Question for those who have lived in Thailand for a few years

[WinnieTheKhwai]

How about 6 months in Chiang Mai and 6 months in Hua Hin?

I have thought about something like this, split the year up between Chiang Mai and another city in Thailand. The problem I see with that arrangement would be the 90 day reports. How would it be possible to get around that?

?

Can be done at any immigration office where you are at the time. I did one in Pattaya last year because I happened to be there for 3 weeks while my 90 day notification was up. (Their imm. office in Soi 5 Jomtien is exceptionally efficient by the way. Also hookers within walking distance from there, which isn't the case for Promenada.)

Edited January 20, 2016 by WinnieTheKhwai

[northernjohn]

There are lots of nice Bangkok suburbs on both sides of the river that make you feel like you are far away, but everything is convenient.

Ruling out Bangkok metro area without giving it a fair shake is not really a smart move for an old timer who might need some of the amenities nearby at short notice.

Can you give me an idea of the amenity that is not available here in Chiang Mai on short notice?

[northernjohn]

7 years here in CM, 6 married. I only came for a 3 week holiday!

Condo 1 year, houses 6 years.

I prefer the houses a bit out of town, 25Km too far, 15Km perfect.

Chinese have all disappeared in the last 2 weeks, will they come back or has the stock market broke them?

Wasn't bothered anyway, the Chinese girls have nice legs.

Traffic, no problem on m/c and bicycle, nowhere to park a car in town anyway.

Immigration is a pain, the boss will be changed soon, and then it'll be back to normal.

Internet is good, food supplies for foreigners good.

Overall, a great place to live.

For Farlangs living in Chiang Mai it will be like the coming of the messiah.

And what can he do that will change things here with out Bangkok approval?

Am hoping to hear some thing at the CEC business meeting but they have all ready said there is not much to say on that front. So am not to hopeful it is not really what they are all about. Just another part they have far more things to do like the many clubs what direction they are going to go and what not.

[northernjohn]

Sorry, can't be of help. Mid-60s, been here for 8 years, and live 50+ miles out in the boonies. I'm quite content with the way life has turned out. My only regret? Coming to a country with immigration laws that scream: "Go home foreigner and leave your money here." The government obviously would rather I'm not here. My extended family, whom I support, thinks otherwise.

You just think there bad here try the States. My wife has a 10 year Visa there and every 6 months she has to leave the country. A bit more expensive than a 50 mile drive or an agent.

I checked with a friend and hers is the same.

Going to follow up later this year about the Canada one. I know they were harder to get than the states and I heard a Rumor that they to are going to the 10 year leave the country every 6 months.

Maybe I could tell them she is a refuge and then they would pay all her expenses.

[Estrada]

I live in Bangkok and Surin. Quite honestly from what you are asking and your need to be close to a good hospital and medical care, I would have suggested Chang Mai, Hua Hin, Pattaya, Phuket, 20 years ago. However, I suggest you retire to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia (Borneo). I lived there for two years. The air is clean and the sea is crystal clear. The locals speak English and you could join any of the 6 Rotary Clubs. Try taking a two week holiday there and I think you will like it.

[mogo51]

I have been coming to Thailand regularly for 8 years, full time here now retired for 2 years. I qualify in the other areas you mentioned.

No, I would not still be here, in fact am only here due to work committments for my S.O., who is a Filipino.

I am totally over Pattaya, would never live in Bkk and the jungle is of no interest to me. In fact tried it, was bored stupid.

Went recently to Hua Hin and Phuket - both nice places but SO expensive.

My answer, good bye in 18 months, we will head for Philippines. There are many farangs leaving who have been here long time.

The current incumbents leave much to be desired and it is obvious we are even less wanted by them!

[bazza40]

If your 70 years old you're almost dead anyway so what difference does it make...555

Assuming you get to that age, it's possible your opinion will change as you accumulate wisdom and experience.

[williet98248]

I am living in Phuket for twelve years. I would like to move to Krabi town in Phang Nga Province. It is on a river estuary and about 15kms to the tourist beaches at Ao nang. I never go to Ao Nang. Good sized town, with an airport, all the shopping opportunities, laid back. I visit there several times a year just to get out of the craziness of Phuket. Give it a look. Unfortunately my wife owns 20 rai of prime farmland in the NE and eventually I will be moving there instead of Krabi. Dang!

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I am living in Phuket for twelve years. I would like to move to Krabi town in Phang Nga Province. It is on a river estuary and about 15kms to the tourist beaches at Ao nang. I never go to Ao Nang. Good sized town, with an airport, all the shopping opportunities, laid back. I visit there several times a year just to get out of the craziness of Phuket. Give it a look. Unfortunately my wife owns 20 rai of prime farmland in the NE and eventually I will be moving there instead of Krabi. Dang!

You'd pick Krabi over Trang? Krabi town for me has more of that 'recently developed due to tourist boom' feel, compared to Trang where you get more of a sense of history. Everything you see downtown there reminds you that this was actually a town also 50 or 100 years ago. (Also indicated by being connecting by train, the old shophouses in Phuket/Penang style, etc.)

(Then again I haven't been to Krabi in the last 15 years or so, I'm mostly asking out of curiosity)

[WinnieTheKhwai]

I am totally over Pattaya, would never live in Bkk and the jungle is of no interest to me. In fact tried it, was bored stupid.

Went recently to Hua Hin and Phuket - both nice places but SO expensive.

if you go to downtown Hua Hin then it can be a bit expensive, and Phuket (especially the big beach towns like Patong) is completely crazy.

Personally if I was very retired and would want to be near the sea then I would look at Cha Am before Hua Hin, which isn't too far away anyway. There's not a whole lot going on there (especially outside of weekends and holidays), but it's a nice small town where things are very affordable.

Either that or a bit down the coast, near Prachuap town. Ao Manao remains a lovely beach, too.

[Sandy Freckle]

I think I'll write down some of these suggestions !
As it is, I live quite comfortably and happily in Australia..., but, I have been spending winters in the general S/E Asian region for awhile now.
Always on the lookout for laid-back places to hang my hat for awhile

Edited January 21, 2016 by Sandy Freckle

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Anyway, I think Bangkok makes a lot of sense when you're working and making money, but for a retiree it's no longer a reasonable choice, if it ever was.

I will give you credit for not driving Friday evening, raining or not, but they just opened something they call the "Sky Train", you should try it.

I did. Think of being 70 years old though and retired, do you really want to jump right back in with the rat racers?

And in general, why do people come to Thailand, truly?

Is it because of these marvels of civilization:

Mass transit..

Toll roads..

And the European culinary blessings from Foodland.

Or, do people come more for things like these?

I think that's why the OP excluded Bangkok. In general a lot of site members have trouble recognizing that not everyone is completely like them, and people appreciate different things in life, especially at different points in their lives.

[ignis]

Sorry, can't be of help. Mid-60s, diabetic, live 55 km out in the boonies. had a house built in a this Village in late 2003, back then the road to the Village to the main road 7km was unmade.

within 8 km there are a number of hospitals, 1x government 3 x private, one is new built in 2008, then at least another 5 Hospitals within 15 km.

Advantages, far cheaper to live way outside a City, if I was to do it all over again, then yes would do the same again.... Back in 2002 and 2003 looked around a lot, there was only one option I wanted, that was to live as I have done most of my life out in the sticks somewhere.. there is just a few houses here and in a dead end road, so the only cars are from the Village, so most of the day and night is silent, lots birds chirping, last count have 15 nests in my trees in the garden, the fish in the Ponds [100 Koi] splash sometimes, my 10 dogs will bark if some stranger walks past the garden. cannot think of anywhere better to live.

​Back in the early days used to drive into the City a couple of times a month, now a day with shopping centres springing up all over the place [out of town/City] drove 2x into the City last year, 2 different weddings, there is just no need any more.

[Johpa]

I have no idea why, today, someone not married to a Thai would want to relocate to Thailand. The political situation remains unstable with only increased militarism on the horizon as the inevitability approaches. The ruling junta defines the concept of venality and behind them stands the ruling Sino-Thai elite that, to be polite, does not like Farangs although they gladly take your money for everything from ridiculous regulations for visas to even more ridiculous fees for park entrances. The beaches, well they lost their charm decades ago. Better to go to Vietnam or even Burma for a beach holiday. And for the sex tourists, Cambodia is a better bargain.

That being said, I have been married to a Thai for nearly 30 years and enjoy my home and my life when living in the hills of the rural north.

[lensta]

I would suggest Hua Hin. It has a beach but you don't need to go there.

The other places like Pattaya, Phuket and some of the smaller islands where foreigners often live all have their own problems. Some of them are lawless hellholes.

Also Cha Am might be an option for you, its about 26 Km from Hua Hin with a good road connecting the 2. Cha Am also has a new hospital.

[bazza40]

I have no idea why, today, someone not married to a Thai would want to relocate to Thailand. The political situation remains unstable with only increased militarism on the horizon as the inevitability approaches. The ruling junta defines the concept of venality and behind them stands the ruling Sino-Thai elite that, to be polite, does not like Farangs although they gladly take your money for everything from ridiculous regulations for visas to even more ridiculous fees for park entrances. The beaches, well they lost their charm decades ago. Better to go to Vietnam or even Burma for a beach holiday. And for the sex tourists, Cambodia is a better bargain.

That being said, I have been married to a Thai for nearly 30 years and enjoy my home and my life when living in the hills of the rural north.

Er - you've been married to a Thai for nearly 30 years, and state Cambodia is a better bargain for sex tourists. How do you know?

[northernjohn]

I live in Bangkok and Surin. Quite honestly from what you are asking and your need to be close to a good hospital and medical care, I would have suggested Chang Mai, Hua Hin, Pattaya, Phuket, 20 years ago. However, I suggest you retire to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia (Borneo). I lived there for two years. The air is clean and the sea is crystal clear. The locals speak English and you could join any of the 6 Rotary Clubs. Try taking a two week holiday there and I think you will like it.

I looked at Malaysia a few years back. Seemed to me you needed a lot more money to qualify for retirement there.

Borneo sounded nice to me. How was the medical. I will not compare hospitals as they all have good and bad doctor's.

[northernjohn]

Anyway, I think Bangkok makes a lot of sense when you're working and making money, but for a retiree it's no longer a reasonable choice, if it ever was.

I will give you credit for not driving Friday evening, raining or not, but they just opened something they call the "Sky Train", you should try it.

I did. Think of being 70 years old though and retired, do you really want to jump right back in with the rat racers?

And in general, why do people come to Thailand, truly?

Is it because of these marvels of civilization:

Mass transit..

Skytrain.jpg

Toll roads..

Bangkok Express Way.jpg

And the European culinary blessings from Foodland.

Bangkok meat.jpg

Or, do people come more for things like these?

Thailand boat.jpg

Thailand elephant.jpg

motorbike 4 up (nice).jpg

I think that's why the OP excluded Bangkok. In general a lot of site members have trouble recognizing that not everyone is completely like them, and people appreciate different things in life, especially at different points in their lives.

I think that's why the OP excluded Bangkok. In general a lot of site members have trouble recognizing that not everyone is completely like them, and people appreciate different things in life, especially at different points in their lives.

Exactly

[williet98248]

I am living in Phuket for twelve years. I would like to move to Krabi town in Phang Nga Province. It is on a river estuary and about 15kms to the tourist beaches at Ao nang. I never go to Ao Nang. Good sized town, with an airport, all the shopping opportunities, laid back. I visit there several times a year just to get out of the craziness of Phuket. Give it a look. Unfortunately my wife owns 20 rai of prime farmland in the NE and eventually I will be moving there instead of Krabi. Dang!

You'd pick Krabi over Trang? Krabi town for me has more of that 'recently developed due to tourist boom' feel, compared to Trang where you get more of a sense of history. Everything you see downtown there reminds you that this was actually a town also 50 or 100 years ago. (Also indicated by being connecting by train, the old shophouses in Phuket/Penang style, etc.)

(Then again I haven't been to Krabi in the last 15 years or so, I'm mostly asking out of curiosity)

Krabi is on the waterfront. Easy access to the islands if you want to take a trip. Also Phang Nga Bay. I always get lost in Trang and drive around in circles. Trang quite a ways from the coast. Trang seems to be a bigger town than Krabi. I have been To Trang several times mostly on my way to the western beaches. Last time was on a Sunday and looking for a coffee shop. Whole downtown area closed up. I'll take Krabi or Song Khla over Trang any day.

[SantiSuk]

If you are interested in a quiet, cheap town/city may I suggest Isan in the Sisaket province. I have recently moved to Kantharalak and it is a city with a technical school and large enough for stores that you need.......aka Tesco, car dealers, western restaurants. Udon Ratchathani is a 1 1/2 hour drive away as another option. Use to have an American Air Force Base there and have many military retirees. I am a member of the American Legion there, the only one in Thailand. That is a larger city then Kantharalak. There is also Si Sa Ket, which is the capitol of Si Sa Ket province and has immigration there.

I lived in Pattaya since 2005. It was great when I first arrived and a few after. I got older and lost my interest in bars and chasing the flesh. I now have a companion and that satisfies me. I'll be 70 in less then a couple of years.

Sshhh! Welcome to Kantaralak mate. Keep it quiet please! And watch out for those d's and b's when describing Ubdon!

Luckily never

[Bernard Flint]

I would suggest Hua Hin. It has a beach but you don't need to go there.

The other places like Pattaya, Phuket and some of the smaller islands where foreigners often live all have their own problems. Some of them are lawless hellholes.

what a silly post

[elgenon]

Cyberdude, if you are up for it please pm me with where to meet older folks in CM.

Thanks

[ExpatOilWorker]

Anyway, I think Bangkok makes a lot of sense when you're working and making money, but for a retiree it's no longer a reasonable choice, if it ever was.

I will give you credit for not driving Friday evening, raining or not, but they just opened something they call the "Sky Train", you should try it.

I did. Think of being 70 years old though and retired, do you really want to jump right back in with the rat racers?

And in general, why do people come to Thailand, truly?

Is it because of these marvels of civilization:

Mass transit..

Skytrain.jpg

Toll roads..

Bangkok Express Way.jpg

And the European culinary blessings from Foodland.

Bangkok meat.jpg

Or, do people come more for things like these?

Thailand boat.jpg

Thailand elephant.jpg

motorbike 4 up (nice).jpg

I think that's why the OP excluded Bangkok. In general a lot of site members have trouble recognizing that not everyone is completely like them, and people appreciate different things in life, especially at different points in their lives.

You kind of show the best of one world and the worst of another, but I do understand and at times have felt the same frustration about Bangkok as you do. The thing is I don't need elephants roaming in my back yard, 4 farm girls or a picture perfect deserted beach. In my younger days while I was working in the artic at minus 30 C, I use to dream about a life surfing at a beach like that. Then reality set in. I want to live a place where I have friends and access to stuff, all kind of stuff, material and intellectual stimulus.

But like you said earlier, if you are happy where you are, then you have found the right place for you and that is really all that matters.

Just a final note on Bangkok traffic. Sure it can be annoying at times, but you will be surprised how often I get the Bimmer up to 100 km/h. One minute (or 5) you are stuck at a red light, then suddenly you have 500 m 3 lanes of open road and back to the next traffic light.

[321Rich]

OP’s comment:

It seems this thread has generated a lot of chatter, as I expected it might. Definitely underlines the fact that not all expats are looking for the same things in life. I particularly like one poster who questioned why it even matters where I live since I am too old to really matter. (Yes, I wrote your name on a piece of toilet paper just before using it.)

More than one person was curious as to why I did not want to consider Bangkok. The answer to that is simple — I don’t want to live in a big city, and yes, I have done just that (Lived and worked in Chicago for 4 years). The beach: I have all toes on one foot cut off and walking in sand is not comfortable (remember with no toes one can not wear flip flops.)

In the overall happiness of expats in Thailand, where you live is probably not as import as who you live with.

Have a good day.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

^ Nah, who you live with is all the same bullcrap. Living in an awesome place has to make up for it, and make it bearable.

[Lowriesuzanne]

I like Chiang Mai. I wouldn't dream of living elsewhere in Thailand. Smog? Beat it with two Hepa filter air cleaners in your house and close all windows and doors. Or simply go elsewhere for a month. In April I'll be in Europe. I love my moo baan. Rent before you buy. Watch out for crazy foreign renters who lease bedrooms to short-stay backpackers. You don't want to live in a party Hell. Buy a pool chlorine testing kit and test your swimming pool. Nag the Thai into putting extra chlorine in the pool. You can volunteer at a number of places to make kind friends and help out. January is great! I don't run the air conditioners at all. I keep windows and doors open. Mosquitoes? Keep a spray can of Off in your car. Wear sox with your sandals and spray your feet. How much does it cost to live here? I spend a lot. Why? Because I think of things to do that cost a lot. Tomorrow I go scuba diving in the Maldives for 10 days. However, I know people who live nicely on their pensions. They're happy. If you have a friend in the U.S. with a Netflix account you can get Netflix here. Then you can squander your movie allowance on avocados and salmon or upgrade your 3BB account. As long as I have books to read on my iPADs, money for RAM-1, and can repair all my gadgets, I'm fine in Chiang Mai.

[ExpatOilWorker]

I like Chiang Mai. I wouldn't dream of living elsewhere in Thailand. Smog? Beat it with two Hepa filter air cleaners in your house and close all windows and doors. Or simply go elsewhere for a month. In April I'll be in Europe. I love my moo baan. Rent before you buy. Watch out for crazy foreign renters who lease bedrooms to short-stay backpackers. You don't want to live in a party Hell. Buy a pool chlorine testing kit and test your swimming pool. Nag the Thai into putting extra chlorine in the pool. You can volunteer at a number of places to make kind friends and help out. January is great! I don't run the air conditioners at all. I keep windows and doors open. Mosquitoes? Keep a spray can of Off in your car. Wear sox with your sandals and spray your feet. How much does it cost to live here? I spend a lot. Why? Because I think of things to do that cost a lot. Tomorrow I go scuba diving in the Maldives for 10 days. However, I know people who live nicely on their pensions. They're happy. If you have a friend in the U.S. with a Netflix account you can get Netflix here. Then you can squander your movie allowance on avocados and salmon or upgrade your 3BB account. As long as I have books to read on my iPADs, money for RAM-1, and can repair all my gadgets, I'm fine in Chiang Mai.

Sound like you have found a well balanced life, just please don't wear socks with flip-flops. Leave that to the retired Anglo Saxons in Pattaya.

[Trujillo]

Everyone is focusing on the wrong thing.

Just visiting Chiang Mai last month will not inform you about one of the most important aspects of living here: the people.

I don’t know if you have lived in Thailand before (it appears not) and I am not sure if you have determined with certainty that this is where you want to spend your retirement, but here’s my 2 baht worth:

Sure, Chiang Mai has a nice environment, malls, infrastructure and whatnot, but there are more important issues you need to seriously consider.

You live in Florida and mix with people who are native English speaker s who are well educated and savvy about world affairs. Workmen and craftsmen are professionals and generally take pride in their work. When problems arise between customers and merchants or professionals, there is some reliable resource of complaint and redress (such as the Better Business Bureau, and other consumer protection agencies).

When you move to Thailand, you will enter a completely different world. Thai people’s average IQ is lower than the global average (and yours) – you can check this out. (This is not necessarily their fault; the education system here is lamentably poor.) And that figure only speaks to Thai people who took an IQ test; it does not address the vast number of Thai people who have never been tested and are undereducated.

I expect that you enjoy a good discussion with your friends and girlfriend about global issues and other topics of general interest. But when you move to Thailand, that will pretty much end.

Be it a Thai neighbor, friend or girlfriend (very few retirees stay in Thailand alone), this is the kind of conversation you can look forward to (and this assumes the person you are talking to can even speak English – and I am assuming you don’t know how to speak Thai):

321Rich: “Did you see the price of oil yesterday? It’s amazing how much it’s dropped over the last year.“

Thai GF: (Silence)

321Rich: “You know the US lifted sanctions on Iran… (Next 5 minutes spent dumbing down explaining “sanctions,” “nuclear bomb,” etc)

Thai GF: “Uh, okay.”

321Rich: “Now they will be able to sell their oil, starting with all those supertankers just sitting there full.”

Thai GF: “What’s a ‘supertanker’?” (More “walking dictionary” work)

321Rich: “What do you think that will do to the price of oil?”

Thai GF: “I don’t know.”

321Rich: “Oh, well…I guess it’s good for gasoline prices but the stock markets – what about that?”

Thai GF: “I don’t know.”

Pick a subject:

Dropping price of oil – how this affects global economy – currencies/What about that Donald Trump?/What about those Warriors this season?/What’s wrong with Man United this season?/Global warming – can anyone really deny we are a prime cause?/Will Thailand return to democracy?/Is Russia really bombing IS in Syria or them and the enemies of Assad?/Will Britain sanction Putin over the inquiry into the poisoning of the ex-Russian spy?…you get the idea.

The response you will get from a Thai will mostly be: “I don’t know.” (Meaning, “I don’t know” or “I don’t understand what you are even talking about.”)

Ask about basic science, geography or general world history and you will also get a raft of, “I don’t knows.”

The fact is that the Thais, generally, do not have the knowledge set to conduct not only a thoughtful discussion on current events, but because they lack inquisitiveness and abstract thought, it is difficult if not impossible to have a conversation based on theory with them.

So, for example, if you want to talk about the obstacles of manned, deep space travel and the possibility of going to Mars, forget it. If you want to have a speculative discussion on what the world would be like if we had never stopped going to the Moon, good luck with that.

You will also never be able to use any colloquialisms (again, assuming the other person can speak English fairly well) again or references to pop culture. No Breaking Bad references, no slang, no sarcasm and no innuendo, to name but a few examples.

But let me be clear, this is not an issue of, "They don't understand because of the language problem." Even if you posed the same example questions in Thai the response would mostly be the same, "I don't know."

However, if you ask a Thai which of their chickens eats the most, you will get a direct answer. …

Look at the Thai “entertainment” shows on local TV as a reference. These are mainstay programs that are geared to the absolute lowest denominator. And they are popular. Puerile humor, mindless slapstick and funny costumes rule.

Socially, you will be an outsider. A tolerated alien, but never an insider; never “one of us.” That may not be an issue for you, but it’s always there.

So for stimulating conversation, you will have to seek out other aliens, but you may find that they are not always in tune with your thinking or lifestyle. Some men I have met over the last 10 years here only want to sit around and drink and talk about football and banging chicks. Some groups of older folks never really seem to understand they are in a foreign country and spend more of their time bitching about things in “backward” Thailand and the way it was back home.

Of course you will find a handful of people (if you search long enough and in the right places) with whom you can converse comfortably and interestingly. But it won’t be the same as in Florida.

Thais are also quite unreliable. If I had a nickel for every time a Thai person broke their word to me, I’d be rich. Thais also generally will not be considerate of you if they decide, for whatever reason, not to come when scheduled – and this is true among Thais themselves too. Instead of calling you to tell you they can’t come, they will usually just not show up. Or if they do come at all, they could be hours late.

Thais are also not very observant. This can manifest itself in work done, be it selling you something that doesn’t fit or making repairs, or just their daily life. (“Oh, here, this part will work.” “But that will clearly not fit.” “Oh, yes, it will.” You take it home and of course, it doesn’t fit.). Of course this example could really fall under what I call, "Hammering the screw," whereby Thais just can't be bothered to do it correctly because they don't care or, "This might work, but probably not, but I'll do it anyway," mentality. "Maybe you should use the screwdriver that is sitting two feet away from you?" "Uhhh."

(Recent example: I just had a flush toilet replaced with a new one and after the workman finished installing it, I pointed out to him that it was at least 30 degrees off true from the wall. “Look at this; it’s not straight. Do you see?” He did, with a puzzled, then mildly bewildered look and then that ‘Uh, oh well’ Thai smile. It did not occur to him that the toilet should be perpendicular to the wall (although he’s seen it that way all his life). After I left him to correct it, I returned to find the toilet now at an angle of only about 5 degrees off true – just enough to be irritating every time you look at it.)

And on the topic of language, few if any expats take the time and effort to learn to read, write and speak Thai before they move here (Yes, I am sure it has happened, but it’s pretty rare). So in addition to the above, you will be hobbled by the language barrier. One thing you will find retirees often resorting to is instead of going to classes and actually learning the language of the country they are now calling home, they will dumb down their English in a misguided effort to make it “easier” to communicate. Personally, I find it pathetic and demeaning when I see older men, most of whom likely have a high education and probably had a decent career, speaking like a caveman.

“I go store. I no want you go. You wait me come back.”

The fact is that if a Thai can understand that, they can understand that with the necessary grammar as well. I find it depressing to see a gentleman in the twilight of his life moving to a place where he can’t communicate with the local population, and when he does, he must resort to language hardly befitting a toddler in his own country. Subjects of discussion now center around local and tangible situations – what to buy, where to eat, how to pay the bill, when the tuk-tuk will come, etc.

And lastly, Thais, like many other peoples, have nearly no sense of protecting the environment and little concept that littering is a bad thing. If living with strewn litter – on the streets, along sidewalks, in gutters, vacant lots (pretty much everywhere you can think of) – bothers you greatly, this could be an issue.

So, I believe that moving to Chiang Mai (or anywhere in Thailand) must also encompass these issues, not only whether there is periodic air pollution and so on. You really need to think about what social environment you may be getting yourself into. Chiang Mai and Thailand are not simply "real estate," they come with the population, that should be considered carefully.

Having said that, most people who have lived in both the South and North of Thailand prefer those in the North. Calmer, more level headed, easier going and less prone to violence.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before all the detractors pile on, let me make some clarifications.

For anyone whose comment goes: “Well, if you dislike the Thais that much, why don’t you leave?” Let me say that that is not an argument; it’s a slogan, a pablum. It is a worthless comment. And I never said I don’t like Thais.

For those who will say: “My girlfriend has great English and knows a lot,” I will say: good for you. But the fact is that, just as you can find someone who is 195cm tall, it’s not impossible to find a good conversationalist here, but just not very often. Just as you are most likely to meet someone who is average in height, you are more apt to meet someone with average abilities. There are certainly Thais out there who are educated and well spoken. Hopefully, it is obvious that I do not mean “every Thai,” but rather the average Thai.

For those who will say, “That’s just being racist and sanctimonious,” I have to disagree. It is what it is. Thai people do not intentionally act this way; it is simply a function of their culture, education and upbringing.

[mrwebb8825]

My vote would go to Baan Chang. Has shopping, some international food, clean beaches, unpolluted sea and air, great golf courses, no heavy traffic jams and close enough to Pattaya that you could drive there in an hour or so if you wished.

Definitely worth a couple of days look-see.

[Rancid]

Every place has its plusses and minuses, Chiang Mai being no different. No point in reiterating what they are as other posters have covered them quite well.

Anywhere else you might stay will also have them. In the end depends whether the pros outweigh the cons, and they vary in weighting for everyone.

Chiang Mai though has proven to be a good choice for many people.