A Retired American Moving To Thailand

[luckywinth]

I have known an American older man, 63 yo. Currently, he is living in the states. He would like to move to Thailand due to the low living-cost. The problem is he does not know any Thai and has never lived in the country before, although he came for visiting about 3-4 times. Would this be possible for him? Another thing I would like to ask, is there any foreign community in BKK or nearby? I would appreciate all of your kind suggestions. Thank you.

[popshirt]

I have known an American older man, 63 yo. Currently, he is living in the states. He would like to move to Thailand due to the low living-cost. The problem is he does not know any Thai and has never lived in the country before, although he came for visiting about 3-4 times. Would this be possible for him? Another thing I would like to ask, is there any foreign community in BKK or nearby? I would appreciate all of your kind suggestions. Thank you.

Well for one thing Thailand is not as inexpensive as some people think. Prices have risen and are rising all the time. Also if your friend is retiring on a pension or investments based on the US dollar, he may be in for an unpleasant surprise when he converts his currency. The US dollar has gone done the proverbial toilet and may falll even more.

[ProThaiExpat]

I was in a very similar situation six years ago and solved the language problem by hooking up with a love interest that speaks passable English and is usually with me for interpreting purposes. The danger here, however, is that many who speak passable English are "professionals". Your friend could learn Thai if he has a good ear for tones. I speak three foreign languages and have a "parrots" facility to copy sounds, but Thai is beyond me.

I recently scanned grocery adds from U.S. newspapers to compare fresh foodstuffs and found prices here in Thailand are about 25% cheaper now. They were 50% cheaper six years ago, however, the devaluation of the dollar is a major factor in long term retirement planning.

Suggest to your friend that he should use a 25 Baht to the dollar conversion rate for his retirement financial planning.

[PeaceBlondie]

To what ProThaiExpat has already suggested, I would add that your friend does not need to live in Bangkok. Other possibilities include Chiang Mai, Pattaya, perhaps Khon Kaen, Hua Hin, Phuket. Lots of expat communities in Thailand.

[Scott]

As he is retiring, he should certainly go ahead and make the leap, but with a little planning and some forethought. First of all, rent, don't buy. Secondly, don't enter into any long term leases etc. Find a place that has easy access to what you want and have a look at the whole country.

If, after a time, he likes it; he can settle in. If he doesn't, he can move on.

Had a good (much older friend) who was planning to retire in the Philippines. He was on the plane, met some people headed to Bangkok, via Manila, and they talked him into coming along. He did, and spent the last 40 years of his life here. He had been to the Philippines numerous times, never been to Thailand, but one visit and he was hooked!

[luckywinth]

Thankyou very much for all of your kind suggestions. It seems impossible that an american who does not speak Thai at all can live in Thailand. However, I am still concerned about his safety living there. Honestly, I am Thai so I know so much about how we percieve westerners regarding to their financial status ( although most of the time, it 's not like what we think and my firend is not wealthy at all). I have heard from other website saying that it's quite dangerous for westerners. There are a lot of nasty people that want to take advantage from foreigners. If you dont mind, could you share your experiences about this topic please? What you encountered with and how you get away from the situations? thank you so much

[ProThaiExpat]

Anywhere in the world, when you put yourself in a dangerous place, bad things happen, Thailand is no exception.

I am quite surprised at the concern expressed by OP as there are so many falang living in Thailand and very few incidents of harm coming to them that are reported. Especially those living in villages and are well liked by their neighbors.

Trying to get home drunk from a BKK or Pattaya bar at 3:00am is another thing entirely.

[PeaceBlondie]

Thankyou very much for all of your kind suggestions. It seems impossible that an american who does not speak Thai at all can live in Thailand. However, I am still concerned about his safety living there. Honestly, I am Thai so I know so much about how we percieve westerners regarding to their financial status ( although most of the time, it 's not like what we think and my firend is not wealthy at all). I have heard from other website saying that it's quite dangerous for westerners. There are a lot of nasty people that want to take advantage from foreigners. If you dont mind, could you share your experiences about this topic please? What you encountered with and how you get away from the situations? thank you so much

luckywith, I am confused. You are Thai, and you think that Thailand is dangerous for westerners? And, you think that a person can not survive here without speaking Thai? I'll be the first to say it's difficult to live here without speaking Thai, but thousands of us straight and gay farang do it every day, year after year.

If you mean, that some Thai gay men will take financial advantage of a gay farang, maybe you are right. Of course, some straight Thai women take financial advantage of straight farang, don't they? And if a straight western lady with many millions came to Thailand, wouldn't there be a lineup at the arrival gate at Suvanabhumi of straight Thai men wanting to be her companion?

If Warren Buffet is looking for a mature White boyfriend for his final years, for a million dollars per month, give him my mobile number. I'm not saying I'm for sale, but maybe I have a price.

A friend of mine came to Thailand, still doesn't speak Thai, and never will. So far, he has outlived both of his middle-aged boyfriends who lived with him for many years, and he's looking for another. I never heard him say they stole a satang from him. My boyfriend just got a 1200 watt stereo system....from his sisters. Hasn't cost me one baht.

Tell your farang friend, "forewarned is forearmed." It means if he's careful and good friends advise him correctly, he should be fine here. If he wants a number of how much he needs to have to live here comfortably and safely, tell him his pension (at 25 baht to the US dollar) needs to exceed 85,000 baht per month. This year they'll let him in for 65K per month, but he needs a cushion.

I don't need to share too many of my own personal experiences, but you can advise your friend to act like a poor boy. Teach him his first Thai phrase, "Mai mee tang."

[luckywinth]

Thank you again....I realize that everywhere in the world can be dangerous. howeveer, the thing is local people always know where to go or not go and what to do or not do. Yet, my friend doesnt know as much, so I am over concerned about his safety.

Peaceblondie,

I used to think that Thailand is safe for foriegners but as i mentioned before that there was a forum at pantip.com where people shared their experiences regarding to this topic. And I was surprised that there were so many cases that happened even during the day in the downtown Bangkok like Silom road. I sure dont want this thing to happen to my friend, yet I can not accompany him all day long. That is the reason why i wasnt sure if it is a good idea for him to live in Thailand. However, I am not worrying about someone is going to take money from him that way. What I meant was if there is a poor man deciding to commit a crime by robbing someone and if there are two people, a farang and a thai walking down the street, i would think that he will choose the farang not the thai, although the thai might have more money in his wallet.

[popshirt]

I used to think that Thailand is safe for foriegners but as i mentioned before that there was a forum at pantip.com where people shared their experiences regarding to this topic. And I was surprised that there were so many cases that happened even during the day in the downtown Bangkok like Silom road. I sure dont want this thing to happen to my friend, yet I can not accompany him all day long. That is the reason why i wasnt sure if it is a good idea for him to live in Thailand. However, I am not worrying about someone is going to take money from him that way. What I meant was if there is a poor man deciding to commit a crime by robbing someone and if there are two people, a farang and a thai walking down the street, i would think that he will choose the farang not the thai, although the thai might have more money in his wallet.

With all respect, I believe you are thinking too much.

[cm-happy]

edited, changed mind about replying

Edited November 15, 2007 by cm-happy

[paulsmithson]

your friend had far more chance of being mugged any where I know than here! The majority of Thai are poor yet honest people. Just avoid the red light areas. That advice is valid all over the world.Red light means danger!

[Scott]

One of the nice things about Thailand is that in spite of the dnager, there are usually plenty of Thai folks to help you out--both strangers and friends. In the case of your friend, it might be wise to hook him up with a small "social circle" of people who can help him to adjust to the situation here.

I seldom go out drinking anymore, but some years back, I used to like to go out on the town on my own. I always knew I was going to end up getting pretty drunk and could find myself in an akward or dangerous situation (not because of Thailand, but because of the way I can be). I would go down to one of the go-go bars where I knew the owner/manager and have him pick out a nice bar-boy to go with me for the night. He usually picked out someone older and wiser (and usually not quite so handsome) to babysit me. It worked out quite well. It's nice to have a young man leading you around.

There are lots of ways of helping to protect your friend. He's an old guy and he's made it this far. In some ways you sound typical Thai--very over-cautious about your friend. There are a lot of people like you and that is how Westerners make it here. More nice people trying to help than bad people trying to hurt.

With friends like you, he's got it made!

[farang prince]

I have known an American older man, 63 yo. Currently, he is living in the states. He would like to move to Thailand due to the low living-cost. The problem is he does not know any Thai and has never lived in the country before, although he came for visiting about 3-4 times. Would this be possible for him? Another thing I would like to ask, is there any foreign community in BKK or nearby? I would appreciate all of your kind suggestions. Thank you.

Your American friend is so fortunate to have someone like you involved in his life, Luckywinth. Perhaps it would be logical for him to come to Thailand and stay for three months. That will give him a pretty good feel for the LOS and it will also give you a pretty good idea of whether he is "safe" on his own.

I'm 60-years-old and I've never really felt unsafe in any area of Bangkok...but then again I'm a retired cop and also a retired U.S. Army First Sergeant. Still, I am always aware of my environment while I'm out on the streets of Bkk and the more I have to drink, the more aware I become. You and your friend will never know if Thailand is the place for him until he comes here for a long stay. So have him buy his tickets, leave most of his credit cards at home, and come on over to the LOS for an adventure of a lifetime.

[Scott]

Yes, in general BKK is safe, however, where I live there are some very unsafe areas. We've had a couple of people beaten quite badly. These were robberies and basically they got nothing--a mostly empty bag with 20 baht in change, in one case. In return, the victim got 3 months in hospital, a crushed skull and a years worth of plastic surgery to fix his disfigured face. He was beaten with a brick.

The trick is, if you live in the outer portions of the city or the suburban/industrial areas, keep your eyes open and stay on the main roads. Bad stuff happens when you get a ways down some of the sois. But most of these places don't even look interesting, unless you live down them, you wouldn't be walking there generally.

I think the OP is talking in part about incidents and situations like this. Please remember they are rather rare.

[Tyke]

To what ProThaiExpat has already suggested, I would add that your friend does not need to live in Bangkok. Other possibilities include Chiang Mai, Pattaya, perhaps Khon Kaen, Hua Hin, Phuket. Lots of expat communities in Thailand.

I would agree - if the guy is into expat soicial groups, although I can't for the sake of me think why, he would be much better off outside Bangkok. Chiang Mai is great for that - don't know about other places though.

[Tyke]

I might add that there is a web site especially catering for retirees planning to live in Thailand on a budget at:

Retire on 550 a month

[PeaceBlondie]

I might add that there is a web site especially catering for retirees planning to live in Thailand on a budget at:

Retire on 550 a month

And that website was the subject of a very long, heated discussion in the Chiang Mai Forum of ThaiVisa this year, with the majority of us who live in amphur muang agreeing that you just cannot live here for that price. Also, during that prior discussion on ThaiVisa, it was claimed (with what looked like ample evidence), that that website was a commercial site that provides services including some questionable connections to paid sex.

[thaipete]

To what ProThaiExpat has already suggested, I would add that your friend does not need to live in Bangkok. Other possibilities include Chiang Mai, Pattaya, perhaps Khon Kaen, Hua Hin, Phuket. Lots of expat communities in Thailand.

Well agreed and usually up country markets are much cheaper than supermarkets and big cities, buy a couple of cd's and books on the Thai language plus a partner who speaks English and the basics of the language will soon come

[thaipete]

I have known an American older man, 63 yo. Currently, he is living in the states. He would like to move to Thailand due to the low living-cost. The problem is he does not know any Thai and has never lived in the country before, although he came for visiting about 3-4 times. Would this be possible for him? Another thing I would like to ask, is there any foreign community in BKK or nearby? I would appreciate all of your kind suggestions. Thank you.

Your American friend is so fortunate to have someone like you involved in his life, Luckywinth. Perhaps it would be logical for him to come to Thailand and stay for three months. That will give him a pretty good feel for the LOS and it will also give you a pretty good idea of whether he is "safe" on his own.

I'm 60-years-old and I've never really felt unsafe in any area of Bangkok...but then again I'm a retired cop and also a retired U.S. Army First Sergeant. Still, I am always aware of my environment while I'm out on the streets of Bkk and the more I have to drink, the more aware I become. You and your friend will never know if Thailand is the place for him until he comes here for a long stay. So have him buy his tickets, leave most of his credit cards at home, and come on over to the LOS for an adventure of a lifetime.

I agree I lived for many years in BKK in the late 70's & early 80's, I never heard of a Farang mugging during that period and I owned a few bars and got most of the Farang news, mind you that was before Yah Bah etc.

I am afraid now it would take either wild horses or promises of a nice girl to lure me back there