Thaivisa members, a reflection of expatriates here ?

[Naam]

Thailand is NOT farangland, it is a big learning curve to deal with, took me years and still have probs with stuff..

A farang that comes here must be able to adjust, sort of block out farangland stuff to a degree...

Many cannot do this cos their nose is so much up their farang _____......Met a few...

another approach is compare all shitty aspects of Farangland with the beautiful facets of Thailand and ignore the country's shortcomings. i manage a rather happy life style with that attitude.

[sipi]

Most expats you meet are friendly. If you find this forum misleading don't buy any "guide books".

[adisont]

SEANCBK, hit nail right on the head. Depend on which crowd u're with, Low, Medium, Medium-Hi or High end, it's apply to every big cities on earth. Do you hang out in the East Jaywick, St Osyth or Blackpool in UK, Compton, Oakland in Calif. ??

San Pedro Sula - Honduras

Caracas - Venezuela

Acapulco - Mexico

Joao Pessoa - Brazil

Kingston - Jamaica

[AZBill]

I enjoyed my time working in Thailand, met my beautiful wife of 10 years and enjoyed the culture. When it was time to go back to the U.S. I was ready to go but still enjoy returning from time to time. There are many types of expats I met over the years there. Some are jaded and most are not. I enjoy this forum because it can be pretty funny and entertaining at times but you can't take it that seriously or read to much into it. Your experience will be wholly your own and don't get swayed one way or the other by a message board.

[rodcourt49]

There are those who have made a 'profession" out of Thai bashing and posting derogatory anti Thai comment.

These sad intellectually challenged " keyboard cowboys" do not represent the majority of expats living in Thailand.

..there are a lot of grumpy old men here that's for sure!

[JingerBen]

Don't spill your coffee.

He's talking about posters like you.

[p_brownstone]

No, not a true reflection and ,yes, you are reading too much into the topics and comments. Then again what do I know, I have only been living here for forty years and don't hangout in bars.

forgive me, but I don't understand the relevance of your comment about hanging out in bars ?.....If I have misunderstood and your a recovering alcoholic, then I have to commend you on your will power to stay out of bars, overcoming an addiction must be very difficult

I was mildly interested in your OP and planned to follow this Thread on occasion.

However your comment on " villagefarangs' " contribution is simply mindless and has absolutely no relevance to what he wrote.

You clearly have an "Agenda" and I have no interest in contributing further.

Patrick

Edited February 27, 2016 by p_brownstone

[p_brownstone]

Sorry - double Post.

Patrick

Edited February 27, 2016 by p_brownstone

[p_brownstone]

No, not a true reflection and ,yes, you are reading too much into the topics and comments. Then again what do I know, I have only been living here for forty years and don't hangout in bars.

forgive me, but I don't understand the relevance of your comment about hanging out in bars ?.....If I have misunderstood and your a recovering alcoholic, then I have to commend you on your will power to stay out of bars, overcoming an addiction must be very difficult

The comment (I believe) is in reference to the type of person who's view of Thailand is solely based on sitting on a barstool in a (red light, low class, cheap - pick your preferred descriptor) area, surrounded by girls who are low class, poorly educated, motivated only by what they can get for their families benefit.

If that is the only side of Thailand you are exposed to then your views will be vastly different to someone with a better overall viewpoint.

Edit: I should perhaps clarify that sitting on a barstool in the less salubrious areas does not make one a bad person, nor does hanging out in 5* places.

I know plenty of people, myself included, who sometimes enjoy a few beers in the cheaper spots, but unlike the guys who only see that side of life, I and most people I know, also enjoy a very different side of Bangkok, one where you'll never see the typical 'grumpy old man'.

ah now i understand, I don't drink myself except for a very odd occasional glass of sherry after dinner sometimes, cant remember the last time I was in a bar as such, unless of course we count the one in the golf club after a round of 18 ?

I understand your descriptor I think, you talking about ladies of the night ? yes...I have nothing against those who choose to spend time using the services of such ladies, but not really for me...

Pretentious twit.

Patrick

[SoiBiker]

To go back to the OP - No. Thaivisa is not even close to being an accurate reflection of expats in Thailand. The expats I actually know in real life are by and large a happy, broadminded bunch, most of whom have little or no interest in this forum at all.

I think there are a couple of factors at play here. Many find the relentless negativity, bigoted opinions and focus on the sex trade off-putting. Also, forums as a whole are a rather old-fashioned thing these days, so tend to attract an older demographic - younger expats are generally using other forms of social media instead. For a different view of expat life in Thailand, check out some of the facebook groups, or twitter hashtags like #thailand or #bangkok.

[wow64]

Op if you hate ThaiVisa so mich why dont tou go back to your own forum.

Sent from my c64

[seancbk]

Thailand is NOT farangland, it is a big learning curve to deal with, took me years and still have probs with stuff..

A farang that comes here must be able to adjust, sort of block out farangland stuff to a degree...

Many cannot do this cos their nose is so much up their farang _____......Met a few...

The people I find most difficult to gel with are the ones who have come from (as you put it) Farangland.

I was born overseas and have lived my whole life in Asia, so I feel Asian and I think like an Asian (in many ways).

I am (and I'll freely admit it) a life-long privileged expat, so I think *very* differently and have a very different viewpoint to a Brit who was born in the UK and lived there until he retired to Asia.

If you are of European descent then who are you trying to kid, yourself or us?

There is no such thing as a privileged expat. You may think very differently and have different viewpoints to a Brit who was born in the UK, but you are still considered the same as all the rest of us by the Thais. The only thing that places us in different categories is the amount of money we carry in our wallets and have in the bank, unless you somehow managed to grab a Thai citizenship and even then you`re still always be a foreigner here.

I hold a British passport by virtue of my parentage, I was however born in Libya and I have never 'lived' in the UK. All of my life has been spent living in the Middle East, Hong Kong and Thailand.

One point that is important in my case, is that my nationality is not automatically transferable.

My kids will not have any right to British citizenship unless I marry a 100% British born girl or my girlfriend/wife actually gives birth in the UK (Which is not going to happen).

So once my son is born he will be 100% Thai (by Nationality) and as I am the last male on my family's genetic line, he will be carrying on our family name but it will become that of a Thai family.

By privileged expat I was actually referring to my life before Thailand, although if you are in the right social circles here life for an expat in Thailand is very close to how it was for me in Hong Kong.

I don't really care what the average Thai thinks about me, I do know the the Thai's I'm in business with and who I have as friends are very different from the average.

For a start they almost all studied overseas, their understanding of the world is equal to mine and I know they don't just view me as a foreigner, but more as an equal (in the way you would any good friend).

[seancbk]

The comment (I believe) is in reference to the type of person who's view of Thailand is solely based on sitting on a barstool in a (red light, low class, cheap - pick your preferred descriptor) area, surrounded by girls who are low class, poorly educated, motivated only by what they can get for their families benefit.

If that is the only side of Thailand you are exposed to then your views will be vastly different to someone with a better overall viewpoint.

Edit: I should perhaps clarify that sitting on a barstool in the less salubrious areas does not make one a bad person, nor does hanging out in 5* places.

I know plenty of people, myself included, who sometimes enjoy a few beers in the cheaper spots, but unlike the guys who only see that side of life, I and most people I know, also enjoy a very different side of Bangkok, one where you'll never see the typical 'grumpy old man'.

ah now i understand, I don't drink myself except for a very odd occasional glass of sherry after dinner sometimes, cant remember the last time I was in a bar as such, unless of course we count the one in the golf club after a round of 18 ?

I understand your descriptor I think, you talking about ladies of the night ? yes...I have nothing against those who choose to spend time using the services of such ladies, but not really for me...

Pretentious twit.

Patrick

And with that comment you demonstrate the type of attitude I avoid.

[p_brownstone]

The comment (I believe) is in reference to the type of person who's view of Thailand is solely based on sitting on a barstool in a (red light, low class, cheap - pick your preferred descriptor) area, surrounded by girls who are low class, poorly educated, motivated only by what they can get for their families benefit.

If that is the only side of Thailand you are exposed to then your views will be vastly different to someone with a better overall viewpoint.

Edit: I should perhaps clarify that sitting on a barstool in the less salubrious areas does not make one a bad person, nor does hanging out in 5* places.

I know plenty of people, myself included, who sometimes enjoy a few beers in the cheaper spots, but unlike the guys who only see that side of life, I and most people I know, also enjoy a very different side of Bangkok, one where you'll never see the typical 'grumpy old man'.

ah now i understand, I don't drink myself except for a very odd occasional glass of sherry after dinner sometimes, cant remember the last time I was in a bar as such, unless of course we count the one in the golf club after a round of 18 ?

I understand your descriptor I think, you talking about ladies of the night ? yes...I have nothing against those who choose to spend time using the services of such ladies, but not really for me...

Pretentious twit.

Patrick

And with that comment you demonstrate the type of attitude I avoid.

Keep on avoiding old chap - please.

I call Troll.

Patrick

[seancbk]

ah now i understand, I don't drink myself except for a very odd occasional glass of sherry after dinner sometimes, cant remember the last time I was in a bar as such, unless of course we count the one in the golf club after a round of 18 ?

I understand your descriptor I think, you talking about ladies of the night ? yes...I have nothing against those who choose to spend time using the services of such ladies, but not really for me...

Pretentious twit.

Patrick

And with that comment you demonstrate the type of attitude I avoid.

Keep on avoiding old chap - please.

I call Troll.

Patrick

I genuinely do not understand the attitude of some people.

Why do you need to direct an insult at someone simply for a comment about their fondness for a glass of sherry or similar pleasures?

[seancbk]

I joined Thaivisa a few months back in the hope of obtaining relevant information about life in Thailand and after reading the just about every thread and post on Thaivisa, I cant help concluding there are some very bitter and very unhappy expats living in Thailand who appear for all intents and purposes to hate Thailand as a country and treat the Thai people with contempt and hatred, but yet this is a country they have chosen to live in...its bizzare and disturbing at the same time...

So the question is ?.....

Is the Thai visa membership who post their venom about Thailand on these forums, a true reflection of the type of expatriates who resides in the Kingdom of Thailand or am I reading too much into the the topics and comments posted on Thaivisa and its limited to a few very bitter individuals or are a lot of expatriates living in Thailand who are sour very bitter people who hate everything associated with Thailand including its people ?

What you have to bear in mind is that a lot of people on these forums are not even living in Thailand.

Many of them who do live here are living in very different circumstances and their view of Thais and Thailand is warped because of that.

People of different ages view things differently.

People of different financial levels view things very differently.

People from different social levels view things very differently.

Once someone is stuck in their way of life, with their view of the world it is very hard for them to see any other view.

Some people refuse to believe things that other people do here, because their situation (financial, physical, age, etc) maybe precludes them from experiencing the same things.

There are certain types of people and it depends where you go as to which type you see.

In Bangkok I know where I will see older blokes sitting around surrounded by bar girls, I also know the places where I won't see a single old retired blokes and no low class Thais.

If you live in Thailand and only mix in the low end then of course your opinion will be based on those situations.

totally agree with our reporter in Lan Kwai Fong a shrewd assessment

Thanks, but FYI I've been living in Bangkok for quite a while now.

Hong Kong was home, I'm now making Thailand my home.

[Asheron]

Complaining and hate are too different things. Don't confuse the two !

But the problem is that the SJW's (lots of them) on this forum really do think that saying that "thai traffic is bad because of A, B and C" is actually hate speech.

[Asheron]

I suggest that if the OP wants to really understand if foreigners in Thailand hold grossly generalized negative views of Thailand and Thai people, he starts by disguarding his own grossly generalized and negative views of foreigners in Thailand.

An individual foreigner (and we are all individuals) complains bitterly about the state of Tai schooling because i. He's a Thailand/Thai basher or ii. Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter, perhaps very concerned about a real incident or problem he faces.

Who is to know without knowing the individual?

Perhaps more important, who has the right to deny him his opinion and his voice? - if not here on TVF where can he express, share and discuss his concerns?

The OP has a choice, if you don't like what you read, don't read it.

Many expats in Thailand do not have a choice, they have family here, moving may not be an answer, their concerns real and TVF one of a very few places they can discuss their concerns.

Against that the OP's sensitivity to other people's negative opinions is a minor issue, and one for which the remidy is completely within his own control.

"Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter,"

If he is "concerned" he could home school his children or pay for them to attend one of the high achieving International Schools.

Not being able or unable to afford to do either is no excuse for Thai bashing.

Stop kidding yourself by telling yourself that a school that is 10-100 times more expensive than government school would be any better.

[Asheron]

if all comments were about how lovely thais and thailand are…how peace loving, non violent, non scheming, non corrupt, non racist etc then that would be a fictional forum called Thai Dreamland.

Otherwise known as "TAT"

I think you forgot to put the fourth last letter in the english alphabet between the first T and A

[Asheron]

Thailand is NOT farangland, it is a big learning curve to deal with, took me years and still have probs with stuff..

A farang that comes here must be able to adjust, sort of block out farangland stuff to a degree...

Many cannot do this cos their nose is so much up their farang _____......Met a few...

The people I find most difficult to gel with are the ones who have come from (as you put it) Farangland.

I was born overseas and have lived my whole life in Asia, so I feel Asian and I think like an Asian (in many ways).

I am (and I'll freely admit it) a life-long privileged expat, so I think *very* differently and have a very different viewpoint to a Brit who was born in the UK and lived there until he retired to Asia.

If you are of European descent then who are you trying to kid, yourself or us?

There is no such thing as a privileged expat. You may think very differently and have different viewpoints to a Brit who was born in the UK, but you are still considered the same as all the rest of us by the Thais. The only thing that places us in different categories is the amount of money we carry in our wallets and have in the bank, unless you somehow managed to grab a Thai citizenship and even then you`re still always be a foreigner here.

Amen.

[Asheron]

To go back to the OP - No. Thaivisa is not even close to being an accurate reflection of expats in Thailand. The expats I actually know in real life are by and large a happy, broadminded bunch, most of whom have little or no interest in this forum at all.

I think there are a couple of factors at play here. Many find the relentless negativity, bigoted opinions and focus on the sex trade off-putting. Also, forums as a whole are a rather old-fashioned thing these days, so tend to attract an older demographic - younger expats are generally using other forms of social media instead. For a different view of expat life in Thailand, check out some of the facebook groups, or twitter hashtags like #thailand or #bangkok.

Err... what? Of course this forum is a reflection of so called "expats" either living or have lived in Thailand.

[SoiBiker]

It's a reflection mainly of a small subset of expats. It really isn't representative of the full spectrum of expat life at all.

[swissie]

I may have missed it, but although OP has visited "many countries", it doesn't appear that he ever visited Thailand. If correct, he should visit Thailand for an uninterrupted period of at least 6 months and form his own opinion.

Far better, than trying to conduct a "Psycho-Analysis" of the expat community in Thailand by way of a public forum !

After this 6 month stay, he may well understand, that a certain percentage of expats find themselves in a mild stage of "disillusionment".

Cheers.

Those who are "disillusioned " should exercise their right to leave !

What prevents them?

Yes, what prevents them?

Easy. After the "Honeymoon" with Thailand has ended, Farangs still realize, that their wallet still goes a very long way in Thailand, as opposed to their home-country.

All said. Further analysis concerning this subject are completely unnecessary.

Far better to be a little king in Thailand, than being a "bottom-feeder" somewhere in Europe or the US.

Amen, case closed. Cheers.

[huawei]

I suggest that if the OP wants to really understand if foreigners in Thailand hold grossly generalized negative views of Thailand and Thai people, he starts by disguarding his own grossly generalized and negative views of foreigners in Thailand.

An individual foreigner (and we are all individuals) complains bitterly about the state of Tai schooling because i. He's a Thailand/Thai basher or ii. Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter, perhaps very concerned about a real incident or problem he faces.

Who is to know without knowing the individual?

Perhaps more important, who has the right to deny him his opinion and his voice? - if not here on TVF where can he express, share and discuss his concerns?

The OP has a choice, if you don't like what you read, don't read it.

Many expats in Thailand do not have a choice, they have family here, moving may not be an answer, their concerns real and TVF one of a very few places they can discuss their concerns.

Against that the OP's sensitivity to other people's negative opinions is a minor issue, and one for which the remidy is completely within his own control.

"Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter,"

If he is "concerned" he could home school his children or pay for them to attend one of the high achieving International Schools.

Not being able or unable to afford to do either is no excuse for Thai bashing.

Stop kidding yourself by telling yourself that a school that is 10-100 times more expensive than government school would be any better.

In my experience and those of my friends who have had families ( more than one in some cases), it can be like night and day. Government schools are on the whole lousy and as you have rightly pointed out in another thread homeschooling is an option to supplement a government school and is a sensible alternative.

The old adage you get what you pay for is as true for education as it is for medical services, housing etc..

Don't kid yourself otherwise.

Edited February 27, 2016 by huawei

[Asheron]

It's a reflection mainly of a small subset of expats. It really isn't representative of the full spectrum of expat life at all.

Exactly my point, it is a reflection of expats but it's pretty impossible to say how large or small amount it reflects to.

[SoiBiker]

It's a reflection mainly of a small subset of expats. It really isn't representative of the full spectrum of expat life at all.

Exactly my point, it is a reflection of expats but it's pretty impossible to say how large or small amount it reflects to.

I think it's pretty obvious that it only reflects a narrow slice of expat society. Where are the female expats, for a start?

[Asheron]

I suggest that if the OP wants to really understand if foreigners in Thailand hold grossly generalized negative views of Thailand and Thai people, he starts by disguarding his own grossly generalized and negative views of foreigners in Thailand.

An individual foreigner (and we are all individuals) complains bitterly about the state of Tai schooling because i. He's a Thailand/Thai basher or ii. Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter, perhaps very concerned about a real incident or problem he faces.

Who is to know without knowing the individual?

Perhaps more important, who has the right to deny him his opinion and his voice? - if not here on TVF where can he express, share and discuss his concerns?

The OP has a choice, if you don't like what you read, don't read it.

Many expats in Thailand do not have a choice, they have family here, moving may not be an answer, their concerns real and TVF one of a very few places they can discuss their concerns.

Against that the OP's sensitivity to other people's negative opinions is a minor issue, and one for which the remidy is completely within his own control.

"Because his own children are pupils at a Thai school and he actually is genuinely concerned about the matter,"

If he is "concerned" he could home school his children or pay for them to attend one of the high achieving International Schools.

Not being able or unable to afford to do either is no excuse for Thai bashing.

Stop kidding yourself by telling yourself that a school that is 10-100 times more expensive than government school would be any better.

In my experience and those of my friends who have had families ( more than one in some cases), it can be like night and day. Government schools are on the whole lousy and as you have rightly pointed out in another thread homeschooling is an option to supplement a government school and is a sensible alternative.

The old adage you get what you pay for is as true for education as it is for medical services, housing etc..

Don't kid yourself otherwise.

I put my children in the so called "best private school" in Ubon but it was still shiet, not much better than government school so i had to sit and teach with my children after school and weekends so they wouldn't fall behind (we do not live in Thailand anymore). Schools in Thailand aren't much more than kinder gardens, even for 12-15 year old students. Issue is that children aren't thought to think critically, they are thought to obey and learn by rote. I'm not saying that Thailand is unique for this as crap like this has already been introduced in european countries. And class sizes of 40-50 students does not do any good for anyone.

But yes, generally it is as such that prize of X dictates if X is good/bad but it's not rock solid.

[sunnyjim5]

Asheron

"I'm not saying that Thailand is unique for this as crap like this has already been introduced in european countries."

Which European countries have introduced this "c*ap" ?

Let us hope you have taught (not thought) the children a richer vocabulary than you seem capable of using.

Have you also taught the children not to start sentences with conjunctions and the importance of appropriate Capitalisation ?

Did you also teach the children to read/write Thai ?

NB

What are "kinder gardens" ? Clearly I am in need of some of your "edukashon"

[Asheron]

Asheron

"I'm not saying that Thailand is unique for this as crap like this has already been introduced in european countries."

Which European countries have introduced this "c*ap" ?

Let us hope you have taught (not thought) the children a richer vocabulary than you seem capable of using.

Have you also taught the children not to start sentences with conjunctions and the importance of appropriate Capitalisation ?

Did you also teach the children to read/write Thai ?

NB

What are "kinder gardens" ? Clearly I am in need of some of your "edukashon"

Who put sand in your vagina?

If you are going to go full retard about my spelling maybe you should first make sure to know that you do not end a sentence with a SPACE between the last letter and question mark (nor period etc).

Hurry now to the nearest toilet and clean your vagina of that sand.

[sunnyjim5]

Asheron

"I'm not saying that Thailand is unique for this as crap like this has already been introduced in european countries."

Which European countries have introduced this "c*ap" ?

Let us hope you have taught (not thought) the children a richer vocabulary than you seem capable of using.

Have you also taught the children not to start sentences with conjunctions and the importance of appropriate Capitalisation ?

Did you also teach the children to read/write Thai ?

NB

What are "kinder gardens" ? Clearly I am in need of some of your "edukashon"

Who put sand in your vagina?

If you are going to go full retard about my spelling maybe you should first make sure to know that you do not end a sentence with a SPACE between the last letter and question mark (nor period etc).

Hurry now to the nearest toilet and clean your vagina of that sand.

What a disgustingly objectionable person you seem to be.

Get caught and therefore lash out with obscenity?

Is that how you teach your children to behave ?

Lets hope you are kept well away from other peoples children.

By the way ----- Do you mean a "full stop" when talking about a 'period' or are you an edentulous Red Neck living in trailer ?