Long timers - Is Thailand better or worse than 10 years ago?

[ALFREDO]

For the most part, better. I love the skytrain, the big shopping malls on a hot day (basically every day is hot!). I also feel that Thai ladies are eager to meet a farang now because it is more socially accepted and most cannot get a good Thai man these days so we're the next best thing.

I disagree,

also, I like the Sky train, but he is only moving around in a very small part of Thailand

and like the big shopping malls against heat .

Thai woman - Falang, acceptance, see no much difference, only that there are now much more here,

a dozen+ of Falang in Isaans LOTUS and BIG C at most times and 10+ years ago only 1 or 2.

Regarding the thread title, Thailand is for me now worse, than 10+ years ago

and far more worse than 20+ years ago = 1990 when I arrived first.

But its still, over all, a better living place, than my EU home country.

[epicstuff]

definitely worse.... my stories of shit things are piling up but I cant be bothered to go into it . I'm at the stage I'd love to see this god forsaken place implode I thought it was just Phuket but maybe I am wrong. I loved Thailand till I moved here.

they've shot themselves in the foot I think... tonnes of people are trying to sell up and ship out... me too if I can work out where to go, somewhere else in Thailand or somewhere else entirely???. but it seems more than clear no one is really that interested in offering me anything for my money least of all a genuine smile .. I'd love any input for a place with similar climate but with some opportunity..

[MJP]

definitely worse.... my stories of shit things are piling up but I cant be bothered to go into it . I'm at the stage I'd love to see this god forsaken place implode I thought it was just Phuket but maybe I am wrong. I loved Thailand till I moved here.

they've shot themselves in the foot I think... tonnes of people are trying to sell up and ship out... me too if I can work out where to go, somewhere else in Thailand or somewhere else entirely???. but it seems more than clear no one is really that interested in offering me anything for my money least of all a genuine smile .. I'd love any input for a place with similar climate but with some opportunity..

If you can handle the (very) slow and simple life, then I highly recommend Nakhon Nowhere. When I can't take the lightening speed of the Blighty anymore I head home to the bungalow in Nakhon Nowhere and for months absolutely nothing goes through my mind. Nothing at all.

It's cathartic.

[bigbamboo]

definitely worse.... my stories of shit things are piling up but I cant be bothered to go into it . I'm at the stage I'd love to see this god forsaken place implode I thought it was just Phuket but maybe I am wrong. I loved Thailand till I moved here.

they've shot themselves in the foot I think... tonnes of people are trying to sell up and ship out... me too if I can work out where to go, somewhere else in Thailand or somewhere else entirely???. but it seems more than clear no one is really that interested in offering me anything for my money least of all a genuine smile .. I'd love any input for a place with similar climate but with some opportunity..

If you can handle the (very) slow and simple life, then I highly recommend Nakhon Nowhere. When I can't take the lightening speed of the Blighty anymore I head home to the bungalow in Nakhon Nowhere and for months absolutely nothing goes through my mind. Nothing at all.

It's cathartic.

It's also very Thai.

[MJP]

definitely worse.... my stories of shit things are piling up but I cant be bothered to go into it . I'm at the stage I'd love to see this god forsaken place implode I thought it was just Phuket but maybe I am wrong. I loved Thailand till I moved here.

they've shot themselves in the foot I think... tonnes of people are trying to sell up and ship out... me too if I can work out where to go, somewhere else in Thailand or somewhere else entirely???. but it seems more than clear no one is really that interested in offering me anything for my money least of all a genuine smile .. I'd love any input for a place with similar climate but with some opportunity..

If you can handle the (very) slow and simple life, then I highly recommend Nakhon Nowhere. When I can't take the lightening speed of the Blighty anymore I head home to the bungalow in Nakhon Nowhere and for months absolutely nothing goes through my mind. Nothing at all.

It's cathartic.

It's also very Thai.

Can't beat 'em, join 'em. Don't knock it 'til you try it!

There is absolutely no way I could live in any conurbation, particularly the likes of the tourist/seedy areas. But a bit of Nakhon Nowhere simplicity, a cheap cheap garden centre and some fine grade pig manure for potting . . . bliss.

[farang000999]

People generally view things as getting worse because they are getting older and closer to the finish.

[MJP]

People generally view things as getting worse because they are getting older and closer to the finish.

[palaver]

I think people are not realizing that people change, too.

Whether or not a country changes, and everything changes, we change and what we liked once, we no longer like and so on.

Many things that I used to like when I was younger I no longer like. I used to think that I'd want to be a world traveler, but the more I travel, the less I want to travel.

As Kurt Vonnegut once said, "And so it goes..."

It sounds like the OP has changed and what he used to like, he no longer likes and seems to like the old country better.

I've liked and disliked everywhere I have lived and visited. At some point you choose where you want to live and deal with what you don't like there.

As for customs/immigration, the US is a pain. I've been questioned suspiciously about living in another country while immigration did not seem to understand I was in the military stationed overseas. I was looked at not in a good way. My non-white wife was looked at and questioned at the US border as we drove through and treated us like crap. Or spend 4 hours while you get interrogated by the customs/security people at the airport after a 30 hour flight and travel from your overseas vacation spot.

It sounds like the OP wants validation or something and doesn't want to like Thailand and wants to like the home country. Ok, fine.

BTW, I don't live in Thailand, have only vacationed there...

[vic666]

I have been here since 1991. I agree with you 100%, your post describes my vibe too. I have no hard feelings towards Thailand. I've had the best years of my life so far here, but it's time to thank our host and leave. There are other lands of smiles around...

[Thai at Heart]

If you are not jealous why do you come on a Thai website and insult Thailand. A normal person would just leave. I have lived in 6 different countries that I don't like. I have never gone to a website devoted to those countries to tell anybody how lucky I was for leaving. Don't you realize how obvious you are?

You are a very black and white type of guy aren't you. Love shouldn't be nor does it need to be blind..........

You wrote, "Yes indeed. I will be filling up my company BMW and going to watch the 20/20 cricket over the weekend." Why would you think any of us care? You bragging about a BMW and watching cricket?

You really don't know how obviously jealous that is? And why come here and attempt to brag?

I'm not a black and white guy. I live in Thailand because I like Thailand. I don't have to badmouth the USA or another country on American websites. That would be so tacky.

This is a thread about the changes in Thailand during the last ten years not about how much better your life is since you left. You are gone. Get over it.

The point was that I must obviously be loaded to be able to live in the UK. Hardly true at all

I was living well in Thailand and I live well in the UK.

In Thailand I couldn't afford a BMW and was forking out an awful.lot of money for things that are largely free in the UK. That's the point.

Depending on how you live in thaikand and the UK, things can be very close in cost. I will.go back to Thailand one day, but not sure I or the missus will live there.

Its a big wide world out there.

Edited July 3, 2014 by Thai at Heart

[Doc50]

It will always look worse. In Hindsight it is a given.

There will always be more traffic. The girls will always offer less for more.

Rents go up. Attitude gets worse from Thais.

I just left after 12 years.

Love being back home in the West.

Doc

[3NUMBAS]

and the bar industry is on its last very shaky legs not much is left of it compared with the boom years when they were wall to wall

[sarahv]

You are right, foreigners don't seem welcome in Thailand. I was in Thailand for a year as an exchange student at a prominent university in Bangkok. I paid fees higher than the Thai students, but yet I was treated like a 2nd class student. We are not allowed to partake in student organizations, we are not given proper student I.Ds, our campus wi-fi was shut off a month earlier than our program end date, and every time we went into the library we would be given cold stares by the librarians, who would always question our identity in trying to prevent our entry. The Thai students in our classes would completely ignore us foreign students. Mandatory group projects were a nightmare, as Thais refused to acknowledge us as part of the group. At the university there isn't a language barrier either as most students there are fluent in English, so I can't understand what their problem is. I did occasionally meet the odd friendly Thai student, but these were few and far between. I also had my purse and smart phone stolen while at school. I went to report it stolen at the nearby police station per the school's instructions but the police refused to let me talk. As soon as they saw me come in the station, they said, 'No!' and handed me a paper with 'tourist police' on it. In Thai, I explained that I wasn't a tourist but a student and was instructed to come here by my school, but they didn't care. I then complained to my program advisor who is Thai, and he ended up returning to the same police station with me, and I got the report I needed within minutes. The sergeant said that he didn't understand why they sent me away as they have a translator in the office.

The Thai exchange students that come to my university in the U.S. do not have to put up with this discrimination as they are treated as equals there. They are entitled to the same privileges as the non-foreign students. I don't understand why Thailand wouldn't want exchange students. We pay higher tuition fees, some of us volunteer for Thai NGOs, and in our free time we spend money at restaurants, bars, and tourist attractions. I really love Thailand, however towards the end of the year I felt relieved to leave and get away from the racism. Being considered 'the other' all the time gets pretty tiring. When I first came to Thailand I thought about returning a year later as an exchange student again but this time to conduct research for my Phd (which could take years). However after this experience, I don't want to come back. I'll be choosing another country to spend my grant money at instead. Thailand will continue to lose money on potential long-term exchange students if their attitudes towards foreigners doesn't change.

Edited July 3, 2014 by sarahv

[thelongshoot]

You are right, foreigners don't seem welcome in Thailand. I was in Thailand for a year as an exchange student at a prominent university in Bangkok. I paid fees higher than the Thai students, but yet I was treated like a 2nd class student. We are not allowed to partake in student organizations, we are not given proper student I.Ds, our campus wi-fi was shut off a month earlier than our program end date, and every time we went into the library we would be given cold stares by the librarians, who would always question our identity in trying to prevent our entry. The Thai students in our classes would completely ignore us foreign students. Mandatory group projects were a nightmare, as Thais refused to acknowledge us as part of the group. At the university there isn't a language barrier either as most students there are fluent in English, so I can't understand what their problem is. I did occasionally meet the odd friendly Thai student, but these were few and far between. I also had my purse and smart phone stolen while at school. I went to report it stolen at the nearby police station per the school's instructions but the police refused to let me talk. As soon as they saw me come in the station, they said, 'No!' and handed me a paper with 'tourist police' on it. In Thai, I explained that I wasn't a tourist but a student and was instructed to come here by my school, but they didn't care. I then complained to my program advisor who is Thai, and he ended up returning to the same police station with me, and I got the report I needed within minutes. The sergeant said that he didn't understand why they sent me away as they have a translator in the office.

The Thai exchange students that come to my university in the U.S. do not have to put up with this discrimination as they are treated as equals there. They are entitled to the same privileges as the non-foreign students. I don't understand why Thailand wouldn't want exchange students. We pay higher tuition fees, some of us volunteer for Thai NGOs, and in our free time we spend money at restaurants, bars, and tourist attractions. I really love Thailand, however towards the end of the year I felt relieved to leave and get away from the racism. Being considered 'the other' all the time gets pretty tiring. When I first came to Thailand I thought about returning a year later as an exchange student again but this time to conduct research for my Phd (which could take years). However after this experience, I don't want to come back. I'll be choosing another country to spend my grant money at instead. Thailand will continue to lose money on potential long-term exchange students if their attitudes towards foreigners doesn't change.

.

Edited July 3, 2014 by thelongshoot

[sfbandung]

I'm only 5 years in and don't really live full time (just have a house there we live in a few months a year) so perhaps not qualified.

But I'd give the north a try before you throw it in. And 4 weeks isn't long to be home (or anywhere). Before you pull up stumps completely here go back home for 3 months.

[kerrysum]

I can agree with many things that you say, I loved Don Muang also. Thailand was so much different back then. It has changed so much over the years. I haven't been back in over 8 years now, because it has changed so much. I liked it so much better then, and wanted to retire there. It has changed since then. I have heard the good and bad from so many posts on this sight. I always love, the old school Thailand, unfortunately, I pretty much twiddle my thumbs now. My wife is there now, and she is hating it also. She wants to come home now, but she planned the 2 month trip, because she said she wasn't happy here... hey I'd let her return, but I guarantee, she is getting the shock of her life. Just my two cents. Life is a constantly changing thing, so we will see what happens. kilosierra

[duanebigsby]

we change as much or more in ten years as the countries we live in do.

I grew up in Kenya in the 1970's. What a fantastic place and time to be a kid! It was perfect. I'll never go back to Nairobi as an adult,

as I've no desire to see the mess it's become.

We all want different things out of life, and where we live is part of that.

I really don't understand people bashing countries or even suggesting one is better than another. Better for who?

It's all so personal.Thailand has changed, I've changed and I enjoy living here.

[timewilltell]

So today have a 46 year old, uni educated woman come for interview.

In the advert is says must read, write and speak good English.

She is told to come for interview at 3pm, she shows up at 11am

Cleaner tells her interviews are at 3pm.

She comes back at 2:30 pm and as it turns out can hardly string 2 words in English, mind you in her resume she states she worked in India and Dubai for a decade.

I seriously doubt she spoke HIndi or Arabic.

Anyhow, after seeing that she can not string 2 words in English, i tell her no, give her back her documents and cut up her application.

She is standing there looking at me like a sheep.

After 5 or so mins she asks if i will interview her?(i guess first sign of being retarded) i reply, no i will not.

Now she tells me but the lady(cleaner) told her blah blah blah.

Now i am pissed off and can no longer take the stupidity, so i ask her how old are you? She reply 46 after thinking for a minute.

Great i say, 46, do you have anything inside your head? meaning do you have any brains at all.

After thinking for another minute or so, she replies, NO.

So i double check what she says, and ask her again,, You do not have any brain?

Response was, No, i do not, its hot outside.

Love it. Look on the bright side; the woman actually told the truth about having no brain, and truth here is a rare commodity. Perhaps she was worth employing for that reason alone !

But who really knows, what the woman understood. Sure not "brain"

Maybe, "Did you have some rain?" lol.

I had a court appointed translator who was completely incoherent and smelt of Thai whiskey. He was not incoherent because of the whiskey though, he just could not communicate at all in English. He said he had learnt his English in India and Cambodia but even with my 'Indian' accent detector turned on he was still incomprehensible. I suggested maybe we would not be able to use him in the court and he said 'Everything will be fine if you just say yes or no'. The same was suggested by the judge. If you know anything about the law, understand the limited ability of Thai lawyers in general and the complete misunderstanding and manipulation possible with yes or no answers then it was setting up to be a farce. How the questions would be asked is a conundrum of course. Material for a comedy show!

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

Edited July 4, 2014 by timewilltell

[Pralaad]

So today have a 46 year old, uni educated woman come for interview.

In the advert is says must read, write and speak good English.

She is told to come for interview at 3pm, she shows up at 11am

Cleaner tells her interviews are at 3pm.

She comes back at 2:30 pm and as it turns out can hardly string 2 words in English, mind you in her resume she states she worked in India and Dubai for a decade.

I seriously doubt she spoke HIndi or Arabic.

Anyhow, after seeing that she can not string 2 words in English, i tell her no, give her back her documents and cut up her application.

She is standing there looking at me like a sheep.

After 5 or so mins she asks if i will interview her?(i guess first sign of being retarded) i reply, no i will not.

Now she tells me but the lady(cleaner) told her blah blah blah.

Now i am pissed off and can no longer take the stupidity, so i ask her how old are you? She reply 46 after thinking for a minute.

Great i say, 46, do you have anything inside your head? meaning do you have any brains at all.

After thinking for another minute or so, she replies, NO.

So i double check what she says, and ask her again,, You do not have any brain?

Response was, No, i do not, its hot outside.

Love it. Look on the bright side; the woman actually told the truth about having no brain, and truth here is a rare commodity. Perhaps she was worth employing for that reason alone !

But who really knows, what the woman understood. Sure not "brain"

Maybe, "Did you have some rain?" lol.

That is exactly why i had to double check and confirm by saying it back to her, mind you i was pointing at the head, so could not have been the rain

Yet the response was confident and conclusive, no brain, hot outside, which i translate into I do not have a brain because its hot outside.

Which i could accept if stood outside, but she has been sitting inside under the aircon for around 30 mins

[nanapong]

They are getting scared and they should be because the world is coming to know what they really stand for and what goes on there they are "Shit Scared". I would not sever my ties with Ol Blighty, its a grand ol place and if you have already got a house there you got it made. Keep an income coming from Blighty and enjoy life in LOS on a "Contract basis" only; i.e. rent don't buy (No matter how cute kitty is) its too unstable and unfortunately it seems things are getting worse. I love UK, one day I am gonna come back and I will be living along one of the lovely suburbs along the Waterloo line going to the local beer festivals and feeling safe secure and happy in a safe country with DSS and NHS if I need it. In Thailand not even a dog will help you if you have no money left.

Sadly you speak of an England past. A grand ol place it used to be but now it's changed beyond all recognition. Those lovely suburbs are becoming nothing more than ghettos for Romanian scroungers or Sharia law followers. Even houses for terrorists and hate preachers protected under some ridiculous " human rights " law. It's muti-culturism gone mad but soon the indigenous folk will say enough is enough. Safe going to the beer festival , good luck on that but watch your back and make sure you don't get beheaded by a couple of Muslim nutjobs on your way there. The DSS , not much fun being on the dole my friend. The NHS ,aka , the Worlds free health service close to breaking point due to serious abuse from freeloaders. Go to any A&E now and spot the Englishman. Good ol Blighty indeed !!!

Edited July 4, 2014 by nanapong

[Thanet]

OP - Having spent over 20 years in Thailand I think in many ways you are right.

I just came back from a UK trip, and just like you I am still thinking fondly about the place.

Thailand has changed, but I'm older now, and the things that used to attract me as a younger man don't mean so much to me now. Other things in life have become more important.

Edited July 4, 2014 by Thanet

[bojo]

If you are not jealous why do you come on a Thai website and insult Thailand. A normal person would just leave. I have lived in 6 different countries that I don't like. I have never gone to a website devoted to those countries to tell anybody how lucky I was for leaving. Don't you realize how obvious you are?

You are a very black and white type of guy aren't you. Love shouldn't be nor does it need to be blind..........

You wrote, "Yes indeed. I will be filling up my company BMW and going to watch the 20/20 cricket over the weekend." Why would you think any of us care? You bragging about a BMW and watching cricket?

You really don't know how obviously jealous that is? And why come here and attempt to brag?

I'm not a black and white guy. I live in Thailand because I like Thailand. I don't have to badmouth the USA or another country on American websites. That would be so tacky.

This is a thread about the changes in Thailand during the last ten years not about how much better your life is since you left. You are gone. Get over it.

The point was that I must obviously be loaded to be able to live in the UK. Hardly true at all

I was living well in Thailand and I live well in the UK.

In Thailand I couldn't afford a BMW and was forking out an awful.lot of money for things that are largely free in the UK. That's the point.

Depending on how you live in thaikand and the UK, things can be very close in cost. I will.go back to Thailand one day, but not sure I or the missus will live there.

Its a big wide world out there.

.......and for many of us replying to this thread, it's about comparisons and how Thailand and its' peoples' attitudes have changed over the last few decades.

In the South, the most locals think they don't need us living here anymore, eg the foreigners that have built buisnesses here over the years alongside the locals. Local Southerners are often keen to impress how wealthy they are nowadays and their attitute has really changed, almost to the point of hatred towards us foreigners, whereas before, whilst relatively poorer, their attitute could have been excused as ignorance; today it is invariably 'intent'. Maybe they do or don't need us anymore, that's a debate for another thread but the point is that they often treat us with utter distain regardless of how good our Thai skills might be or how interwoven we might be in their society or how respectful and polite we might be towards them.

In Bangkok I suspect they are are all business like and probably have a nonchalent attitute towards foreigners enjoying life here, but I don't have any experience to quote.

And for my experience in Chiang Mai, they are a different breed altogether.

There is a saying/rule of thumb said by Thias that the further North you travel, the nicer the people. Never a truer one in my experience!

Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai are perfect examples of this and I think that (the CM bookeseller/red avatar American guy based in CM, sorry forget his name) confirms this in a post on this topic a few pages back, says that he hasn't noticed any differences in the last decade. Well, I haven't either up North, but I sure have 'big time' in the South.

A few of my comparisons/observations when comparing lifestyles between here and UK are below....

* If you pay personal and corporation tax as many do in Thailand, that it is probably cheaper to live a moderate lifestyle in the UK, especially if you have kids and don't have to pay for international schools here.

* You can relax in the knowledge that you actually own your own home in the UK and judging by Samui and Phukets' prices, England aint half cheap!

* You can get a mortgage to buy that house

* No need to worry about a Karaoke bar or motorcycle repair shop opening next door to that expensive house that you have just bought.

* You have a sense of belonging and depending on where you live ( a sense of community) which is pleasant.

* Interestingly a poster earlier attached an article from the Guardian about loneliness, especailly with regard to the elderly and in particular, I think about the London area. Yes, we Bristish could learn alot from Asia regarding taking care of our elderly, we think that that is the job of the state and their pensions. We all guiltily know that a few quid doesn't make up for taking care of our elders when they most need it, but again, that is another thread perhaps.

* No need to worry about your child getting bitten on the face by some rampant, possibly rabbid dog, that can surprise you at random anywhere in the KIngdom.

* NHS is free (that's also another thread if one wants to praise or criticise it), but peronally I'm ever so grateful that we have it.

* And most importantly, as a citizen, I feel respected by others in my community. People are genuinely polite and courteous towards each other in the UK, something which in the South of Thailand, (with the exception of a handful of usually well educated Thais that I know well) I have rarely experienced.

There are loads more examples pro for a return to the UK and many, many more for remaining in Thailand. I for one, have enjoyed most of my time here, it has been a serious learning curve. I have learnt how to be patient and how lucky we are in the West to have been born there and more. I still don't get 'losing face', I've tried and I could go on and on and on, but I won't.

Well done OP for starting this thread, very enjoyable, thank you

[thailiketoo]

and the bar industry is on its last very shaky legs not much is left of it compared with the boom years when they were wall to wall

Perhaps a visit to Thailand would be in order. Check things out for yourself.

[Krataiboy]

As you get older EVERYTHING gets worse!

[thaibeachlovers]

Not worse than 10 years ago. A whole heap worse than 20 years ago.

[natway09]

It's that middle aged crisis thing, just try to work through it, here or there.

One thing would take you to task "bones of it's arse"? how long you been here?

Good Luck whatever you decide

[thailiketoo]

The point was that I must obviously be loaded to be able to live in the UK. Hardly true at all

I was living well in Thailand and I live well in the UK.

In Thailand I couldn't afford a BMW and was forking out an awful.lot of money for things that are largely free in the UK. That's the point.

Depending on how you live in thaikand and the UK, things can be very close in cost. I will.go back to Thailand one day, but not sure I or the missus will live there.

Its a big wide world out there.

.......and for many of us replying to this thread, it's about comparisons and how Thailand and its' peoples' attitudes have changed over the last few decades.

In the South, the most locals think they don't need us living here anymore, eg the foreigners that have built buisnesses here over the years alongside the locals. Local Southerners are often keen to impress how wealthy they are nowadays and their attitute has really changed, almost to the point of hatred towards us foreigners, whereas before, whilst relatively poorer, their attitute could have been excused as ignorance; today it is invariably 'intent'. Maybe they do or don't need us anymore, that's a debate for another thread but the point is that they often treat us with utter distain regardless of how good our Thai skills might be or how interwoven we might be in their society or how respectful and polite we might be towards them.

In Bangkok I suspect they are are all business like and probably have a nonchalent attitute towards foreigners enjoying life here, but I don't have any experience to quote.

And for my experience in Chiang Mai, they are a different breed altogether.

There is a saying/rule of thumb said by Thias that the further North you travel, the nicer the people. Never a truer one in my experience!

Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai are perfect examples of this and I think that (the CM bookeseller/red avatar American guy based in CM, sorry forget his name) confirms this in a post on this topic a few pages back, says that he hasn't noticed any differences in the last decade. Well, I haven't either up North, but I sure have 'big time' in the South.

A few of my comparisons/observations when comparing lifestyles between here and UK are below....

* If you pay personal and corporation tax as many do in Thailand, that it is probably cheaper to live a moderate lifestyle in the UK, especially if you have kids and don't have to pay for international schools here.

* You can relax in the knowledge that you actually own your own home in the UK and judging by Samui and Phukets' prices, England aint half cheap!

* You can get a mortgage to buy that house

* No need to worry about a Karaoke bar or motorcycle repair shop opening next door to that expensive house that you have just bought.

* You have a sense of belonging and depending on where you live ( a sense of community) which is pleasant.

* Interestingly a poster earlier attached an article from the Guardian about loneliness, especailly with regard to the elderly and in particular, I think about the London area. Yes, we Bristish could learn alot from Asia regarding taking care of our elderly, we think that that is the job of the state and their pensions. We all guiltily know that a few quid doesn't make up for taking care of our elders when they most need it, but again, that is another thread perhaps.

* No need to worry about your child getting bitten on the face by some rampant, possibly rabbid dog, that can surprise you at random anywhere in the KIngdom.

* NHS is free (that's also another thread if one wants to praise or criticise it), but peronally I'm ever so grateful that we have it.

* And most importantly, as a citizen, I feel respected by others in my community. People are genuinely polite and courteous towards each other in the UK, something which in the South of Thailand, (with the exception of a handful of usually well educated Thais that I know well) I have rarely experienced.

There are loads more examples pro for a return to the UK and many, many more for remaining in Thailand. I for one, have enjoyed most of my time here, it has been a serious learning curve. I have learnt how to be patient and how lucky we are in the West to have been born there and more. I still don't get 'losing face', I've tried and I could go on and on and on, but I won't.

Well done OP for starting this thread, very enjoyable, thank you

More British citizens live abroad than people from any other country in the EU, according to new research.

http://www.tumbit.com/news/articles/8653-britain-has-more-expats-than-any-other-eu-country.html

I've found and I think research backs up that more people from the UK have relocated to Thailand than any other Western country. 10 years ago Pattaya seemed like a single mens British colony. Now the place has changed quite a bit with the families coming from other countries.

[pigeonjake]

ive been staying in pattaya for 3 weeks now monday to saturday morning then drive home till monday morning,

pattaya just in my opinion has gone down hill a bit, the women arnt what they was,

i think years ago when i was holidaying there if i can remember through my drunken eyes the women were better, there were loads of really good looking girls, i havnt seen that many over this 3 weeks,

mind you i havnt been all over the place,

might just be me not really looking,

still good food in the pig a whistle though,,

jake

[thailiketoo]

I vas yung vonce. Zixty years yung. Pat Tai Ya vas ze catz pajamas. Now I'm zeventy und old. Doez

zee owner of the Pigs whistle still tink zee fraulines don't go mit du customers?

[DrTuner]

The immigration hostility sounds familiar. The standard response of petty officials to pressure from the up is to turn into little Hitlers on PMS. They are scared for their own <deleted>. Actually a positive thing, although standing in the front of the fan doesn't make that obvious.

It'll pass.