ChaiyaTH

All thanks to greed, nothing less or more. If they actually sold the booze and cigs for significant less, or nice parfums etc, I'd been in the market at least a dozen times over the years, if not every time for a box of cigs. Yet they still don't get it somehow, hence it is closed..... Sometimes it makes me think the matrix is real and someone is mind<deleted>ing me all day long. Repeatedly. I mean you would think that one of the thousands of employees in that free duty alone, would maybe travel around the world or continent, to compare prices, to start with, at least....

They don't and that isn't the reason, the reason it is is because people are sheeps and follow the masses. Same reason why many go to Spain while there is dozens of comparable countries in terms of almost anything there, yet Spain would be that highlighted one that everyone nods and agrees on to be famous. In fact, for most young people, backpackers, they all go to Vietnam, they even fly there first (via China). They often now come to Thailand as a 2nd or 3rd destination within their holiday, this is also the reason they usually are in a shock if it comes to prices for beers, food in restaurants, which then on top causes them to go 7/11 etc instead. Which explains why it is super boring on the streets, in most restaurants, in most bars. This while even it is empty there, for some mystical reason, most rooms are fully booked on places like southern islands. Yet you rarely see them. And no, it is not the hotels lying, places are fully booked most often. Anyway to short answer your question: because Thailand had cheap flights, was the first most developed one, had a lot of nightlife and things to offer to travellers + was cheap as chips and had no visa restrictions and no taxes. With some fair brain you can conclude none of that applies today. It's essentially what is waiting to happen to Dubai too, as soon another country there becomes more attractive / developed.

Exactly, Thailand is one of the poorest choices if wanting to hide or live under the radar. It is peanuts here to track someone down, even realtime a few K baht only. Then there is the official complaints and the unofficial ones, if it was the person looking for them for quite a bit money, that is likely the one that caused this guy to be arrested today. You wonder how he could be so ignorant to return at exact 7 years too, a year later, and the official way been expired.

@susanleahttps://www.lazada.co.th/products/1-i4146056286-s18089335502.html

So how much is that not included part, and the rent, and other costs. Else it says nothing.

You could grow your own and make peanut butter too.

That's a life staying at home 90% off the time, that is already paid off and makes it's own electric. Yeah, if that was the goal, one never need much. Just one decent dinner last night with 4 glasses of proper wine, a water and a espresso + after a round of drinks in the bar costed me 4.5K. I wonder what the point even is, to not spend your social security, if you do get it, and not have reasons to save it. Most people always seem to die with an incredible wealth left behind, by never having lived life fully, while did having worked for 40 years fulltime for it. What was the goal that entire time then? I wonder this genuinely, I mean I could retire in 2 years from now if sticking to such budgets, at age 35.

Yeah it could be fine if you were Thai, have 30 baht healthcare, no visa issues, can own a small paid off home over time etc etc. Then it would be middle class.

That's normal almost anywhere, even if you would freelance online, to get paid out, you need to submit that if your american.

Yeah its the thai songs being the issue here. It was more like an example as few know artists names. Its the same that most commercial places can't even play their own music, which is ironic, as they are always so proud on their country etc etc. The licensing is super expensive so nobody wants it.

This was based on 1 event per year, with minimal costs: 10+6+15k only. You really must be super ignorant if you didn't get the point made.

Now you make one little crash: 10K outpatient costs on top of the 30K covered by por lor bor, 6K bike damages, 15K new phone that broke. On top of that you also have insurance and visa costs, and then you might visit home once a year (50K at least). Now we already added the 10,000 you had left-over, and that is zero. You not added any serious entertainment, zero domestic plane flights for holidays, a few hotels, birthdays or anything. Sounds like survival as i said.

The where is another big BS item people talk about. It is just as easy to find a 2K room in Phuket as it is in Chiang Mai, if you want that, that is no issue at all. The same goes for all the prices in most grocery or domestic wide shops. Then for food and drinks, there is always budget places, in any city, too. In the south i often pay 20 more per meal than in the north, but the portions and amount of meat inside it is bigger in the south too. The entire point is that that is all irrelevant to what one should minimum have, as a budget, to be sustainable and living a fairly good life.

You clearly didn't get the point so i give up already.

15-30K is survival, unless you maybe are older already + have a 100% paid off house/condo and minimal other bills. I'd say minimum 50K to live properly, double that for a small family with a child and school costs. Even one could live of 30K, that can never possibly include things like yearly travel home, medical costs, visa costs, savings, changing phone/laptop/clothes, maintaining a bike or car etc etc etc. This is just something that can work short-term, to bootstrap a new business or whatever. It never ends well long-term with any of these people that do that, that I have met in 12 years here.

Yeah right, so you want to tell me I will be Elvis Presley if i start singing his songs on TikTok? Because I will start today.. Most likely people think, damn, please stop that guy right now. And then they do remember the nice songs, and listen to the real one, that makes the original artist money. Anyway I wonder how this would work if someone in the audience would be the one who recorded and posted it.

Second day? I wouldn't stay a single day if a hotel didn't even have water lol. The irony how they then talk about increasing tourism even further there.

Never, booze is the real tax in Thailand. They run the country on this. All these announcements were pure populism from certain political party.

Sounds like your girlfriend is with the side that basically ruined Thailand in the past decade + on top of that is sensitive for absolutely nothing. Otherwise; facts are facts, yes Thailand is a paradise for red light visiting people. But that is in local business even 10X as much, so what is she talking about? Ignoring truths etc? Has nothing to do with the movie.

Yes so what? what part of a 30 year lease did you not get if you engage it? That is called business. Only idiots don't get it and whine. What you think some bar girl will allow you to waste 3 hours if you agreed on 1 hour too?

I feel like the granddad on this forum, I am supposed to be told, not telling. To answer the OP: Angeles city girls do much more, better etc etc. For everything else its better here.

Land can't be taken away if a 30 year lease deal is registered by the department of land. It can't be pawned or taken credit on either. Few register it there, hence the issue. If doing it the right way, you can live and use the land, as if you own it 100%, for 30 years, without issues. Many locations that are often the south or islands, the ROI of everything is only 3-5 years, even it been 10 years, it's still fine. Who cares what happens after that 30 years, it paid for itself big time + returns or a free home for another 10-20 years. The entire issue is not Thailand but the majority of farangs here; who seem to have their eyes in their ass. Same for them to even respond to the OP on this topic; it is obviously a joke / troll / AI bot.

Negative stereotype? You mean the significant majority of anyone with a thai girlfriend or wife. It are rare exceptions to see real love + matching ages + lasting 5 years or longer here. Let alone if saying 7-10 years, it might be 0.50% of all of them. I wonder what it is here on this forum, with the incredible amounts of ignorance. This while many lived here for decades, under a stone I guess (their wives). If I was wrong on this, it would not even have been a subject, as nobody would experienced onlookers or cliche's.

You guys realize this entire post is a joke, right? ...

I know I am right; the right thing is just what most people hate to admit.