Kissing Thailand Good Riddance

[payak]

people come to thailand and complain then leave, but what made you come here in the first place, was it a failure in your home nation as well.

did not like home and left, did not like thauiland and left, could it be an internal problem that you will just drag to a new nation and fail again.

[Interman]

Feel free to ignore my rant, but I can't help it but warn my fellow expats that this country is unfit for raising children.

I can't ignore it as you give what I believe is a wrong warning. I would recommend this country for raising kids for my fellow expats.

Also, the corruption thing - I'd much rather have it than back in my native Scotland. You have to know how to use corruption to your advantage.

For me you've just highlighted one of the biggest risks about attitudes in Thailand

You've modified your behaviour so that you now accept corruption as being the norm, and are now looking to see how to use it to your benefit, If you can't beat them join them

I wouldn't for a moment dream that corruption doesn't exist in the UK. The difference is most people don't tolerate it nor look for opportunities to join in and take advantage. Instead the attitude is often not tolerate to it, and to complain to authorties, the police, your employer, your MP, the press or whoever they think can take action. Culprits then sometimes get caught, action is sometimes taken, and sometimes people get punished. Hence much less tolerated and prevalent. Not perfect by any means, but your average decent person doesn't like it and doesn't tolerate it. In Thailand very few people even try to do anything about it and many like yourself just join in if they think they can benefit.

I'm no saint by any means, but I'm proud of the values I was brought up with, and that includes not seeking corrupt ways to benefit myself. I still know right from wrong even when I may mistakes. The difference in Thailand is many people see nothing wrong with corruption as long as they benefit

Ive sat back a bit and read the posts.... Thank you very much for all your opinions.

This last qoute hits home. Ive found myself doing a crap load of stuff I never would have dreamed of back home. and though this has given me an advantage, or gains, there mostly just flat out wrong and quite frankly im not proud of it. This is a direct result of living here for an extended amount of time and letting go of my original up bringing. There is truth that not all children with a foreign parent will turn bad or even lean that way, but I feel as a whole as in my OP, the chances of being a well rounded individual are far greater in a western country. Or at least in Canada

[rattler]

people come to thailand and complain then leave, but what made you come here in the first place, was it a failure in your home nation as well.

did not like home and left, did not like thauiland and left, could it be an internal problem that you will just drag to a new nation and fail again.

Some people have no choice but to come, because he has chosen to go back DOES NOT make him a failure, if anything it makes Thailand a failure.

[Interman]

people come to thailand and complain then leave, but what made you come here in the first place, was it a failure in your home nation as well.

did not like home and left, did not like thauiland and left, could it be an internal problem that you will just drag to a new nation and fail again.

Came here straight out of high school to accomplish a dream. Did so, and along the way married a beautiful Thai wife have 4 kids (all ours), bought a house and a car and lived the lazy life. I would say we've been successful here. I look forward to the big challenge of "making it" back home.

[payak]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

[mjj]

Variety is the spice of life.

I'm considering leaving Thailand next year, although not to return to my homeland. The way I see it is that sometimes things just don't work out and instead of staying put being unhappy, go for the next adventure.

[inthepink]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I disagree with the OP's views on Thailand but I don't see why he has to justify coming here and then going somewhere else. Edited December 19, 2012 by inthepink

[manarak]

There is no such place as Utopia and for me, Thailand is the nearest I will get to it. Most ex-pats that do not succeed here, do so mostly by their own incompetence and then try to blame the country as a whole for their failings.

I came here to have sex with younger women, I keep succeeding.

Who are these people that fail?

Can't see my son failing either.

LOL, good post.

I'd say full success is doing that and keeping the wallet full at the same time.

[TommoPhysicist]

people come to thailand and complain then leave, but what made you come here in the first place, was it a failure in your home nation as well.

I became too old to attract women that were young enough to attract me.

It will happen to you too, unless you manage to die first.

I guess it was a form of failure on my part, as George Clooney and Sean Connery are still doing OK.

[metisdead]

Posts containing overly derogatory comments toward Thais have been removed.

[payak]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I disagree with the OP's views on Thailand but I don't see why he has to justify coming here and then going somewhere else.

why, because he is the one complaining about thailand.

[rene123]

Everybody has valid reasons for making their choices in life. All are valid to that person, but not necessarily to others. Everyone wants something slightly different and that often changes as people grow older. I've come to realize I don't need the things I once thought were precious. Some people have to have the big house on the hill with all the furnishings just to make themselves feel successful. I've met a few hermits in Canada who seemed happy living in a hollow tree. I wish the OP the best with whatever choice he makes. However, I suspect the OP won't be happy with what ever country he chooses. Some folks have the wander lust while others aren't happy unless they can set down roots. There is not a country in the world that you can't find faults with. Some just give you more options than others.

[rattler]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I disagree with the OP's views on Thailand but I don't see why he has to justify coming here and then going somewhere else.

why, because he is the one complaining about thailand.

And as we all know NOTHING in any way can be said about Thailand that shows it in the way it REALLY is.

I dont know why he's leaving everything here is great.

[payak]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I disagree with the OP's views on Thailand but I don't see why he has to justify coming here and then going somewhere else.

why, because he is the one complaining about thailand.

And as we all know NOTHING in any way can be said about Thailand that shows it in the way it REALLY is.

I dont know why he's leaving everything here is great.

it is what you make of it.

[MAJIC]

After twenty years I've decided to become a Thai citizen. Like you I had my doubts Around 10 years and nearly moved.

However my children have grown up fine and are angels compared to my old mates' kids raised in the UK.

They have had so many advantages here being half caste compared to other countries.

I am so Glad I didn't move As I as well as my kids and wife would be miserable.

Granted the kids education would be better but a very large price to pay for the gamble that they want to become brain surgeons.

Sent from my GT-I9100T using Thaivisa Connect App

I am a Father of 2 young girls living here and I totally can totally relate to the above post and I also thought the OP's post was very good too, and anyone that knows me on here will know that I don't hand out compliments easily.

Without going into it all too much I know that this country is far from the perfect place to raise kids and everything the OP mentions is fair kop BUT I am from the UK and the thought of putting my kids through school in the UK and taking my mrs back there to live sends a cold shiver through my spine, my kids will probably be on the smack by the time they are 14....I am 100% staying put, warts an all.

This perception by some that if you put your kids through school in the west that they will leave school at 16 being these perfect people with great careers ahead of them is totally laughable, at least here they will respect the culture and their elders etc...

Just to cover 1 of your comments (BTW I'm British too). The schooling in England and the likelyhood of drugs, gangs, etc does increase the closer you get to the urban sprawl. If you bring your kids up in a decent small town you can live with a far better quality of life and a good chance of a decent education provided gratis. Find a small enough town and you don't have to worry about the post-code lottery for education.

I realise that this does limit your options and, in reality, puts me back squarely agreeing with hotandhumid. However if you CAN make it work for you and have work that allows you that kind of freedom then you can really make the UK work for you and your family. The tax rates aren't too bad if you take into consideration the cost of family life (i.e. education, healthcare, etc) in most of the rest of the world and what you get for your money in England (i.e. roads that don't break your car, world class healthcare, sanitation, pavements, crossings, safe driving standards, etc).

Get the right town and you might be 10 miles from a decent National Park, 10 miles from the beach and not have to worry too much about your children walking home from school and to each others houses. Use http://www.zoopla.co.uk/ to help make a decision.

I have a 1 year old British-British girl here and she is already treated differently. Unusually I am complaining even though most of this "differently" could be viewed as positive from one person's perspective, but it won't equip my daughter with a real version of the world if everybody keeps on holding her in high esteem JUST because of how she looks!

Yep, looks like we might be back in Blighty before our little one's 5th birthday. We'll have had a good run here and there are plenty of great things here, just not perfect enough for our little demographic. When we do go we will miss it...greatly!

World class healthcare?? Are you sure, the hospitals in the UK are a disgrace, and besides how often does one end up in hospital in their lifes? Certainly not a reason for going back, unless you are old and on your last legs. Funny enough when I was back last my old mum didn't stop complaining about the state of the pavments there, then again at least there ARE pavements.

Best of luck if you do go back, you will need it!

Right about the Pavements (no comparison with Thailands Pavements) in the UK,but wrong about the Health care,when are the whingers going to wake up,we know it's an easy target,endlessly moaning about the NHS, but 62,000,000,are being treated by what still is the finest National Health Service in the World. What do people expect? instant service? which you will get,if it's an emergency,but expect to wait for that Hernia tuck in job,Hip replacement,even if you are 80yo ,Hysterectomy,and other non urgent complaints. In this case the alternative is: have it done in Thailand,with it's expensive and hit and miss results.

Talking of Hysterectomies,my mates Thai wife has just had it done on the NHS for free,and couldn't believe the exellent care and service she received.

Last year another Thai friend spent ten days in hospital with neumonia,once again free.

[endure]

I've just spent time at my local NHS hospital - newly built two years ago. I waited 3 weeks for the appointment and was very impressed with the treatment I got. I can walk into my GP practice 365 days a year and be seen without an appointment.

[payak]

I've just spent time at my local NHS hospital - newly built two years ago. I waited 3 weeks for the appointment and was very impressed with the treatment I got. I can walk into my GP practice 365 days a year and be seen without an appointment.

same here, never made one, never had to wait.

[inthepink]

it is what you make of it.

Sure, everywhere is what you make of it but I have to admit that if I were single I might have moved back home by now or to somewhere else completely new. Not because I think that the answer to a better life lies elsewhere but because I get bored staying in one place. I don't think that raises any serious questions about my character.

Thailand is a great place if you are single, well off and have plenty of free time but if you are working and have a family, it isn't that fantastic. Personally, if it weren't for the weather I think I would prefer to live in London than anywhere in Thailand. That's not to say I'm unhappy here, just that I don't find the country particularly thrilling nowadays.

Edited December 19, 2012 by inthepink

[NeverSure]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

Now that's silly. You try something, it isn't for you, you change. It could be a career, a place to live...

I've done that myself within my own country. When I was much younger I moved from a smaller town to a big city due to an offer of a promotion and a raise with a bank I worked for. I hated the big city, liked and succeeded at the job, but still quit and moved "home." Now, decades later, I can look out my windows, way down in the valley in the distance and see the grade school, the junior high school, and the high school I graduated from so long ago.

Should questions be asked about that? Do what makes you happy.

[Colonel_Mustard]

people come to thailand and complain then leave, but what made you come here in the first place, was it a failure in your home nation as well.

did not like home and left, did not like thauiland and left, could it be an internal problem that you will just drag to a new nation and fail again.

Nothing wrong in finding out a country isn't for you and moving on. It's a sensible, mature thing to do.

I would say that people who stay despite not liking it here have bigger problems.

[StreetCowboy]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

Now that's silly. You try something, it isn't for you, you change. It could be a career, a place to live...

I've done that myself within my own country. When I was much younger I moved from a smaller town to a big city due to an offer of a promotion and a raise with a bank I worked for. I hated the big city, liked and succeeded at the job, but still quit and moved "home." Now, decades later, I can look out my windows, way down in the valley in the distance and see the grade school, the junior high school, and the high school I graduated from so long ago.

Should questions be asked about that? Do what makes you happy.

Sometimes, people's circumstances change. They get older, their family get's older (or younger), career circumstances or health changes...

Sometimes countries change; the economy improves, or opportunities arise elsewhere, or government changes, the environment improves or deteriorates.

SC

[canman]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I left my home country in the early 80's and have lived and worked in 4 other countries since. What questions would you like to ask?

[farang000999]

Adultery. Not to get into ones sex lives,, but lets face it, anyone with a little girl here must be worried about their little princess' future.

I'd feel more comfortable raising a son in Thailand than a daughter. Call me paranoid but I really hate the way you see so many Thai men just leering at young women as young as twelve and then of course the general sense of lawlessness and disregard for human life so commonly displayed.

[inthepink]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I left my home country in the early 80's and have lived and worked in 4 other countries since. What questions would you like to ask?

I'd like to ask where you lived and how the places you lived in compare to Thailand. Do you regret leaving any of the countries in which you stayed? Were there any that you really didn't like? Edited December 20, 2012 by inthepink

[inthepink]

Adultery. Not to get into ones sex lives,, but lets face it, anyone with a little girl here must be worried about their little princess' future.

I'd feel more comfortable raising a son in Thailand than a daughter. Call me paranoid but I really hate the way you see so many Thai men just leering at young women as young as twelve and then of course the general sense of lawlessness and disregard for human life so commonly displayed.

I think my daughter is going to have to become a nun. No Thai man will be good enough for her and I'm not letting her near any of the Westerners that come here either...If I'm anything to go by, they don't make very good husbands Edited December 20, 2012 by inthepink

[StreetCowboy]

im not saying people who came are a failure, but if your leaving your second country, questions should be raised.

I left my home country in the early 80's and have lived and worked in 4 other countries since. What questions would you like to ask?

I'd like to ask where you lived and how the places you lived in compare to Thailand. Do you regret leaving any of the countries in which you stayed? Were there any that you really didn't like?

though I have stayed less time in any one country than Canman:

No, I don't regret leaving.

There were none that I disliked, though my wife didn't like Taiwan.

SC

[Johnniey]

Adultery. Not to get into ones sex lives,, but lets face it, anyone with a little girl here must be worried about their little princess' future.

I'd feel more comfortable raising a son in Thailand than a daughter. Call me paranoid but I really hate the way you see so many Thai men just leering at young women as young as twelve and then of course the general sense of lawlessness and disregard for human life so commonly displayed.

I think my daughter is going to have to become a nun. No Thai man will be good enough for her and I'm not letting her near any of the Westerners that come here either...If I'm anything to go by, they don't make very good husbands

I'm not sure what you mean by, "No Thai man will be good enough" for your daughter. Maybe you can elaborate?

It sounds rather racist to me. Are you saying that ALL Thai men are beneath the men from your own country or what?

Men in the UK stare at my daughters, men in other countries stare at my daughters. The worst is the Middle Eastern ones.

I'd have no problem at all if either of my daughters want to marry a Thai man.

Not sure what country you are from but I am from the UK and came here and think I'm a bloody good husband.

[chiangmaikelly]

Adultery. Not to get into ones sex lives,, but lets face it, anyone with a little girl here must be worried about their little princess' future.

I'd feel more comfortable raising a son in Thailand than a daughter. Call me paranoid but I really hate the way you see so many Thai men just leering at young women as young as twelve and then of course the general sense of lawlessness and disregard for human life so commonly displayed.

I think my daughter is going to have to become a nun. No Thai man will be good enough for her and I'm not letting her near any of the Westerners that come here either...If I'm anything to go by, they don't make very good husbands

I'm not sure what you mean by, "No Thai man will be good enough" for your daughter. Maybe you can elaborate?

It sounds rather racist to me. Are you saying that ALL Thai men are beneath the men from your own country or what?

Men in the UK stare at my daughters, men in other countries stare at my daughters. The worst is the Middle Eastern ones.

I'd have no problem at all if either of my daughters want to marry a Thai man.

Not sure what country you are from but I am from the UK and came here and think I'm a bloody good husband.

You call him a racist and then write, "The worst is the Middle Eastern ones." ?????

[inthepink]

Adultery. Not to get into ones sex lives,, but lets face it, anyone with a little girl here must be worried about their little princess' future.

I'd feel more comfortable raising a son in Thailand than a daughter. Call me paranoid but I really hate the way you see so many Thai men just leering at young women as young as twelve and then of course the general sense of lawlessness and disregard for human life so commonly displayed.

I think my daughter is going to have to become a nun. No Thai man will be good enough for her and I'm not letting her near any of the Westerners that come here either...If I'm anything to go by, they don't make very good husbands

I'm not sure what you mean by, "No Thai man will be good enough" for your daughter. Maybe you can elaborate?

It sounds rather racist to me. Are you saying that ALL Thai men are beneath the men from your own country or what?

Men in the UK stare at my daughters, men in other countries stare at my daughters. The worst is the Middle Eastern ones.

I'd have no problem at all if either of my daughters want to marry a Thai man.

Not sure what country you are from but I am from the UK and came here and think I'm a bloody good husband.

I'm from the UK and maybe you are looking a little too deeply into what was a tongue-in-cheek post. If you have daughters then surely you must be familiar with the feeling that no man will be good enough for them - which is why I mentioned Westerners as well as Thai men. How can I possibly be saying that Thai men are beneath the men from my country??

Lighten up a little. The emoticon I used was a clue as to the spirit of my post. If you are trolling then look elsewhere.

Edited December 20, 2012 by inthepink

[Interman]

One question for the OP: if he has been working in schools for the last 11 years, why is his spelling so awful?

Because I came here to teach English, not learn it.