Thai Fiance' Coming To ....

[salone]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

[PatinBKk]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

My Mrs loved the snow in the U.K....not sure though if you get a lot more in Latvia...she loved watching all the soaps on T.V. and leading a life the same as a mrs from home

[salone]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

My Mrs loved the snow in the U.K....not sure though if you get a lot more in Latvia...she loved watching all the soaps on T.V. and leading a life the same as a mrs from home

there's hope - thanks for the response - appreciate -

[Jimjim]

It just depends on the girl and her mental fortitude. There is no one same reaction that magically happens just because a girl happens to be Thai. She could end up being really homesick, she could be extremely happy or she could be somewhere in the middle. The only thing that is true is that in general Thais are more nationalistic and enjoy living in their home country more than some other nationalities, but that's of course a generalization. Who knows? You'll have to find out for yourself as we have no idea not knowing your girl.

[sbk]

JimJim is right, some people love it, some people hate it. One thing to consider is her willingness to try new things. Is she open-minded about eating non-Thai food? That is always a clue right there to how adaptable and open to change a person is.

My husband didn't appreciate the cold weather but liked the lifestyle. Of course, it didn't help that we'd flown in to my sister's home state when an arctic front had moved in and the temps had dropped to something like 15 below zero. poor guy, thought he'd come to some kind of frozen hel_l

[kenai]

My fiance/wife moved to Alaska in August, which was good she had time to adapt before temps dropped.

Another thing that I'm sure helped is she got out everyday. We did a paper-route every morning and it required being out in the weather rain-snow-ice it never stopped her. For her it was exciting to see the snow the storms and the seasons change. Also I try not to stay home on my days off - there is still plenty to do even in the cold dark of winter - ice fishing and snow shoeing going to a movie etc.

When we left this year it was -25 F for a week and it was hard on us both. Now we are cooking in the heat here and both prefer the weather in Alaska. As for food, culture change etc... it is different for everyone. I have family that could not survive a week here in Thailand. I'm sure there are Thai that are the same.

A good clue would definitely be in her willingness to learn and try new things and explore new places.

[connel707]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

Yes, I have known 3 of my friends lose their Thai wives because of German and Scottish winters, but also because of the lack of Thai communities where they were living, if a Thai girl has other Thai girls to sit and chat, play cards and watch copied Thai TV , also availability of good Thai food is Very important, if you can give her these things, winter is not so bad to endure. Thai culture is very important especially if your fiance is from Issan, and she will need some kind of Wat where she can give to Buddha. Are you taking her there for her or for you..? Ask yourself that Question.! Oh, and what about the language difference, did you teach her to speak Latvian first.?

[think_too_mut]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

Yes, I have known 3 of my friends lose their Thai wives because of German and Scottish winters, but also because of the lack of Thai communities where they were living, if a Thai girl has other Thai girls to sit and chat, play cards and watch copied Thai TV , also availability of good Thai food is Very important, if you can give her these things, winter is not so bad to endure. Thai culture is very important especially if your fiance is from Issan, and she will need some kind of Wat where she can give to Buddha. Are you taking her there for her or for you..? Ask yourself that Question.! Oh, and what about the language difference, did you teach her to speak Latvian first.?

Too much of a credit given to the cold weather only.

Let's face it - Thai mentality (as of any nation) is strongly influenced by the climate they live in.

Relentless heat good part of the year has made them rather passive, could be even worse than those living in cold climate like Scandinavia or even Alaska.

Therefore we see packed shopping malls and no serious complaints about cracked, foodstall and stray dogs infested footpaths. Who needs them?

While in Scandinavia, Canada or Alaska, one can be adequately dressed and equipped to participate and enjoy outdoor activities, how can one be undressed enough to enjoy any outdoor activity in Thailand?

Shy of being exposed to sunrays, even water related activities are not very popular among Thais, they swim in street clothes if they come to the beach at all.

I live with Thai wife and our 5yr old daughter in Japan, 4 distinctive seasons.

No any Thai friends, not a single Thai junk or not DVD, nothing. As long as the wife is comfortable (home is air-conditioned), weekend activities at indoor swimming water parks or indoor playgrounds, comfortable weather like now (in the shadow) in open door kids parks, life is good.

Autumn leaves colors, a bit of a snow in winter, sakura (cherry blossom) and asaleyes in spring, summer festivals and fireworks + grapes picking in summer, it's all nice.

If we were to move to my home country Australia, there we may have a problem: 300 sunny days a year in Sydney + 36 city beaches have formed a very active and outdoor oriented lifestyle. Where everyone is surfing, jogging, power walking, doing something outside...she may (deservedly) feel out of place.

But the problem would stem from the availability of widespread activities, not from the lack of them

[sheff_mick]

Two possible factors are the Thai family dependancy ( not for all ) and if they have children and are separated from them for long periods of time.

I,m not sure the cold has such an effect so long as they are occupied and have sound frienships both in the community and within your own family groups.

It is exciting at first but when the novelty wears off, only then the adjusting has to take place on a serious front, Thai against other cultures.

If you are working and she is on her own for long periods of time, this can be a major factor if she is not occupied and mixing within the community.

Edited May 11, 2009 by sheff_mick

[salone]

Two possible factors are the Thai family dependancy ( not for all ) and if they have children and are separated from them for long periods of time.

I,m not sure the cold has such an effect so long as they are occupied and have sound frienships both in the community and within your own family groups.

It is exciting at first but when the novelty wears off, only then the adjusting has to take place on a serious front, Thai against other cultures.

If you are working and she is on her own for long periods of time, this can be a major factor if she is not occupied and mixing within the community.

i thank all of you for your positive comments - having lived with me in panama city, panama for 6 months, she seems content to live abroad - i will let u know how it all goes down -

[think_too_mut]

If you are working and she is on her own for long periods of time, this can be a major factor if she is not occupied and mixing within the community.

That's more dangerous than it looks.

"Mixing" with other idling Thai women may lead towards gambling, drinking, Amway, who knows what.

Other women (wives of executives on assignment in Japan) that my wife meets daily also have some of those problems. One tried to get her into Yehova witness sect. They are all University educated in Europe or America, I can imagine what's left for average Thai woman who married and moved abroad.

There are thousands of educated Thais around us, mostly engineers, but those are busy with their companies, not married, on 1 year assignment with Denso, Toyota, Panasonic...

They don't have time for anyone except a quick chat at Brazil shop (that imports some Thai food) on Sundays.

[ballbreaker]

i am waiting on my thai gf's/fiance' visa to get approved before her travel to riga, latvia - never having been in cold weather before, she may not be willing to endure the winters here - have any of you had a thai gf/fiance'/wife live in a cold weather place before? my concerns are being cooped up in a condo durng the long winters -

I think it will depend on the woman. Some have what its takes inside to stick it out.

You should promise her before she comes that you bring her back to Thailand if she finds herself unhappy with you or finds it unbearable to live in your country. I made that promise when my Thai wife moved to the US with me 34 years ago. She endured some of the worst winters New Jersey had to offer those first 3 years but she buckled up and made the best of it.

How well she does will be up to you also so when not working have things planned that the both of you can enjoy.

After 28 years living all over the US we returned to Thailand to live out our lives. Upon arriving the wife spoke pretty much the same words I spoke 28 years before. She said it meant so much to her 28 years ago that she never forgot those words and wanted me to have the same option.