Think I need 60,000 pounds (2,500,000bht) in a bank to take my wife to the UK. The wives of white men aren't allowed.

46 minutes ago, Gottfrid said:

Suddenly you also think you can´t return to UK with your wife. As far as I know, most Thais are Buddhists. Already, 2011 it was living close to 38 000 Thais in UK, and 72% of them were women. Probably all non-Buddhists, right? No, the thing is that your wife does like you. She refuses to move to UK, as that would force her to integrate with another society. She is thinking before and know what is expected of her if she would move. That makes her a little bit smarter.

Edited July 23Jul 23 by BritManToo

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

Think I need 60,000 pounds (2,500,000bht) in a bank to take my wife to the UK. The wives of white men aren't allowed.

Actually it's now £88,500 in savings, thanks to the Tories. Or a salary of £29,000 per year.

First arrived in Thailand 60 years ago. Happily married to a Thai lady for 35 years. Retired to Thailand In 1993. I speak Thai well enough for most situations, but I cannot write Thai. Now 85 that's as far integrated as I am ever going to be. Thais are not generally impressed, and many are uneasy, by foreigners trying to ape them.

2 hours ago, cdemundo said:

I'll bet the "certain nationality" is Brits right?

Everybody hates Brits.

Anyway, nobody on AN has a hate fixation on any other nationality.

No, not Brits. Read recent news about Phangan and it's easy to know what nationality is causing a lot of local resentment...

Foreigners have already colonized Thailand.

Should foreigners try to integrate into or change Thai culture?

Should they attempt to integrate? Absolutely. Change Thai culture? Absolutely NOT.

1 hour ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Actually it's now £88,500 in savings, thanks to the Tories. Or a salary of £29,000 per year.

Put her on a boat in Calais and have her claim asylum when she reaches Dover. Say she's a member of the Move Forward Party.

16 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I don't want to change the Thai government, claim Thai benefits, or turn Thailand into the UK, or kill the locals.

I just want to be left alone and spend my money on my family.

Ditto. I used to integrate into the community, even spending a couple of Rain Retreats as a Buddhist monk. The villagers know me. But now in my mid 70s, like you, I just want to be left alone to live my life out with family. Wife is 8 years younger than me so hopefully she'll outlive me.

No.

We are not ever accepted as Thai, I don't care how great your language skills are you are still Farang. No different in other Asian nations. Gweilo, Gaijin, Farang....

I assume all the posters on here who spit blood and feathers about "foreigners" in the UK and the US (with their filthy heathen ways) are all Thai/Isaan speakers and are fully integrated into Thai culture?

9 minutes ago, MIke B Bad said:

I assume all the posters on here who spit blood and feathers about "foreigners" in the UK and the US (with their filthy heathen ways) are all Thai/Isaan speakers and are fully integrated into Thai culture?

Well I am :) Studied Thai Culture at Chula up to MA level, speak/read/write Thai, understand Issan, speak/read/write Lao :) But I'm not a 'gone-local, Thais-can-do-no-wrong' foreigner. I just made an effort to be part of the local community :) And that's maybe why I spit blood and feathers about 'foreigners' in the UK who fail to integrate. That includes those from different cultures and religions. 'Diversity is our Strength' is total <deleted>! Strength is gained through everyone being on the same hymn sheet....

Edited July 23Jul 23 by simon43

An ignorant though recurring question. Unwittingly a good demonstration of the need to educate yourself about what culture is and how culture works. Read baby read! Learn baby learn!

1 minute ago, simon43 said:

Well I am :) Studied Thai Culture at Chula up to MA level, speak/read/write Thai, understand Issan, speak/read/write Lao :) But I'm not a 'gone-local, Thais-can-do-no-wrong' foreigner. I just made an effort to be part of the local community :)

That is impressive....and I'm exceedingly jealous of anyone who can speak more than one language.

Whilst I have taught Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology to 'A' level and have lived abroad in non-English speaking countries for 30 years.........I can still only just manage English.

My wife, who was taken out of education at 10 to work, speaks five languages.......how embarrassing is that?

You should try to fit in. Terrible idea to even think of trying to change the culture.

1 hour ago, MIke B Bad said:

That is impressive....and I'm exceedingly jealous of anyone who can speak more than one language.

Whilst I have taught Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology to 'A' level and have lived abroad in non-English speaking countries for 30 years.........I can still only just manage English.

My wife, who was taken out of education at 10 to work, speaks five languages.......how embarrassing is that?

TBH, I do think the ability to learn languages is a genetic thing - for some it takes a lot of effort and for others it's not so hard. I speak/read/write English, Thai, French, Lao and Burmese (with Burmese being my 5th language in terms of ability!). MY father was a languages professor and could speak about 10 languages :)

1 hour ago, xenophon said:

An ignorant though recurring question. Unwittingly a good demonstration of the need to educate yourself about what culture is and how culture works. Read baby read! Learn baby learn!

Your comment only demonstrates your own ignorance. Please try posting something more useful to this thread, not an off-the-cuff comment :)

18 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

You should try to fit in. Terrible idea to even think of trying to change the culture.

It's probably one of the reasons they don't give permanent residency to foreigners easily. Foreigners might start meddling too much in the culture.

19 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Not for me. It's not a culture I'm particularly fond of. I put up with it living here, but it drives me crazy sometimes. My British son (born here) is fully integrated and it's my job to make sure he doesn't lose his "Britishness"!

Guess you save a lot on the water bill. A shower every three weeks instead of three times a day.

4 hours ago, simon43 said:

No, not Brits. Read recent news about Phangan and it's easy to know what nationality is causing a lot of local resentment...

Its not Just Indians though, groups of middle aged men get rowdy where ever they are from

7 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

I've seen hate for Indians, Russians, Brits, Americans, Jews, Aussies, Germans, Swiss, and a couple of others. Why I'll never understand besides knowing it's learned at home. Prejudice has no place in society and is why we have so many problems. Accepting that everyone is an equal unless they prove otherwise to be inferior. By actions and not nationality, creed or race.

7 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

I've seen hate for Indians, Russians, Brits, Americans, Jews, Aussies, Germans, Swiss, and a couple of others. Why I'll never understand besides knowing it's learned at home. Prejudice has no place in society and is why we have so many problems. Accepting that everyone is an equal unless they prove otherwise to be inferior. By actions and not nationality, creed or race.

7 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

I've seen hate for Indians, Russians, Brits, Americans, Jews, Aussies, Germans, Swiss, and a couple of others. Why I'll never understand besides knowing it's learned at home. Prejudice has no place in society and is why we have so many problems. Accepting that everyone is an equal unless they prove otherwise to be inferior. By actions and not nationality, creed or race.

I used to think the same, then I watched Argentina in the world cup.

52 minutes ago, simon43 said:

TBH, I do think the ability to learn languages is a genetic thing - for some it takes a lot of effort and for others it's not so hard. I speak/read/write English, Thai, French, Lao and Burmese (with Burmese being my 5th language in terms of ability!). MY father was a languages professor and could speak about 10 languages :)

That is annoying....joking......it took my wife two weeks to to teach me how to say stupid in Thai (? or Isaan).........I can't hear too much now sadly. Profoundly deaf in one ear and 30dB down in the 'good' one.

2 hours ago, MIke B Bad said:

That is impressive....and I'm exceedingly jealous of anyone who can speak more than one language.

Whilst I have taught Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology to 'A' level and have lived abroad in non-English speaking countries for 30 years.........I can still only just manage English.

My wife, who was taken out of education at 10 to work, speaks five languages.......how embarrassing is that?

This is in good faith.

As an obviously western educated male how much does the education and cultural gap in your primary relationship affect your lifr? Do you ever even watch the same movie together for example?

5 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Actually it's now £88,500 in savings, thanks to the Tories. Or a salary of £29,000 per year.

Thank God.
A significant % are gold diggers who, after they secure their liucrative divorce, stay to leech off the UK state.
I say give them rolling 1 year visas with 3 montly check ins like u lot are on.

Just now, sidjameson said:

This is in good faith.

As an obviously western educated male how much does the education and cultural gap in your primary relationship affect your lifr? Do you ever even watch the same movie together for example?

No probs.

We are both easy going, relaxed individuals and basically just get on with life.

My wife has a sugar plantation, restaurant and bar, so that keeps her busy.......she also has a large house and garden, so that tends to keep me busy. We travel quite a lot and regularly do house sits here and the UK......... life is busy.

Although totally uneducated*, my wife is intelligent......sounds a contradiction in terms, but she is a sharp cookie. Everything she owns, farm, house, land etc is all hers bought with her money (we lived and worked in Germany....me for 25 years, her for 14)

She is 40 and still has to show her ID occasionally in bars....555...... I'm 70, we've been married for 20 years after spending three days together!!!!!!....and have hardly spent three days apart since.

TV.......We do watch a few SK soaps together......dubbed in Thai with Eng subs.....we used to watch UK soaps as well, but that seems to have gone by the wayside.

Not sure why I wrote all this.....I guess........we are on a sit in BKK at the moment, it is absolutely chucking down and I have time on my hands.....555

* I have learned not to try and educate her......she does not like that, but her 'ignorance' is staggering and yet fascinating.

4 hours ago, connda said:

Should foreigners try to integrate into or change Thai culture?
Should they attempt to integrate? Absolutely. Change Thai culture? Absolutely NOT.

Because it's so perfect right???

7 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Prejudice has no place in society and is why we have so many problems. Accepting that everyone is an equal unless they prove otherwise.

Screw that, stereotypes exist for a reason.
Why do boomers swallow this virtue signalling hippy dippy bull <deleted> so w/easily?

ASSuming eVerYonE is eQuaL and the same will get you killed (eg. Thai driving culture as one of millions of examples).
Complete <deleted> yet no one questions it.

6 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

Cheers. However, it's not unbearable at all. I've loved living here (since 2005); I just don't feel the need to integrate.

Nor should you if the intent is not to become a Thai national. Your critics ignore an undeniable reality: No matter how much a farang tries to integrate and assimilate, the farang will almost always be excluded and treated as an outsider. Visible differences such as skin pigment are exclusionary. One need only look at how the ethnic Indians are treated despite being born in Thailand and speaking the language for generations. White people can never be Thai, no matter how much they try. There are a few people who are grudgingly accepted, but they have money. Retired Willy Carstedt from Malmo who speaks Thai, lived here for decades and has a Thai spouse will always be treated as a farang. The Thais will smile and be nice, but he can never be Thai.

7 minutes ago, Tourist2 said:

Thank God.
A significant % are gold diggers who, after they secure their liucrative divorce, stay to leech off the UK state.
I say give them rolling 1 year visas with 3 montly check ins like u lot are on.

The Leave to Remain process does take a number of years to complete, Starmer's government proposed making it even longer. There are costs at each stage, as well as increasing levels of difficulty for the English language tests, and the 'Life in the UK' culture test.

Edited July 23Jul 23 by brewsterbudgen

2 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

The Leave to Remain process does take a number of years to complete, Starmer's government proposed making it even longer. There are costs at each stage, as well as increasing levels of difficulty for the English language tests, and the 'Life in the UK' culture test.

I say give them rolling 1 year visas with 3 montly check ins like u lot are on.

What's good for the goose is good for the gander

.

Edited July 23Jul 23 by Tourist2

35 minutes ago, Tourist2 said:

Because it's so perfect right???

Screw that, stereotypes exist for a reason.
Why do boomers swallow this virtue signalling hippy dippy bull <deleted> so w/easily?

ASSuming eVerYonE is eQuaL and the same will get you killed (eg. Thai driving culture as one of millions of examples).
Complete <deleted> yet no one questions it.

This explains it rather well.................Stereotype is a pervasive and persistent human tendency that stems from a basic cognitive need to categorize, simplify, and process the complex world. This tendency is a precondition for social bias, prejudice, and discrimination.

Everyone is equal as far as the value of a human being. People separate themselves into categories when they wrong others.

1 hour ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Its not Just Indians though, groups of middle aged men get rowdy where ever they are from

Hi Nick, I can see exactly what you're doing with your deflection tactics :) I have no personal axe to grind against any one nationality, but you'd be amazed at the antics of this one nationality, (I recognise their language). Going into 7/11 shops 1km from the beach wearing just a thong bikini - that's a daily occurance, and the 7/11 staff (and I) totally gobsmacked at this arrogance. Come and visit and chat to the locals - good perhaps that these foreigners don't understand what the 7/11 staff are saying, but 'garee' is a regular word :)