Long Term Expats, Would You Have Moved To Thailand

[Jingthing]

Thailand has changed quickly. For longer term expats, would you have moved to Thailand if you knew then what you know now?

[somtampet]

yea

[villagefarang]

Duh (= of course for a 30+ like me)

Edited June 7, 2010 by villagefarang

[Pushit]

Thailand has always been screwed up for the exact same reasons, hasn't changed only the names.

[bdenner]

10 of the best years of my life! Should have done it 20 years ago providing I met up with my beautiful TW at the time.

Only sad thing are idiots on this site posting nondescript crap - DUH! YEA!

Edited June 7, 2010 by bdenner

[Jingthing]

Clarification, obviously vote the choice closest to your situation. For example, here 3 years, choose 2 years, etc. Maybe your feeling is in between definitely and barely yes, then your choice which is closer.

Edited June 7, 2010 by Jingthing

[bkkjames]

:unsure:Hindsight is 20/20 JT. Thankfully I have the foresight to never let hindsight blurr my vision.

[needforspeed]

20 years Yes, also if not agree with a lot of things going on here and many changes not for the better.

I still remember the reason why i left, and feel much more happy in LOS.

[sbk]

You mean, if I'd known 22 years ago that Thailand would eventually change would I still have stayed? Anyone who lives in any kind of reality is well aware that everything changes.

[GarryP]

I think bkkjames put it perfectly. In hindsight there are many things I would have done differently. I voted 20 plus years and "no". If I knew then what I knew now I would not have moved here, I wouldn't have gone to a lot of other places either. But a lot of that has absolutely nothing to do with Thailand. However, would I change what I have now? The answer to that is "no" too. I like my life here.

[Jingthing]

It's a hypothetical question. No need to analyze it to death.

[Ulysses G.]

Yes! 20+ years.

[Naam]

"Thailand has changed quickly. For longer term expats, would you have moved to Thailand if you knew then what you know now?"

in essence Thailand has not changed at all. my first visit to Thailand was 37 years ago. later numerous times (not less than 50 times) holidays with my [non-thai] wife and now living 6 years quite satisfied in the kingdom. what has changed is the perception (and to me it seems the attitude) of foreigners living in Thailand. my feeling is that the lower the life of a Farang was in his home country the more arrogant is his attitude towards thai citizens as well as thai traditions and in Thailand a fly on the wall or a mosquito in the room or a non-smiling Thai who is pissed off by farang behaviour causes the outcry "XENOPHOBIA!". besides the latter, wild guesses are made and terrible threats are uttered "we is goin to live in Cambo or Nam or Urucostaricargentinaguay cos it be cheapa ova dere, them locals are not scenofobias and we is not paying a multiple when visiting the Rio de la Plata, the mating penguins in Pattersgonia or them Eeguatsu falls".

[Naam]

10 of the best years of my life! Should have done it 20 years ago providing I met up with my beautiful TW at the time.

Only sad thing are idiots on this site posting nondescript crap - DUH! YEA!

BDenner... ah sez ah likes what you says!

[PhilHarries]

I didn't vote as I'm no longer there but it amazes me how people complain that a place changes over the years. Of course it changes, it's what they call development and all countries are constantly going through it to varying degrees.

Why should a country be frozen in time just to suit a bunch of cheapskate foreigners? (Current company excepted of course )

As for the recent problems a lot of countries have periods of civil unrest, just look at Greece, but they get over it and move on.

[Jingthing]

So far based on a very small sample, the answer is overwhelmingly YES. I guess that's good news. I also voted yes, but barely.

[bkkjames]

So far based on a very small sample, the answer is overwhelmingly YES. I guess that's good news. I also voted yes, but barely.

The problem with these kinds of polls IMO is that they assume it is the destination (in this case) that has changed over the years and not the Expat (in this case).

For example, when I first got here some things drove me crazy (Thai time etc) that don't bother me as much anymore, while other things that didn't bother me (noise pollution, restrictions on fun) now really piss me off.

[Jingthing]

This wasn't intended as "tink too much" topic. Just looking for gut reactions is all.

[villagefarang]

Perhaps those of us who have been around for awhile, made a more successful adjustment to living here. We may be better at dealing with change than those who give up and go home if things aren't perfect. Being a longtime or lifetime expat, is definitely not for everyone. As others have said, it is more about the individual than it is about Thailand.

Edited June 8, 2010 by villagefarang

[w11guy]

I am new to Bangkok. What do you think has changed?

[bkkjames]

I am new to Bangkok. What do you think has changed?

If I told you then you would be upset that you didn't come earlier.

[somtampet]

10 of the best years of my life! Should have done it 20 years ago providing I met up with my beautiful TW at the time.

Only sad thing are idiots on this site posting nondescript crap - DUH! YEA!

BDenner... ah sez ah likes what you says!

Ok i change yea to no,satisfied???

[madmitch]

The problem with these kinds of polls IMO is that they assume it is the destination (in this case) that has changed over the years and not the Expat (in this case).

For example, when I first got here some things drove me crazy (Thai time etc) that don't bother me as much anymore, while other things that didn't bother me (noise pollution, restrictions on fun) now really piss me off.

Agree entirely.

My gut reaction and vote was a NO. But without coming here I wouldn't have met my partner of the last seven years and wouldn't have a beautiful four year old daughter, who has become the most important part of my life. Plus I have had some great times here as well.

So perhaps my gut reaction was the wrong one.

[MikeyIdea]

Yea, and had I known 20 years ago what I know today, then I would have moved to Thailand 10 years earlier than I did

[billd766]

10 of the best years of my life! Should have done it 20 years ago providing I met up with my beautiful TW at the time.

Only sad thing are idiots on this site posting nondescript crap - DUH! YEA!

BDenner... ah sez ah likes what you says!

Me too.

When I leave here for ever it will be up the chimney in a cloud of smoke with very loud firecrackers going off.

[Stjohnm]

Of Course, I would I may have done some things differently, like taken more advantage of the 75 baht to the £ rate when I first came out but other than that would have done very little differently.

[Pib]

Yes. The first year is probably the hardest as a person is setting up household and trying to adapt from "how we did it in the home country." After navigating through the frustrations of the first year, things can get better, with some the getting better part attributed to "just knowing how to minimize/workaround/avoid the frustration on certain day-to-day issues when living in Thailand."

[teevee]

For me, at 15 years plus its a definite YES.

There are things that irritate me in Thailand. However, whenever I spit the dummy, I think about our last trip home to Oz which was planned for 6 weeks and turned out to be 3 weeks (which in itself was about 1 week too long) as we simply had enough of life in Oz. (I love the place but just cant handle living there).

[Birdman]

25 years here and 20 years on a nice quiet beach in the South. I am pleased and can't complain. But I would say that I would be pleased at other places as well.

did I pass, OP?

Edited June 23, 2010 by Birdman