the most idyllic places to live

[djayz]

hello my idea would be somewhere outside bkk nice house we don't really do bars and clubs but enjoy live music English and thai

one poster suggested west of the River ?? could you give me a district please many thanks

If I may make a suggestion; Take a trip down to Hua Hin. It's a picturesque seaside town approximately 200km south of Bangkok with a variety of Thai and international restaurants to dine at. There are numerous houses and condos in various price categories, sizes and locations to choose from. Overall, it's a lovely little town, close enough to the capital for a quick shopping trip, yet far enough away from the big smog to give you the feeling that you're living the dream in a tropical country.

If you're seriously interested in looking at property in Hua Hin or the immediate vacinity, send me a PM and I'll gladly mail you the name and telephone number of a very reliable and helpful English speaking real estate agent in Hua Hin.

Good luck and I hope you find the ideal place for yourself and your wife.

Oh it's idyllic.

Only the other month oil slicks coated the beach at this tropical paradise.

I guess what one man perceives to be idyllic is far removed from that of another.

Sorry, I wasn't aware that there was an oil slick on the beaches of HH. It has been at least 12 or 13 months since I've been down there.

Usually it is/used to be a really nice spot.

[Sandy Freckle]

I would be inclined to agree with others who state that such a place does not exist in Thailand.
Having said that..., if anyone at all is not content inside their head and heart..., they'll never have a chance to be happy outside of their head and heart.
Me..., a clear and unpolluted ocean is my main criteria...., I am very thankful I have it now..., where I spend the majority of my days....,
around the south west corner of Oz.
Please excuse me......., I'm guessing if your coming from Pommyland..., anywhere with warmer water is fine.

Edited December 21, 2015 by Sandy Freckle

[joeyg]

I lived in San Francisco in the early 70's. was always my favorite. However you couldn't pay me to live there now. After 30 years in San Diego, Liquidated all my assets Now live in Wongamat Beach, Naklua. Perfect view and always nice sea breezes out on "the point" here.

Only missing is clean water at the beach...

[WhatsNext]

Interesting topic as i find myelf in a similar situation as the topic starter albeit with a different "lump sum" and 2000 Euro a week. A lot of the replies here mention Australia or Hawaii as an alternative, however they forget that immigration to other countries isnt always as easy as just showing up. Being an European myself, i find it impossible to relocate to the USA , there just isn't a visa for retirement there . The only possibility is a so called EB5 which requires you to invest 500.000 USD into shady projects that are not guaranteed to work , let alone get your investment back, all this to get a possibility to get an "investment" visa , no thanks.

Australia you can retire to starting at the age of 55 if you bring 750.000 AUD to invest in a government fund, and have an additional 750.000 AUD for yourself and possibile partner. The first 750.000 will be stuck for years in a Fund until you either die or leave. I'd rather spend that money before i kick the bucket. Hawaii by the way is part of the USA so that's a no go either.

So as you can see , even being "rich" you cant just settle down anywhere you like and i can see the idea of the topic starter having been to thailand myself now for 3 times, a month at a time.

However also having seen the state in which the country is , and the number of traffic accidents i witnessed in that relative short period of time has made me doubtfull about the long term living possibilities in Thailand.

So here are my findings on Thailand for you sofar :

Bangkok : Insane, fun, weird, way too hot to consider living there, plus just 1 park that is quite tiny

Chiang Mai : Great place, Nimman is fun, Markets at night are fun, cheap city BUT you will probably roll over and die after 5 years due to the air thats 90% diesel fumes

Cha Am : Nothing do to , beach is crappy, scary dogs everywhere , was bitten there and the hospital looks like an field post from a bad vietnam movie

Phuket : Some of the smaller beaches are fantastic, Patong is a fun sort of tourist trap that i enjoy for periods shorter than a 5 days, "Expensive" for Thai standards

Chiang Rai / Ayutthaya / All smaller places : Nice people, nothing to do, scary dogs and traffic , fun to visit but no way

11 Years ago i settled in Germany because here you can build a massive home, drive a ditto car , and enjoy low taxes (depending on circumstances) but its Europe, weather is crap, people are friendly but very distant, and as a few wrote already, you will find the boredom or happiness being the same as you cant escape yourself.

So to sum up : Thailand is fun in a scary sort of way, do as you please but so does everyone else, i have seen more accidents in 3 months there than in my entire life in Europe and a year in the USA. I am scared of dogs so that doesn't help either with being in Thailand. But in a weird way, i do love the country the language and the "friendliness" , between quotes as it does seem only skin deep. Some of the girls look amazing, some are not so good looking, like everywhere on the planet. And o yes, small but very important detail : Thailand is tax free for you and me

Myself i am thinking of selling my German home parking the cash in a stable market fund (forget interest, there isn't any in the western world anymore, politicians stealing our cash with inflation and zero interest...) and doing the country rotation thing with thailand as a base for tax free purposes : Rent / buy a reasonable condo there, and use it as a base for the rest of asia. Spend the nice 3-4 months of the year there, spend summer in Canada (6 months of the year you are welcome there as a tourist) and spend 3 months with family in the EU.

In that way : Zero taxes because you "live" in Thailand , something to do every few months, and if health or age questions come into play all you lose is a few million bath on a nice condo , at most. Will boredom or lack of purpose follow me , yes of course as its a build in human condition, but in this way i will be distracted enough with the occasional happy ending

Just my 2 cents, hope it is of use to you or someone here, thanks for reading.

[joeyg]

First landed here in 1971 Sattahip/U-Tapao Naval Air Base. Short time in Korat and Udon then off to Vietnam. Had it in my blood ever since.

I couldn't live "in" Pattaya. Just 15 minutes away in Wongamat Beach, Naklua it really is a very different world. I'm on the 21st floor and can still hear the crickets and frogs at night loud and clear, roosters in the AM. There are wide open spaces acres of old growth trees to the South West, for now. It's a lot cleaner to. Reminds me a little of Hua Hin in the old days.

There is and occasional party at one of the bars a few Sois away. And I've noticed more Chinese tour buses in the AM since high season hit. Other than that it's quite quiet except for song birds constantly chirping away.

Feel like I'm right where I aughta' be right now. The Circus/Festival/ Zoo/ Freak Show is only 15 minutes away when I want to "get my freak on."

Then it's back to peace and quiet. Leaving San Diego was hard. Best year round weather in the states, beautiful place, with some good friends. I'm the "traveler" in the group though. So with retirement visa in hand, I hang my hat in Naklua now.

PS. To qualify for retirement here all we have to do is make an income affidavit at the US Embassy and hand it to Immigration. I had bank statements in hand. The US Embassy didn't want to see them. Thanks to "a side benefit" the Amity treaty with the US and Thailand.

Edited December 21, 2015 by joeyg

[ableguy]

What a stupid post, and everybody bites, talk about fishing for baby fish, or smacking a young gecko .