I don't see how you ever arrive at a place called happiness.

i agree; that's why i state i am very much content living in Thailand. that was my opinion yesterday, is today, but i don't know whether it will be the same tomorrow.

I have been visiting and working in Thailand since 1993 and living here full time since 2001 except for the odd offshore jobs.

I met my wife on the third days I was in Thailand and kept coming back (my company sent me here to work from 1994 to 1997) and I eventually divorced my UK wife and married my Thai lady in 2000. We have a 3 year old son and live on 10 rai in Khampaeng Phet province and I would not wish to live anywhere else in the world. We have our ups and downs as most people do and in 18 months I get my UK state pension so by then we should be reasonably safe from the dreaded inflation etc.

We have another 10 rai in the next village where we are building a small shop which a good friend will run for us and live free.

It would be nice to have everything that we want at anytime without thinking about it but we make do with what we have and work around that we don't have.

Overall I am 90 odd % happy and though I am old and wear tinted glasses they are not rose tinted but I feel that I will end my days here with contentment (hopefully in many years time).

:D

edited for poor spelling "again"

Edited December 10, 200718 yr by billd766

I am mainly happy, but I find the Thai unwillingness to think the biggest drain on my mental strength. Don't flame, you know it's true.

I wholeheartedly agree with the OP!

Live since 1990 on Ko Samui - many changes - yes - but still love it!

I like it enough. I also like living in Austin too when I get the chance.

.... but I find the Thai unwillingness to think the biggest drain on my mental strength. Don't flame, you know it's true.

It's YOU, not THEM!

It's the way some people tend to assume (assumption is the mother of ALL errors!) that things have to be this or that way - leave 'em - they certainly do think! But different to the way we think - we think!

I've often heard them saying: "You think too much!" Waht does it mean? we "worry" too much it isn't going "our way"!

internet is working, streets are o.k., airplanes are flying, trains are running, we have sat-tv, news, papers, mobile phones, watersupply, electricity...mail...super markets, shopping malls, ice cream, draught beer... a Thai recently fixed my messed up Laptop...the last flight samui-bangkok-samui was a thai captain, thai crew... name it!

they can't think?

Think again, please and try to be fair!

Yeah, I am also happy here. I am living at Hua Hin only 1.5 months. I like thai people, I do love my life here. And the hot weather - great for me!! In my home country, Russia, there a lot of snow already and very cold, brrrrrr.

Came here on a one-year contract, and I'm now in my 18th year.

Love it.