Going to attempt to start a new life in SE Asia, any Advice/Tips ?

[altcar bob]

Problem is you are not doing any groundwork sitting in Thailand/SE Asia,or anywhere really outside of UK Become english teecher lol  is getting you nowhere,you need to pay NI stamps for eventual pension,if not paid  eventually you will be put on pension credits and not allowed out of GB 'cept for 4weeks  x 2

[StreetCowboy]

21 minutes ago, smotherb said:

Well, 2,000 ringit is what, B16,000? And the types of jobs an unskilled foreigner could get may not even earn 2k ringit. Whether you think it is cheaper in Thailand or in Malaysia; is that enough to live, exist maybe, but live?  I think geriatrickid had the better idea, get some skills.

Normally they would get accommodation, and possibly even meals provided;  so RM2K might be on the high side.  But most of these guys are still able to send money back for their families.

[smotherb]

2 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

Normally they would get accommodation, and possibly even meals provided;  so RM2K might be on the high side.  But most of these guys are still able to send money back for their families.

Yeah, and most of the unskilled foreign workers come from Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and India. Their quarters and food are mere basics in their countries' standards. I doubt a UK citizen would enjoy that accommodation.

[StreetCowboy]

17 minutes ago, smotherb said:

Yeah, and most of the unskilled foreign workers come from Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and India. Their quarters and food are mere basics in their countries' standards. I doubt a UK citizen would enjoy that accommodation.

It would be an experience.  If he could learn to write " 've " instead of " of" then it could help him towards literary fame of an Orwellian nature.  'Down and Out in Paris and London'  springs to mind, or 'The Road to Wigan Pier'.  Life's not all about having fun, partying, comfort and enjoying your accommodation.  Not for everyone.

[dick dasterdly]

The OP clearly needs to get his physical/mental health issues sorted out before even considering moving to Asia!

 

The general question though is interesting.

 

I spent many (unhappy) years working to earn reasonably good pensions, and save money in the UK - with the dream of retiring early somewhere with far better weather, and next to a beach.  Fortunately, my husband and I were both reasonably well paid and enjoyed school holidays, so in our latter UK years could afford to take frequent holidays to alleviate the misery of living and working in the UK.

 

One of my brothers spent the majority of his working life working in various warm countries - but without any pension provision (other than savings) or job security.

 

As things turned out, I'm not sure which one of us was right.

 

I'm finally living close to my 'dream' - but my brother hasn't spent decades of his life wishing he was elsewhere, has moved back close to 'home' and now enjoys the more 'civilised' aspects of life in Europe.

[baansgr]

150k baht plus visa issue's, treat Thailand as an extended holiday for a few months. Seriously look at PI with devalued PHP,  will go a lot further.

[smotherb]

1 hour ago, StreetCowboy said:

It would be an experience.  If he could learn to write " 've " instead of " of" then it could help him towards literary fame of an Orwellian nature.  'Down and Out in Paris and London'  springs to mind, or 'The Road to Wigan Pier'.  Life's not all about having fun, partying, comfort and enjoying your accommodation.  Not for everyone.

Well, getting a poke in the eye with a sharp stick would be an experience. I doubt many would like it. Similarly, I doubt many Westerners would like to live as those unskilled laborers do. I will agree that everyone does not have a life of, " . . .fun, partying, comfort and enjoying your accommodation," but I doubt anyone would refuse it, especially if they had to do nothing to get it.

[Dick Crank]

19 hours ago, Bonobojt said:

no I had a bad bicycle fall, landed on a stone/rock road going down hill, landed hard on the left side of Hip/pelvis, then months later had hard sex with a pattaya bar girl 3 times in one night and then my pelvic issues started, and yes I don't have an std. I believe the bike fall done something to my left side of my pelvis and the hard sex marathon was the nail in the coffin .. symptoms have been tingling on my perineum, painful or frequent urination, nerve pain in rectum or penis, muscle entrapment's in rectum, perineum pain, pubic area discomfort etc... luckily its not 24/7 but I haven't felt normal down in my pelvic area in almost 2 years now. 

Sounds almost like a pinched nerve. I get st similar during sex sometimes my leg tingles and seized up and I can't move it and my toe curls where the toe ends, it's painful, almost like an electric shock type of paralysis.

 

Only thing to do is relax and wiggle toes and it subsides, relaxing is the last thing u feel like doing but believe me u learn to do it quickly and we'll...

 

relax, don't do it, to it, when u wanna cum...

[London Boy]

Bonobojt, dont listen to these old men. A mates brother arrived a few of weeks ago. 25 years old, no degree, and in his words 'enough money for two months'. He's already having the time of his life. He's teaching English online, playing 5-a-side football, getting success on Tinder, and makes the occasional trip to Nana Plaza. 5k is not life changeing money, so use it for an expereince that will stay with you all you life. You've plenty of time to start a career and accumulate wealth. Enjoy your youth. I arrived in Bangkok at 43 (after also being made redundant) and always lament to my friends how great it would have been to live here in my 20's.

[quandow]

On 6/3/2018 at 4:19 PM, saakura said:

Buy a TEFL or a Engineering degree from Khao San Road and get a well paying job.

First, I'm sure your post will be removed shortly as you are recommending something illegal.

Second, the way immigration is scrutinizing EVERYONE lately, ANY dodgy paperwork will, if discovered, land the person in a nasty jail for who knows HOW long followed by a swift kick in the rear out of Thailand with a blacklist stamped on their passport.

[Bonobojt]

4 hours ago, BobbyL said:

A lot of negativity in here. As long as you aren't a complete abomination of a man, which is what most of the old boys here are like, then even without a degree you can still do okay. I know a few people here with no qualifications who are doing well and living a reasonable life in Bangkok. 

 

It might not be luxurious and you certainly won't be living the dream in expensive places, but Bangkok is still easily livable on a low salary. I am a qualified primary school teacher so money certainly isn't a worry, but I can still comfortably live on a few thousand baht per week as long as I am not out on the beers, having expensive meals or playing golf. Yeah, you can't do that every week, but even then Thailand isn't just about partying and birds. 

 

There are far too many foreign men here saying Bangkok isn't cheap, then they're the ones dropping 2000THB in the pub two or three nights a week. 

 

Do a TEFL and you will find work, either here or definitely somewhere else in SE Asia. Give it a go and if it seems like things aren't going well just make sure you have money in a bank for a flight out. 

thanks for your nice reply, I am not a party type of man, I think I would be happy if I had a simple small condo, street food in my belly, and a girlfriend. I don't own much, I'm not a shopper or materialistic. To be honest if I didn't have my pelvic issues then I'd be traveling rough, hitchhiking, sleeping in tents, eating cheaply, doing lots of volunteer work etc..yeah I do like a beer in the gogo bar or red light area's but that's on a holiday, working in Thailand is a different story.

 

TEFL or getting a working holiday visa for Australia is my options that I need to choose from, to be honest, it doesn't matter too much which one I choose I guess, either way I'll be working and earning money

[SteveK]

If I only had that much money I would not be going to Bangkok.

[Bonobojt]

ok some good news, turns out all the supplements I was taking was making my urine 'cloggy ish' and that was why I was having these bad urinary frequencies and needing to squeeze it out, threw the supplements in the trash and now my pelvic issue is back to 'manageable to live with' so my mind can now be more positive and I don't want to die as much as I did before.

 

just to let people know, there are ways to travel very cheaply, without spending too much money.. first there is couchsurfing, where local people or expats offer to host you for 1 to 3 days, you sleep on their floor or couch or even a bed for free, its a great way to meet the locals and its all free, just create a profile and upload some pics of yourself, I've done it before in Bangkok. www.couchsurfing.com

 

staying in cheap hostels is another option

 

Volunteer work is another option, I can volunteer on a farm, at a school etc.. and most of the time I'll be given free accommodation and sometimes they give you a free meal. www.workaway.info

 

the key is too do what makes you happy, don't get me wrong, sitting on a bar stool, drinking an overpriced beer, and chatting to a prostitute, and looking at some ass makes me very happy, but traveling, feeling like I'm on an adventure, trying new foods, working out ways to not spend money, eating cheaply, new experiences etc make me very happy too. 

 

[Bonobojt]

20 minutes ago, pr9spk said:

If I only had that much money I would not be going to Bangkok.

just because I'm flying to Bangkok doesn't mean I'm going to try and live there.

 

when it comes to flights to southeast asia from London, bangkok flights are always the cheapest so it makes sense in terms of saving money to get the cheapest flight possible and start from there.

[catman20]

8 hours ago, StreetCowboy said:

Isn't he a bit like you and me?

Nothing like me, at his age i was running my own company and at 40 sold and retired.?

[poanoi]

i would try and get a job as a pet vet assistant,

the entire world age above 50 crave nembutal over all else,

get 20 gram for yourself just in case, and sell the rest, make a huge profit,

all the while you help people against unbearable pain

that government has zero intention of helping

[Hummin]

So spend your money on private hospital in Thailand! Good investment, and good doctors. Find a Army hospital, the best doctors and best surgery in the country. Have some few I know, who got good help for a decent price there. Not sure you can without being married? If not I would spent my money on my health first of all. Thats where your challenge is, and thats where you have to start to be happy and able to work, and make your future. 

 

Chiropractor's, is of no use! A tempory wellbeing feeling at the best. 

Edited June 5, 2018 by Hummin

[Bonobojt]

3 minutes ago, Hummin said:

So spend your money on private hospital in Thailand! Good investment, and good doctors. Find a Army hospital, the best doctors and best surgery in the country. Have some few I know, who got good help for a decent price there. Not sure you can without being married? If not I would spent my money on my health first of all. Thats where your challenge is, and thats where you have to start to be happy and able to work, and make your future. 

 

Chiropractor's, is of no use! A tempory wellbeing feeling at the best. 

can't afford it, I need to save my money for a room, food, back up plan money if everything fails, I only have between 4000 to 5000 pounds, which is 6000 dollars or something. I will just have to live with it, many people around the world live with pain and discomforts. 

[Bonobojt]

got a missed call yesterday from an employer for the kitchen porter job I applied for when I was having doubts about my plan for SEasia

 

I don't think I'll call them back, I need to man up as someone said, and just go and stick with my plan, plus I've already paid for the one way flight and meal around £200 all together.

 

I've just taken redundancy from being a Kitchen Porter, don't think I'd want to do that job again for another year in cold miserable England, even though its better pay more hours etc.. 

[Suradit69]

On June 3, 2561 BE at 4:28 PM, altcar bob said:

just stay there,you will top yourself eventually here,more and more expats are moving out of Thailand,for many reasons,just stay there

I certainly felt the urge to top myself after wading through your post.

 

your comment about "more and more expats" is meaningless blather from someone who assumes everyone is as unhappy as he is. 

 

I do agree that the O/P should just stay in UK. Running away from one's problems by coming to Thailand will just add to the number of whiny expats.

 

 

 

 

[Dick Crank]

21 hours ago, London Boy said:

Bonobojt, dont listen to these old men. A mates brother arrived a few of weeks ago. 25 years old, no degree, and in his words 'enough money for two months'. He's already having the time of his life. He's teaching English online, playing 5-a-side football, getting success on Tinder, and makes the occasional trip to Nana Plaza. 5k is not life changeing money, so use it for an expereince that will stay with you all you life. You've plenty of time to start a career and accumulate wealth. Enjoy your youth. I arrived in Bangkok at 43 (after also being made redundant) and always lament to my friends how great it would have been to live here in my 20's.

That works great if you have nothing to lose and don't plan on returning.

 

going "home" after 5 years on the lam in your 40-50's your going to get nothing but busy work with that's sort of gap of no work history, even if you have a degree. The older you are the harder it'll be. If you have grey hair you can almost forget trying unless you want to try customer service at Walmart.

[tryasimight]

On 6/4/2018 at 12:00 AM, Bonobojt said:

yes that annoys me too, I saw a couple (man and woman) begging with a sign in Silom by the BTS station, I would never beg for money, in fact I would never let my situation get like that, I'd rather go home or end my life than be begging on the streets of Thailand.

 

as for insurance, I haven't thought much about it yet, if I got a job somewhere I would definitely look into it, if I went to Australia I would sign up for the free health care. 

No........you won't.

[tryasimight]

On 6/5/2018 at 3:22 PM, London Boy said:

Bonobojt, dont listen to these old men. A mates brother arrived a few of weeks ago. 25 years old, no degree, and in his words 'enough money for two months'. He's already having the time of his life. He's teaching English online, playing 5-a-side football, getting success on Tinder, and makes the occasional trip to Nana Plaza. 5k is not life changeing money, so use it for an expereince that will stay with you all you life. You've plenty of time to start a career and accumulate wealth. Enjoy your youth. I arrived in Bangkok at 43 (after also being made redundant) and always lament to my friends how great it would have been to live here in my 20's.

Interesting......on what basis to stay in Thailand are you/him using?

[tryasimight]

On 6/5/2018 at 8:49 PM, Bonobojt said:

got a missed call yesterday from an employer for the kitchen porter job I applied for when I was having doubts about my plan for SEasia

 

I don't think I'll call them back, I need to man up as someone said, and just go and stick with my plan, plus I've already paid for the one way flight and meal around £200 all together.

 

I've just taken redundancy from being a Kitchen Porter, don't think I'd want to do that job again for another year in cold miserable England, even though its better pay more hours etc.. 

Have you got your visa sorted out? A one way ticket might be a problem at immigration if you haven't.

[james1995]

I was thinking of getting a teaching job too but the pay stinks.  I would recommend getting a job under the table as a dishwasher but the pay would also stink. 

 

I know of some guys who have "done the cards" so to speak.  You could get 5million or more if you get your credit score up enough at a few banks.  I guess you might be able to retire early that way.  It's just that there's no returning home when you've burned all your bridges.

[Bonobojt]

1 hour ago, tryasimight said:

Have you got your visa sorted out? A one way ticket might be a problem at immigration if you haven't.

i was in Bangkok in April, arrived with a one way ticket, no problems, just like the last few times, never had a problem with arriving with a one way ticket.

i get 30 days free stay no visa as I'm from the UK, if I want to stay longer i just go to the immigration building and pay for a visa extension 

[Bonobojt]

1 hour ago, james1995 said:

I was thinking of getting a teaching job too but the pay stinks.  I would recommend getting a job under the table as a dishwasher but the pay would also stink. 

 

I know of some guys who have "done the cards" so to speak.  You could get 5million or more if you get your credit score up enough at a few banks.  I guess you might be able to retire early that way.  It's just that there's no returning home when you've burned all your bridges.

thais wont give a foreigner a dishwasher job, not fair for the unemployed thai's. not sure what you mean by 'done the cards' but I don't want to break the law..

[StreetCowboy]

5 minutes ago, Bonobojt said:

thais wont give a foreigner a dishwasher job, not fair for the unemployed thai's. not sure what you mean by 'done the cards' but I don't want to break the law..

You are joking, right? How many Thais do you think wash dishes? That is a job reserved for foreigners, like labouring on construction sites.  Not only because they are cheaper, but because they are illegal, and so can't complain about working hours, health and safety, and the rest.

[StreetCowboy]

1 hour ago, tryasimight said:

Have you got your visa sorted out? A one way ticket might be a problem at immigration if you haven't.

Might be a welcome saviour from his own fecklessness.

[Bonobojt]

32 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

You are joking, right? How many Thais do you think wash dishes? That is a job reserved for foreigners, like labouring on construction sites.  Not only because they are cheaper, but because they are illegal, and so can't complain about working hours, health and safety, and the rest.

well I'd definitely wash dishes if it meant I could live in Thailand but as you should, its illegal, so I'm sure it wouldn't last long, not worth it..