You're not only not the only one, you are amongst the vast majority of the world who retire, and end up staying exactly where they've lived their entire lives, and doing exactly what they've done their entire lives. Which is getting up in the morning and eating, working watching TV in the evening, and then going to sleep, every single day of their life.

It's a very personal choice but some of us simply opt to have a far more interesting lifestyle.

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

It's a very personal choice but some of us simply opt to have a far more interesting lifestyle.

Please expand upon this statement: Why is your lifestyle more interesting than most people?

17 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Most here are actually those who have wives and girlfriends

Fred, do tell where did these most you talk about find there wives and girlfriends, from a cornflakes packet etc?

3 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Fred, do tell where did these most you talk about find there wives and girlfriends, from a cornflakes packet etc?

Online perhaps, or like I did, by coming to Thailand on a vacation. Some of us stayed away from the major tourist destinations and hit the country areas. Some came here to live cheaper and found them in the larger cities.

On 9/11/2026 at 8:47 AM, Alpha84 said:

Understatement of the year.

Georgieboy , I just heard that Elon Musk is gonna start doing one way trips to Mars . That would be just the place to retire to with no one to bother you up there.

If you are lucky like me you can split your time between your home country and overseas.I do have the advantage of a long term marriage to my Thai wife so I enjoy family in both countries.good luck and thrive!!

Pop a little yellow pill then head to Soi6 Patts or Soi4 Nana

It changes the way your looking at life

Ive been playing here since 98 still love the Sexy man banter

On 9/11/2026 at 8:37 AM, fredwiggy said:

Most here are actually those who have wives and girlfriends away from the bar scene. Tourists are the ones who come primarily for sex, and they usually stay in tourist areas. Those who do go for hookers think all men who come here do, which is far from true, as the sexpats are a small percentage of the total that come here to live

AI then one link which matches......

No, most expats in Thailand are not sexpats.

While Thailand has a well-known nightlife and sex industry that attracts a specific group of foreign visitors, it represents only a small slice of the overall foreign resident population.

Who Are the Expats in Thailand?

The foreign community in Thailand is large and varied. Most expats move to the country for standard lifestyle and economic reasons:

• Retirees: Older adults move to Thailand for its low cost of living, warm weather, and good healthcare. Many live quiet, peaceful lives in cities like Chiang Mai, Hua Hin, or smaller provincial towns.

• Professionals and Teachers: Thousands of foreigners work as English teachers, corporate managers, engineers, or diplomats in major hubs like Bangkok.

• Digital Nomads: A growing number of remote workers and entrepreneurs live in places like Chiang Mai and Bangkok to enjoy a modern lifestyle with lower expenses.

Where Does the Stereotype Come From?

Specific areas—such as Pattaya, parts of Phuket, and certain nightlife zones in Bangkok (like Nana Plaza or Soi Cowboy)—are famous global hubs for adult entertainment. Because these areas are loud, visible, and heavily discussed online, they create a strong stereotype..https://itsbetterinthailand.com/10-expat-types-youll-meet-thailand/

Thank you. It's too bad this reality needs to be repeated over and over again--and still never seems to stick. Easier to just go with the racier stereotype, I guess.

On 9/11/2026 at 5:29 AM, Woke to Sounds said:

Thailand's best days for farangs are in the rear view.

Should that be more accurately worded as "Pattaya's best days for farangs are in the rear view." ?

On 9/11/2026 at 12:22 AM, georgegeorgia said:

Am I the odd one out not wanting to retire from my job and permanently move overseas to Thailand/ Pattaya ?

Or heaven above to Cebu or Da Nang ?

Im working the night shift and I'm starting mopping floors , getting in exercises but i really thought about retiring this year ..but ..as they the many youtubers say " they are living the dream ' retired laying by the pool in Pattaya or hua him or wherever

I tried....the first 7 days were good ...but then... depression set inI cannot think of anything worse than going through a retirement in Thailand or overseas from Australia

Please guys , let me know if you are retired but decided against living in South East Asia full time and I the only one to think this way ?

I just couldn't do it ...I tried ...but renting out a condo in Pattaya and day after day doing nothing ..no no no !

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I have a medium sized house and garden here and do all my own gardening, decorating and DIY repairs (when possible). This makes it seem like there aren't enough hours in the day to keep on top of things. I do admit though to taking a couple of hours nap in the afternoon, but at 82 yoa, I consider it a necessity. Bored? Sounds like a luxury!

On 9/11/2026 at 12:22 AM, georgegeorgia said:

Am I the odd one out not wanting to retire from my job and permanently move overseas to Thailand/ Pattaya ?

Or heaven above to Cebu or Da Nang ?

Im working the night shift and I'm starting mopping floors , getting in exercises but i really thought about retiring this year ..but ..as they the many youtubers say " they are living the dream ' retired laying by the pool in Pattaya or hua him or wherever

I tried....the first 7 days were good ...but then... depression set inI cannot think of anything worse than going through a retirement in Thailand or overseas from Australia

Please guys , let me know if you are retired but decided against living in South East Asia full time and I the only one to think this way ?

I just couldn't do it ...I tried ...but renting out a condo in Pattaya and day after day doing nothing ..no no no !

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The challenge to retirement is not to retire.

I don't think that there is anyone who retired and did nothing in any country that survived.

You have to hve something to do that brings you satisfaction. NO sitting at the bar watching the girls and drinking beer or even pop all day is not a plan.

I came here, and due to medical issues, I was in the do-nothing, and it drove me to bad places and left me thinking. I got a job teaching not because I liked to teach, but it gave me something to do.

Retire in your home country and sit at home or go to the mall and have coffee with the old geezers it does not work

6 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Online perhaps, or like I did, by coming to Thailand on a vacation.

And why was Thailand a vacation destination for Mr Fred, what lured you here, was in the national parks, or maybe the water themed parks?

Come on Fred, be fair dinkum, why would a man who has never travelled abroad come to Thailand on vacation, then call it his home?

Edited Saturday at 05:07 AM1 day by SAFETY FIRST

2 minutes ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

And why was Thailand a vacation destination for Mr Fred, what lured you here, was in the national parks, or maybe the water themed parks?

Come on Fred, be fair dinkum, why would a man who has never travelled abroad come to Thailand on vacation, then call it his home?

Always liked Asian culture and food, and I wanted to see Kanchanaburi and the war history around there, The Bridge on the River Kwai a favorite movie, along with the 7 waterfalls of Erewan National Park along with visiting the Mekong River, so stayed there first, across from Laos,then met my ex who worked at the hotel I stayed at. Dinkum?

Edited Saturday at 05:17 AM1 day by fredwiggy

On 9/11/2026 at 3:37 AM, SAFETY FIRST said:

Being asexual, you are definitely in the minority.

Most here are sex tourists, only having travelled from their home country to Thailand looking for a sex worker.

Met my Thai wife in 1983, married her in 1990, retired with her to Thailand in 1993. The years spent with her since, between Bangkok and rural Rayong, have been the happiest of my life.

On 9/11/2026 at 12:22 AM, georgegeorgia said:

I tried....the first 7 days were good ...but then... depression set inI cannot think of anything worse than going through a retirement in Thailand or overseas from Australia

So don't.

Don't retire.

Don't visit Thailand for more than a week.

Simple.

No need to crowdsource the decision.

Just move to Coober Pedy and strike it rich.

1 hour ago, NoDisplayName said:

So don't.

Don't retire.

Don't visit Thailand for more than a week.

Simple.

No need to crowdsource the decision.

Just move to Coober Pedy and strike it rich.

No thanks I wouldn't move to a place where there are Opal miners who look like low class bogans with tattoos and swearing

If I was going to move it would be where other academics go such as Paris or Milan

23 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

No thanks I wouldn't move to a place where there are Opal miners who look like low class bogans with tattoos and swearing

If I was going to move it would be where other academics go such as Paris or Milan

Sorry, I know you have imprinted on the word academic but you are not an academic.

25 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

No thanks I wouldn't move to a place where there are Opal miners who look like low class bogans with tattoos and swearing

If I was going to move it would be where other academics go such as Paris or Milan

Ah yes, Cooper Pedy is clearly not suitable for you, mate. Far too many tatted bogans and not nearly enough visiting emeritus professors.

And why limit yourself to just Paris or Milan? With your obvious academic credentials, you should be considering Oxford, Cambridge, Zürich or Berlin. The sort of places where distinguished intellectuals gather to discuss important matters over expensive coffee.

Although I am slightly confused how someone destined for the intellectual elite of Europe ended up spending his entire working life pushing a mop around the mental institutions of Australia.

Perhaps that is how academia works these days?

Professor of Floor Studies, perhaps? Chair of Applied Mopping? Fellow of the International Institute of Dirty Water Management, no doubt.

I can already see the upcoming conference in Zürich, where you will be the guest speaker, followed by a TED Talk in Oxford.

“Ladies and gentlemen, today I shall present my groundbreaking research into the optimal technique for wringing a mop.”

A standing ovation, obviously.

The full house on their feet in uncontrolled applause.

13 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Fred, do tell where did these most you talk about find there wives and girlfriends, from a cornflakes packet etc?

Met my Thai spouse in the USA, and not at a bar.

3 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Always liked Asian culture and food, and I wanted to see Kanchanaburi and the war history around there, The Bridge on the River Kwai a favorite movie, along with the 7 waterfalls of Erewan National Park along with visiting the Mekong River, so stayed there first, across from Laos,then met my ex who worked at the hotel I stayed at. Dinkum?

You have me mixed up. The Mekong is nowhere near Kanchanaburi. Across the Mekong from Lao would be up in Isan, are you putting two stories together or am I just not getting it.

4 minutes ago, marin said:

You have me mixed up. The Mekong is nowhere near Kanchanaburi. Across the Mekong from Lao would be up in Isan, are you putting two stories together or am I just not getting it.

You are not getting it..read it again slowly.

2 hours ago, Thingamabob said:

Met my Thai wife in 1983, married her in 1990, retired with her to Thailand in 1993. The years spent with her since, between Bangkok and rural Rayong, have been the happiest of my life.

Wow, amazing story, thanks for sharing 😂

18 minutes ago, newnative said:

Met my Thai spouse in the USA, and not at a bar.

Oh, Fred was talking about you, I knew there was one of you out there 👍

Edited Saturday at 09:16 AM1 day by SAFETY FIRST

5 minutes ago, couchpotato said:

You are not getting it..read it again slowly.

Thanks got it, two places. But damn I would never construct a sentence like that.

Just now, marin said:

Thanks got it, two places. But damn I would never construct a sentence like that.

Me too...the things we have to put up with as an AN poster...🤣

35 minutes ago, marin said:

You have me mixed up. The Mekong is nowhere near Kanchanaburi. Across the Mekong from Lao would be up in Isan, are you putting two stories together or am I just not getting it.

No, I first went to Bueng Kan, right at the Mekong, then went to Kanchanaburi and Erewan by train, returned to Bueng Kan, and then went back home.

20 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

You're not only not the only one, you are amongst the vast majority of the world who retire, and end up staying exactly where they've lived their entire lives, and doing exactly what they've done their entire lives. Which is getting up in the morning and eating, working watching TV in the evening, and then going to sleep, every single day of their life.

It's a very personal choice but some of us simply opt to have a far more interesting lifestyle.

Do you realise you are trying to have a philosophical discussion about the meaning of life with a bloke who mops floors for a living?

Seriously, when was the last time you stopped and had a deep philosophical conversation with the bloke mopping the corridors in your condominium?

“Excuse me, mate, what do you think is the key to living a more interesting and fulfilling existence?”

I assume the usual extent of your interaction is more along the lines of “Hi” and a smile before you carry on walking.

So why does the fact that he is sitting behind a keyboard on the internet suddenly make him worthy of an intellectual seminar about retirement, lifestyle and the meaning of life?

He is still the bloke with the mop, mate. The internet hasn’t awarded him a PhD.

3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

No thanks I wouldn't move to a place where there are Opal miners who look like low class bogans with tattoos and swearing

And you're considering Pattaya?

Go figger.

15 hours ago, SAFETY FIRST said:

Oh, Fred was talking about you, I knew there was one of you out there 👍

Far more than one, but most of us are also far away from the tourist areas, which get all the publicity, and are, umm, tourist areas, mostly filled with tourists, not full-time residents. We're mostly out of sight, mostly elsewhere, and mostly, in quite large numbers, not doing anything at 2am in the morning that will result in lurid headlines.

Seeing this has proved to be true at four of the five housing projects I have lived at outside of Pattaya--the fifth was majority Thai families, with a few foreign families. At the four projects, there was a mix of male foreigners with either foreign or Thai spouses and also a good number of foreign families. We've had a Dutch retired couple as neighbors, as well as an American with a Thai wife--she ran a dental practice. We've also been neighbors with another foreigner/Thai couple, she owned a small bakery shop.

I think the number of foreign families was a surprise for me. We have had neighbors with children from Dubai, India, China, and Israel. We sold one of our houses to a Russian family with children, and there have been several other Russian families we have met. Why Pattaya? We asked one young Chinese family down the street from us that question and it was because of their small children--they wanted a better education for them. Overlooked in all the nightlife publicity that Pattaya gets is the fact that it has something like twenty international schools--a nice, new one opened this year--and many good neighborhoods and housing projects, especially on the Darkside, to choose from.