YoungAndRice Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 I experienced similar feelings, going into my 3.5 year mark. Just got back from the States Xmas vacation. Went from comfortable cold weather sipping hot chocolate to sweltering heat. What do I like about Thailand: The price The food The women I think those three things are on the top of most farang's list. The hard part of course is that moving back home or to another country means that you will spend five times as much money. Considering moving back home? Great, if I get a house for $300K I get to pay $10K a year in property taxes! Thats the a years worth of rent in Thailand. What is the point? Its like a sea-saw with the good things on one side and the bad things on the other side. Are Singapore's clean streets and fresh air worth spending 6 times as much on rent?... Not for me. Hopefully in the future I can put together 3 million USD or so and be financially free to live anywhere I want, but I am not about to give up early retirement so I can live in a 1st World Country and work to I'm 70. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoungAndRice Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 gotta love $100 to get from the airport to my house stateside vs $9 in Thailand. $3 to get on of those push carts in JFK! A basket of vegetables and fruits for $25. How can you guys go home long term and adjust to those prices? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heng Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 On a lot of things, you do of course get more value for your money as well. Your property taxes are paying for decent public schooling for your kids (or in our case, my relatives who have been occupying the Heng residence in Eanes ISD in Austin for the last 8-9 years), especially if you purchased your home with the quality of school district in mind. Also, if you're injured in some freak taxicab and/or airport cart accident stateside, you might be able to pull together that $3,, in one fell swoop of a lawsuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ulysses G. Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 How can you guys go home long term and adjust to those prices? They also adjust to the MUCH higher salaries! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maestro Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Off-topic posts and replies thereto have been removed. -- Maestro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonnyF Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Regardless of the legal implications, one feels what one feels. The fact that I wasn't legally secure didn't alter my feeling that Thailand was home - in fact it was a major factor in making me determined to stay, no matter what happens. I think that being legally secure in terms of visa's etc is over-rated, that is why I don't think I will ever apply for permanent residency. Part of the excitement of Thailand for me is the unknown, there is so much political uncertainty here that none of us know what will happen in a few months/years time, or what will happen when the inevitable happens to certain highly regarded people in Thai society. So for me the excitement is enjoying things as they are now (even though the old timers will tell me that it was better before - and maybe it was). I don't think that things in Thailand will go on a downward spiral but if they do then I'll just move somewhere else. It's a big world out there and for me Thailand is good at the moment but I have no eternal attachment to it and if I am refused a visa or it starts to get on my nerves then I will just pack my bags, empty my Thai bank accounts and find excitement elsewhere. Nowhere is exciting forever, a year in Australia taught me that - I loved the first 6 months but I felt fine leaving after 12 months, I still liked it but it had become "normal". With a farang perspective, I'm sure that Thailand will take much much longer than that to become "normal" but I'm pretty sure that the excitement will decline over time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A_MIKE_U_LIKE Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 I think everyone is in a bit of a funk right now ..Thailand or anywhere..Best way to get through it is stop listening to people who tell you How much you should be gaining , and what you should be grabbing at and start thinking how lucky you are .Some people have never been to Thailand and will probably never get the chance. As was mentioned earlier on this Thread ..Familiarity can lead to Boredom ..Best option if this happens is resort to a Mark 1 Bottle of Bacardi .Retire for a few days to a corner of Thailand you are not familiar with ..Then watch a sun set with a big wry smile on your face ..And thank Heavens you still have your health and a few baht in your back pocket ..The Mojo always returns its just a matter of waiting .. I hope this helps .. ....Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimsKnight Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 (edited) Thats pretty much the nail on the head for me as well Jonny F. Theres plenty of other places and there is life beyond Thailand. Things were better before in Thailand but it all comes in cycles, what goes around comes around. When Thailand gets to the point where it's fully commercialised and westernised, gets really expensive then the exodus will really kick off. Somewhere that does have the 'exitement' factor is arguably Cambodia, trouble is that place is so crazy and wild that if you mess up out there there's not usually as hospitable as LOS is. Right now a lot of us are at the point of "Should we or shouldn't we" jump ship and mosey on to the next little paradise in SE Asia. I think another 2 years and most if not all the 'exitement factor' will either of disappeared or make a resurgence. The folk that will stay behind are going to be the stay-at-home, married with kids kinda expat while the singletons move on. It happened in India and may happen in Thailand. Edited January 15, 2008 by JimsKnight Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetjock Posted January 15, 2008 Share Posted January 15, 2008 Returning to Thailand and sleeping with a very beautiful woman may have much in common . The first time you go there it is usually a tremendously exciting experience however with each subsequent return visit it sometimes becomes a less exciting but more rewarding in other ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSixpack Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 (edited) The UK was good mainly because I was just visiting but I found people hadn't really moved on and were still concerned with the same trifles as when I left. Next return was some ten years later and again the same feelings but even more so, nothing changes. But, you see, when you come back to Thailand, you find that people haven't really moved on here either. The Thais are still concerned with the same trifles as when you left, but the range is even more limited. And so are the farangs, most guys still chasing around their little heads and having little to talk about except their most recent bar fine and the same complaints about Thailand--the poor service everywhere; the high prices of imported goods; the lack of pickled sliced beetroot, Colemans' mustard, and decent fish 'n' chips; the best breakie; footie; the universal lying, cheating, and stealing. Nothing much changes except prices and new buildings go up, traffic gets ever worse and immigration regulations ever more onerous. So I don't really see your point. I suggest you can "move on" regardless of location. Most obviously--and inexpensively--one can just visit a library anytime to move one's brain onto some new, deeper, and more important subjects. Me, I think it would be fantastic to have a trip to Ireland and hope to go someday whenever I have the time & money. Edited January 16, 2008 by JSixpack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricardo Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 (edited) Coleman's mustard, now on-sale at Rimping supermarket, for those of us here in Chiang Mai ! Edited January 16, 2008 by Ricardo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moo9 Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 I did not go home for 2 yrs since I started working here. A few times I though that it would be good to go back for a short vacation but I am too lazy and exhausted from my job to do the move. Although I am also sliding into the "sometimes not so happy phase" now (after staying 2 yrs), I still enjoy very much staying in Thailand. I have no intention to go back to my home country, if I would lose my job here, I also would do anything to stay alive here and earn my living. I think I share this emotion and thinking with many expat farangs here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seonai Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 JSixPack, agree with you. It is the British mentality to imagine that no one has moved on, either that or they come from an area where that sort of thinking is prolific ... if that is so, I am sorry for them. I was brought up in a working/middle class family. I don't even bother to compare 'going home' as I don't consider England to be my home. Thailand is my home and, like you, I find seeking out a library or other source of knowledge much more important than worrying about mustard. And things do change in Britain, I feel really sorry for all you Brits out there who live in dead beat areas... personally I never would. Britain has a few cool places Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoungAndRice Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 How can you guys go home long term and adjust to those prices? They also adjust to the MUCH higher salaries! Was not aware of this. I figured the people working here were getting paid a larger salary than back home because it takes alot to uproot your family to a foriegn country. If you are talking about english teachers and others who just scrape by, I guess so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ping Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 I don't consider that it is correct to say that the loss of the feeling of excitement only occurs to expats. I am not an expat. I have been visiting for over twenty years and now spend six months in Thailand per year (and still haven't decided whether to make the big move permanently). I lost the excitement of travelling anywhere many years ago - now I merely look upon my stays in Thailand as escape from Melbourne's (Oz) winter and a pleasant change of scenery. And yes, there are times when I get a bit sick of the place. I miss having the conveniences of my home in Oz (decent television programming options for a start) and seeing some of my long-time friends; and some of the issues of life in Thailand are niggling (but I rarely get too upset about them any more), but against that is - for me - simply a better overall lifestyle and quality of life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraburioz Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 I'd suggest buying a lot of exotic animals to liven things up if you are bored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bina Posted January 16, 2008 Share Posted January 16, 2008 once u get used to a place then u become familiar with it and then its same same get on with life; thats what going home means... familiarity... it used to be when i came back from the states to the kibbutz i would smell the cowsheds, and breathe a sigh of relief of thank goodness back to familiarity (since the states were giving me reverse culture shock)... thats why 'at home' smells and sights are used in adverts: to trigger automatic responses in us of 'home=safe= familiar=routine'.... its one step beyond being a tourist...now, u are a tourist in your own original country. i find that even happens between cities that are very different (almost like different countries).... in the beginning, its all glamour and exploring, then u get used to the bus stations, food places, shopping areas, clothing differences and voila, it becomes your 'home' where your dog waits for u in your apartment, the coffee kiosk guy waves to you, the taxi guy on the corner says good morning, etc... the mundane routine non exciting things that help us remain stable people. active daily living bina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ade100 Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I work in Singapore but have second home in Thailand. I have to say I am always thrilled and delighted to get back to Singapore. I breeze through immigration as I am a PR, straight out into a taxi – no queues, back to my condo in 10 minutes, no traffic jams, everyone speaks English, no crime, no mafia, no corruption. I’m back in my swimming pool wondering why I ever leave such a great country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbowman1993 Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I just got back from a six week holiday in Ireland.My wife and I had a nice time and our new baby liked the attention of a whole new group of admirers. It is good to be back in Thailand, but I noticed that the usual excitement at coming back in LOS wasn't there this time. I previously would be like a child on Christmas eve, waiting on Santa, on my trip back This time it was just a trip to get out of the way. I suppose after living here for a few years this is to be expected. What about you guys? Do you still get excited returning to Thailand? Going on trips is always exciting, but coming home is nicer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbowman1993 Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 I work in Singapore but have second home in Thailand. I have to say I am always thrilled and delighted to get back to Singapore. I breeze through immigration as I am a PR, straight out into a taxi – no queues, back to my condo in 10 minutes, no traffic jams, everyone speaks English, no crime, no mafia, no corruption. I’m back in my swimming pool wondering why I ever leave such a great country. I'm wondering that myself. Sell it and don't come back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ade100 Posted January 18, 2008 Share Posted January 18, 2008 (edited) I work in Singapore but have second home in Thailand. I have to say I am always thrilled and delighted to get back to Singapore. I breeze through immigration as I am a PR, straight out into a taxi – no queues, back to my condo in 10 minutes, no traffic jams, everyone speaks English, no crime, no mafia, no corruption. I'm back in my swimming pool wondering why I ever leave such a great country. I'm wondering that myself. Sell it and don't come back. It’s sterling advice and very eloquently put. But I might pop back from time to time just to remind myself how fabulous Singapore is. Edited January 18, 2008 by ade100 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farangkel Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 You can pick them out so easily: the Tourist and the Expat. One is wide-eyed with wonder, the latter has the been-there-done-that cynical expression.Peter what does that make you Peter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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