Anyone else decided that Thailand is no longer the place they fell in love with and will never return?

[newnative]

6 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.

     I agree.  I am in my late 60s and I have been in Thailand since 2010.  I still very much enjoy living here and my partner and I have gradually made some good friends here that we enjoy socializing with.   Plus, my Thai partner's family is in Bangkok.  I certainly don't want to start over 'building a life', as you say, somewhere else.  

[sammieuk1]

1 hour ago, simon43 said:

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.

Turkish residency was easy when I had 7 years there not so easy now I'm told but there are downsides like winter is abysmal everything closed cold and wet no pork, petrol the dearest in the world  wailing mosques and the most untrustworthy people on earth, summers is the only reason to be there I found good luck ???? 

[Jimbo2014]

Demographically Thailand has changed massively since I first came here.  In the 90s and 00s Thailand was at its peak youth.  The bulge in the demographic pyramid, now in the 45-55 category, was then in the 20-30 category and you felt it.  Back then Thailand was a hopeful democracy encapsulated in the protests of the early 90s, then the fast paced hope mixed with heady corruption of the Thaksin era. Now its an older and somewhat tired country with a more autocratic government whose interest lies in conservatism and control rather than innovation.  The rise of China has also changed the landscape and driven tourism towards a cheap mass produced variety.  I think a lot of the Hope has left Thailand replaced with a tired resignation exacerbated by the Covid epidemic.  Having said that I still love Thailand, the warm weather, food and people, but yes, its undoubtable changed.    

  

[Lite Beer]

5 hours ago, KhunLA said:

That's why you drive around and research an area before signing on the dotted line.  Be there at 6-8 AM, look for speakers, traffic, and repeat at 4-7 pm, and night time 10pm - 2 am to find out where the partiers do their thing.  Weekdays & weekends.

 

It's not rocket science.

Yep and the very next day the bloke opposite turns his front yard into a workshop banging, grinding and cutting steel all day. 

Then next door opens a motor bike repair business.

They can do what ever they want to ruin your little bit of paradise.

[KhunLA]

3 minutes ago, Lite Beer said:

You probably actually believe that.

Worked for me, and I only have my experiences to go by.  But that's what I would advise.  So far so good.

 

Easier for my choices, as I always lived rural here, sort of.  Not in the downtown area.  Last house, made sure the wat across the street was rarely used, bought the 4 lots in front of the 2 rai we built on.  Found out who owned the farmlands around the other 3 sides, and they weren't going to be sold in my lifetime. 

 

Did the same again for present build, though one after issue did pop up, and being dealt with.  Soon to be resolved.

 

Deciding where to live / build not different here than anywhere in the world, abet, less zoning enforcement.  Not really a problem, just time consuming.

[1FinickyOne]

6 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Any familiar with my posts will know that I have had a decades long love affair with LOS.

It seems most of your posts were bashing Thai women, your wife and her family... and how her family cheated and stole from you...

 

I knew a guy who refused to pay his wife's family sin sod... he was very proud of this. Sin Sod is a gift to the parents 1. for raising a lovely daughter that you want to marry and 2. to take this daughter, a valued member of the family, away. It is a Thai custom, not a scam to cheat farang, as my friend thought. 

 

He was astounded and thought that these were the worst people in the world when they took some of his money. He didn't realize that he had cheated their eyes out first in a terribly cruel manner... He cheated them first, then wondered why they didn't seem to like him. 

 

just saying... 

[scubascuba3]

Seeing Thailand negatively is a kinda coping mechanism, either someone is forced out or money troubles so they justify in their mind why they shouldn't return.

 

I really enjoyed Thailand first time 1998 backpacking and still really enjoy it

[1FinickyOne]

5 hours ago, KhunLA said:

That's why you drive around and research an area before signing on the dotted line.  Be there at 6-8 AM, look for speakers, traffic, and repeat at 4-7 pm, and night time 10pm - 2 am to find out where the partiers do their thing.  Weekdays & weekends.

 

It's not rocket science.

It's called due diligence... and worth the time. 

[moe666]

If someone no longer likes Thailand why can they not just leave. O no they have to write long threads about why I have lost the love and how Thailand has let me down, it is always Thailands fault. 

Just leave pack your stuff and go no looking back bye.

[473geo]

1 hour ago, Gecko123 said:

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.

 

Alternatively don't panic and pretend you are being wise scaring yourself!! ????

[Grecian]

3 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

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.

So what did you spend this money on that is bringing a better return than Thailand would have?

[hotchilli]

7 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.

I'm the same, came here in 2000 first visit, returned in 2001-2003 for work.

Got married during that time, returned to UK for 5 years, made plans and moved here in 2008 aged 49.

Best move I ever made, now age 62.

[Gecko123]

 

1 hour ago, 473geo said:

Alternatively don't panic and pretend you are being wise scaring yourself!! ????

Considering all the angles is a skill many people lack, and I'm grateful I've been able to learn how to do this. Those who mock those who know how to identify risks, plan carefully, and do due diligence as not "living in the present" or being guilty of "negative thinking" or "doomsdayer-ism," are the same people who are the first to protest that "no one could possibly have seen that coming" when the proverbial [blank] hit's the fan and they're caught totally unprepared.

 

Careful planning and considering all the angles has served me quite well, and unlike some people on this forum, my plan B is well planned and fleshed out. Maybe instead of making snide comments you should look into doing the same. What's your Plan B? Or are you one of those who kid themselves into believing they don't need one? Or, maybe, it's just too scary to think about? ????

[473geo]

2 minutes ago, Gecko123 said:

Considering all the angles is a skill many people lack, and I'm grateful I've been able to learn this skill. Those who mock those who know how to identifying risks, plan carefully, and do due diligence as not "living in the present" or being guilty of "negative thinking" or "doomsdayer-ism," are the same people who are the first ones to protest that "no one could possibly have seen that coming" when the proverbial [blank] hit's the fan and they're caught totally unprepared.

 

Careful planning and considering all the angles has served me quite well, and unlike some people on this forum, my plan B is well planned and fleshed out. Maybe instead of making snide comments you should look into doing the same. What's your Plan B? Are you one of those who have kided themselves into believing they don't need one? Or, maybe, it's just too scary to think about?

The predictions of 'experts' are scattered along the side of many of life's paths. I will stay in Thailand as long as I want, there will always be a way. It's not me that's running scared ????

[BritManToo]

11 minutes ago, Gecko123 said:

What's your Plan B?

Death.

[Caldera]

I like being in Thailand more than ever. Long may it last!

[n00dle]

Has the op not considered that they too have changed after decades?

 

 

 

[BritManToo]

2 hours ago, Lite Beer said:

Yep and the very next day the bloke opposite turns his front yard into a workshop banging, grinding and cutting steel all day. 

Then next door opens a motor bike repair business.

They can do what ever they want to ruin your little bit of paradise.

Been in the same gated moobaan for 8 years ..... the only noise is the birds tweeting.

[richard_smith237]

No place ever is the same place we first visited. 

 

It changes, we change - both mature and develop over time, perspective changes. 

 

Memory is also very selective - I fondly remember my first trip to Samui, crammed in a Songthaew to get to the ferry, overnight boat, lots of ‘getting herded’ (I wouldn’t put up with any of that treatment now !).

 

 

[Grusa]

7 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.

The key to this problem is a good Exit strategy, planned and organised well in advance of necessity. I've got mine.......have you?

[KarenBravo]

The Thailand I fell in love with never really existed.

[giddyup]

12 minutes ago, Grusa said:

The key to this problem is a good Exit strategy, planned and organised well in advance of necessity. I've got mine.......have you?

I don't intend abandoning my Thai partner of 12 years to return to Australia, so there is no EXIT strategy. I thought I made that pretty clear, or are you asking so you can boast how well organized you are?

[zzaa09]

9 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.

Misery and negativity follows these types, regardless of situation.

Nothing whatsoever to do with locale, much more to do with the individual and their predisposed character.

[scubascuba3]

19 minutes ago, Grusa said:

The key to this problem is a good Exit strategy, planned and organised well in advance of necessity. I've got mine.......have you?

Exit bag?

[swissie]

Why not finally address the main problem that must concern every elderly Farangs in Thailand:

- The prohibitively high cost of health insurance once past 70.

Self insure? 4 of my Farang friends have died within the last 2 years. 2 of them were "self-insureres". Hospital bills have wiped-out the live savings of the Farangs, leaving 2 Thai widows of many years behind. Both more or less pennyless now, having to rely on the goodwill of their Thai family for the rest of their lives.

[BritManToo]

9 minutes ago, swissie said:

Self insure? 4 of my Farang friends have died within the last 2 years. 2 of them were "self-insureres". Hospital bills have wiped-out the live savings of the Farangs, leaving 2 Thai widows of many years behind. Both more or less pennyless now, having to rely on the goodwill of their Thai family for the rest of their lives.

Nobody forced them to go to (private) hospital, then accept the often pointless (but expensive) treatments. I just say NO when the doctors suggest some costly procedure to me (which they've done three times so far).

[swissie]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

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.

Unless the "nightlive" re-opens, I woulden't even consider booking a flight to Thailand. Sipping beer on the front porch of a 7/11 or a temple offer not enough "thrill" for me.

[473geo]

1 minute ago, swissie said:

Unless the "nightlive" re-opens, I woulden't even consider booking a flight to Thailand. Sipping beer on the front porch of a 7/11 or a temple offer not enough "thrill" for me.

I guess you need to hone your internet skills to provide some thrills

[swissie]

10 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Nobody forced them to go to (private) hospital, then accept the often pointless (but expensive) treatments. I just say NO when the doctors suggest some costly procedure to me (which they've done three times so far).

I spent a short time in a Thai "State-Hospital". Thanks, but no thanks!

[BritManToo]

1 minute ago, swissie said:

I spent a short time in a Thai "State-Hospital". Thanks, but no thanks!

Up to you!