Moved Back To Uk Recently.....Arrrgghhh!

[smokie36]

She only ever questioned people with foreign accents. The front desk would flag 'customers' with funny accents for further investigation.

Yes those Glaswegians should pay for their excessive ways.

[makescents]

What if a person isn't looking for prospects and simply wants to just live there?

Simply just living there isn't that simple in the UK. People with university degrees have difficulty getting a job in their profession and most of them end up with low level, dead end jobs. The rate of unemployment is at it's highest, kids are running riot and intimidating the nation and our government is going rapidly downhill.

The cost of living to how much you earn if you actually have a job is not all a bunch of roses.

I think the likes of chiang mai, who have made provision for their retirement, are OK.

<snip>

I am the wrong person to judge, my life is now based in Thailand. Whilst the UK has many beautiful places it has an 'ugly feel' to it at the moment and I have no desire to return.

Not a bad post. You some up the negatives of the UK and don't resort to scapegoating to do it.

[exeter]

I think most of us have become disillusioned the way the UK has changed and with an annual visit the changes are like a cricket bat round the head. Why we put up with so many taxes and taxes on taxes, the government s have been taken the rise for far too long. I noticed on the tube, in the mornings that nobody smiled, it was becoming and has not changed a very unhappy place. The countryside and the buildings are treasures but it is just too expensive and sorry makescents it does seem like my country anymore. I am happy to be here, the locals are happy to have me here, feels more like home to me now, Thailand. I am sure I will have some good times on my visits back to the UK, taking the Cornish Riviera to Penzance, good beer, food I cannot get here,but, I will be glad to be back and I expect to end my days here and I am happy with that. The immigration problem and old age care was made me seek an alternative so I give them something but I have found where I am comfortable now and its not in the UK.

[makescents]

Well in a hope to find common ground I agree that old age care in the UK is appalling and needs addressing. Taxes are high and it's annoying to see money wasted on things like Trident or politician's second homes.

I guess I don't understand how you feel the UK is not your country yet you feel at home here. I always feel alien when I'm here and I know that no matter how hard I try I'll never be fully accepted into society here.

The UK bashing on this forum is usually what gets me posting as, I believe, it's not as bad as people make out. I could list the reasons why I consider the UK better than Thailand but that would take forever.

Let's just say Thailand is a lovely holiday destination but as a permanent home, it's not for me.

[Wossnext]

What if a person isn't looking for prospects and simply wants to just live there?

Simply just living there isn't that simple in the UK. People with university degrees have difficulty getting a job in their profession and most of them end up with low level, dead end jobs. The rate of unemployment is at it's highest, kids are running riot and intimidating the nation and our government is going rapidly downhill.

The cost of living to how much you earn if you actually have a job is not all a bunch of roses.

I think the likes of chiang mai, who have made provision for their retirement, are OK.

The immigrant car is overplayed at times and e.g. the Poles did come in (rather like Indians 5 decades earlier) and take jobs that the locals showed little interest in - and they worked hard. Ironic that many East Europeans are heading back, disillusioned with the what the UK has become.

Unemployment is actually at a 17 year high (it was higher in the recession of the early 90's which actually saw property prices dip 30%, 3m+ unemployed and interest rates at 15% (imagine what that sort of rate would do the economy now!).

I think the issue is that the young unemployment figure has topped 1m. That says a lot about the prospects for the country, culture and economy - no doubt crime as well.

The UK has become an expensive place to live - especially for those of us who now live in Thailand. Diesel 141p a litre (what a con switching to diesel engines was as well), £3 a beer, Council tax £140 a month, £5 to park your car for a few hours, a 10% rise in building materials etc, etc.

The UK has also become an unhappy place (I sure I have not helped that in my 3 week visit!). You look around and few people have a smile, no one has a good word for anything and there is little optimism for the future.

I am the wrong person to judge, my life is now based in Thailand. Whilst the UK has many beautiful places it has an 'ugly feel' to it at the moment and I have no desire to return.

I like this post, had me nodding my head repeatedly

[meatboy]

my mrs.had a job in the uk.that thai's would die for[35k bht]a week 2006 she couldnt wait to get back to los.2009 thats it thailand here we come.only downfall she owns a house in the uk.she rented it out fking nightmare,tennant has more rights than the owner,often behind with the rent,agent gets 10% does f-all.got them out after 2years,need to spend a few thou.£ to put it back to what it was and on the market for 20% less.open to offers.i used to think maggie fked up the uk.but tony blair and gorden brown stuck it up us all or y can say we got shafted.

where is the house?

taffyland newport gwent.

[exeter]

When I return to the UK I am based in north London, London is not representative of the UK, thankfully but it is where I will spend most of time updating what need to be done. I can remember going to London as a child in the 1950's when I lived near Nottingham. I liked where I lived and London by train WOW!

Times change society changes and we do look back with tinted glasses and remember all the good bits.

Today in London, you go to Peckham its more like west Africa, Brixton like the Carribean, Southall like India it is so cosmopolitan, some might like it, I dont I have to say. There are over 250,000 Nigerians alone in London, thats almost the population of Nottingham. Immigration has changed the country too much, I know some have come to do the jobs we would not, West Indians on the buses in Nottingham in the 50's but they did speak English and they did try and fit in, its whats happened in more recent times that has annoyed me more. The impression I get and I suspect I am not alone is that most have come here to sponge off our benefits system otherwise mainline Europe would have a larger proportion of them instead they head for the Channel and that is where they wanted to get to all along. I feel positive descrimination towards these people is the norm against the local population( its the other way round here). Whenever I have tried or needed help from the authorities in England, yes you get on the list but never got any further, always people ahead of you and those people who were where you were trying to get certainly were not English, so I resent that.

The countryside in the UK as a whole is beautiful, on a good summers day why would you want to be anywhere else, the food and drinks are good( the prices are not) Having a car is like having to pay fines for the pleasure, well its not a pleasure I could afford anymore, the car had to go.

Everyone has to weigh up what they want out of life and where suits them best, of course there are some bits I miss in the UK but overall I think here in Thailand is the better option for me now. Have a terrific g/f, nice house, good neighbours and people who want to wave and chat a bit, yes I am accepted here and I happy, life is good, like others have said the 2 problems will be the pension situation and healthcare, they need to be solved. I feel comfortable here in a way I could not in England, I had to be careful what I said in England ( a land of Free Speech!!) in case I upset somebody. There some people who just need to be pushed over a cliff, but before you do just tell them how lucky they are to living in the UK ( well it used to be that way ) and just because they might hold a British passport does not make them British!

[brizzle]

Well in a hope to find common ground I agree that old age care in the UK is appalling and needs addressing. Taxes are high and it's annoying to see money wasted on things like Trident or politician's second homes.

I guess I don't understand how you feel the UK is not your country yet you feel at home here. I always feel alien when I'm here and I know that no matter how hard I try I'll never be fully accepted into society here.

The UK bashing on this forum is usually what gets me posting as, I believe, it's not as bad as people make out. I could list the reasons why I consider the UK better than Thailand but that would take forever.

Let's just say Thailand is a lovely holiday destination but as a permanent home, it's not for me.

Yes I agree there is a lot of UK bashing on this forum...and for that matter also Thailand bashing. The fact is that neither country is perfect and I have a ''love /hate'' relationship with both. Living between the two suits me just fine and maintains some sort status quo and normality in my life. Whatever, for me at least, the positives of both countries far outweigh the negatives....and I'm thankful for that.

It seems to me that a number of people that bash the UK are those people that for what ever reason have not made a success of there lives in their home country. Yes I do agree about the immigration bit and some red tape but not much else..the whole of the western world and beyond is in a slight mess at the moment ..or did some people fail to notice?

There are many,many Thai nationals on a miserly 200 thb per day or less with no help from anyone other than family that would not consider Thailand to be the land of honey. As we all know most would jump at the opportunity to work in the west.

Everyone here is commenting on Thailand from a rich (relatively speaking) outsiders perspective and not the insiders perspective. The same country you claim to love is the same country that many Thai's are disillusioned with.

To try and compare Thailand with England or anywhere else in the Western world when it comes to living standards and the cost of living is like comparing chalk with cheese. Your life here is only more comfortable due to the fact you were born in the UK...you should thank divine intervention for that...or maybe pure luck.

I still love my England...it's not perfect ..but neither is Thailand...and I love this place too!

Edited January 3, 2012 by brizzle

[marstons]

i could never make that move, i decided selfishly or not that i had given up many years to take care of my mother and for what time i had left it was going to spent outside the UK. i was home for the riots this year, i really wished i could have seen some BIB treatment dished out to those scum bags, but the police stood and watched, local residents had to partol the streets to protect there property but were cautioned by police.

Freeview, well for me they should pay viewers to watch the same adverts over and over agian. Great place for me to be born and work, great place to get the hell out of.

Good luck i feel for you, i was there for less than 2 weeks and i felt the forigener. quality of life has to be the most boring in the developed world. i have American and Australian friends who say how bad they would feel having to go home, but it cant compare to going back there to live.

i was furtunate to live on the edge of the Peak District National park in a country village, so cushioned a little, but go for a beer on a monday and stand alone, until Roy walks in at exactly 10pm every night with his greyhound and orders a pint for himself and half for the dog. its sending a shiver down my spine thinking about it. give me soi cowboy or walking street any day.

i never met a Thai there who could not wait to get the hell out either when they had enough cash. generally i beleive people here with not a lot are more content than those living in the UK.

health care by post code, one post code you get cancer treating drugs another you dont. old people will freeze to death this winter as they do every winter. health care, dont care, accept about there index linked fat cat pensions.

Edited January 3, 2012 by marstons

[marstons]

Blimey, 90 days ! I am on holiday here in Thailand for 3 months. Due to go back 6 th March. How will Big Brother know how long one has been away for? I was working in America for just over 3 months at the beginning of the year and went to the doctor's when I got back to the UK and nothing flagged up thankfully.

i had a confidential chat with a doctor, who reported it to the Practice manager who wrote and told me despite previous payments (32 years) to NHS no longer entitled to further treatment. Hippocratic oath .... All that may come to my knowledge in the exercise of my profession or in daily commerce with men, which ought not to be spread abroad, I will keep secret and will never reveal.

well my doc revealed.

[naboo]

Left the UK over 3 years ago. Not been back for a holiday since. Family has asked me to visit this year. I'm putting it off until Christmas.

[makescents]

Blimey, 90 days ! I am on holiday here in Thailand for 3 months. Due to go back 6 th March. How will Big Brother know how long one has been away for? I was working in America for just over 3 months at the beginning of the year and went to the doctor's when I got back to the UK and nothing flagged up thankfully.

i had a confidential chat with a doctor, who reported it to the Practice manager who wrote and told me despite previous payments (32 years) to NHS no longer entitled to further treatment. Hippocratic oath .... All that may come to my knowledge in the exercise of my profession or in daily commerce with men, which ought not to be spread abroad, I will keep secret and will never reveal.

well my doc revealed.

I think doc-patient privilege only extends to medical records. If you told a doc you were going to murder your kids would you expect him not to tell the authorities?

[onionluke]

I expect nothing ,nit even a bru cheque , I will live my life until I die . And if you reap what you sew , I must have stitched up somebody real good . Pensions , aye that will be damned right ! Get a job down a Chinese coal mine .

[ludditeman]

I suspect at least two posters of being seriously drunk.

"Never post when pissed" should be a forum rule!

[makescents]

I suspect at least two posters of being seriously drunk.

"Never post when pissed" should be a forum rule!

Please no more rules. This board is heavily moderated as it is.

[lumply]

I don't know how they know but the information is buried there somewhere.

I used to travel to Baghdad on biz and was there just before the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Sometime later the man from HM Government paid a visit. He came straight up to my desk at the UK office. His department knew about my regular trips and recent dates. Under his watchful eye I had to provide evidence (invoices mainly) proving that my reasons for visiting Baghdad had nothing to do with selling military hardware etc. Satisfied, the gentleman departed (I may be mistaken but he smiled I think). Then the Press got hold of the visit by HMG, but that's another story. I never went back to Baghdad again unfortunately, shame because it was a great run ashore before the balloon went up. But how did HMG get hold of my travel dates? I have no idea to this day.

Blimey, 90 days ! I am on holiday here in Thailand for 3 months. Due to go back 6 th March. How will Big Brother know how long one has been away for? I was working in America for just over 3 months at the beginning of the year and went to the doctor's when I got back to the UK and nothing flagged up thankfully.

[nong38]

You just dont know what you dont know. I knew old pensioner 84, came out for a holiday, went home put everything in place and came back out here to live, somehow they knew he was here and stopped his £100 heating allowance and froze his pension, he did not tell them. Whether you think that is right or not, so it has to be one of two things. Either blabbed his mouth off and some one dropped him in it or the Govt systems are more advanced than previously thought. It took 2 years before this things were stopped so the only other thing I can think of was that he did not answer some post, seems likely but he lived in a room in a house where the landlord was his friend and was taking care of his mail, so how did they know?

[Wossnext]

I have some news to share with all of the TV members and readers who have followed this thread with me since I posted it, after some careful deliberation my wife and I have decided to leave the UK. It cost us an arm and a leg to move back here from Thailand in the first place so to leave again is an extremely expensive decision, but it is so bad here we feel like we must.

Fortunately I have dual citizenship for UK & NZ and my wife also holds NZ PR so we are making plans to move to Auckland to settle down, we previously lived in Wellington for several years and although NZ is no paradise either it is in our opinion better now than the UK and holds more opportunities as I studied and worked there for the NZ government for several years. We hope to leave the UK in around 6-8 months time and spend a month in BKK before flying on to NZ. I could give it another year or two but I am confident that a return to how the UK used to be or even an improvement in current conditions are not likely to come anytime soon, plus I am not getting any younger!

[Wossnext]

Look on the bright side. If you get a serious illness, or are the victim of a crime, or wish to pursue education or training, you will generally be much better off in the UK.

HI Briggsy,

I left this reply for a while I know but now after observing UK daily life for a few months I must be honest with you mate, serious illness....well yeh ok that could be a plus, but education? no not cheap nor affordable, victim of a crime, again I must say no, the legal system in the UK is generally very supportive if you are the perpetrator of a crime, not so much a victim of crime!

[nong38]

Sad to say but you are probably making the right moves, whatever you decide be happy and enjoy as it were your last because one day you are going to be right.

[theoldgit]

A major decision and obviously not one you have taken lightly, I agree with "nong's" sentiments and hope that you and yours will find happiness, security and contentment.

I suspect nowhere on earth is perfect, life is always a gamble and a balancing act.

Good luck my friend.

[brizzle]

Good luck Wossnext,

NZ is a fine place. After visiting both North and South Island a few years back I have to say that Auckland would not for me at least be my first choice to settle but I am sure you have your reasons ,economic or otherwise for your decision.

We all have different perspectives and views on life... I still love England despite the fact that it is obviously not the same England that I grew up in ...for me at least the phrase ''Forever England'' still rings true but I have to admit that I tend to focus on the positives more than the negatives that present day life in the UK provides.

Nothing stays the same...wherever you are...and I guess that for the most part this is an unfortunate fact of life.

[Portlandstone]

I'm not at all from England but wanted to say a quick thanks for sharing your story.

[tezzaaa]

Great post, I think it's not just UK that has gone worse, it's the whole of EU. I'm from France and been living in Uk for 20 years and I can tell you things are worse back home... Cost of living is much higher, especially food and there are no jobs, pay is lower than here and property prices are sky high!

[exeter]

I noticed that as well, used to have 3 day breaks in France and Spain when I lived in the UK and yes the prices were rocketing, I know wher you are coming from. People in France and Spain over the years of the Euro always said the same thing. "You are lucky in the UK, you have all the benefits of the Eurozone but still have control over your own interest rates." The last time I went to Spain was in October 2009, all the cranes were idle and the nights at the local bar which used to cost £10 were suddenly £14.

Runaway inflation is the curse of the world, there will be no winners, unless you have loads of money then you will last a bit longer.

Had some great memories in Normandy, Brittany and all the way down to Royan! Did not miss much either.

[tezzaaa]

The funniest part is even local cheeses eg reblochon specific to where I'm from are cheaper in London!

[Wossnext]

I am amazed by the number foreigners that find such lucrative high paying jobs in Thailand. With the exception of certain specialized or managing directorships, the pay scales are significantly lower in Thailand than in the west, at least that's according to the designated experts like Mercer, AON Hewitt, Deloitte etc. Foreigners that are lucky enough to be employed by foreign MNEs, especially the Swiss, get lucrative top up packages. I'm paid under a western contract that gives me a modest six figure income in $US, but if I took permanent residency and accepted a Thai salary, I would see my wage be cut in half. My colleagues that thought they were going to make a killing when they ditched their homeland income tax requirements in favour of PR got a rude shock when they realized they gave up some distinct benefits and were really no better off after 5 years, once the additional costs were factored in.
Some people over value their job skills in a market and it can come as a shock when the market sets them straight. Thailand is a place where marginal westerners can do better than in their homelands if they can fill a specific niche, but it comes with a cost, a cost usually measured by a diminished lifespan.

I note the grumbling about the UK and the presence of foreigners. Guess what? Thailand is filled with foreigners too; Burmese, Cambodians, Nepalese all doing the jobs the locals cannot or will not do. Know what? Those poles that some don't like are working their butts off doing the hard jobs the lazy English think they are too good to do. Because most foreigners cannot recognize the differences between Thais and Burmese labourers, they don't see the presence of the foreigners in Thailand, a presence that will only increase as labour shortages continue.

How anyone can consider the choking polluted environment of Bangkok superor to a suburb in the USA, Australia, UK is beyond ny understanding. Living in Bangkok speeds your journey to the undertaker. The fatc is that Bangkok residents are more likely to experience respiratory ailments, more likely to have an "accident" such as electrocution, or a fall and are more likely to die in a vehicular incident than in a western residential suburb.

Sure, complain about the food int he Uk. it's never been top notch, its true, but the likelihood of consuming adulterated or unidentified genetically engineered food is greater in Thailand. the likelihood of drinking contaminated water or food is higher in Thailand. From an ethical perspective, one of the reasons why costs are slightly higher in the west is because of things like workplace safety, ethical and humane agricultural practices and a higher quality of products and construction.

One can gripe about the UK, but the high costs and taxes are due to the fact that people are taken care of. it might not be the highest quality of care or perfect, but there are no limbless beggers, no children being sold for sex, no kids being forced into depraved "adult" films that are made in pattaya and no exploitation of the poor in quite the same way as in Thailand. There is a cost to creating an environment where human dignity is maintained.

As an ex law enforcement officer (yes, a real one not a mall cop) I can tell you that you are DEAD wrong that no sexual exploitation of children happens in the UK. It does!

[HardenedSoul]

I am amazed by the number foreigners that find such lucrative high paying jobs in Thailand. With the exception of certain specialized or managing directorships, the pay scales are significantly lower in Thailand than in the west, at least that's according to the designated experts like Mercer, AON Hewitt, Deloitte etc. Foreigners that are lucky enough to be employed by foreign MNEs, especially the Swiss, get lucrative top up packages. I'm paid under a western contract that gives me a modest six figure income in $US, but if I took permanent residency and accepted a Thai salary, I would see my wage be cut in half. My colleagues that thought they were going to make a killing when they ditched their homeland income tax requirements in favour of PR got a rude shock when they realized they gave up some distinct benefits and were really no better off after 5 years, once the additional costs were factored in.
Some people over value their job skills in a market and it can come as a shock when the market sets them straight. Thailand is a place where marginal westerners can do better than in their homelands if they can fill a specific niche, but it comes with a cost, a cost usually measured by a diminished lifespan.

I note the grumbling about the UK and the presence of foreigners. Guess what? Thailand is filled with foreigners too; Burmese, Cambodians, Nepalese all doing the jobs the locals cannot or will not do. Know what? Those poles that some don't like are working their butts off doing the hard jobs the lazy English think they are too good to do. Because most foreigners cannot recognize the differences between Thais and Burmese labourers, they don't see the presence of the foreigners in Thailand, a presence that will only increase as labour shortages continue.

How anyone can consider the choking polluted environment of Bangkok superor to a suburb in the USA, Australia, UK is beyond ny understanding. Living in Bangkok speeds your journey to the undertaker. The fatc is that Bangkok residents are more likely to experience respiratory ailments, more likely to have an "accident" such as electrocution, or a fall and are more likely to die in a vehicular incident than in a western residential suburb.

Sure, complain about the food int he Uk. it's never been top notch, its true, but the likelihood of consuming adulterated or unidentified genetically engineered food is greater in Thailand. the likelihood of drinking contaminated water or food is higher in Thailand. From an ethical perspective, one of the reasons why costs are slightly higher in the west is because of things like workplace safety, ethical and humane agricultural practices and a higher quality of products and construction.

One can gripe about the UK, but the high costs and taxes are due to the fact that people are taken care of. it might not be the highest quality of care or perfect, but there are no limbless beggers, no children being sold for sex, no kids being forced into depraved "adult" films that are made in pattaya and no exploitation of the poor in quite the same way as in Thailand. There is a cost to creating an environment where human dignity is maintained.

As an ex law enforcement officer (yes, a real one not a mall cop) I can tell you that you are DEAD wrong that no sexual exploitation of children happens in the UK. It does!

 

Perhaps but certainly not to the extent that it does in SE Asia.

 

Not so long ago, there were reports of kiddie porn being openly sold on Sukhumvit market stalls.

[taninthai]

Well just glanced over this thread and dont really know what to think, im going back to the uk in acouple of weeks,been in thailand 8 years,work not a problem can more or less walk straight in to a job, also have a bit of spare cash i want to invest so am going to buy another property in the uk to rent out.
Been looking around and for about 600,000-700,000 bht i can mortgage a property and have tenants in their paying the mortgage off,looking around in thailand i get fuck all for 600,000 bht

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[alfieconn]

Well just glanced over this thread and dont really know what to think, im going back to the uk in acouple of weeks,been in thailand 8 years,work not a problem can more or less walk straight in to a job, also have a bit of spare cash i want to invest so am going to buy another property in the uk to rent out.
Been looking around and for about 600,000-700,000 bht i can mortgage a property and have tenants in their paying the mortgage off,looking around in thailand i get fuck all for 600,000 bht

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

 

But you ain't buying a property in England for 700,000 baht, not unless it's a shed !

Edited April 25, 2013 by alfieconn