What Do You Dislike About Living In Samui?

[Hal65]

I don't want to take anything away from Koh Samui, but all places have their good and bad. What do you guys dislike about living in Samui?

[Leckyman]

The general standard of driving/riding.

You really do need eyes in the back of your head. If you knock a 10 year old off their motorbike it WILL be your fault!

[Samui Coconut]

The general standard of driving/riding.

You really do need eyes in the back of your head. If you knock a 10 year old off their motorbike it WILL be your fault!

Foreigners living here and thinking they know it all!!!!

[MattCinderey]

The rain?!....

[carmine]

The rain?!....

I agree. I'm starting to think that the weather on Samui is generally crap. Apart from February its been raining since the end of September and prior to that it was no big shakes either. White skies and very humid.

Might have to move back to England for the better year round weather conditions.

[smokie36]

The rain?!....

I agree. I'm starting to think that the weather on Samui is generally crap. Apart from February its been raining since the end of September and prior to that it was no big shakes either. White skies and very humid.

Might have to move back to England for the better year round weather conditions.

17C not a cloud in the sky....

Interesting threads though as I ponder my next move....

Edited March 25, 2011 by smokie36

[nod]

The rain?!....

:cheesy:

:clap2:

[ESB7]

Bad weather, logistically a nightmare as boats or very very expensive flights are the only option to escape, expensive compared to most other places in Thailand, bad infrastucture causing flooding etc, over developed past believe....3 Tescos on an island <deleted>......the list could go on and on..........its still a great place to visit for a few days though

[PoorSucker]

Whining falangs.

[samuijimmy]

Whining falangs.

I'd agree with that and ones who drop by to drink your booze and then you go to their place and they just "ran out" .... but you can smell it on their breath......

The Thais I know well, would run down to the store & get more...

[geoffphuket]

I went to Samui once.....that's why I live in Phuket

[carmine]

I went to Samui once.....that's why I live in Phuket

You obviously don't like the island feel because there certainly isn't any of that on Phuket. But nonetheless Geoff, thanks for the really informative post and i hope you find something to do soon.

Edited March 25, 2011 by carmine

[smokie36]

I went to Samui once.....that's why I live in Phuket

You obviously don't like the island feel because there certainly isn't any of that on Phuket. But nonetheless Geoff, thanks for the really informative post and i hope you find something to do soon.

Don't be surprised by this carmine. He lives in the most miserable place in Thailand according to the recent national survey. So his negative post fits in well don't you think?

I like the rainy season as well....a good book or two and some hot chocolate....a few days R&R....great!

[Boater]

i think the main couple of dislikes are

1) No metered Taxi's , like in Bangkok or affordable public transport

2) Be held hostage by BKK Air on the super over priced airline

[steelerian]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

[PoorSucker]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

I pay 80 baht for a haircut.

Always gives 20 baht in tip.

[steelerian]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

I pay 80 baht for a haircut.

Always gives 20 baht in tip.

Thats what the locals pay where I go. Farangs pay 150, which is ridiculous. I didnt mind paying at first, but Ive been going to the same place for abotu 9 months now.

Where do you go for this 80 baht cut? And is that the normal price, or is that because you are a long standing customer?

[Rooo]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

I pay 80 baht for a haircut.

Always gives 20 baht in tip.

Thats what the locals pay where I go. Farangs pay 150, which is ridiculous. I didnt mind paying at first, but Ive been going to the same place for abotu 9 months now.

Where do you go for this 80 baht cut? And is that the normal price, or is that because you are a long standing customer?

[starcandle]

Moaning whinging people, especially the ones bitching about how expensive samui is.

[Boater]

Moaning whinging people, especially the ones bitching about how expensive samui is.

you should see the one running in the Bangkok Forum

Expat Woman Who Pays Too Much For Everything Says Bangkok Expensivelink

[robsamui]

Shame there's two topics - what like and what not like! To me they are sides of the same coin. And it's more a question of sadness than 'not liking'.

What makes me sad are the Thai people on Samui. And that holds true for all other places where there are a lot of tourists.

The local-born Thais have become either as cunning as foxes to squeeze money out of visitors (ie - any farang here) or they remain impassive and remote on the assumption that there is no substance to this changing sea of white faces.

The Thais that have come here to work (that's the vast majority of Thais on Samui) aren't representative at all of the Thai nation. These nomadic Thais have adopted a veneer of pleasant civility and hold themselves back with passive aggression, burying their responses and interaction.

But get away to Nakhorn Sri Thammarat, or Chiang Rai - any town or city where there are few tourists and the whole Thai experience changes. The 'natural' Thai person is shy, polite and friendly, curious and light hearted and with a heart as as big as a mountain. They genuinely and shyly want to know more about 'farangs' - about where they live, what their house and car is like, about what it's like living in XXX or XXX and, of course, that great common denominator - what football team they support. They are delighted when they discover you can speak (some of!) their language. They'll want to take you back to meet their family and even ask you to stay with them, and all with no thought at all of screwing you for money in any way. (Although as the honoured guest you may well be expected to pay the lion's share of a meal out or when it comes to the drinks bill - but they would do that with their own kind, anyway.) Thai folks away from the degrading (I use that word literally) swamp of a tourist trap are the most delightful people I've ever met in my 60 years.

Sadly, on Samui, we see little of this. AND YES - of course there are exceptions here - I've met lots of lovely Thai people around Samui. But this is speaking about people en mass and, as such, the way that most Thai people are on Samui makes me sad. They are so much more lovely in their natural habitat!

R

[Boater]

would tottally agree on your post Rob, well written, and puts most of the ' why we dont like samui ' into prospective

[robsamui]

would tottally agree on your post Rob, well written, and puts most of the ' why we dont like samui ' into prospective

Ta duck - but I would add one little extra, and it's a highly personal note - there's a certain breed of ExPat here that makes my flesh crawl. Not wanting to single out tattooed post office robbers from Essex (I've met a couple of pleasant ones) there is a whole strata of mid-to-late 30s people, all of when seem to be from the same mould, shaved heads, lots of tats, loud when drunk, coarse, belligerent, overbearing and usually each with a tiny and stilettoed mini-skirted Thai girl in tow. And they all seem to collect together in one set of bars and all knock around in bunches together. And they are usually the ones seen wandering around Tesco in their swimwear, in groups or with lady attached.

Things like beaches, construction, bars, roads and all the rest - to my mind - are distracting. There are good and iffy ones in every town. What makes a place precious is the beauty of it (Samui has it in spades), the climate (ditto) and the day-to-day interaction with the other people around. All other aspects are knitted into these basics and either make the overall experience better or worse.

But nobody's talked about balance, yet!

Put it this way. I HATE the roads and the way people drive here. I hate it when Thais in a group refer to you as 'the farang' instead of using your name. I despair at the bewildering way that Thai logic works and they way they can never admit to being wrong. I detest needing to have to make any kind of appointment here. I'm ashamed that the police system is what it is and there is no access to a legal system unless you are a millionaire. There are probably another 50 reasons why I hate this place, if I sat and spent a week noting them all down.

And then I look at the complete freedom to whack up a house or garage or shed without months of inspections paperwork and permissions. To be able to shrug sheepishly and say "sorry officer, it was my fault" knowing I can then get it over with instantly with a fine. I'm overjoyed that my car doesn't need a microscopic test every year which costs me thousands to keep it on the road if I can afford the staggering insurance rates. I love the location, the climate, the mountain, the beach, the sand and the sea and the fluffy clouds. I am free to let off fireworks to express my appreciation. I adore the handful of genuinely lovely Thai people I know and politely keep away from those with an evil glitter in their eyes. I treasure the few ExPat friends I have (all of them totally different from me as far as background, education and work goes, but each of them considerate, open-minded and informed). I really appreciate the standard of care at the (Ampur) hospital in Nathon and the low cost of it. And I worship the overall cost of living in Thailand - I'd be renting a one-room bedsit back in England.

And then the balance happens. It's like two lovers who make out a list of good and bad points about each other. There are a hundred things they don't like and only a handful they do like. But they stay together because all the negative things are vastly outweighed by the three or four good bits. And that's me and Samui.

And that's why I'm still here after 13 years!

R

Edited March 25, 2011 by robsamui

[Tropicalevo]

Nice posts Rob. I am with you.

What's with the moaning 'rain on Samui' merchants?

There is not that much rain on Samui. For sure now (and the last 5 months) and then a bad one 6 or 7 years ago. Apart from that, for the eleven years that I have lived here, it has been drought, drought and more drought.

Get into the groove people. If you want NO rain go to a desert. (Duh - what makes Samui green?)

I will certainly live here and have a great time if I only have to put up with the wet stuff every 5 or 6 years!

[starcandle]

would tottally agree on your post Rob, well written, and puts most of the ' why we dont like samui ' into prospective

Ta duck - but I would add one little extra, and it's a highly personal note - there's a certain breed of ExPat here that makes my flesh crawl. Not wanting to single out tattooed post office robbers from Essex (I've met a couple of pleasant ones) there is a whole strata of mid-to-late 30s people, all of when seem to be from the same mould, shaved heads, lots of tats, loud when drunk, coarse, belligerent, overbearing and usually each with a tiny and stilettoed mini-skirted Thai girl in tow. And they all seem to collect together in one set of bars and all knock around in bunches together. And they are usually the ones seen wandering around Tesco in their swimwear, in groups or with lady attached.

Things like beaches, construction, bars, roads and all the rest - to my mind - are distracting. There are good and iffy ones in every town. What makes a place precious is the beauty of it (Samui has it in spades), the climate (ditto) and the day-to-day interaction with the other people around. All other aspects are knitted into these basics and either make the overall experience better or worse.

But nobody's talked about balance, yet!

Put it this way. I HATE the roads and the way people drive here. I hate it when Thais in a group refer to you as 'the farang' instead of using your name. I despair at the bewildering way that Thai logic works and they way they can never admit to being wrong. I detest needing to have to make any kind of appointment here. I'm ashamed that the police system is what it is and there is no access to a legal system unless you are a millionaire. There are probably another 50 reasons why I hate this place, if I sat and spent a week noting them all down.

And then I look at the complete freedom to whack up a house or garage or shed without months of inspections paperwork and permissions. To be able to shrug sheepishly and say "sorry officer, it was my fault" knowing I can then get it over with instantly with a fine. I'm overjoyed that my car doesn't need a microscopic test every year which costs me thousands to keep it on the road if I can afford the staggering insurance rates. I love the location, the climate, the mountain, the beach, the sand and the sea and the fluffy clouds. I am free to let off fireworks to express my appreciation. I adore the handful of genuinely lovely Thai people I know and politely keep away from those with an evil glitter in their eyes. I treasure the few ExPat friends I have (all of them totally different from me as far as background, education and work goes, but each of them considerate, open-minded and informed). I really appreciate the standard of care at the (Ampur) hospital in Nathon and the low cost of it. And I worship the overall cost of living in Thailand - I'd be renting a one-room bedsit back in England.

And then the balance happens. It's like two lovers who make out a list of good and bad points about each other. There are a hundred things they don't like and only a handful they do like. But they stay together because all the negative things are vastly outweighed by the three or four good bits. And that's me and Samui.

And that's why I'm still here after 13 years!

R

Well put Rob, think we have a lot in common.

[limbos]

Two excellent,, well balanced posts Rob!

[joe84330]

would tottally agree on your post Rob, well written, and puts most of the ' why we dont like samui ' into prospective

Ta duck - but I would add one little extra, and it's a highly personal note - there's a certain breed of ExPat here that makes my flesh crawl. Not wanting to single out tattooed post office robbers from Essex (I've met a couple of pleasant ones) there is a whole strata of mid-to-late 30s people, all of when seem to be from the same mould, shaved heads, lots of tats, loud when drunk, coarse, belligerent, overbearing and usually each with a tiny and stilettoed mini-skirted Thai girl in tow. And they all seem to collect together in one set of bars and all knock around in bunches together. And they are usually the ones seen wandering around Tesco in their swimwear, in groups or with lady attached.

Things like beaches, construction, bars, roads and all the rest - to my mind - are distracting. There are good and iffy ones in every town. What makes a place precious is the beauty of it (Samui has it in spades), the climate (ditto) and the day-to-day interaction with the other people around. All other aspects are knitted into these basics and either make the overall experience better or worse.

But nobody's talked about balance, yet!

Put it this way. I HATE the roads and the way people drive here. I hate it when Thais in a group refer to you as 'the farang' instead of using your name. I despair at the bewildering way that Thai logic works and they way they can never admit to being wrong. I detest needing to have to make any kind of appointment here. I'm ashamed that the police system is what it is and there is no access to a legal system unless you are a millionaire. There are probably another 50 reasons why I hate this place, if I sat and spent a week noting them all down.

And then I look at the complete freedom to whack up a house or garage or shed without months of inspections paperwork and permissions. To be able to shrug sheepishly and say "sorry officer, it was my fault" knowing I can then get it over with instantly with a fine. I'm overjoyed that my car doesn't need a microscopic test every year which costs me thousands to keep it on the road if I can afford the staggering insurance rates. I love the location, the climate, the mountain, the beach, the sand and the sea and the fluffy clouds. I am free to let off fireworks to express my appreciation. I adore the handful of genuinely lovely Thai people I know and politely keep away from those with an evil glitter in their eyes. I treasure the few ExPat friends I have (all of them totally different from me as far as background, education and work goes, but each of them considerate, open-minded and informed). I really appreciate the standard of care at the (Ampur) hospital in Nathon and the low cost of it. And I worship the overall cost of living in Thailand - I'd be renting a one-room bedsit back in England.

And then the balance happens. It's like two lovers who make out a list of good and bad points about each other. There are a hundred things they don't like and only a handful they do like. But they stay together because all the negative things are vastly outweighed by the three or four good bits. And that's me and Samui.

And that's why I'm still here after 13 years!

R

game, set and match.

[carmine]

Shame there's two topics - what like and what not like! To me they are sides of the same coin. And it's more a question of sadness than 'not liking'.

What makes me sad are the Thai people on Samui. And that holds true for all other places where there are a lot of tourists.

The local-born Thais have become either as cunning as foxes to squeeze money out of visitors (ie - any farang here) or they remain impassive and remote on the assumption that there is no substance to this changing sea of white faces.

The Thais that have come here to work (that's the vast majority of Thais on Samui) aren't representative at all of the Thai nation. These nomadic Thais have adopted a veneer of pleasant civility and hold themselves back with passive aggression, burying their responses and interaction.

But get away to Nakhorn Sri Thammarat, or Chiang Rai - any town or city where there are few tourists and the whole Thai experience changes. The 'natural' Thai person is shy, polite and friendly, curious and light hearted and with a heart as as big as a mountain. They genuinely and shyly want to know more about 'farangs' - about where they live, what their house and car is like, about what it's like living in XXX or XXX and, of course, that great common denominator - what football team they support. They are delighted when they discover you can speak (some of!) their language. They'll want to take you back to meet their family and even ask you to stay with them, and all with no thought at all of screwing you for money in any way. (Although as the honoured guest you may well be expected to pay the lion's share of a meal out or when it comes to the drinks bill - but they would do that with their own kind, anyway.) Thai folks away from the degrading (I use that word literally) swamp of a tourist trap are the most delightful people I've ever met in my 60 years.

Sadly, on Samui, we see little of this. AND YES - of course there are exceptions here - I've met lots of lovely Thai people around Samui. But this is speaking about people en mass and, as such, the way that most Thai people are on Samui makes me sad. They are so much more lovely in their natural habitat!

R

Agree 100% with this post

[PoorSucker]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

I pay 80 baht for a haircut.

Always gives 20 baht in tip.

Thats what the locals pay where I go. Farangs pay 150, which is ridiculous. I didnt mind paying at first, but Ive been going to the same place for abotu 9 months now.

Where do you go for this 80 baht cut? And is that the normal price, or is that because you are a long standing customer?

Next to Pang Bua market, Chaweng.

I think it's because I have been a steady customer for six years.

I have heard when tourist customers pay 300 baht for a cut and a shave.

[smokie36]

being charged different prices from the locals

I kicked off in the barber shop the other day about this......not that it got me anywhere, just got the "thai smile" and a smirk as if to say "<deleted> you farang"

I pay 80 baht for a haircut.

Always gives 20 baht in tip.

Thats what the locals pay where I go. Farangs pay 150, which is ridiculous. I didnt mind paying at first, but Ive been going to the same place for abotu 9 months now.

Where do you go for this 80 baht cut? And is that the normal price, or is that because you are a long standing customer?

Next to Pang Bua market, Chaweng.

I think it's because I have been a steady customer for six years.

I have heard when tourist customers pay 300 baht for a cut and a shave.

I'm not saying a word.