Is Venezuela the new Thailand?

[jpb1963]

why do people that subscribe to this forum rag on thailand so much - if people think it is so bad why not leave, withdraw your membership from the forum and go live where you will be happy….

as for Venezuela - glamour shiela's but not worth the risk

[ggt]

Incredible story...if true...thanks for sharing...definitely some food for thought here...

[connda]

Fun until it becomes like Argentina circa 1998 - 2002.

And that terrific exchange rate is writing on the wall that Venezuela is possibly a stone's throw from economy collapse, like Argentina.

Not a place you'd want to be when

[blueyeshk]

I visit once after traveling close to hundred countries I consider this as the most uncomfortable and dangerous country I have been.

Edited October 16, 2015 by blueyeshk

[djayz]

Rule # 1: Don't believe everything you read on the internet.

Rule # 2: Don't believe any story you haven't fabricated yourself.

Rule # 3: If it's too good to be true, then it ain't.

[djayz]

How did they get the bears into those bottles???

???? Best comment sofar!

[gandalf12]

Why would you buy bottled animals? Have to be a big bottle to get a bear in it as well

[gandalf12]

Crime in south american countries is much more serious then what you are used to in se asia.

Were talking places were you can get kidnapped fairly easily and people are inclined to use firearms fairly easily. Acting like a goofball like you would in Pattaya or Bangkok it would not take long before your targeted and cleaned out.

Thats not the case in Thailand at all.

* and like always there's a reason these places are still so cheap. nobody wants to live there.

I have a friend who lives there. He is married to a local girl. He says it is as dangerous as you can get. He never says anything when he is out in the city. Not the kind of place I think I would want to live in.

[speedtripler]

Dangerous indeed - I used to work with a guy from there, he used to send money to his father and brother who was doing life in jail for some gang murders

Even in Brazil kidnap,Robbery and murder happens every day, hardly surprising most people would prefer to chill in Asia

[Crazy chef 1]

Last time I checked new places Ruanda seems also tempting....

[meltingpot2015]

Rule # 1: Don't believe everything you read on the internet.

Rule # 2: Don't believe any story you haven't fabricated yourself.

Rule # 3: If it's too good to be true, then it ain't.

Rule #3 - Hear, Hear.

[HaleySabai]

a 100 Euro note in hand makes you (by the price breakdown) a big-wig "Have" in a land of "Have-Nots"....... how "safe" do you really think it would be?

on the other hand,the women are HOT!,considered to be the land of the most voluptuous beauties on the planet.......mmm ...nah, think I'll stay in Thailand.

[anon4546543]

yeah sure, go to Venezuela,. Have an adventure trying not to die. good luck, go for it. Venezuela is not the new Thailand. It is the old Venezuela.

[melvinmelvin]

I just read through the lengthy travel advisory on this country from German and Swiss foreign office.

Comparing criminality with Thailand?

Seems like a nightly walk to the Pattaya darkside is safer than traveling by car on a Venezuela motorway in the dark?

I remember the news of riots, empty shelfs in the supermarkets, hoarding.

No, thanks.

Pattaya is way safer than the big cities in Venezuela, way safer.

On a couple of occations I had a meeting at my embassy in Ven.

The ambassador couldn't stress the following enough: NEVER EVER stop the car at a red light in an intersection! NEVER ! EVER !

Having said that, never had any problems there myself.

[BwindiBoy]

That is, indeed, a load of Bolivars!

[slipperylobster]

How did they get the bears into those bottles???

They put berries in the bottle and the bears climbed right in...

[perconrad]

I Googled "venezuela beers" and it came up that the popular beer in Venezuela is Polar beer, which have got its name from the polar bear.

So I guess thats how the OP got bears in bottles

[The Dancer]

Venezuela? Where you could get robbed, shot, kidnapped, killed or all of the above in one afternoon? OP can't be serious.

The only country in that part of the world worth poking about in is Costa Rica. Look it up. And ticas are babes. Look that up too.

[csabo]

What is the women situation like? Do they like foreigners?

One of the most beautiful women I have ever met is Venezuelan. Her accent would melt any man. She is as lovely a person as she is beautiful. She says Venezuela is a mess and she is never going back. She lives in......Hua Hin.

Edited October 16, 2015 by csabo

[smokie36]

Venezuela is a bloody dangerous place.

[Jingthing]

Venezuela? Where you could get robbed, shot, kidnapped, killed or all of the above in one afternoon? OP can't be serious.

The only country in that part of the world worth poking about in is Costa Rica. Look it up. And ticas are babes. Look that up too.

Costa Rican food ... most boring and bland on the planet. Latin America without the spice. You can keep it.

[puukao]

Is Mars the new Earth????

But I just perfected my fluent Thai.............i cannot leave my brothers.......

The lady at the 40 baht soup place now gives me more and I only pay 35 baht!!!!!

I'm sure Venezuela has better air quality, climate, and less traffic overall.......so i'm glad it's in the discussion.....

but i will soon become a monk.....only 2893749324873 more years.......and i cannot leave just yet

dangerous? i'm sure it is. But let's not kid ourselves....this entire planet is dangerous. is Ven. relatively more dangerous? i would say it is. But is it more dangerous than ......time for google...

"With almost 28,000 murders in 2013, Venezuela is now considered one of the most dangerous countries in the world, despite government attempts to crack down on crime."

ok, i'll pass.

[Old Croc]

From Numbeo.

You would need around 6,315.36$ (223,165.83฿) in Caracas to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 94,000.00฿ in Bangkok (assuming you rent in both cities). This calculation uses our Consumer Prices Including Rent Index. This comparison assumes net earnings (after income tax).

Indices Difference
Consumer Prices in Caracas are 143.85% higher than in Bangkok
Consumer Prices Including Rent in Caracas are 137.41% higher than in Bangkok
Rent Prices in Caracas are 123.21% higher than in Bangkok
Restaurant Prices in Caracas are 216.11% higher than in Bangkok
Groceries Prices in Caracas are 198.73% higher than in Bangkok
Local Purchasing Power in Caracas is 90.27% lower than in Bangkok

[nidieunimaitre]

How much milk and toilet paper can you but there for a 110 Euros? I hear that very basic

commodities are in very short supply or not available all together....

According to the source of the OP, a night in a 5 star hotel is less than 10 dollars. That would surely include a month's supply of toilet paper - after all, we are talking about 5 stars......

I can't believe that posters take this story seriously.

[ronz28]

Venezuela didn't make the Forbes top 20 list of retirement havens for 2015, but Thailand did.

http://www3.forbes.com/investing/20-best-foreign-retirement-havens-for-2015/20/

[Jingthing]

Venezuela would be near the bottom of any such list.

[bermondburi]

From Numbeo.

You would need around 6,315.36$ (223,165.83฿) in Caracas to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 94,000.00฿ in Bangkok (assuming you rent in both cities). This calculation uses our Consumer Prices Including Rent Index. This comparison assumes net earnings (after income tax).

Indices Difference

Consumer Prices in Caracas are 143.85% higher than in Bangkok

Consumer Prices Including Rent in Caracas are 137.41% higher than in Bangkok

Rent Prices in Caracas are 123.21% higher than in Bangkok

Restaurant Prices in Caracas are 216.11% higher than in Bangkok

Groceries Prices in Caracas are 198.73% higher than in Bangkok

Local Purchasing Power in Caracas is 90.27% lower than in Bangkok

It does have the cheapest petrol I'm the world though at two pence a litre, even Saudi is eight pence!

[Lampang2]

Venezuela? Where you could get robbed, shot, kidnapped, killed or all of the above in one afternoon? OP can't be serious.

The only country in that part of the world worth poking about in is Costa Rica. Look it up. And ticas are babes. Look that up too.

Costa Rican food ... most boring and bland on the planet. Latin America without the spice. You can keep it.

Same as cuban food.

[Jingthing]

I don't agree. I love Cuban food.

[Lampang2]

I don't agree. I love Cuban food.

Ok..

Having spent a lot of time on the island I can say that best cuban food is served in Miami.

Some cuban food I love.

But Cubans do not make spicy food..

Actually the complete opposite.