What happened to you, Thailand?

[bob smith]

..a friendly word of warning, this is going to be a long winded post. mods, before you close my thread please remember that these are my own experiences that I am posting about and that they are valid, even if they do not align with your own!

 

With that out of the way, let's get down to it.

 

When I first moved to thailand many, many moons ago, it was a vibrant place, full of happy go lucky people enjoying themselves. It was such a blessing to be here and I thoroughly enjoyed the first few years in (what was back then worthy of the name) the land of smiles.

 

I started to notice some big changes around 2013, especially with regards to peoples attitudes toward farang.

Then when the coup hit things slowly started going downhill.

 

Now the Thailand that I live in is unrecognizable to me.

everyone seems stressed, nobody is smiling and the locals seem to have zero patience for farangs in general.

 

Just today I was in a tourist ghetto meeting a friend of mine I haven't seen in a while.

I was sat at my table enjoying a nice cold beer when a hawker walked past and plonked her stuff on my table.

I politely said no thanks in english and smiled.

She persisted.

Then I said the same in Thai, to which she reacted angrily, and gave me the 'oiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii' and stormed off.

I did nothing wrong, other than said no thank you.

 

what has happened to the Thai people?

are they all stressed out because of money?

is it because their politics are a mess?

is it social media that is influencing how they feel about us?

It certainly is not the place that I remember when I first came here. It has now changed beyond almost all recognition. 

Most thais on the street completely avoid eye contact when they see a farang walking without their mask on.

some even cross over to the other side of the road, or at the least move as far away from them as possible.

 

my honest opinion is I think they are terrified of us.

a combination of negative media portrayals recently and the fact that farangs don't like to wear masks has shaped their current perception of us.

 

Pre 2013 I can count on one hand the amount of times I had a bad experience in Thailand,

now it is almost daily..

 

Also It seems that the economy is in dire straights. So many closed shops, roller shutters down, boarded up buildings etc. Once bustling areas of famous tourist hot-spots now seem to be on their knees. Something just doesn't seem right.

 

How about you? do your experiences align with mine? if not, then do tell me where you are having positive encounters with locals because, as someone who travels around Thailand a lot, I would love to know where this utopia is.

 

bob.

 

 

Edited Friday at 09:22 AM by bob smith

[ArnieP]

They started to lose their smiles a couple of decades ago. 

Edited Friday at 09:06 AM by ArnieP

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, ArnieP said:

They started to lose their smiles a couple if decades ago. 

I disagree.

 

It was still a relatively fun and vibrant place in 2012.

 

bob.

[transam]

I never have your problems, you always seem to have a problem, I would suggest you change your hangouts, or have a good long look in a mirror.......🤔

[transam]

2 minutes ago, bob smith said:

I disagree.

 

It was still a relatively fun and vibrant place in 2012.

 

bob.

And you were 12 years younger........🤗

[bob smith]

Just now, transam said:

I never have your problems, you always seem to have a problem, I would suggest you change your hangouts, or have a good long look in a mirror.......🤔

I travel all over, trans.

 

and it's pretty much the same story wherever I go.

 

do you ever actually leave the house???

 

bob.

[Denim]

When you off to the Philippines Bob or has that been shelved.

 

How you getting on without beer ?

 

As for the topic, everything changes , nothing stays the same and the change is usually for the worse. Just too many people

 

A long time ago I accidently got stuck in Cairo for a few nights. So....I went to the Pyramids. Went inside the Great Pyramid and had the whole place to myself except for two kids going the other way. Saw a youtube tour of the place last night. Scores of people going in and out yacking their heads off. My outstanding memory of the kings chamber is the smell of stale piss.

 

Too many people traveling. Now I feel a Gamma Globin fit coming on :

 

 

 

[susanlea]

11 minutes ago, bob smith said:

..a friendly word of warning, this is going to be a long winded post. mods, before you close my thread please remember that these are my own experiences that I am posting about and that they are valid, even if they do not align with your own!

 

With that out of the way, let's get down to it.

 

When I first moved to thailand many, many moons ago, it was a vibrant place, full of happy go lucky people enjoying themselves. It was such a blessing to be here and I thoroughly enjoyed the first few years in (what was back then worthy of the name) the land of smiles.

 

I started to notice some big changes around 2013, especially with regards to peoples attitudes toward farang.

Then when the coup hit things slowly started going downhill.

 

Now the Thailand that I live in is unrecognizable to me.

everyone seems stressed, nobody is smiling and the locals seem to have zero patience for farangs in general.

 

Just today I was in a tourist ghetto meeting a friend of mine I haven't seen in a while.

I was sat at my table enjoying a nice cold beer when a hawker walked past and plonked her stuff on my table.

I politely said no thanks in english and smiled.

She persisted.

Then I said the same in Thai, to which she reacted angrily, and gave me the 'oiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii' and stormed off.

I did nothing wrong, other than said no thank you.

 

what has happened to the Thai people?

are they all stressed out because of money?

is it because their politics are a mess?

is it social media that is influencing how they feel about us?

It certainly is not the place that I remember when I first came here. It has now changed beyond almost all recognition. 

Most thais on the street completely avoid eye contact when they see a farang walking without their mask on.

some even cross over to the other side of the road, or at the least move as far away from them as possible.

 

my honest opinion is I think they are terrified of us.

a combination of negative media portrayals recently and the fact that farangs don't like to wear masks has shaped their current perception of us.

 

Pre 2013 I can count on one hand the amount of times I had a bad experience in Thailand,

now it is almost daily..

 

Also It seems that the economy is in dire straights. So many closed shops, roller shutters down, boarded up buildings etc. Once bustling areas of famous tourist spots now seem to be on their knees. Something just doesn't seem right.

 

How about you? do your experiences align with mine? if not, then do tell me where you are having positive encounters with locals because, as someone who travels around Thailand a lot, I would love to know where this utopia is.

 

bob.

 

 

Your one example means little. You live in Pattaya probably. Full of arrogant foreigners and drunks. 

[mikebike]

3 minutes ago, bob smith said:

and it's pretty much the same story wherever I go.

I think that was Trans' point. You have problems wherever you go. Not all of us do. My Thailand in 2024 is much better than when I arrived in '06...

[Hummin]

Don't you think all the tourists have paved the road themselves? 

 

Stupid, drunk, with no respect or politeness have paved their own road to disaster for themselves.

 

Not once I have seen you post anything positive about Thailand, except everything was better before, when everyone was happy, plenty of cheap young smiling ladies and cheap alchohol, as well wild west corrupt cheap visa agents, made life so much easier. 

 

Thailand becomes a modern country, and things happens fast, much faster than we experienced in Southern Europe.

 

Look at Spain now

[susanlea]

6 minutes ago, bob smith said:

I travel all over, trans.

 

and it's pretty much the same story wherever I go.

 

do you ever actually leave the house???

 

bob.

Sure you do. You sound like a drunk who rarely does much.

[John Drake]

I live in a part of Bangkok where I may not see another Westerner for six months or so. I've been here since 2010. The encounters I have with Thai people haven't changed at all. In fact, the more I learn to adapt, the better it gets, year after year.

[transam]

Just now, bob smith said:

I travel all over, trans.

 

and it's pretty much the same story wherever I go.

 

do you ever actually leave the house???

 

bob.

Indeed, I do, but I am one of those who generally has a happy face when I go out, a smile with eye contact..🤗

 

Though in the years I have been here, to me, it is the farangy's that have the problem, generally miserable, have a hi-so thing, no patience, I would suggest the locals may pick that up.  😏

 

[bob smith]

2 minutes ago, mikebike said:

I think that was Trans' point. You have problems wherever you go. Not all of us do. My Thailand in 2024 is much better than when I arrived in '06...

...better in what way?

 

bob.

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, Hummin said:

Not once I have seen you post anything positive about Thailand, except everything was better before, when everyone was happy, plenty of cheap young smiling ladies and cheap alchohol, as well wild west corrupt cheap visa agents, made life so much easier. 

are you trying to tell me that things weren't better back then??

 

bob.

Edited Friday at 09:18 AM by bob smith

[susanlea]

5 minutes ago, bob smith said:

are you trying to tell me that things weren't better back then??

 

bob.

You were 20 years younger. Getting old sucks. You changed not them.

[richard_smith237]

3 minutes ago, mikebike said:

I think that was Trans' point. You have problems wherever you go. Not all of us do. My Thailand in 2024 is much better than when I arrived in '06...

 

Bob seems to generalise based on his own issues...     

 

There's a touch of reality in some of the points he makes, Thailand has changed, every country has, its called progression, development etc... we have also changed, its called aging, maturing...   for the most of use here an element of 'rose tinted glasses' is replaced with realism... 

 

But... people such as Bob have issues with everything. 

 

In another recent thread (about registering a vehicle), Bob implied that authorities want to make such processes as difficult as possible for Foreigners, whereas others (myself included) found such processes incredibly simple. 

 

The crux of Bobs posts come down to attitude, it would appear that all of the issues bob encounters are completely self inflicted and he's also extremely thin-skinned to any perceived sleight by a Thai, while has the skin of a rhino when dealing with some of the flack he receives on this forum - quite the enigma is Bob... apperntly a complete train wreck, nevertheless an enigma, a likeable one.

 

 

[susanlea]

7 minutes ago, John Drake said:

live in a part of Bangkok where I may not see another Westerner for six months or so.

That's hard to do anywhere in Thailand. 6 months is a long time.

[save the frogs]

8 minutes ago, transam said:

have a hi-so thing,

a lot of westerners have a superiority complex 

the locals pick up on that

 

Edited Friday at 09:25 AM by save the frogs

[bob smith]

5 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thailand has changed, every country has, its called progression,

I wouldn't call in progression, richard.

 

More like regression.

 

Thailand could have progressed had they allowed the elected government to be in power, but in typical Thai fashion they fumbled it.

 

They seem to fumble everything!

 

bob.

Edited Friday at 09:30 AM by bob smith

[richard_smith237]

8 minutes ago, bob smith said:

are you trying to tell me that things weren't better back then??

 

bob.

 

The concept that Bob and others hold, suggesting that conditions are deteriorating, is termed 'Declinism' and represents a psychological bias.

 

This bias is closely related to 'loss aversion,' where individuals disproportionately focus on current negative aspects while their memory tends to filter out adverse experiences from the past—resulting in cognitive distortion.

 

In this example (Op), Bob exhibits a pronounced instance of cognitive distortion concerning the past while simultaneously emphasising a degree of declinism regarding the present.

 

 

The issue of course, in all of Bob's threads - he is simply unable to recognise this in himself. 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

4 minutes ago, bob smith said:

I wouldn't call in progression, richard.

 

More like regression.

 

Thailand could have progressed had they allowed the elected government to be in power, but in typical Thai fashion they fumbled it.

 

They seem to fumble everything!

 

bob.

 

There is a lot that has progressed....  Plenty that has not due to corruption etc, as highlighted. 

But, in focusing only on the negative, you have kneecapped your own ability to see the positive - hence the common negative theme in your threads. 

[save the frogs]

34 minutes ago, bob smith said:

my honest opinion is I think they are terrified of us.

but can other farangs tolerate you?

you have friends?

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

There is a lot that has progressed....  Plenty that has not due to corruption etc, as highlighted. 

But, in focusing only on the negative, you have kneecapped your own ability to see the positive - hence the common negative theme in your threads. 

Ok.

 

what are the positives of living in Thailand in 2024?

 

list them all.

 

bob.

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, save the frogs said:

but can other farangs tolerate you?

you have friends?

more than you.

 

bob.

[John Drake]

7 minutes ago, susanlea said:

That's hard to do anywhere in Thailand. 6 months is a long time.

 

I'm in the far Western suburbs. I walk around my area a lot, go to the local Foodland, Gourmet Market, and Taling Chan post office on a regular basis. I never see another Westerner in those places. Never. Go to Central Pinklao or the Eye, Ear, Nose, Throat Hospital regularly and never see any there either. Go into Petcharat Pharmacy near Siriraj Hospital and they are always stunned to see me there because no other Westerner comes in. Same thing for Thonburi Market, Don Wai Market, and my trips to the banks. 

[susanlea]

1 minute ago, John Drake said:

 

I'm in the far Western suburbs. I walk around my area a lot, go to the local Foodland, Gourmet Market, and Taling Chan post office on a regular basis. I never see another Westerner in those places. Never. Go to Central Pinklao or the Eye, Ear, Nose, Throat Hospital regularly and never see any there either. Go into Petcharat Pharmacy near Siriraj Hospital and they are always stunned to see me there because no other Westerner comes in. Same thing for Thonburi Market, Don Wai Market, and my trips to the banks. 

I went to Don Wai. 5 or 6 foreigners there.

[BritManToo]

6 minutes ago, bob smith said:

Ok.

 

what are the positives of living in Thailand in 2024?

 

list them all.

 

bob.

Affordable .....

Housing, restaurants, women, utilities, divorce.

Edited Friday at 09:43 AM by BritManToo

[bob smith]

2 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Affordable .....

Housing, restaurants, women, divorce.

we had all those pre covid, BMT.

 

bob.

[Hummin]

21 minutes ago, bob smith said:

are you trying to tell me that things weren't better back then??

 

bob.

Everything was better back then, because it was less than 5 millions foreign tourists visiting every year who did not ruin Thais experience of us as visitors. Cheap airline tickes and cheap Thai baht contributed to ruin Thailand.