Have you left Thailand ?

[Ulysses G.]

16 hours ago, tropo said:

It's interesting how opinions differ. I went there for visa runs 3 times and really enjoyed it and did think about it as an alternative place to live. If you don't require bars or working girls and can get the long-term visa it would be great.

I haven't been there for a while, but there were plenty of working girls back then. The "health clubs" were nothing but brothels with some very pretty young women.

[tropo]

8 hours ago, amvet said:

Because you wrote, "DO know that the vast majority of young people are wasting their days on Facebook, Instagram etc."  And I don't think that is the case.  The young people are smarter than we were and using smart phones to stay up to date, make money and start democratic revolutions. 

 

I made 36 beans.

I did ask you about the beans, but then you ripped into me suggesting I know nothing about the use of smartphones and insinuated I'm technologically challenged. Smartphones are virtually mini-PC's these days. There are millions of "smart" ways to use them, beans or no beans.

 

Sorry about the "young people" terminology. By that I mean young adults, not children.

 

Most of the "young people" I know waste most of their time reading and posting on Facebook. Judging by the popularity of Facebook and Messenger (#2 and #3 worldwide), they are not alone. Perhaps the people (children or adults?) you know are smarter from eating lots of nutritious beans.

Edited January 17, 2018 by tropo

[tropo]

8 hours ago, amvet said:

You can see they have a very short barrel like a sawed off shotgun and use shotgun shells with pellets not bullets.  A bullet or slug would defeat the purpose of using a shotgun in a crowded environment - increase range and decrease accuracy because you only have one bullet as opposed to many little pellets. The riot guns/sawed off shotguns or whatever you want to call them,  would be much safer Philippines crowded city area because they only have an effective range of 50 feet or so.

I'll have to admit I'm not an expert on guns, but that's not what the security guards in your McDonald's photo were carrying.

[tropo]

7 hours ago, Ulysses G. said:

23 hours ago, tropo said:

It's interesting how opinions differ. I went there for visa runs 3 times and really enjoyed it and did think about it as an alternative place to live. If you don't require bars or working girls and can get the long-term visa it would be great.

I haven't been there for a while, but there were plenty of working girls back then. The "health clubs" were nothing but brothels with some very pretty young women.

Bonus! Even better then.

 

I never went to any "health clubs" as I was traveling with my wife and did a lot of touring around the island on motorcycles.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 3:06 PM, tropo said:

Yeah, I've asked myself that question too. If you go to a retail store and need to find "service", it often comes to waking people out of a "Facebook coma". I think for older people like us the Internet is an amazing thing we embrace and make use of. Most of the young ones you see about town have never been without it, so it's boring. It has deadened their brains (if they ever even worked in the first place). They need their smartphone calculators to add 10 + 10.

Friend of mine has a son that grew up with the internet. Lived in his room when not at school. I was quite shocked the last time I visited to find he had real friends that visited him, and they played real board games.

I can only surmise that eventually reality strikes, much in the way that real records are making a comeback, and the pretend world is just that, pretend.

The danger now are the greedies trying to find more ways to keep them trapped in the ether of unreality so they can make lotsacash.

 

Even I, that used to be addicted to Pacman, haven't played a computer game for years.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 3:17 PM, tropo said:

It's interesting how opinions differ. I went there for visa runs 3 times and really enjoyed it and did think about it as an alternative place to live. If you don't require bars or working girls and can get the long-term visa it would be great. There are some nice beaches there too on the other side of the island - better than Pattaya, although that's not saying much. I never visit the beach, so that's not a priority for me, much as it's not for you living up there in CM.

Visa run by all means. Yes enough to do if wealthy ( anyone complains about farang pricing in LOS should never go near the hill cable car ), but "living there". I think it would be rather too much on the boring side of life.

I guess I wouldn't live there for the same reason I won't live in Bkk, and Bkk actually has a night life.

[tropo]

4 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Friend of mine has a son that grew up with the internet. Lived in his room when not at school. I was quite shocked the last time I visited to find he had real friends that visited him, and they played real board games.

I can only surmise that eventually reality strikes, much in the way that real records are making a comeback, and the pretend world is just that, pretend.

The danger now are the greedies trying to find more ways to keep them trapped in the ether of unreality so they can make lotsacash.

 

Even I, that used to be addicted to Pacman, haven't played a computer game for years.

I make a point of never playing computer games. I've been trapped there before. It's the huge waste of time of living years... now if I can give up posting on Thaivisa...

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎1‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 3:24 PM, tropo said:

You have a good point. It does seem ridiculous having armed guards with shotguns at the entrance. McDonald's food is the worst and in the Philippines, they succeed at making it even worse still.

 

They're not going to get any serious cash grabbers there, so perhaps the shotguns help deter casual thieves, but any serious thieves would put the guards down before the could raise their stupid shotguns if they even work in the first place. Why can't they get some decent handguns that don't look nearly as menacing?

LOL, it's the "menacing" that is the whole point of having them.

BTW, unless in the hands of experts that practice all the time ( and I doubt that applies to those guards ) a handgun is probably a complete waste of time.

Anyway, for all we know the shells may just have salt in them. Does McDs actually want people dying in front of their stores?

[thaibeachlovers]

4 minutes ago, tropo said:

I make a point of never playing computer games. I've been trapped there before. It's the huge waste of time of living years... now if I can give up posting on Thaivisa...

It's my equivalent of Pacman, at the moment.

I'm hoping for a better way of passing the time to appear, but so far she hasn't turned up.

[tropo]

1 minute ago, thaibeachlovers said:

LOL, it's the "menacing" that is the whole point of having them.

BTW, unless in the hands of experts that practice all the time ( and I doubt that applies to those guards ) a handgun is probably a complete waste of time.

Anyway, for all we know the shells may just have salt in them. Does McDs actually want people dying in front of their stores?

Having lived full time in the Philippines for many years I can say that after the initial surprise of seeing armed guards everywhere you do switch off and don't notice it. Not all areas are as heavily armed. In the Visayan provinces you don't see that unless it's a big bank in a City. I just got a mild frisking (looking for handguns on my belt) when entering malls. It's all pretty friendly and unobtrusive really.

 

The main danger in the Philippines is how the provincial areas are run by mobs, rogue police, rich families and NPA. National laws and the judicial system don't penetrate deeply into provincial areas. Few people take anything to court as it is mostly taken care of "other ways". Life can be very cheap if you get on the wrong side of the wrong people. The NPA (National People's Army) is very well entrenched all over the country. If they come around to your house asking for donations, which they frequently do if you're a foreigner, you had better be prepared to open your wallets. Duterte is currently running a military campaign against them, but I doubt he'll make much headway.

[Ulysses G.]

12 hours ago, tropo said:

I just got a mild frisking (looking for handguns on my belt) when entering malls. It's all pretty friendly and unobtrusive really.

 

 

Back when I was visiting, they let white folks skip the line and just walk in. The white man's burden...

[tropo]

7 hours ago, Ulysses G. said:

Back when I was visiting, they let white folks skip the line and just walk in. The white man's burden...

LOL> maybe they just enjoy feeling me. I should have mentioned, at least they are decent enough to have one line for men and one for women.

[thaibeachlovers]

23 hours ago, tropo said:

Having lived full time in the Philippines for many years I can say that after the initial surprise of seeing armed guards everywhere you do switch off and don't notice it. Not all areas are as heavily armed. In the Visayan provinces you don't see that unless it's a big bank in a City. I just got a mild frisking (looking for handguns on my belt) when entering malls. It's all pretty friendly and unobtrusive really.

 

The main danger in the Philippines is how the provincial areas are run by mobs, rogue police, rich families and NPA. National laws and the judicial system don't penetrate deeply into provincial areas. Few people take anything to court as it is mostly taken care of "other ways". Life can be very cheap if you get on the wrong side of the wrong people. The NPA (National People's Army) is very well entrenched all over the country. If they come around to your house asking for donations, which they frequently do if you're a foreigner, you had better be prepared to open your wallets. Duterte is currently running a military campaign against them, but I doubt he'll make much headway.

Sounds like I was lucky I didn't get the address of the lovely Phillipina I met in Cyprus then. I always thought I missed out on a good thing since, but your post reassures me I don't really want to live there.

[tropo]

42 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Sounds like I was lucky I didn't get the address of the lovely Phillipina I met in Cyprus then. I always thought I missed out on a good thing since, but your post reassures me I don't really want to live there.

Well, there is good and bad on either side of the South China Sea. The people are generally a lot nicer and more fun to be around, as well as being much more interested in foreign countries and culture. The "LOS" they talk about here really describes the Philippines. There is no xenophobia to deal with. You'll hardly meet a family that hasn't got at least one member living abroad. (they estimate 10% of Filipinos live abroad). The problems I mentioned above are not really problems if you know what's going on. You have to behave yourself here and over there. You may well have missed out on something good by passing up on that "lovely Filipina". They have amazing beaches all over the archipelago.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎1‎/‎18‎/‎2018 at 6:28 PM, tropo said:

Well, there is good and bad on either side of the South China Sea. The people are generally a lot nicer and more fun to be around, as well as being much more interested in foreign countries and culture. The "LOS" they talk about here really describes the Philippines. There is no xenophobia to deal with. You'll hardly meet a family that hasn't got at least one member living abroad. (they estimate 10% of Filipinos live abroad). The problems I mentioned above are not really problems if you know what's going on. You have to behave yourself here and over there. You may well have missed out on something good by passing up on that "lovely Filipina". They have amazing beaches all over the archipelago.

Perhaps, but I think having a lovely memory may be better than finding out for real, and she is indeed a lovely memory.

[chrisandsu]

I have always found Filipino women to be the least pretty in SE Asia . The foods unbelievably bland too . Burma in a few years will be the place to be . 

[Number 6]

Pokara is crap. Was there few years ago. Pollution, plastic, lake is dry.

 

 

Funny how everyone knows to stay the hell out of the Philippines.

[Odysseus123]

44 minutes ago, chrisandsu said:

I have always found Filipino women to be the least pretty in SE Asia . The foods unbelievably bland too . Burma in a few years will be the place to be . 

Nope,

 

Filipinnas speak English and they work hard-their opposite numbers in La La Land are grotesquely poorly educated,speak minimal English,are totally  lazy and merely memorize your pin number..

 

That is it.

[jenny2017]

On 1/17/2018 at 5:26 PM, thaibeachlovers said:

LOL, it's the "menacing" that is the whole point of having them.

BTW, unless in the hands of experts that practice all the time ( and I doubt that applies to those guards ) a handgun is probably a complete waste of time.

Anyway, for all we know the shells may just have salt in them. Does McDs actually want people dying in front of their stores?

Perhaps not dying in their stores, but definitely f r o m their stores.... 

[Number 6]

On 1/18/2018 at 6:28 PM, tropo said:

Well, there is good and bad on either side of the South China Sea. The people are generally a lot nicer and more fun to be around, as well as being much more interested in foreign countries and culture. The "LOS" they talk about here really describes the Philippines. There is no xenophobia to deal with. You'll hardly meet a family that hasn't got at least one member living abroad. (they estimate 10% of Filipinos live abroad). The problems I mentioned above are not really problems if you know what's going on. You have to behave yourself here and over there. You may well have missed out on something good by passing up on that "lovely Filipina". They have amazing beaches all over the archipelago.

Filipino men are very jealous and have huge inferiority complexes. The women will think nothing of blackmailing you placing you in serious Jeopardy for chump change all in league with club owners, foreigners and police. The nation is an absolute basket case. The reason 10% abroad is there is 40% unemployment. The quality of goods is poor and experience, much like India. I've absolutely no respect for any Filipino male I've worked with here in Thailand and 90% of the women. The entire nation is not very clever. I friend once told me the avg IQ was below 90. Average. Most of all, it's just a nation of very desperate people. Most of the women lose their looks after their first kid (17-18) or 23 which ever comes first. Angeles city if we were honest is indentured servitude.

[simon43]

Burma in a few years will be the place to be

In your opinion, why will it be 'the place to be'?

What will it offer?

[tropo]

3 hours ago, Number 6 said:

Filipino men are very jealous and have huge inferiority complexes. The women will think nothing of blackmailing you placing you in serious Jeopardy for chump change all in league with club owners, foreigners and police. The nation is an absolute basket case. The reason 10% abroad is there is 40% unemployment. The quality of goods is poor and experience, much like India. I've absolutely no respect for any Filipino male I've worked with here in Thailand and 90% of the women. The entire nation is not very clever. I friend once told me the avg IQ was below 90. Average. Most of all, it's just a nation of very desperate people. Most of the women lose their looks after their first kid (17-18) or 23 which ever comes first. Angeles city if we were honest is indentured servitude.

I also have no respect for anyone who rubbishes a whole nation of people with nonsense like you've just presented. A friend told you "the avg IQ was below 90". Are you serious? And now you're using that statistic to damn a whole nation? Don't confuse lack of education with IQ. I'm sure many eclipsed your IQ if your tirade here is any indication of your own intelligence.

 

You're so biased you couldn't see the forest for the trees. Someone obviously did a number on you. Number 6 perhaps? Perhaps you spent too much time in Angeles City. Drawing conclusion on what you've seen in AC is like saying you know what goes on in Thailand after spending your days in Nana Plaza or some bar areas wherever you live. I'm aware of blackmailing and other nasty things that go on in Angeles City and other places, just as I'm aware of the same type of shit that goes on in Thailand.

 

We are actually discussing the benefits vs negatives of Thailand compared to other countries. As I said, there is good and bad anywhere.

[tropo]

51 minutes ago, simon43 said:

In your opinion, why will it be 'the place to be'?

What will it offer?

 

 

You should know as you live there full time, right? How well do they speak English there?

[chrisandsu]

14 hours ago, Odysseus123 said:

Nope,

 

Filipinnas speak English and they work hard-their opposite numbers in La La Land are grotesquely poorly educated,speak minimal English,are totally  lazy and merely memorize your pin number..

 

That is it.

True that . Where is it incorrect with what I said ? Filipinos are not pretty . Way more pretty girls in Thailand then the Philippines . Both want you for your money/security like all women the world over . 

[chrisandsu]

10 hours ago, tropo said:

You should know as you live there full time, right? How well do they speak English there?

Being a former British colony  the Burmese grasp of English is actually on a better level then let’s say the Thais would be in a similar situation . The country has miles of untouched coastline , plenty of wats(if that’s your bag) the women can be stunning (check out most mall workers in Bangkok ) . Would that give it enough potential to tick most western men’s boxes  ? I love Thailand but it does get a bit stale at times I almost crave for the Wild West frontier Thailand used to be . 

[simon43]

Being a former British colony the Burmese grasp of English is actually on a better level then let’s say the Thais would be in a similar situation . The country has miles of untouched coastline , plenty of wats(if that’s your bag) the women can be stunning (check out most mall workers in Bangkok )

The Burmese grasp of English of course varies from individual to individual. But all Burmese have the same passion to learn and speak English, because they realise the importance of this language in the academic and working environment.

I found many Thai people to have little interest in learning English. 'Thai number one' as they say.

Myanmar certainly has miles of untouched coastline, islands and beaches. The current problem is the lack of supporting transport infrastructure to reach those beaches quickly and cheaply.

Many Burmese women are indeed, very pretty. However, unless there is a paradigm shift in cultural attitudes, don't expect to see bar-girls or easy opportunities for 'one-night-stands'. They do exist of course, but on a whole different level when compared to Thailand.

[chrisandsu]

17 minutes ago, simon43 said:

 

 

The Burmese grasp of English of course varies from individual to individual. But all Burmese have the same passion to learn and speak English, because they realise the importance of this language in the academic and working environment.

I found many Thai people to have little interest in learning English. 'Thai number one' as they say.

Myanmar certainly has miles of untouched coastline, islands and beaches. The current problem is the lack of supporting transport infrastructure to reach those beaches quickly and cheaply.

Many Burmese women are indeed, very pretty. However, unless there is a paradigm shift in cultural attitudes, don't expect to see bar-girls or easy opportunities for 'one-night-stands'. They do exist of course, but on a whole different level when compared to Thailand.

 

Are you living there now ? How are you finding it ? 

[simon43]

Are you living there now ? How are you finding it ?

I have been working off and on in Myanmar since 2012, relocated permanently from Phuket in 2016.

I can say with conviction that you will hate the place if:
- You are a sexpat
- You have health issues and require access to good hospitals
- You are retired and want to live in the country without working (there is no retirement visa)
- You are used to the huge variety of shops and food items/restaurants in Thailand (It's improved a lot in Yangon though)
- You don't like electricity power cuts, internet outages etc

etc etc

I live in Myanmar because I'm working and I'm used to some of the 'difficulties'. (I'm happily single now, no worries about a GF/wife moaning about these difficulties)

My living costs are absolutely minimal here and I'm able to save a fair amount of money every month.

I have no plans to return to Phuket.

[chrisandsu]

11 minutes ago, simon43 said:

 

 

I have been working off and on in Myanmar since 2012, relocated permanently from Phuket in 2016.

I can say with conviction that you will hate the place if:
- You are a sexpat
- You have health issues and require access to good hospitals
- You are retired and want to live in the country without working (there is no retirement visa)
- You are used to the huge variety of shops and food items/restaurants in Thailand (It's improved a lot in Yangon though)
- You don't like electricity power cuts, internet outages etc

etc etc

I live in Myanmar because I'm working and I'm used to some of the 'difficulties'. (I'm happily single now, no worries about a GF/wife moaning about these difficulties)

My living costs are absolutely minimal here and I'm able to save a fair amount of money every month.

I have no plans to return to Phuket.

 

I’m none of the above (partial to a good looking lady) I used to love the rawness of Thailand , it’s getting a little too sanitised for me these days . I don’t get the buzz of Thailand anymore . I used to love walking through Bangkok and having that feeling .... That feeling of being swept away by a tidal flow of people all ferreting away making their way in the world . It’s too westernised now . It’s everything I try to leave (still live and work Half the time in the west)

[simon43]

I’m none of the above

Then you are left with the problem of long-term visas. You can probably do back-to-back tourist visas for now, but if you want to stay long-term (1 year), then it is difficult if you're not working or married to a Myanmar citizen.

I used to visit south Myanmar many years ago to do some ham radio hobby. But I realised that this would only be practical in the longer term if I were living in the country - and that meant finding a job, (which is why this rocket scientist/hotel owner now teaches at an international school in Myanmar LoL).