45 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

You spend a lot of effort asking for advice then when it's given you either dismiss it or insult members by saying they're lonely, too old or living in tight quarters, while not knowing what any members here do or how they live. Members here aren't broke either, and are living quite comfortably from their retirements or pensions. You're already in the exclusive assuming members club, so instead of putting other members down, if you want advice treat them better.

In reality, I think most of what you wrote is quite accurate. I’m not sure all members here are living quite as comfortably as you suggest. Some appear to be living off a small savings or fixed pensions and with tight budgets, but I think many are comfortable too, based on what I’ve read.

Ever since Covid ended, I’ve spent my time split between three to four different countries per year. From what I’ve read from others on the forum, I think quite a few have a similar lifestyle, or are at least based in Thailand and make a couple of trips abroad each year.

And these rundown condos in Pattaya that he describes in nearly all of his posts, filled with poor, lonely, drunken foreign fools, are places I never even knew existed until he started posting about them. His descriptions sound largely fictional to me, and I haven’t even been to Pattaya myself in many years. The point is, it sounds like Pattaya is very much his world, but not everybody else’s.

So, if anything, he travels to Pattaya far more often than most of the members on the site, except for a handful that do live there full time. The best estimate I can make about his travels in general is that he goes to Pattaya about two or three times a year for roughly two weeks at a time, and doesn’t really go anywhere else in the world. I think the only other place he may have travelled to outside Australia was Manila in the Philippines, once. That’s about it.

The rest of the time, he’s in Australia, pushing a mop around and complaining on AN about the miserable lives of all the lonely, depressed foreigners living in Thailand. It seems the only person he’s really accurately describing is himself.

And on his last trip to Pattaya, apparently he became quite depressed after a week, started drinking heavily, went to see a psychiatrist, and then went running back to Australia. That also doesn’t sound much different from his descriptions of previous trips to Pattaya. They all seem to end with him making a dramatic rant on AN after his visit about how depressing or unsatisfactory his trip to Thailand was.

I’m assuming that all of his posts are just windups designed to draw people in and that there’s very little truth to any of them. Realistically, who would keep visiting the same place over and over again and constantly talk about retiring there if they had such a bad experience every time they visited? Presumably, he has a boyfriend or multiple male partners down there that he returns to spend time with and that's why he goes. He’s just trolling. He does quite well at it, though.

I say that because I look at all the serious responses he gets and all the time he manages to waste of other people who accept his antics as truth and then take their time to give him serious advice in return. I think he gets a real big giggle out of it all, and frankly, watching all the people who take the bait of his supposed misery so seriously, so do I.

18 minutes ago, phetphet said:

Too much hassle packing and unpacking one's life all the time, planning, visas, banking etc. That's a young man's game.

Spending 3 months at a time in a fully furnished, short-term rental is not as much work as you think. If the place is fully equipped, you can pretty much travel with one large suitcase, get the rest of what you need on Amazon once you're there, and that's about it. Long flights are always exhausting, but if you're going to spend a few months at a time once you arrive in a place, then you have plenty of time to recover after you get settled.

11 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Or base yourself in Bangkok.

There is more to do there than beach towns and it's easier to fly out of the country.

The trouble is the heat and pollution in Bangkok for any long term stay.

Maybe a beach town near Bangkok might be a better option. At least for some. Or one of the bigger islands with international flights (Phuket, Samui). These offer some international destinations, plus a short flight to BKK for both breaks or onward travel. Each to their own I suppose.

IMHO. For all its faults, there isn't anywhere else in Asia that comes close to Thailand as a whole package. Some places might have better this, or better that, but average it all up and Thailand wins...At least for me.

22 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Or base yourself in Bangkok.

There is more to do there than beach towns and it's easier to fly out of the country.

like what? shopping malls?

10 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

This digital nomad thing ..

It does seem a bit hard and boring looking at it more

Now you are talking. Being that you cant even go to Pattaya for a month and have a good time it is time to rethink what you want to do. Perhaps going out to international dinners in Sydney once a week might suffice.

10 minutes ago, phetphet said:

The trouble is the heat and pollution in Bangkok for any long term stay.

The heat is a problem, agreed, but all of Thailand has a heat problem. During the hot season Chiang Mai is often even 1-2 degrees hotter than Bangkok. Surprising, but true.

Not sure which pollution you're referring to, but if you're talking about air pollution, Bangkok hasn't been very high in recent years. Last winter, which is normally the worst time of the year for air pollution in Bangkok, there were only a few bad days. Not bad at all. And the rest of the year the PM2.5 is quite low.

But in general Bangkok can get old quickly. And so can much of Thailand, even though it's still so great in many ways. The key is to not spend too much time in one country, if you can manage it.

2 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

No I don't especially at my mature aged however it's not too late to learn

I was thinking of getting paid to write in forums ,is there such a job ?

Goin by the rubish you post here,you would go broke after 2 weeks. No one would pay to read your non stop crap.

3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

Yes beautiful reply and thanks

I started to get jealousy at a member here Simon who travels and works in different places leading an exciting life whilst many of you live in 21sqm condo in Pattaya with no balcony

I don't want to lead that life stuck in a dark mouldy room condo

I want to lead the same life I see if digital nomads on YouTube

6 months in Manila, 6 months in Bangkok, 6 months in Hanoi

I'm going to buy a laptop later this month

Ar least I will be living my life unlike you old broke drunken fools living in your shoebox in the Flybird condo in Pattaya

Oh yes I didn't do a "patrol " of the floors last time I was there because the dark corridors are depressing .

I feel sorry for the whole lot of you !!!

Stuck in one place

We all make our choices in life some people are quite content staying in one place and other people feel the need to move around. What is truly sad is somebody who sits in a rather pathetic state of judgment of other folks who are living a life that is different than their own. Many of whom are quite content with their lifestyle. I absolutely love traveling but I also cherish the time that I get to spend at home.

Perhaps live and let live comes to mind?

Take it offline and become a sea gypsy

"I started to get jealousy at a member here Simon who travels and works in different places leading an exciting life..."

Well, if you're referring to me, then it's not actually that simple. Yes, I move around a lot in south-east Asia, but that is partly-due to not having a long-term (retirement) visa. It's also partly due to not being liable to pay tax in that country, because I'm there for less than 180 days. (In 26 years, I have never been liable to pay personal tax in any jurisdiction - 5 flags theory). I also move regulary between Myanmar and nearby countries, because of my charity work in Myanmar, but I really don't think most people would be happy living in Myanmar - it has a few issues!!

3 hours ago, phetphet said:

The trouble is the heat and pollution in Bangkok for any long term stay.

Maybe a beac

IMHO. For all its faults, there isn't anywhere else in Asia that comes close to Thailand as a whole package. Some places might have better this, or better that,

You never been to the Philippines?

More beautiful islands than Thailand

More different cultures on every island

2 minutes ago, georgegeorgia said:

More different cultures on every island

I would appreciate it if you could go into more detail and relate your experiences, Sounds very interesting, What are a few islands you personally recommend and why?

4 minutes ago, marin said:

I would appreciate it if you could go into more detail and relate your experiences, Sounds very interesting, What are a few islands you personally recommend and why?

Well I have been to Cebu a few years ago and there's was many many expats living there ,

American expats actually love the Philippines far more than Thailand

whilst I havent been to Boracay or Siargo I heard they have blue crystal clear water there and many nice Filipino community

Edited 19 hours ago19 hr by georgegeorgia

Just now, georgegeorgia said:

Well I have been to Cebu a few years ago and there's was many many expats living there , whilst I havent been to Boracay or Siargo I heard they have blue crystal clear water

Yes but how are they different culturally as you said every island has a different culture?

1 minute ago, marin said:

Yes but how are they different culturally as you said every island has a different culture?

Yes ...when I went to Cebu some of the Filipino people looked different from the Manila community

They looked like "Pacific Islander" big large Hawaiian look some of them

I was shocked

Perhaps you were a lawyer ?

Edited 19 hours ago19 hr by georgegeorgia

I'd like to join you ..... just have to check with my Thai wife first !

Well OP, if you relocate and go roaming, then don't forget your plastic hard hat, pen and clipboard, high-vis jacket, and documentation skills so you can get back to us with a full report.

The far south and far north of Thailand are the most interesting and diverse parts of the country. In between it becomes more of the same jar of salt.

2 minutes ago, khaosokman said:

The far south and far north of Thailand are the most interesting and diverse parts of the country. In between it becomes more of the same jar of salt.

Interesting thoughts. I for one would not agree Rocky. Welcome back

3 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

You never been to the Philippines?

More beautiful islands than Thailand

More different cultures on every island

i have been to the Philippines. Travelled to many islands for diving, and indeed some fantastic beaches. . But as I said some places have some thing better than Thailand, some worse. I found Philippine food to be a real let down.

8 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Moving for tax purposes or boredom makes sense, a pain if renting though, always moving stuff, if you own at least one that would make it easier

You are correct here for sure. I was fortunate to have a job where I moved from country to country every couple of years, did 5 countries in Europe, 7 in Asia, a couple in Africa and one in Central America. All that moving every couple of years did get old though so I retired and moved here as i was already familiar with the country/food/people and with my Thai family did visit quite a few spaces but lived 10 years in BKK and moved to CM. To me this is still a paradise and I do not miss that having to pack up everything and take off to parts unknown. I enjoyed every country that I lived/worked in except those African as one was still quasi-war and the other was swamped with disease. Both lacked adequate foods so my government also provided regular food shipments. Still interesting but glad to spend less time in those places. Don't miss all those around-the-world air flights with family to visit the homeland every year either (for the Asian assignments).

Im nomading around for the next year or so, its fun.