Why and at what age did you come to Thailand?

[i claudius]

I had been married twice and was dating a woman 15 or so years younger than me for about a year, when she started keeping on about getting married ,something i wanted like a hole in the head ,as i was having a great time and had a very good life ,so i finished the affair and dragged out an old brochure for singles holidays in Thailand or the Phillipines ,i knew very little about both places as i had always stayed mainly in the west ,anyway the guy who ran the holidays said Thailand was good and much nicer ,honestly no mention of women or anything ,so i booked up ,my lifestyle at the time was free and easy ,i worked with a friend doing stuff that was not 9/5 and didnt need me around all the time .so i came to Pattaya and the fun began.

what about you

[villagefarang]

I was yet to turn 21, still studying at university and the year was 1975. Two years later, after graduation, I moved here. Like many I was running away from something.

I was terrified of living a normal life. I dreaded things like, career, marriage, kids, debts, divorce, redundancy, obesity, ill health, and regrets. I was assure by others that I could not escape the expectations of family and society, but I proved them wrong.

[aveabeeror2]

Get a life.what possible interest could a sane person have in such a topic. .?

[HardenedSoul]

Ah well at least this topic doesn't come around as often as the "Farang is a racist slur" or "Why are there so many grumpy old men in Thailand".

I was terrified of living a normal life. I dreaded things like, career, marriage, kids, debts, divorce, redundancy, obesity, ill health, and regrets. I was assure by others that I could not escape the expectations of family and society, but I proved them wrong.

Unlike VF, I sampled the normal life.

I had a career requiring me to wear a suit, some minor debts, some responsibility and a couple of mortgages - nothing too heavy, I guess.

I'd deftly managed to swerve marriage, offspring, divorce and obesity but I knew that the looming financial crisis wasn't gonna be pleasant and I was too bored with the career to make the effort in performance that would be required to keep my very comfortable desk when the economy turned down so I decided to bin the career at 40, sell the flat, cut the yapping girlfriend loose, buy precious metals and head off around the planet until the economic furore settled down.

Thailand was stop number one but I'm still here 6 years later.

It's been an absolute scream and I've no regrets whatsoever about my decision.

[Spaniel]

I first came here in 1967, 23 years old, working for a US government contractor on Korat AFB.

[anthobkk]

I first came here in 2007 when I was 20 for an internship and I was hosted in a Thai familly. I don't know how but I fell in love with this country, at the time my Thai familly was very strict and didn't allow me to go out at night or take a hotel alone for the weekend, they were not mean, they just worried too much about me.

I then came back home and told my friends that we should save money to go to Thailand during summer 2008. It was great too, I paid a visit to my thai familly, traveled to the north, south, everything.

I then had the chance to have another internship in Bangkok in 2009. I spent 3 months and had a good time. Then I started to realize that I felt much better here than back home (France), but I also wanted to know other asian countries so I went to Shanghai for 6 months internship...Great city but I couldn't bear chinese behavior. I went to Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, all of those country were nice but not as good as Thailand.

Finally I finished my Master in Seoul. Amazing place, I loved to live there but unfortunetly it was too difficult to find a job there without being able to speak Korean. I went back to Thailand in 2011, found a job here and life is perfect since then.

I didn't go back home for two years already but I don't really miss it. I think Thailand is just totally different than the life you can have in Europe, it's cheaper, you're allowed to do much more but also it's more difficult sometimes, more exiting, great weather, opportunity to meet many people.

[mca]

Came here at 28 through being a management trainee for an international hotel chain liked it, was offered a job and stayed. Im 46 now married for 14 years with a 9 year old daughter. Lived in khon kaen until wifes career brought us to Bangkok and now Im chilling in lower suk near terminal 21

[FiftyTwo]

I came here on holiday, age 52, to have a breather from a nasty divorce.

Didn't like family court, so didn't go back. They did it all without any input or participation from me.

[GaoYuk]

After I graduated from Sunny Hill School for the mentally handicapped in 2008 I moved here to pursue my career as a political advisor and never left..business is booming.

[kwonitoy]

Came in 1995, age 37 sent by my company to work on a gas pipeline.

Stayed and worked for 4 years on 3 different jobs, went back home to Canada and it was -28C and snowing.

Said to hell with that and stationed myself out of Thailand since then.

[mca]

I had a career requiring me to wear a suit

You forgot to mention it was a gimp suit HS mate

[MJP]

I think I was either 23 or 24, built the first house that year too. I've always looked back. And thought . . . Oh f£$k!

Now 38 but look and feel 58.

[Costas2008]

I was 95 when I first came to Thailand.

After 6 years, living here I am 66.

Must be the air!!!!!!!

[simon43]

It was November 2002 and I was doing my usual 2-hour commute to work in central London. Everyone on the train looked miserable and I thought to myself 'I could still be doing this journey in 30 years from now...'

So I resigned my job and relocated to Bangkok at the age of 43 (hence my nick). I initially continued my career in software, but was bored of this profession after 20 years of similar work.

So I flew down to Phuket for a holiday. I wanted to stay near to the airport, but there was no decent hotel. So I decided to build one...

Years later (and several more hotels later and several wives later), I had time on my hands and again wanted to try something different. I was offered a teaching job in Myanmar. I took the job (teaching primary and kindergarten kids), and loved it. I was promoted to school vice-principal after 5 months and then Headmaster of a different school in Laos 6 months after that.

Now I spend my free time in Phuket, either staying at one of my family's hotels, or building new 'mini-hotels;, and I continue to work in Myanmar as a teacher during school term.

Simon

Edited December 26, 2013 by simon43

[MJP]

It was November 2002 and I was doing my usual 2-hour commute to work in central London. Everyone on the train looked miserable and I thought to myself 'I could still be doing this journey in 30 years from now...'

So I resigned my job and relocated to Bangkok at the age of 43 (hence my nick). I initially continued my career in software, but was bored of this profession after 20 years of similar work.

So I flew down to Phuket for a holiday. I wanted to stay near to the airport, but there was no decent hotel. So I decided to build one...

Years later (and several more hotels later and several wives later), I had time on my hands and again wanted to try something different. I was offered a teaching job in Myanmar. I took the job (teaching primary and kindergarten kids), and loved it. I was promoted to school vice-principal after 5 months and then Headmaster of a different school in Laos 6 months after that.

Now I spend my free time in Phuket, either staying at one of my family's hotels, or building new 'mini-hotels;, and I continue to work in Myanmar as a teacher during school term.

Simon

What a life!!!

Good for you.

[mogandave]

Came in '98 for work.

[i claudius]

Most of us seems just fell in love with the place ,i only came for 12 days originally ,6 weeks later i was back and had rented a room in Naklua ,

[rct99q]

I came here on holiday, age 52, to have a breather from a nasty divorce.

Didn't like family court, so didn't go back. They did it all without any input or participation from me.

Most TV members could say the same thing about their previous marriages..."did it all without any input or participation from me."

[khunpa]

I was 19 years old when I first came here on holiday in 1989 and have visited the country at least one time per year since then.

Decided to move here for good, when I 4 years ago met my girlfriend and have no plans of ever leaving. Have lived and worked most of my life abroad, but always had a special "home-feeling" when coming to Thailand.

[rct99q]

I am sure if my home country averaged +30 degrees all year round and one valued sex for less than the price of a happy meal I would probably have not come here. But as the UK gets 1 week of summer and the only "happy meal" one can find is a single mother of 6 from Blackpool with 4 original teeth, Thailand is game on.

[nottocus]

First OE. China and then Thailand. Back in 1991. The reason was to get the hell out of where I was living.

[Kangawallafox]

I'm presently here scouting the bars for former sas,navy seals and delta force soldiers to start my own army.

So far I have been to several bars and found loads.

[IsaanUSA]

23. I went to Thailand to go visit my friends from college. They graduated from college and moved back home to Thailand but encouraged me to go visit.

I still go to visit my friends, but now they are mostly married, some have children and they have full time jobs so we cannot spend as much time hanging out.

[Jasun]

Came at 19 for the full moon party. That was almost 25 years ago. Dozen holidays followed, and eventually living and working for the best part of a decade. Never been back to Ko Pha Ngan.

[elliottm]

32, Holiday.

[PaulHamon]

I was 30 when I visited and 34 when I came here to live.

Came for a couple of months in 2002 with a friend when we where backpacking around the world.

Spent 4 weeks on Koh Tao island doing nothing for 3 weeks doing nothing and then the rest traveling around the country.

Loved the place, starting thinking then I could live here.

Moved here in 2006 after restructuring my life back home.

[tyler2208]

early teens, I am adopted by Thai's. They were living in my native country when they first adopted me and when they moved back to thailand, bought me with them... been here ever since, i'm 37 now.

Dont like here much these days if I am honest, there are plenty of other places I would rather live, I guess this place is just home now so I try and get on with it... like most people all over the world.

[PaulHamon]

Get a life.what possible interest could a sane person have in such a topic. .?

personal curiosity.

[robblok]

Came here when I was 31 to settle, before that time i had visited a few times of course I believe I came here first when I was 25. Most people who arrived here young have a totally different experience then the people arriving later.

[thaibook]

I first went to Thailand in 1963 as a child. We had taken a cargo-passenger boat from Birkenhead to BKK from where we went on Vientiane where my father was to be MA at the embassy. Spent three years in Laos, well almost - being a Brit I was sent back to boarding school after passing the common entrance. After university (BSc & MA) undecidered whether to go further in academia so my parents gave me a one way ticket to Kabul and said I should travel east. Made my way to los; Laos was closed then so stayed with friends at embassy then took a job doing research for a business mag; went down to Borneo, flew back to UK and started working. Met a young Thai girl studying in UK. Several years later married her. Thirty years later having been to los a number of times am now planning to move there more permanently - perhaps in a few months. Likely to be CM and/or BKK and would welcome contact details of people who would be willing to have a drink (tea,coffee, wine or beer) or a meal to establish a few links with expats (any nationality - have lived in several countries and speak French). [Not sure if or how possible to contact other memebrs on TV]