Where ever you go there you are. You can't run from yourself 

May I suggest taking a break from AN? The negativity is astonishing and your getting sucked into it 

I just saw again the Ricky Gervais special where he talks about old people saying how much better things were when they were young.  He says something like,  "Of course they were better.  YOU WERE YOUNG.  Everything's better when you're young!"

 

Anyway, people and their situations are all different.  If I decide tomorrow I'm no longer enjoying Thailand and I'm going back to my home country, it's because I've decided that's best for me, not for anyone else.  Not everyone is in the same shoes.

 

21 minutes ago, cooked said:

What changed in my rural upcountry home in 10 years: the last of the traditional houses disappeared. The roads generally have become drivable. Rice farmers are gradually selling off their land.

I can't think of anything else really. 

It does look like all of us eventually will have to have health insurance, I wouldn't have come to Thailand if I had had to budget for that but I was (and would be) doing OK back home, at least financially. 

My wife would be like a fish out of water if we moved back, and granddaughter + great grandson would be devastated.

I remember an ancient great aunt telling me how things were much better 90 years ago (this was ca. 1980), of course they were, she was 90 years younger, beautiful and an opera singer. 

I came here 11 years ago, bought a house in a gated village in Pattaya, and can't say I've noticed any radical changes, other than Covid restrictions. I have no health insurance either, have enough funds to cover a short term hospital stay, but that's about it. I could return to Australia and get free health care, but would have to rent, and not sure if my Thai partner would be happy there, or me either, she's no spring chicken and I'm nearly 80. So, I've made my bed and just have to accept what happens. Getting old is not much fun wherever you are.

32 minutes ago, JTXR said:

"Of course they were better.  YOU WERE YOUNG.  Everything's better when you're young!"

When I was young in the UK my access to sex was extremely limited and I had to work every day.

At 65 in Thailand I'm getting more sex with more attractive young women and I don't have to work at all.

Everything was most certainly NOT better when I was young.

 

He might have been right if I'd remained in the UK though.

2 hours ago, Thaiwrath said:

Thailand has changed, obviously, since my first trip in 1991, and in the 17 years since I moved over here to live.

However, so has the city and country I was raised and brought up in.

When I weigh up the pros and cons, the climate and cost of living makes Thailand a far better option for me, and I have no intention of ever returning to the UK. Now in my 60's, I have no intention to look for pastures new either.

well said that man 

40 minutes ago, JTXR said:

I just saw again the Ricky Gervais special where he talks about old people saying how much better things were when they were young.  He says something like,  "Of course they were better.  YOU WERE YOUNG.  Everything's better when you're young!"
 

Being young is only better if you realize at the time what being old is like.  And no one thinks that far ahead.  Yes, I was a young stud back in the day.  But I also had a lot of financial uncertainties and work stress.  And getting laid was hard work!  Being old in Thailand with one's finances in order is much preferred.  That is, if you have the proper perspective. 

I'm right in the middle of moving on from Laos, (a beautiful country to live in, especially in Luang Prabang where I live - but the government stopped my radio ham licence, so time to move again!).

 

TBH, a return to live in Thailand wasn't on the cards whatsoever.  My ex #3 really wants me to come back and live in Thailand, but it has changed so much since 2,000 when I first moved there.  I've become somewhat jaded with south-east Asia after 20 years, so I'm off to Turkey or North Cyprus in the next few weeks, both of which offer better annual residency permit deals than Thailand, as well as a pegged UK state pension.

4 hours ago, tonray said:

I guess in all your decades here you never managed to build any relationships to cause you to want to stay. That's quite sad. Building a life somewhere, anywhere, is not just about having fun. You'll find the same problem chasing "sanuk" wherever you end up.

LOL. I was married to a Thai girl. Does that count?

 

I don't have enough years left to worry about where I live. There's only one future left for me and I'm out of alternatives.

4 hours ago, Lite Beer said:

The Land of Smiles has unfortunately become The Land of Noise.

Such a shame as the village I live in used to be so quiet and friendly now it is just non stop noise.

I hear you.....but only just.

 

A total lack of empathy is the root cause of many problems (not just in Thailand).

4 hours ago, FritsSikkink said:

Thought you left because you couldn't afford to live here any more?

Did you miss the bit where I was wanting to have a trip back there? I wasn't planning on LIVING there anymore, but I had plenty of baht saved up for a long stay. Cashed that in now, so no longer an option even if I wanted to, though I don't. All the immigration hoops deter me from bothering.

I can have all the early evenings watching tv where I am without travelling 12 hours to do so.

4 hours ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

Thailand is of course evolving, maybe even developing, but the feeling of lost love is much more down to us getting older.

Our view on life change, what Thailand have to offer we no longer need.

Disagree. What I want from Thailand is bars+girls and nice beaches.

I know the girls are on line, but looking was a lot of the fun for me.

Beaches by myself just don't seem to appeal.

4 hours ago, Worldplus said:

Don't let the door hit you on the way out.. ????????????????

Brilliant post, but if you only knew the reality you'd feel really, really silly.

 

Sooooo, can I expect more of your witty reponses? I do hope so.

14 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

I hear you.....but only just.

 

A total lack of empathy is the root cause of many problems (not just in Thailand).

Sadly, lack of empathy is not just experienced in LOS. The inconsiderate are everywhere, it seems.

2 hours ago, giddyup said:

I came here 11 years ago, bought a house in a gated village in Pattaya, and can't say I've noticed any radical changes, other than Covid restrictions. I have no health insurance either, have enough funds to cover a short term hospital stay, but that's about it. I could return to Australia and get free health care, but would have to rent, and not sure if my Thai partner would be happy there, or me either, she's no spring chicken and I'm nearly 80. So, I've made my bed and just have to accept what happens. Getting old is not much fun wherever you are.

Getting old sucks more than anything I ever experienced before. Living with the monstress would be paradise compared to being old ( so long as I was 10 years younger- living with her and being old would be unimaginably awful ).

2 hours ago, madmen said:

Where ever you go there you are. You can't run from yourself 

May I suggest taking a break from AN? The negativity is astonishing and your getting sucked into it 

I spend very little time on it now. There just isn't enough of interest any more. However, it does give me a connection to a place I once loved, and I don't want to give that up.

I didn't write the OP because of the negativity on AN, but because of the lack of things to do in LOS compared to before, and the complications of getting through immigration, plus things like having to have a "smart" phone and being tracked etc. I disliked air travel for a long time, so it would have to be worth it to put up with the hassle, and it just isn't now.

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

However, with all the very negative info coming out on this forum

Stop reading this forum and newspapers in general and that old sanuk feeling will dust itself off and normal service will be resumed.

Here in the boonies things have changed but not as dramatically as in Bangkok and the tourist towns.

Go up country and step back 10 years or so ( but don't come here or read the papers )

2 hours ago, JTXR said:

Everything's better when you're young!"

No way.........sex in your 60's is dynamite !!!

 

 

Just not quite as frequent.

3 hours ago, Berkshire said:

Yes, Thailand has changed.  But I'm pretty sure the place you're returning to has changed as well.  No place ever stays the same.

Actually the small rural town I live in has changed very little. The city 1/2 an hour away is horrible because too many people moved there and the council didn't build the infrastructure to cope with it. However, I need to visit the city rarely and I can do most of it on Saturdays, so traffic isn't too bad then.

I have noticed that despite the never ending lockdown ( 55 days at level 2 or 3 ) the traffic is pretty much at the same level as prior to corona, and things like mask wearing are slowly being ignored, so life is almost "normal".

5 minutes ago, Denim said:

Stop reading this forum and newspapers in general and that old sanuk feeling will dust itself off and normal service will be resumed.

Here in the boonies things have changed but not as dramatically as in Bangkok and the tourist towns.

Go up country and step back 10 years or so ( but don't come here or read the papers )

I wasn't referring to the negativity that AN/ TVF is infamous for, but for the situation in LOS as REPORTED through AN. There isn't any other source of info about LOS available to me here, that I can easily use.

4 hours ago, shdmn said:

Another day, another "I'm taking my ball and going home" post.  People claiming they are thinking about leaving Thailand (but never do) sure like to talk a lot about it.  Just do it. One less farang in Thailand.  You won't be missed.

4 hours ago, KhunLA said:

Best change: Not a place to visit as a tourist though due to COVID restrictions.

Which is what I'd be if I went back.

Good advice, IMO.

6 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Which is what I'd be if I went back.

Good advice, IMO.

I've never understood the draw of Thailand as a tourist / holiday destination, even pre-covid.

But then, I'm from the Americas, so no need to travel 3-5 days r/t, (from E coast USA) and spend 1000s of $$$ just to get to one of the islands or upcountry.  Only if staying long term, month or more, then might be worth it.  Seems like wasted time & money better spent elsewhere, closer to home, IMHO.

 

I wanting the Asian flare, I'll go to ChinaTown in USA metro area, sometimes even better food there ????

Ah the old how to survive in Thailand quandary ????

 

Get up each morning and start a brand new day 

 

It really is that easy, don't complicate life with historic comparison of Thailand or your previous life.

 

Enjoy

 

 

 

 

@thaibeachlovers

 

With so many desperate people who wants to go through all the silly documentation and hoops, there is no lack of people coming to Thailand.

 

13 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

I've never understood the draw of Thailand as a tourist / holiday destination, even pre-covid.

But then, I'm from the Americas, so no need to travel 3-5 days r/t, (from E coast USA) and spend 1000s of $$$ just to get to one of the islands or upcountry.  Only if staying long term, month or more, then might be worth it.  Seems like wasted time & money better spent elsewhere, closer to home, IMHO.

 

I wanting the Asian flare, I'll go to ChinaTown in USA metro area, sometimes even better food there ????

I think we went to Thailand for different things. ????

28 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Actually the small rural town I live in has changed very little. The city 1/2 an hour away is horrible because too many people moved there and the council didn't build the infrastructure to cope with it. However, I need to visit the city rarely and I can do most of it on Saturdays, so traffic isn't too bad then.

I have noticed that despite the never ending lockdown ( 55 days at level 2 or 3 ) the traffic is pretty much at the same level as prior to corona, and things like mask wearing are slowly being ignored, so life is almost "normal".

Perhaps on the surface, your small rural town hasn't changed.  But the people there don't use social media?  They don't have smartphones?  They don't shop on Amazon?  Price of everything still the same?  Etc.  If they're Amish people, then I suppose things could stay the same.  If you go back there and your friends and family are still there and they welcome you back as if you never left, great.  But you may have changed more than you know.  I'm guessing you'll be bored out of your mind at some point. 

19 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

I've never understood the draw of Thailand as a tourist / holiday destination, even pre-covid.

But then, I'm from the Americas, so no need to travel 3-5 days r/t, (from E coast USA) and spend 1000s of $$$ just to get to one of the islands or upcountry.  Only if staying long term, month or more, then might be worth it.  Seems like wasted time & money better spent elsewhere, closer to home, IMHO.

 

I wanting the Asian flare, I'll go to ChinaTown in USA metro area, sometimes even better food there ????

If only the three US citizens I bumped into recently held the same views as you......I was just unlucky I guess.

12 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

I think we went to Thailand for different things. ????

Yea, my first trip Sept 1999 was short recon for retirement along with some scuba diving, and a fluke at that, as last minute and no real research.  Returned Sept 2000, a bit more recon, and stayed. 

The relocation calculus just seems to get more complex with every passing day. When you're young, if you make a misstep, there's often - but not always - still time to correct things. Make the wrong choice after, say, age 60, and you may have to live with the consequences for the duration.

 

It seems like the penalties for making the wrong choice have really gone up in the past 20 years, and not just because you're older: climate change, sky rocketing housing costs, negative real interest rates, teetering stock markets, ballooning sovereign debts, uncertain reliability of safety net programs, inflation, medical and long-term care costs, and shifting immigration rules for expats, etc. It seems like erring on the side of caution, particularly in regards to personal finances, is the prudent thing to do.

 

But, nevertheless, a day doesn't go by without me tinkering and fine tuning my Plan B. The thing which has kept me anchored in Thailand, besides Covid of course, is that I basically have no housing costs here. That's a pretty big perk to nonchalantly stroll away from with a dismissive flick of the wrist. I'm toying with target dates about 2 years out for relocation. I'm figuring the longer I wait, the more money I can save by not paying rent, and hopefully there will be more clarity about some of the issues mentioned above. In the meantime, I'm intensively engaged in language study for the European country I'm considering, and being a "virtual tourist" (aka travel dreamer) by combing through target neighborhoods on Google Maps, house hunting, and watching U-tube videos.

 

In these uncertain times, my advise to anyone considering relocation is that you need to invest as much - if not much greater - time and effort in preparing to relocate than you probably spent 20 years ago when you first decided to move to Thailand.

 

Thailand has been Amazing for me. I arrived here on holiday in September 2005 and made this my hub for my nomadic US Government construction management career.

I love the Buddhist temples, food, great people and now with Thai wife number two I could not ask for more.

For me the challenge is going to be my health as I move past 70 this year and enjoy retirement. 

For me the Thai government is at best OK now with a military government and it is ridiculous to try to plan a stable future here in the land of smiles.
I plan to wait for 3 to 5 more years to see if the world of covid eases its global impact and Thailand gets some sanity back.

In the meantime will continue to explore our wonderful world provided we do not kill it and my health allows. 

My American home and family is a great base if and when it becomes necessary to make that choice.

My best advice to newbies is to enjoy Thailand while you are here, learn from this very old culture and greet every day with and eagerness to learn and a desire to enjoy life.