Cm Versus Phuket

[Harmonica]

I need your help finding what I'm looking for -- contemplating a permanent move to CM -- will be doing a roadtrip to your area starting late December -- can stay for a month or two to check things out -- have not yet given notice on my current rental house in Phuket (8,000 Baht/mo, for 4+ years) --

I still love Phuket, but it is possible that CM is a better long-term choice. Five previous trips (short) to CM and other northern areas have made it abundantly clear that, for me, there are only 2 worthwhile LT locations in LOS for easy living. A head to head comparison ought to shed further light on this.

I have read thru' the CM board over the last 2 days and am glad I found this site; wish I'd found it sooner.

If I do make the switch, here's what important to me:

A 3-bdrm rental house (under 15,000 Baht/mo.) with a reasonably sized backyard & parking for 2 vehicles -- separated by at least 15 metres from neighboring houses. A mubaan would be OK, but they, like Land & Houses (in Phuket) tend to pack houses like sardines.

Security ... would be a + and should be present to at least a reasonable level.

Air quality ... how far out of CM does one have to reside in order to dispense with the liability of its pollution? I don't have to be in the city daily and even if I did, I could live with the commute in order to have clean air where I'm based.

The proximity of parks (or just plain old Nature) is a huge plus for daily jogging/walking.

A public (preferably not pubic) swimming pool in the vicinity would be icing on the cake!

A chess club (for this I'd be willing to drive even 40+ klicks) would elevate the quality of life in a heartbeat!

Phuket's traffic, especially the large volume of inconsiderate motorbike riders is a single, huge negative for me.

Very grateful for your suggestions and pointers.

Best regards to all

Harmonica

[Thetyim]

Have you thought about Chiang Rai ?

CM is a large city and is going to get a lot bigger if Taksin stays in power. He has big plans for his home town.

Only you know what is important to you so only you can make the choice but CM has traffic problems which would delete it from my list

CR is small enough to enjoy but large enough to have the amenities that you require.

[CM451]

Hi,

We moved here from Phuket about 1 1/2 years ago, some friends who had lived in Phuket for 7 or more years followed recently, and some friends of theirs even more recently. The traffic difference was the original reason I gave but have found so many more reasons why we like it here better.

I was just commenting to a visitor that all three "families" who moved here from Phuket found nice places here in CM for 5000 bt a month, each with different requirements. (all said the same about Phuket drivers as you wrote)

And yes if CM grows too much.... CR is a place to think about in the future.

send an email at [email protected] and I'll give you any pointers or help I can.

Cheers

j

[Thetyim]

Harmonica,

Just found some houses for rent for you.

http://www.chiangmaihouse.com/category.asp...ist=yes&sub_c=2

[Harmonica]

Thanks Thetyim & CM451:

I have been to Chiang Rai during previous trips to CM and the North and your suggestion makes sense; it is a beautiful place and definitely worthy of consideration. There does not seem to be a forum dedicated to it, so I will have to dig for info and spend some time there to really check it out. Your comments about the Sheriff and his plans for CM are actually coterminus with his and other heavy dudes' plans for Phuket, the future IT city.

If CR has the general amenities that would be a big plus. You've got me thinking deeper; It is included as a distinct possibility as of right now.

Rental houses @ 5,000/mo.; sweet indeed! Will send an email in the near fututre, CM451.

The roads here are a mess -- now, with Central opening up on the same road as Big C, Tesco and some other big outlets, the bypass road has become like Interstate 405 (without the extra lanes, of course). My first year here, just as a game, I lost count after 20, of the number of times motorcyclists parked directly in front and behind my car without even giving me as much as a 10 cm. margin to escape.

My gal is from the North and she's been telling me for a couple years that she finds southerners aggressive, recalcitrant and inconsiderate -- she loves Phuket as much as I do, but it is becoming abundantly clear that we've reached the point of diminishing returns w.r.t. wellness here. A change is aborning.

[Harmonica]

Thetyim,

Thanks for the link; good stuff. I'm working on it.

[PeaceBlondie]

Passing through Chiang Rai twice yesterday on the trip to Mae Sai, it impressed me as being a real city. Maybe it's what Chiang Mai was x years ago, and what CMai never will be again. Cooler, too, and at least as many mountains on the horizon.

[Sojourner]

Chiang Mai city has it's own polution problems with the 2 stroke motorcycles, the smoking tuk tuks and the poorly maintained pickups and buses but the countryside doesn't fair any better when the farmers are burning their rice stalks/chaff and the army is burning the mountain sides during the hot season. This is the time of year I want to get out of here. Been here five years and it's the same year after year. How about keeping your place in Phuket and renting it to me for three months a year? LOL

[RDN]

My gal is from the North and she's been telling me for a couple years that she finds southerners  aggressive, recalcitrant and inconsiderate....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Blimey, your girl knows some long words! Mine just says they are "Jai dam" - and I agree with her. I am also thinking about a move northwards...

[meadish_sweetball]

My gal is from the North and she's been telling me for a couple years that she finds southerners  aggressive, recalcitrant and inconsiderate....

Blimey, your girl knows some long words! Mine just says they are "Jai dam" - and I agree with her. I am also thinking about a move northwards...

By the looks of it, Harmonica or his gal got out their dictionaries... Let me guess - recalcitrant = 'mai yorm (khrai)' or 'hua khaeng'...

aggressive = 'du!'

and inconsiderate = 'mai ruujak kreeng-jai' or 'hen kae tua' ...

[Harmonica]

Sojourner, with all the talk about pollution and traffic in CM, I'd be a fool to lose my place in Phuket too easily. A long visit to CM first and then .... ? If a close tie, a coin toss perhaps? By the way the remaining 9 houses surrounding mine are all now renting for a cool 30,000-50,000 Baht/month (mine is still @ 8,000); ARI (american rocketfueled inflation) set in a few months ago when another Californian decided to convert this little unblemished mini-resort into a MuayThai school/holiday combo. No dirty looks yet, but I'm lucky my original deal was made with the Thai owner, and he, God bless him, wants me to stay.

RDN, yup absolutely right, jai-dam, jai-rai, lay-yo and a bunch of other expressions to describe the folk down here ....

meadish sweetball, it was I that dug up the dictionary, amigo -- 'mai yorm khrai + hua khaeng ... and it was just a guess as to what she really meant.

The pollution aspect of CM is throwing me for a loop; no escape in the city and now its starting to appear that there is no escape even in the countryside. Yeah, dyin ain't much of a livin!

About CR as a place to live my only hesitation is that on every trip there in the past, the lingering thought always was, "beautiful place but there's doodly squat to do" ... maybe things have changed; will check it out in Jan.

Thanks guys.

[skycop]

What about pollution there and hospital care.

skycop

Have you thought about Chiang Rai ?

CM is a large city and is going to get a lot bigger if Taksin stays in power. He has big plans for his home town.

Only you know what is important to you so only you can make the  choice but CM has traffic problems which would delete it from my list

CR is small enough to enjoy but large enough to have the amenities that you require.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[banpaeng]

I would aslo like to know the answer to these.  As soon as my house sells I am on my way to thailand from the states.  Any help on Chiang Rai would be appreciated.

What about pollution there and hospital care.

skycop

Have you thought about Chiang Rai ?

CM is a large city and is going to get a lot bigger if Taksin stays in power. He has big plans for his home town.

Only you know what is important to you so only you can make the  choice but CM has traffic problems which would delete it from my list

CR is small enough to enjoy but large enough to have the amenities that you require.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[sabaijai]

Sojourner, with all the  talk about pollution and traffic in CM, I'd be a fool to lose my place in Phuket too easily.  A long visit to CM first and then .... ?  If a close tie, a coin toss perhaps?  By the way the remaining 9 houses surrounding mine are all now renting for a cool 30,000-50,000 Baht/month (mine is still @ 8,000); ARI (american rocketfueled inflation) set in a few months ago when another Californian decided to convert this little unblemished mini-resort into a MuayThai school/holiday combo.  No dirty looks yet, but I'm lucky my original deal was made with the Thai owner, and he, God bless him, wants me to stay.

RDN, yup absolutely right, jai-dam, jai-rai, lay-yo and a bunch of other expressions to describe the folk down here  ....

meadish sweetball, it was I that dug up the dictionary, amigo -- 'mai yorm khrai + hua khaeng ... and it was just a guess as to what she really meant.

The pollution aspect of CM is throwing me for a loop; no escape in the city and now its starting to appear that there is no escape even in the countryside. Yeah, dyin ain't much of a livin!

About CR as a place to live my only hesitation is that on every trip there in the past, the lingering thought always was, "beautiful place but there's doodly squat to do"  ... maybe things have changed; will check it out in Jan.

Thanks guys.

The diddly squat aspect of CR is the reason more people - Thai as well as foreign-born - choose CM over CR for independent (retired or self-employed) living.

If all you need is a quiet, non-polluted spot, you could choose virtually anyplace in northern Thailand. Many foreigners are now happily living in Samoeng, Mae Sot, Pai, Soppong, Mae Taeng, Lamphun, Lampang, etc.

But only CM has multiple cinemas with first-run movies, cultural clubs such as the Alliance Francaise, three decent universities (CMU, Phayap and Rajamangkhala IT), an airport with links to several international destinations and a broad variety of restaurants and clubs.

One could argue that CR also has the most drab architecture (save for the rococo Wat Long Khun of course) of any provincial capital in the north.

Nice and quiet though ...

Harmonica, you might want to look at Samoeng and Doi Saket, both less than an hour's drive from Chiang Mai, non-polluted (save the dry season burning, which you won't escape anywhere in rural Thailand except in the rainy south) and relatively cheap.

Even less expensive is the 'new frontier' to the SE of town, in the district of Muang On.

[RDN]

Sojourner, with all the  talk about pollution and traffic in CM, I'd be a fool to lose my place in Phuket too easily.  A long visit to CM first and then .... ?  If a close tie, a coin toss perhaps?  By the way the remaining 9 houses surrounding mine are all now renting for a cool 30,000-50,000 Baht/month (mine is still @ 8,000); ARI (american rocketfueled inflation) set in a few months ago ....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I've been looking in Phuket to move - but the prices have shot up over the last year, and my house at 10,000 a month looks a dammn good deal now. Can't find anything decent now for less than 20,000.

I did look at Sisaket and Surin on the web - Lampards site - and there are some great deals there, but... &lt;deleted&gt; is there to do? No beaches like Phuket, and I do like the sea (when it's flat ), so maybe I'll keep the Phuket place and wander around up North and East.

At least the traffic must be better up there?

[meadish_sweetball]

Sojourner, with all the  talk about pollution and traffic in CM, I'd be a fool to lose my place in Phuket too easily.  A long visit to CM first and then .... ?  If a close tie, a coin toss perhaps?  By the way the remaining 9 houses surrounding mine are all now renting for a cool 30,000-50,000 Baht/month (mine is still @ 8,000); ARI (american rocketfueled inflation) set in a few months ago ....

I've been looking in Phuket to move - but the prices have shot up over the last year, and my house at 10,000 a month looks a dammn good deal now. Can't find anything decent now for less than 20,000.

I did look at Sisaket and Surin on the web - Lampards site - and there are some great deals there, but... &lt;deleted&gt; is there to do? No beaches like Phuket, and I do like the sea (when it's flat ), so maybe I'll keep the Phuket place and wander around up North and East.

At least the traffic must be better up there?

The traffic is maybe a tad more considerate in the North, but that is all.

Otherwise quite similar.

As long as people can get away with driving around for years without a license and only pay off the cop with a small bribe when caught, and since getting a license is only marginally more difficult than buying a bottle of milk, the traffic situation is bound to prevail in Thailand for years to come.

[chiangrai57020]

I need .....

Best regards to all

Harmonica

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//Edit by RDN: Hey chiangrai57020. You appear to be having problems making a post.

After hitting the "Reply" button, you can enter your text at the bottom of the box labelled "Enter your post". Then hit the "Add Reply" button.