kevozman1

20 years old eh? I give you a week or two in Isaan before the pull of some of the larger cities and beach resorts becomes too much for you to resist.

I guess one has to be American and never visited Asia to find this amusing...

Oversensitive westerners, back to suburbansville farangland please.

Bringing back random Thai guys to your BKK pad? Risky... Anyways he could post your photos on any site that accepts uploads of nude/pornographic photos or movies, there are many tbh... I wouldn't worry too much about it unless you are very prudish as this is becoming ridiculously common with the internet and digital cameras being so mainstream in recent years.

Thailand has changed, Bangkok used to be a discrete (in the geographical sense !) city, now it's a sprawling urban region occupying a zone a couple-of-hundred miles across, and has consumed places like Ayuttaya or Pattaya, and many more people live in concrete-jungle dormitory-blocks or work in offices/factories & call it progress. Shudder ! I simply avoid the place whenever-possible !

But Thais (and other 3rd-worlders) have the right to enjoy 'progress', and will IMO eventually discover that it's not all it's cracked-up to be, give it a century & they might even come to value the quieter rural-life, like us Brits ! The current rise in cmping/cycling/domestic-tourism

So just pick the right part of Thailand to live in, to match what you're now looking-for, Samui was no-doubt excellent for a two-year-drunk on first arrival ... but now you've grown beyond that.

I enjoy life in a small (but doubled-in-size over a decade) village, with views of the mountains, and a full-service city (Chiang Mai) within 30-minutes drive. That's what suits me, at this stage of life !

Others go totally-rural & live in places like Chiang Rai or Isaan. Perhaps that's a step too far ?

My own occasional-need for bright-lights or a really-well-stocked supermarket or an island-beach are satisfied by holidays, either within Thailand or back to Auld Eng-er-laanndd, which incidentally is also no-longer the place I recall from my youth ! In particular it appears to be now inhabited by fat thick frumpy people, even by my own low standards, and I miss the stylish attractive petite smiling eye-candy everywhere, which is such a joy here ! NB ... if you don't agree, just visit a doctor/hospital, as you may have died & not yet noticed !

Perhaps, rather than changing place, the discomfort felt by the OP is due to an approaching change-in-lifestyle ? Could it perhaps be time to settle down, with some agreeable female person, and have & raise a family ?

Whatever, IMO the OP needs to get himself slightly-more organised. Immigration anywhere can be a pain, if you haven't got the right visa for your lifestyle, bills left unpaid anywhere will result in withdrawl-of-service, when you travel for a month rather than the usual week. Problem & solution identified, there.

Good luck to the OP, and feel free to vent or let-of-steam on TV, it beats joining the Pattaya (or Rotherham, or North-Devon) Flying-Club !

Thailand is not a Third World country.This idea of ranking countries into first, second and third world is a western imperialistic concept and totally irrelevant in a modern global society. Bangkok is one of the most modern cities in Asia and the world.... Drive through dreary Birmingham or any other UK city (except Central London) and compare it to Bangkok!You can't, but people like you will always view the world through an imperialistic prism....

There is only one real city in the UK Don't worry about driving through Birmingham, your original argument is Thailand not being a third world country, I am not sure about those classifications, but I have been to Isaan in the Nakhon Ratchasima and Buriram area and there did indeed seem to be high levels of poverty that I had personally not encountered before. I don't think the only factors for a countries development is that the capital city has shopping malls, high rises and lots of neon lights.

I remember not too long ago Bangkok was somewhere most tourists, the ones who even bothered to go there, spent 1-3 days before heading off to where they actually wanted to go in Thailand. In the last several years though the place is getting hyped, maybe I should give Bangkok another visit.

AS you said yourself: " This is a proper useless rant" . So why bother the rest of us ?

"Proper useless rant" ah the quality " English teachers " they have in Thailand.... Sounds like an extra out of Eastender's or some other low class British soap..... During empire nobody spoke like this and if they did a good thrashing would be had

During the empire did people also use unnecessary apostrophes? Oh how easy it is to be pedantic on a casual internet forum.

I don't remember those days of smiling and jokes at Don Muang tbh.

Sandman77 ... can I call you Sandy?

How much do you know about Thai movies?

What about the BollyWood latest Stars?

No looking up the internet now ...

Who the hell would want to know about Bollywood apart from Indians and pretentious mid 40's yoga practising white women? Complete trash it is. Thai movies can be really good though. Movies from SEA and east Asian countries are certainly worth giving a try, especially South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Thailand movies. I actually seem to enjoy more Asian flicks than Hollywood movies these days..

"best defensive display of the world cup".

didn't tim howard have to make more saves in a world cup match than any goalkeeper since 1966? that's not a good defensive display, that's a miracle goalkeeping performance and riding your luck.

the americans were fun to watch though and the team spirit and effort their manager got out of them was really impressive.

Agreed. The USA defense was getting wrecked in certain parts of that game.

John Higgins has been one of the most professional and well behaved snooker players I have seen in the last 20 years. He was cleared of charges for matchfixing, so that is just a moot point. He had a shitty day, acted like a brat and will be dealt with be world Snooker's governing body. No big deal.

As much as I respect snooker in regards to the skill required and sportsman like behaviour the professional element of the game is way too stuffy, old fashioned and dramas are made of minor acts. I really surprised Ronnie O'Sullivan did not stick 2 fingers up at snooker years ago and make the switch to pool. He would have made more money and be part of a scene that does not come straight out of the 19th century.

I have a little bit of sympathy for men raising families in western countries. Stay pussy whipped or else! lol

I am sorry for your personal unhappiness. I am putting together a booklet with advice for Western men to live with and marry Thai women. I will read all the messages here with great interest and use some of the wisdom herein, when I find some.

The sad situation in Thailand seems to be a Western Man, WM, comes to Thailand filled with the idea of getting himself a little brown servant who he can mold to his will. WM makes little effort to learn about the woman he has connected with and basically says "change to my expectations" because I am paying the bills. That is an untenable distribution of power in a relationship and the seeds for failure are too many to really overcome.

Your description of your Thai wife mirrors millions of Thai who do not share the Dog Eat Dog, competitive, striving world view of the WM. Yes "they" are quite content to live day to day, be surrounded by FAMILY, and set goals that are very short term (one day). These ideas are anathema to the WM who believes in his world view of "constant betterment."

My advice, worth just what you paid for it, is for you to release your captive back to her own culture because you will never get the Thai out of a Thai woman. It is so odd that WM come here because of the admirable traits of the women and then set about immediately trying to make them over into Westernized types, the very types a smart WM will be attempting to escape.

WM at the next stool are complaining they cant get a good hamburger; I say, if you want things to be "just like back home," THEN GO BACK HOME before you take on a good Thai woman and try to bend her to your ideas.

Read up on Cultural imperialism.

Being a lazy woman who is not trying her best for her children is considered part of Thai culture now? I would have thought being lazy and unproductive is more of a personal trait not exclusive or attached to any country or region around the world.

I agree about people preaching to others on the improvements/advancements in other countries, most of the time people doing so only agitate others and nothing productive comes from it. I have to say though OP your ideology seems to suggest that Thailand can learn nothing from cultural norms or ideas created/developed in the west, which is completely false. A lot of advancements and cultural norms have been shared between Europe and Asia throughout history and this trend will undoubtedly continue despite how narrow minded some people would prefer to be.

Don't care for soccer missionaries and would love to see the US lose--along with their preppie fan base.

Well, since you want to be hateful, bring on your girlie soccer team. We'll suit them up and put them up against the USA Superbowl football champions and inflict some real pain for you.

The USA World Football team is just a group of thrown-together amateurs playing against the likes of other countries professional teams, so let's see it both ways.

What sort of dope are you? "The USA Superbowl football champions?" Something doesn't ring true about the sound of that phrase. I think you're a fake American, because Americans don't talk like that, especially football fans.

What would an American say that would suit you, in a thread about World Football, when he was differentiating between World Football and American NFL championship football. Out of the context of this thread, I would just say "The Superbowl Champions."

So bring on your girlie soccer team and suit up and take on the Superbowl Champions, the way the American amateurs took on the likes of the German national football team.

What the American team is doing at the World Cup is amazing considering few Americans play soccer, and they tossed together a group of amateurs to go play.

Several of the USA team are in fact pro footballers from Germany who have dual nationality but decided to play for USA, probably thought their chances were higher of making the USA team for world cups. A good number of the USA also have played for English premiership teams, just about the strongest football league in the world. Not to mention the head coach is an absolute footballing legend in Europe, one of the finest from his generation. USA have also been involved in the football world cup since the start of competitions history.

Not such an amateur looking set up now is it? A better showing of a real underdog in the tournament would probably be Costa Rica, but admittedly USA are giving a good showing for the team they have.

Carrying around a Glock whilst having a merry bicycle trip does not sound ideal. I would go for scythes wielded onto your bike's hubs personally, that way you can keep both arms on the handlebars. Safety first.

Most overrated player in an England shirt since Beckham. Got to love the way commentators scream "GEERRRAARRDD" for a 5 yard pass across the half way line.

Given that American "football" is less absorbing than watching paint dry, "soccer" may well make inroads and become more popular.

I don't watch it anymore but that's kind of silly ... apples and oranges. It might be helpful though to change the name of American football to something else.

Any suggestions?

Handegg

If he is a real friend then tell him what is happening. If more of an aquaintance then maybe you telling him what is happening would not be best move. He will obviously have way more trust and loyalty to his gf than someone he does not really know too well.

Strange though that a guy 30 years in Thailand is still geting played so hard, he must kind of enjoy it all in a perverse sort of way.

Maybe for some (especially less fit expats) the tropical climate wears them down. I love the tropical climate but give me a nice fresh crisp autumn aftertoon walk in the park anytime, that can be very enjoyable. In winter freezing your nuts off and having to spend 5 minutes putting on extra layers of clothing before you can go out is overated imo.

I've been to Thailand many times and always see the same type of people getting into trouble.

What, drunks getting rolled in Pattaya? (pretty much the arse of Thailand in many ways) I used to live in Pattaya in my more reckless days, I know what happens there.

similar to asians getting walloped in UK, but can we blame the Brits?

Totally different countries, in many aspects. I am from the UK and it has a large Asian population and considered a lot safer for tourists. Although anyone can be in the wrong place at the wrong time in any place, just in Pattaya the chances are higher of being in an unfortunate situation due to the kind of place it is.

One reason why farangs get attacked may be how they present themselves to Thai people. Perhaps they appear 'cocky'?

More than likely the theifs spot a white tourist and think that he has something worth stealing. Or is it you who think farangs are cocky?

I've been to Thailand many times and always see the same type of people getting into trouble.

What, drunks getting rolled in Pattaya? (pretty much the arse of Thailand in many ways) I used to live in Pattaya in my more reckless days, I know what happens there.

One reason why farangs get attacked may be how they present themselves to Thai people. Perhaps they appear 'cocky'?

More than likely the theifs spot a white tourist and think that he has something worth stealing. Or is it you who think farangs are cocky?