'think' I'm far happier here now with my 'new' life than I was for many differing reasons. I have stated before all the good things I'm reading here on this thread at some time in the past but in my case (and I'm sure many others too), the 'novelty' has eroded so much that it has worn away. It might take 1, 5, 10, 20 or more years but it will wear off - eventually. The country has changed, and changed a lot and I'm sure will continue changing as it develops. Nothing wrong with that but in my case, the 'novelty' has long since disappeared and the time had come to move on.

Each to their own I suppose.

I see exactly where you are coming from. A number of posters have pointed out the virtue of Thai women and that they are in fact the major asset of Thailand. If you are married and take your Thai wife home you have 100% of the good part of Thailand still with you.

However, for those of us who are not married and who don't wish to get married transporting Soi Six back to Seattle might be a logistical problem.

Soi Six would fit in nicely in Pike Place Market along with the fresh fish and hot off the griddle crumpets but there may be some immigration problems.

You're obsessed with crumpet, aren't you, Marky?

SC

I have always liked crumpets and hot buttered tarts but save the tarts for another time, it's a Canadian thing.

The first shop I ever saw offering fresh off the grill crumpets was in Seattle. Do they have them in the UK or Australia?

I was used to buying then in the grocery store and they are available all over the US but fresh ones hot off the grill with jam or cream cheese or whatever are a whole different culinary experience.

Do you think Thais would like crumpets?

You are missing the point, please point out where I asserted that anyone is less intelligent than I?? I am only saying that if you can't communicate with your wife "properly" then in addition to being looked down upon (whether that is an issue or not) then you deserve what you get. How can you know or trust someone you can't communicate with at least at the level of a 12 year old? So when your "wife" turns out to be a liar then don't be surprised and don't come on this forum complaining about it.

In conclusion; don't be so stupid as to MARRY someone you can't communicate with properly

I can speak, read and write Thai (but choose not to speak Thai in public)

My lady has learnt very good English in less than a year (very bright girl)

So what.

Relationships between men and women are about SEX, not communication IMHO.

If a man claims it isn't about sex, then I would assume either he is ill (rare), very old (over 70), or making the best of a bad situation where his partner refuses him sex (most common).

In the western world I was with a male group of over 50s discussing if they had found their sex drive diminishing with age, all answered 'no', but they had extremely restricted access to sex, and so had learned to either do without or wack off in the shower a lot.

In Thailand most ladies will do their duty, whether in the mood or not, if not, plenty of 'bars with fairy lights'

Relationships between men and women are about SEX, not communication IMHO....

I am sure there are more able men here who would disagree with you heartily....

And me is one amongst those laughing at your silly and spurious assumption....

Come on.... don't make those pretty girls out there laugh at us too heavily....

Your comment appears to be so very shallow about human relationships....

Really now.... there are much more exciting reasons to have and to maintain a relationship with the opposite sex.... aren't there?

Note, I am not saying sex is not exciting and motivating now.... ok? But it never is the end of everything as you appear to point out here.... hope I am wrong again.... which I often am nowadays....

Surely the types of relationships you are referring to are about sex, I'm not denying that

A healthy marriage however, is partly about sex, but at the very least equally but imho a much larger percentage is about communication. You will not find many who are not "sexpats" agreeing with you, and again don't make assumptions about the types of people who attend this forum as we are not all sex tourists.

I can't believe you are trying to make an argument to justify your behavior, ok, you are here for sex and want not a wife but a sex slave who you are unable to communicate with as an equal. Fine, but don't try to feed me this tripe that is is acceptable or justified in the eyes of the rest of the world because it is not.

She is not your wife, she is a girl you have bought for sex, plain and simple. Discuss this with your mother or ex-wife, see if she takes your side or mine

Kilgore, as I pull myself out of bed this morning after she had a few Smirnoff's last night and insisted I do my Elvis impression at the Karaoke for her friends; I wonder who is the slave.

My God she is an energetic young woman. She has not reached the point in her life where she realizes men are not creatures of boundless strength, durability and stamina.

She eats like a horse and rides me like one. The idea that there might be even a little bit submissive or some form of indentured servant is laughable.

Kilgore, I honestly pay her once a month to go upcountry and see her parents so I can get some rest.

This myth of men coming to Thailand buying a wife to be a sex slave is just that a myth. If any slaves exist in most houses in Thailand it is the men.

Have you ever talked to any farm ladies? “Husband work all day, come home drink whiskey, go sleep. I not happy.” How the farm ladies can work all day and re energize themselves after a shower and some som tom is beyond me but they do and they are insatiable.

You are missing the point, please point out where I asserted that anyone is less intelligent than I?? I am only saying that if you can't communicate with your wife "properly" then in addition to being looked down upon (whether that is an issue or not) then you deserve what you get. How can you know or trust someone you can't communicate with at least at the level of a 12 year old? So when your "wife" turns out to be a liar then don't be surprised and don't come on this forum complaining about it.

In conclusion; don't be so stupid as to MARRY someone you can't communicate with properly

I can speak, read and write Thai (but choose not to speak Thai in public)

My lady has learnt very good English in less than a year (very bright girl)

So what.

Relationships between men and women are about SEX, not communication IMHO.

If a man claims it isn't about sex, then I would assume either he is ill (rare), very old (over 70), or making the best of a bad situation where his partner refuses him sex (most common).

In the western world I was with a male group of over 50s discussing if they had found their sex drive diminishing with age, all answered 'no', but they had extremely restricted access to sex, and so had learned to either do without or wack off in the shower a lot.

In Thailand most ladies will do their duty, whether in the mood or not, if not, plenty of 'bars with fairy lights'

Relationships between men and women are about SEX, not communication IMHO....

I am sure there are more able men here who would disagree with you heartily....

And me is one amongst those laughing at your silly and spurious assumption....

Come on.... don't make those pretty girls out there laugh at us too heavily....

Your comment appears to be so very shallow about human relationships....

Really now.... there are much more exciting reasons to have and to maintain a relationship with the opposite sex.... aren't there?

Note, I am not saying sex is not exciting and motivating now.... ok? But it never is the end of everything as you appear to point out here.... hope I am wrong again.... which I often am nowadays....

Depending on what the relationship is about is key to understanding about telling the truth.

If the relationship is simply about sex then other issues don't become very important.

Although you make light of a man who thinks a relationship may only be about sex there are perhaps many of us who feel that way.

It may be the result of failed marriages, busted families and emotional storm and stress in general.

After a couple of marriages and children and extended families all crying for attention or emotional support or financial assistance sometimes it becomes too much. In the West one goes to the shrink and get some Prozac or other anti depressant medication and a couple of part time jobs in addition to the daytime gig. You can see these restless souls in the West prowling the pubs late at night or just standing and staring into space with lifeless eyes wondering what went wrong.

A few of the lucky ones because of Karma of a past life or luck get thrown the life preserver of Thailand. Nana Plaza at first seems like a lifeboat and finally they wash up on the shores of Issan with a 20 something Thai maiden munching som tom and drinking Chang beer. Truth, lies and beer Chang; sure it's all about sex. But who is to say who is better off.

30+ years ago first set foot in SEA, 20+ years in Thailand, married 20+ years to a lovely Thai lady and still am, lived mostly in non tourist areas in the south and loved it. But .... time changes things as time also changes people and I made the move back to my homeland 4 months ago. No regrets whatsoever. Sure, miss a lot but I 'think' I'm far happier here now with my 'new' life than I was for many differing reasons. I have stated before all the good things I'm reading here on this thread at some time in the past but in my case (and I'm sure many others too), the 'novelty' has eroded so much that it has worn away. It might take 1, 5, 10, 20 or more years but it will wear off - eventually. The country has changed, and changed a lot and I'm sure will continue changing as it develops. Nothing wrong with that but in my case, the 'novelty' has long since disappeared and the time had come to move on.

Each to their own I suppose.

I see exactly where you are coming from. A number of posters have pointed out the virtue of Thai women and that they are in fact the major asset of Thailand. If you are married and take your Thai wife home you have 100% of the good part of Thailand still with you.

However, for those of us who are not married and who don't wish to get married transporting Soi Six back to Seattle might be a logistical problem.

Soi Six would fit in nicely in Pike Place Market along with the fresh fish and hot off the griddle crumpets but there may be some immigration problems.

Frank...you are joking? I don't want to sound harsh but do you really need advice??!

The woman, from what you have told us, is taking you for a fool. You seem a decent, caring man and deserve better. If she lies from day one then where is the trust? She doesn't care enough about you to call you on your birthday after 2 years married?? You know she lies about trivial matters...do you know if she lies about major matters? You can bet your last dollar she does.

No way Frank...cut your losses and find a real woman.

I don't know if a real woman is the answer. Ladyboys are fun and can also do some of the heavy lifting.