One For The Recent Expat Arrivals Into Bkk

[chiang mai]

Part of the answer involves the Forex markets, when the baht was trading around 75 to the Pound, Thailand attracted a lot of the less wealthy Westerners, for the past four years however the rate has dropped significantly to around 45 per Pound and a lot of the old brigade has been forced to leave and since the cost of living here has increased over the past four years, there are fewer less wealthy retiress arriving here. Also, the expat job market in Thailand pre 2000 was quite small, today it's quite vibrant where a whole host of expat jobs exist in the corporate world, your own current job being one of them I suspect. So yes, the reasons for comming to Thailand in the first place have changed and that in itself has altered the profile of expats, it's now longer the cheap long term adventure that it once was and instead it is becomming possible to work here for a couple of years in order to get Asian work experience whilst working for a global corporate, in that respect however it still has far to go before it matches the likes of say Singapore or Hong Kong. Newbies however would be unlikely to know those things whereas the old gauard should.

From four years ago my petrol has gone up from 33bht/l to 36bht/l

The exchange rate was 50bht/ukp. now it's 49bht/UKP

Housing, same

Not sure what you think has gone up in that time, it appears to me the price rises are trivial compared to the west.

Correction, the past six years, not the past four, my how time flies.

[N47HAN]

Part of the answer involves the Forex markets, when the baht was trading around 75 to the Pound, Thailand attracted a lot of the less wealthy Westerners, for the past four years however the rate has dropped significantly to around 45 per Pound and a lot of the old brigade has been forced to leave and since the cost of living here has increased over the past four years, there are fewer less wealthy retiress arriving here. Also, the expat job market in Thailand pre 2000 was quite small, today it's quite vibrant where a whole host of expat jobs exist in the corporate world, your own current job being one of them I suspect. So yes, the reasons for comming to Thailand in the first place have changed and that in itself has altered the profile of expats, it's now longer the cheap long term adventure that it once was and instead it is becomming possible to work here for a couple of years in order to get Asian work experience whilst working for a global corporate, in that respect however it still has far to go before it matches the likes of say Singapore or Hong Kong. Newbies however would be unlikely to know those things whereas the old gauard should.

From four years ago my petrol has gone up from 33bht/l to 36bht/l

The exchange rate was 50bht/ukp. now it's 49bht/UKP

Housing, same

Not sure what you think has gone up in that time, it appears to me the price rises are trivial compared to the west.

Correction, the past six years, not the past four, my how time flies.

Although I agree with your post , around 18 months before your arrival the Baht was high 60s low 70s so if youd been here 7 years then you would notice the change i guess

[Ciaran Mc]

I visit one of the following bars, on average, 3 times a week (Dubliners, Mulligans, Aussie, Robin Hood) and golf at the weekends....

have u any idea where the money to buy/finance most of those bars came from ????

and drinking there no wonder u meet so many losers !!!

apologies if anybody has already pointed this out as i haven't read the rest of the posts yet !!!

[chiang mai]

Part of the answer involves the Forex markets, when the baht was trading around 75 to the Pound, Thailand attracted a lot of the less wealthy Westerners, for the past four years however the rate has dropped significantly to around 45 per Pound and a lot of the old brigade has been forced to leave and since the cost of living here has increased over the past four years, there are fewer less wealthy retiress arriving here. Also, the expat job market in Thailand pre 2000 was quite small, today it's quite vibrant where a whole host of expat jobs exist in the corporate world, your own current job being one of them I suspect. So yes, the reasons for comming to Thailand in the first place have changed and that in itself has altered the profile of expats, it's now longer the cheap long term adventure that it once was and instead it is becomming possible to work here for a couple of years in order to get Asian work experience whilst working for a global corporate, in that respect however it still has far to go before it matches the likes of say Singapore or Hong Kong. Newbies however would be unlikely to know those things whereas the old gauard should.

From four years ago my petrol has gone up from 33bht/l to 36bht/l

The exchange rate was 50bht/ukp. now it's 49bht/UKP

Housing, same

Not sure what you think has gone up in that time, it appears to me the price rises are trivial compared to the west.

Correction, the past six years, not the past four, my how time flies.

Although I agree with your post , around 18 months before your arrival the Baht was high 60s low 70s so if youd been here 7 years then you would notice the change i guess

Six months before my arrival would put us into the early 1990's!

[Ciaran Mc]

I really do despair...

Instead of initiating a discussion on the initial impressions of new arrivals into Thailand, I get told I am drinking in the wrong bars, talking to the wrong people...

I no longer expect an intelligent answer to this, so will let you all tell me once more how its my fault..

well did u ever stop and think that's because u r talking to the wrong ppl and drinking in the wrong bars. i've been living and working here for 10 years and haven't met anybody yet who's lost "everything" to anybody or to his/her kin !!!

i've seen plenty of whining about it online though ... so yeah ... it probably is all ur fault !!

[jcnbkk]

You obviously attract the wrong kinds of people as aquaintences or friends , the question is not whats wrong with all the other losers out there the question is why do you find yourself in their company ? I don't

While I am one of a kind....

While here I have met all kinds...

[SpoliaOpima]

10 Ways Expats Can Avoid Being Mistaken for Tourists.

http://elephantsleg.wordpress.com/2013/01/19/10-ways-expats-can-avoid-being-mistaken-for-tourists/

[TommoPhysicist]

10 Ways Expats Can Avoid Being Mistaken for Tourists.

http://elephantsleg....n-for-tourists/

Wear Thai clothing

Avoid getting sunburn

Read Thai signs and menus

Have a Thai driving license

The Tuk Tuk drivers actually stopped shouting tuk tuk at me when I had used up all my clothing from the UK.

[transam]

10 Ways Expats Can Avoid Being Mistaken for Tourists.

http://elephantsleg....n-for-tourists/

Noooooo, it was a Brit in Brighton and a Bigmac.

[hippie]

Wow guess they didn't learn from there home country But fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me. First of all Know the rules before you play the game. Why buy the cow when you can get the milk free. Never let anyone control one satang of wht you took a life time to earn. If it is your gratifacation you seek, find some young chick stay away from bargirls most have more mileage than a Bangkok taxi. But if its eye candy you seek then be prepared to pay for it. Besides which girl in her right mind wants some old fart to love you long time? Do the word ATM ring a bell? But on the rare chance you do meet an honest one stick with her.

[jamhar]

*Sigh*,

i actually thought this was going to be a useful topic for a newbie

I guess i proved i really am a newbie!

[Rimmer]

One post has been removed. A posters name has been altered, this against forum rules and could result in a posting suspension, please see the following rule:

30) Do not modify someone else's post in your quoted reply, either with font or color changes, added emoticons, or altered wording.

[ScotsExpat]

*Sigh*,

i actually thought this was going to be a useful topic for a newbie

I guess i proved i really am a newbie!

Yep, unfortunately it would appear that the site is happy for old time flamers to post inflammatory replies to posts, but you appear to require more than my relatively short time on the bored to respond in kind...

[hippie]

I can only call them as I see them, and being an old fart myself must admit it does feel good to be with a young chick Thank god for Kamagra ROFLMAO:-)

[rsokolowski]

Onedownmanship? - hmm, maybe you feel that's the way it's coming across to you, but if anything I feel their intentions are more inclined that you can learn and benefit from their mistakes.

Bleeding them dry - these are shark invested waters, the law of the jungle dictates that Farangs are fair game.

Change her spots - yes it's the Thai equivalent of Groundhog Day.

Worked - that's the difference, most of the guys are retired and are looking for a soul mate.

Return home - not an option.

Not cut out for expat life - who is? We're all fish out of water.

Abject failure - coming to terms with reality, who was it that said a man's got to know his limitations.

Clint Eastwood in the movie Magnum Force