YoungAndRice

You would not believe what I over heard some Thais on the skytrain saying about the dress code.

in the US, many female models on the cover of magazines are not attractive in the eyes of the male population. the fashion industry is controlled by women and homosexuals and not straight men. to find out what straight men find attractive, you could glance through men magazines like Playboy, Maxim, or GQ.

So... I am just curious what Thai males find the most attractive. What I see on TV is mostly:

- Very white skin

- Very Thin, no curves

- Lots of Plastic Surgery, face looks unnatural and distorted

- Tall

- Of a high social class

Is this what high school boys are falling to sleep at night thinking about or do they go for a different look?

How can you guys go home long term and adjust to those prices?

They also adjust to the MUCH higher salaries!

Was not aware of this. I figured the people working here were getting paid a larger salary than back home because it takes alot to uproot your family to a foriegn country.

If you are talking about english teachers and others who just scrape by, I guess so.

there is no difference between any of the grocery stores. I shop at Tops, which is close by.

No, I would not.

gotta love $100 to get from the airport to my house stateside vs $9 in Thailand. $3 to get on of those push carts in JFK! A basket of vegetables and fruits for $25. How can you guys go home long term and adjust to those prices?

Peninsula?

I experienced similar feelings, going into my 3.5 year mark. Just got back from the States Xmas vacation.

Went from comfortable cold weather sipping hot chocolate to sweltering heat.

What do I like about Thailand:

The price

The food

The women

I think those three things are on the top of most farang's list. The hard part of course is that moving back home or to another country means that you will spend five times as much money. Considering moving back home? Great, if I get a house for $300K I get to pay $10K a year in property taxes! Thats the a years worth of rent in Thailand. What is the point?

Its like a sea-saw with the good things on one side and the bad things on the other side. Are Singapore's clean streets and fresh air worth spending 6 times as much on rent?... Not for me.

Hopefully in the future I can put together 3 million USD or so and be financially free to live anywhere I want, but I am not about to give up early retirement so I can live in a 1st World Country and work to I'm 70.

anyone have a recommendation for a home in a gated community in a bangkok suburb that meets the following requirements

- has a history of not flooding

- is less than a 30 minute drive to Central Bangkok

I would like to rent a 250-400 m2 home. How much should I expect to pay?

"If you're married to a Thai and view yourself as a couple, there are some nice mortgage deals. We have a mortgaged with a 3 year guaranteed rate of 4.79%."

What is the interest rate after the first three years?

1. You have to pay cash. Mortgages are not available to farang and even if they are, the rates listed on the banking sites are all in the 8%+ range which is one step away from loan sharking.

Most condos rent for 1/150 to 1/200 of their worth per month. That means you will net around 6-8% of the properties value annually in rents, not yet accounting for vacancy, maintance, managing, insurance and fees paid to leasing/real estate agents.

Why would you want to go through all of that when you can invest in a range of index funds which will easily return 7-10% annually on average and will require the slightest effort from you? Also note that long term capital gains taxes (for Americans) is 15% whereas rental income is taxed as earned income (your tax rate).

2. Thailand is not politically stable. I cannot go into many details due to the Thai laws which restrict freedom of speech, but Thailand will face big changes in the near future which could drive away many farangs (your potential tenants).

3. The resale market is lousy. Second hand properties do not sell as well here as they do in the West and the longer you hold onto your property, the more the building depreciates, the harder it will be to sell your property.

4. Thai Legal system is lousy. If a situation arises where you need to take someone to court, whether it is the plumbers, your neighbor, your tenant, you will probably end up getting screwed and have a gigantic head ache before it is finished.

Has anyone noticed that in a land that is so concerned about the availability of cheap spirits, drunk-driving and round-the-clock drinking where some men seem to practically clean their teeth with whiskey in the morning, that they get plastered at the drop of a hat? I've seen this time and again at weddings, funerals and just general parties. The men all make a big show of putting all the bottles on the table, grinning, rubbing their hands in anticipation, and then 30 minutes later, they're totally bladdered! And that's with half a ton of ice with beer and ice and water with whiskey. They make a big show of getting the dumb Thai (me!) to sit down with them and lets show him some hard-drinking, boys. Then they're giggling like girlies and sliding off the bench. Perhaps it's because we're used to drinking pints in Thailand. I don't know, but it always makes me laugh, bless 'em.

shouldnt this go in the patayya forum? thailand sure does attract the worst of the West.

Am I missing a driver? I never had any problems with either. Now, when I plug it into the USB drive all that I get is a message on the tool bar which tells me to 'safely unplug the hardware'. When I put an SD card into the slot it is not recognized.

Please help. Thanks.

what are the circumstances of their deaths?

I am a Vikings fan for life yo, you be asking me to show respect for some guy named Favre? not happening....

Any fans? Season 5 has just begun.

Predictions?

i just can't see myself spending 7 million baht for a 65m2 shoebox. Isn't this a third world country? i guess many of you are willing to do just that or the prices would be lower.

"How much longer do I have to sit under these hot lights, wearing this uncomfortable outfit and make up while all these people talk to each other loudly about stuff I don't understand Daddy?"

"Just long enough to make your mother and I less insecure about our own short comings son. About 4 hours."

"After that I can go outside and play?"

"Well, we have a meeting with some of Mommy's friends so we want to show them how cute you are."

It is amazing how hard some of you are trying to make it so that someone was responsible or could have prevented something. In life, sometimes shit happened. You can keep telling yourself that the departed was at fault if that makes you feel safer or better, but its just another lie you are telling yourself.

jesus there is nothing worse than parents who want their little brat to be an actor/actress.

what kind of questions do you ask about a dvd player? write the model down, go online and find out everything you want to know.

when you say SLI you are talking about a brand name product from Nvidia?

photo released?

im just curious, if it is were your father or brother would you still be saying

"well if you push an off duty thai cop you deserve to get shot in the mouth"?

seriously, what bloody planet are you guys from? sick.

anyone have a link to this computer post by george?