Do you prefer rural or urban Thailand

[holy cow cm]

1 minute ago, billd766 said:

After we had built the house (I was still working offshore) I noticed that we had no kitchen, but the small house we had built for the in laws had a kitchen. It is still the same today but easy to live with. The only drawback was that it is Thai sized and thus lower than my height and painful at times. The sloped roof is lower and hurts my head when I forget.

Those pics are magnificent. 

[billd766]

1 hour ago, Kwasaki said:

Me too something between the 2, ma & pop shop available & 7-11, Big C not far suits me fine.

Mom and Pop shops plus 7/11 in the big village 6 km away is OK. BigC is 65 km away along with Makro, Tops and a small LotusTesco ends up as a monthly bulk shop. We do have a lot of local markets, both wet and dry close by and they are very good.

[holy cow cm]

22 minutes ago, Logosone said:

Why on earth would anyone live in the country?

 

I mean you get those village criers on loudspeakers playing country music, telling you who donated to the temple at top volume around 6.50 am. That alone makes it impossible to live in the countryside.

 

A total lack of amenities, no french baguette, Jamon Serrano or decent olive oil? It's bad enough in a Thai city to find halfway well stocked supermarkets, in the countryside it would be impossible.

 

Not to mention insects, snakes and spiders. 

 

I suspect the best masseuses are also in the city. The best restaurants. The best leisure offerings. Why would you go to the mindnumbing boredom of the countryside?

Best bugs are in the country side. 

[holy cow cm]

1 minute ago, billd766 said:

Mom and Pop shops plus 7/11 in the big village 6 km away is OK. BigC is 65 km away along with Makro, Tops and a small LotusTesco ends up as a monthly bulk shop. We do have a lot of local markets, both wet and dry close by and they are very good.

What more do you need? Internet?

[gimo]

     Born in London , spent most of my life in Sydney and 10 years in Osaka , recently spent 6 years in a smallish Issan town . Definitely City for me . No need for a car in big cities now , public transport is great and a great saving of money . Hospitals , bars , sport venues , restaurants , quality of food in general , all better in the city , House rent or buy , more expensive in City but offset by no need for a car . I'm now in a country town in NSW , Australia ( back to Issan soon ), same boredom here --- Sydney much better . I knew a farang who died in an ambulance on the way from the small town hospital to a bigger town , because the former didn't have a cardiologist .

        The village . Auggh .  Tried it for 2 weeks . The false dawn chook contest at 3am , the mother in law's smokey fire at 4;30 am , the real chook contest at 5 , the motorbikes starting up at 5;30 . The village dogs in packs , the lack of decent food , no decent wi fi . What a nightmare .

[billd766]

1 hour ago, roo860 said:

That Thai steak can be a bit chewy!

????

Get a steak hammer and beat the steak to death.

[billd766]

10 minutes ago, holy cow cm said:

Those pics are magnificent. 

Sadly they were not mine.

[billd766]

5 minutes ago, holy cow cm said:

What more do you need? Internet?

I have had internet since the early days of EDGE.

[Salerno]

8 minutes ago, billd766 said:

The sloped roof is lower and hurts my head when I forget.

555 yep, been there done that. Strangest thing about the pics I posted, the couple that live there actually have a huge 2 storey "real" house a couple of Kms away that they just leave empty, started to live on the farm after their kids grew up and headed off. Not sure what they did with all the furniture, other than a couple of pics of them and their kids it's empty. 

[villagefarang]

28 minutes ago, Jane Dough said:

33 minutes ago, villagefarang said:

Looks like I need one more post to get one more dot.????

For post number neung meun you should post another picture of where you live. Show the curmudgeons on the thread what losers we all are that have made our lives in Thailand....

 

Rooster

Oh well, if you insist.????  I have a fairly recent pano which is interesting because it puts the pond beside the house instead of at the end of the property.  This is sure to bring out my favorite troll but hey it is worth it, I guess, to get that elusive dot.????????

 

 

[Ventenio]

I know both.  Not all urban or rural is the same.  For me, NO to BKK for more than a few weeks, but NO to some super small place with nothing to do and no good restaurants or shops or the ability to walk around at night without drunk kids on motorbikes.  CM?  Ah, I would rather CM than most rural places, but it's definitely not perfect.  I think I need a city (haven't been to every city) maybe like the size of Nong Khai (maybe wrong spelling).   But, we are not prisoners, so I think a rural place is good for 3 months a year.  I need people, and not the same 10 people.  I also like to have some privacy within a bigger city, with the ability to explore new areas.  I don't like to shop for things I need if I can simply live in a city where I can find most things.  

[holy cow cm]

7 minutes ago, billd766 said:

I have had internet since the early days of EDGE.

Yeah and same as me the world is flat and all of us good expats better watch out from falling off the edge because of the Thai immigration under walking the Junta plank. 

[holy cow cm]

7 minutes ago, villagefarang said:

Oh well, if you insist.????  I have a fairly recent pano which is interesting because it puts the pond beside the house instead of at the end of the property.  This is sure to bring out my favorite troll but hey it is worth it, I guess, to get that elusive dot.????????

 

 

Post a pic of the dry days. But still great in my mind. Lucky person you are. 

[holy cow cm]

13 minutes ago, holy cow cm said:

Post a pic of the dry days. But still great in my mind. Lucky person you are. 

Agreed same villagefarang guy…. I take it all as nice and bring it on. Been there and visit on and off as I get around a few times a year.

[holy cow cm]

It is always fun in the rural area for me. I'm a fun open guy who had/ has lots of time with the different real Thai and Issan country folk. Always fun. . 

[Jane Dough]

1 hour ago, Logosone said:

Why on earth would anyone live in the country?

 

I mean you get those village criers on loudspeakers playing country music, telling you who donated to the temple at top volume around 6.50 am. That alone makes it impossible to live in the countryside.

 

A total lack of amenities, no french baguette, Jamon Serrano or decent olive oil? It's bad enough in a Thai city to find halfway well stocked supermarkets, in the countryside it would be impossible.

 

Not to mention insects, snakes and spiders. 

 

I suspect the best masseuses are also in the city. The best restaurants. The best leisure offerings. Why would you go to the mindnumbing boredom of the countryside?

You make some excellent points. 

 

I have also noticed something interesting.....all the Thai country people live in Bangkok. They clearly know what is good for them.

 

Rooster

[Jane Dough]

1 hour ago, madmen said:

Being surrounded by inbred hillbillies with big wing nut ears in the villages is a big turn off especially those that are drunk all day. Deliverance with Burt reynolds is about as close as I want to get

That's a bit harsh....I mean who plays the banjo in Isaan even in Ban Aintree?

 

Rooster

[holy cow cm]

1 hour ago, billd766 said:

Get a steak hammer and beat the steak to death.

There are ways to make that steak nice and too delicious compared to a mediocre steak or better.

[CharlieH]

No loud speakers or anything remotely like it here.

The local shops and 7-11 cover the brief occasions you forget or run out of something. The town is 20km away and has Tesco Makro Big C etc. Internet is fine. 

Don't know what villages some are basing their ideas on but it sure doesn't resemble here.The air here last time I looked was moderate 60 so that's not bad either.

Boredom? don't have time. All the amenities you could want are within 20-30 minutes drive, even a golf course if you are into that. ????

[madmen]

There is a lot more to it than just city vs village . The big fat elephant in the room is $$$$. Bangkok is EXPENSIVE and an expat trying to support a family on a pension will never afford BKK and then there are those single guys that choose CM or CR and Pattaya to be able to stretch the budget

 

Oddly enough no one ever mentions the above ..EVER! its always " I hate bangkok" and I love the country , even though they grew up in NYC , London, sydney etc. Human nature is really fascinating

Edited January 13, 2020 by madmen

[Odysseus123]

34 minutes ago, madmen said:

There is a lot more to it than just city vs village . The big fat elephant in the room is $$$$. Bangkok is EXPENSIVE and an expat trying to support a family on a pension will never afford BKK and then there are those single guys that choose CM or CR and Pattaya to be able to stretch the budget

 

Oddly enough no one ever mentions the above ..EVER! its always " I hate bangkok" and I love the country , even though they grew up in NYC , London, sydney etc. Human nature is really fascinating

It's horses for courses....and,as you say human nature can be fascinating.

 

However I like wide blues skies, (if I can get them) and the sound of birdsong in the morning (if I can get those too)

 

Bangkok is not for me.I used to go there once a year for a week.That was enough.

Most of the expats that I knew had enough financial resources to cover a number of options...

[sipi]

11 hours ago, villagefarang said:

I started a similar topic last year.

 

 

Sorry VF, I didn't see that.

[Odysseus123]

1 minute ago, sipi said:

Sorry VF, I didn't see that.

But it's a great topic anyway..and everyone seems to be contributing.No problem with a double up.

Some Thai friends of mine built this traditional style Thai house in the country..

 

[faraday]

9 hours ago, Logosone said:

Why on earth would anyone live in the country?

 

I mean you get those village criers on loudspeakers playing country music, telling you who donated to the temple at top volume around 6.50 am. That alone makes it impossible to live in the countryside.

 

A total lack of amenities, no french baguette, Jamon Serrano or decent olive oil? It's bad enough in a Thai city to find halfway well stocked supermarkets, in the countryside it would be impossible.

 

Not to mention insects, snakes and spiders. 

 

I suspect the best masseuses are also in the city. The best restaurants. The best leisure offerings. Why would you go to the mindnumbing boredom of the countryside?

My dear chap, it seems we think the same.

 

Up here in Issan, getting Foie Gras & a decent Chardonnay, is damn near impossible - let alone Olive oil!

 

Mind you, I settle for BBQ Chicken liver, a fine Lao Khao these days, topped off with some engine oil.

Quite remarkable.

 

????

[canuckamuck]

I am as rural as you can get here and still wish it was more isolated. But there is a plan to make it so.

I do manage to enter city limits for a few hours every ten days for supplies.

[thaibeachlovers]

15 hours ago, CharlieH said:

Rural Thailand for me, hate it when I have to visit the Bangkok or similar and cant wait to get out of there.

The rural quiet is pure escapism far from the pressures and hectic pace of the big cities. Its like "stop the world I'm getting off" when I arrive back in the small village to my home surrounded by nothing but open fields and a Mountain range on the horizon.....aaahhhhh..bliss. A lifestyle I could never ever have achieved in the home country, thank you Thailand.

I liked the village for the scenery, but not for the lack of things like movies and decent shopping.

My ideal would be to live a short way out of a city, with a bus service. My wife's village was a 3 hour bus trip from a city with no English language movies, but the trip was always interesting.

In Lamphun I lived by a swamp, which cut down on the buildings nearby, but the lack of public transport meant I HAD to have my own transport.

[Ventenio]

8 hours ago, Jane Dough said:

You make some excellent points. 

 

I have also noticed something interesting.....all the Thai country people live in Bangkok. They clearly know what is good for them.

 

Rooster

?????????????

 

Most would never go there if they weren't forced to get that money.

 

Doesn't mean it's good for them.  I'm sure it's not

[thaibeachlovers]

10 hours ago, Logosone said:

Why on earth would anyone live in the country?

 

I mean you get those village criers on loudspeakers playing country music, telling you who donated to the temple at top volume around 6.50 am. That alone makes it impossible to live in the countryside.

 

A total lack of amenities, no french baguette, Jamon Serrano or decent olive oil? It's bad enough in a Thai city to find halfway well stocked supermarkets, in the countryside it would be impossible.

 

Not to mention insects, snakes and spiders. 

 

I suspect the best masseuses are also in the city. The best restaurants. The best leisure offerings. Why would you go to the mindnumbing boredom of the countryside?

Plenty of snakes and scorpions in the city I lived in, and also no expensive western food.

No shortage of pretty ladies to give one a massage with a happy ending though, as long as one can speak enough Thai.

6.50 AM- luxury. It was way earlier than that in my wife's village and no country music ( which I like ), but perhaps the speaking petrol pump made up for that.

No restaurant in any city anywhere in the world could beat the open to air place I ate at. The view of the mountains over the paddy fields at sunset beat anything a city restaurant could provide, and at a fraction of the price for excellent food.

 

If one finds the countryside mindnumbingly boring, one should ask oneself why one is so lacking in appreciation of the finer things in life, which are not found in cities.

Cities are artificial places full of bad people and the worst vices of humanity, and the pollution they generate is killing their residents.

[thaibeachlovers]

5 hours ago, madmen said:

There is a lot more to it than just city vs village . The big fat elephant in the room is $$$$. Bangkok is EXPENSIVE and an expat trying to support a family on a pension will never afford BKK and then there are those single guys that choose CM or CR and Pattaya to be able to stretch the budget

 

Oddly enough no one ever mentions the above ..EVER! its always " I hate bangkok" and I love the country , even though they grew up in NYC , London, sydney etc. Human nature is really fascinating

I liked some things about Bkk- Nana, Soi Cowboy, Washington Square ( before they destroyed it for greed ), World Trade Center, Siam Square, MBK, Chatachuk, Chao Phrya, Car show etc, but the infrastructure is incapable of supporting so many people, so I was always happy to be escaping it for the southern islands with my GF.

[recom273]

Bangkok - No way! impossible to keep money, congestion, time consuming 

Issan Village - No thanks! forever pestered by the family for small money, nothing to do, noise from funeral and wedding parties, lack of availability of anything but Lao Khao and grilled chicken.

 

A quiet “village” suburb on the edge of Hat Yai - Perfect - quiet, cheap as, 10 mins to Big C, 5 mins to countryside, 30 mins to waterside Seafood restaurants, but then 15 mins to town and most things you can think of buying along with all the provincial service centers. Western ingredients at tops, amazing markets - People seem to have a disposable income, allowing the missus to run a profitable market stall at weekends. Holidays in Malaysia, different culture, food and mentality.
The best thing is it’s too far from BKK and Issan that the family will never visit! Bonus. Downside - the occasional bomb and long running civil conflict running an hour down the road.