If leaving Thailand, where to next?

[dabhand]

Given the other current topic on the subject of leaving Thailand. This article might give an indication of how other options stack up:

 

http://www.international-adviser.com/gallery/1035058/worst-countries-expats

In an unexpected result, newcomer Taiwan ousted two-time champion Ecuador and topped the entire list. In addition to taking the top spot, Taiwan was in the top 10 for every individual index. The survey, of more than 14,000 people from 191 countries, asked about the Quality of Life, Ease of Settling In, Working Abroad, Family Life, Personal Finance, and Cost of Living in their respective expat destinations.

 

[anotheruser]

USA.

[whoareyou]

Who in their right mind would willingly live amongst what are basically Chinese?

[8OA8]

Who in their right mind would willingly live amongst what are basically Chinese?

That's pretty much the same way that I used to think, especially after visiting PRC many times over the years. This line of thought was proven to be exactly the opposite when I eventually visited Taiwan.

Sent from my SM-N910C using Tapatalk

[SpeakeasyThai]

On 30/03/2017 at 6:48 PM, anotheruser said:

USA.

Hell on Earth.

[yellowboat]

On 30/3/2017 at 8:05 PM, whoareyou said:

Who in their right mind would willingly live amongst what are basically Chinese?

Again, those who know little about the region offer their biased, racist input because tourists from China have invaded Chiang Mai, boo hoo.  If you read, you will find Chinese students from the mainland studying in Taiwan fall in love it and argue against its invasion, as it is such a nice place with nice people.  Taiwan has free speech.  The courts are okay.  Cost of living is reasonable.  Their is not much crime and education is good.  What a Russian model working in Bangkok said of her time in Taiwan, "nice place, just lacks a wow factor".  That pretty much sums up Taiwan.  The food in Taiwan is amazing and not expensive, meeting or exceeding Thailand. 

[rodentwarrior]

After 7 years living in Bangkok, I needed a change of pace and lifestyle (boozing too much!) and visited most other SE Asian Countries.

 

Eventually I settled on the Philippines.  It's inexpensive, english is common, the people are friendly and it's pretty safe.  Forget Manila, unless you need that packed conurbation feeling, I settled in Cebu City.  I'm from London, and I wouldn't live there again - it's whole flavour has changed due to the massive influx of refugees and economic migrants.  

 

Oh, and the filipinos really don't mind foreigners, unlike Thailand, where we are merely tolerated.  Filipina women are stunning as well.

[MANFROMBOCA]

1 hour ago, SpeakeasyThai said:

Hell on Earth.

why is that ??  please explain

[smotherb]

On 3/30/2017 at 7:05 PM, whoareyou said:

Who in their right mind would willingly live amongst what are basically Chinese?

Gee, there may be a few Chinese.

[smotherb]

56 minutes ago, rodentwarrior said:

After 7 years living in Bangkok, I needed a change of pace and lifestyle (boozing too much!) and visited most other SE Asian Countries.

 

Eventually I settled on the Philippines.  It's inexpensive, english is common, the people are friendly and it's pretty safe.  Forget Manila, unless you need that packed conurbation feeling, I settled in Cebu City.  I'm from London, and I wouldn't live there again - it's whole flavour has changed due to the massive influx of refugees and economic migrants.  

 

Oh, and the filipinos really don't mind foreigners, unlike Thailand, where we are merely tolerated.  Filipina women are stunning as well.

I have to admit, the PI is nice for many reasons--among them the women, the thousands of islands and beaches, the mountains, the cheap booze and cigarettes. However, there are some drawbacks--the food, something is always out of stock, the continuous brownouts, the horrendous natural disasters, the lack of clean toilets, the abundance of garbage; the continuous hand-out to give them something, the penchant for expecting BH (bring home to feed the extended family) whenever invited to someone's house for dinner, the thievery the corruption  . . . .  

[smotherb]

The highest rated country in SEA is Vietnam. Since that is my first country of choice when leaving here; I am concerned. One of the more common factors which ruins a place is the abundance of farangs--note Thailand for example. 

[elgordo38]

1 hour ago, yellowboat said:

What a Russian model working in Bangkok said of her time in Taiwan, "nice place, just lacks a wow factor"

I think my "wow" factor died about 15 years ago. RIP

[gios50hk]

On ‎30‎/‎03‎/‎2017 at 7:05 PM, whoareyou said:

Who in their right mind would willingly live amongst what are basically Chinese?

Oh....so you're not racist are you!?!? But to answer your question - I guess the same sort of people that would choose to live amongst ruthless criminals. con-men, scam artists and other low-life scum in a rampantly corrupt country like Thailand?

Edited April 2, 2017 by gios50hk

[elgordo38]

1 minute ago, smotherb said:

The highest rated country in SEA is Vietnam. Since that is my first country of choice when leaving here; I am concerned. One of the more common factors which ruins a place is the abundance of farangs--note Thailand for example. 

The fat expat with money? Their everywhere their everywhere!!!

[smotherb]

1 minute ago, elgordo38 said:

I think my "wow" factor died about 15 years ago. RIP

I think I may have a pneumatic Wow factor

[elgordo38]

12 minutes ago, smotherb said:

I have to admit, the PI is nice for many reasons--among them the women, the thousands of islands and beaches, the mountains, the cheap booze and cigarettes. However, there are some drawbacks--the food, something is always out of stock, the continuous brownouts, the horrendous natural disasters, the lack of clean toilets, the abundance of garbage; the continuous hand-out to give them something, the penchant for expecting BH (bring home to feed the extended family) whenever invited to someone's house for dinner, the thievery the corruption  . . . .  

Can I buy terrorist insurance there? I heard they do not discriminate when it comes to chopping of heads. 

[smotherb]

1 minute ago, elgordo38 said:

The fat expat with money? Their everywhere their everywhere!!!

Doesn't have to be fat or have money; they're just everywhere.

[elgordo38]

1 minute ago, smotherb said:

I think I may have a pneumatic Wow factor

Is that one of those new fangled pumps for the love factor.

[smotherb]

Just now, elgordo38 said:

Can I buy terrorist insurance there? I heard they do not discriminate when it comes to chopping of heads. 

You can buy almost anything there. I know of a guy who will guarantee to make any married man single again--and divorce is illegal there. 

[elgordo38]

1 minute ago, smotherb said:

Doesn't have to be fat or have money; they're just everywhere.

It takes money to get the honey and satisfy immigration. No riff raff please. 

[smotherb]

1 minute ago, elgordo38 said:

Is that one of those new fangled pumps for the love factor.

No, it's rather old-fashioned

[smotherb]

2 minutes ago, elgordo38 said:

It takes money to get the honey and satisfy immigration. No riff raff please. 

No, that is another one of the good things about the PI--if you actually marry a Filipina, you get an annual extension called a balikbayan (returning native); each year, every year, no fee, no 90-day reports, multiple exit and no re-entry permits, no hoops to jump through, no changing rules at every immigration office.

[NoshowJones]

24 minutes ago, smotherb said:

No, that is another one of the good things about the PI--if you actually marry a Filipina, you get an annual extension called a balikbayan (returning native); each year, every year, no fee, no 90-day reports, multiple exit and no re-entry permits, no hoops to jump through, no changing rules at every immigration office.

Excellent post here, it just makes me keep wondering why so many expats in Thailand seem to agree with the immigration rules. Thailand could sure learn from the Philipines, but then that would be losing face, so it will never happen.

[Thaidream]

I really believe the love affair with Thailand is coming to an end because of the many reasons posted on this board and now there are so many other choices in the region and Worldwide that are as attractive as Thailand once was. The one thing killing Thailand is that it is getting expensive and the attitudes are not as expat friendly as before. While other countries are moving forward at breakneck speed, Thailand is regressing. 

I won't leave Thailand because of family- but I cannot understand why a newbie would want to stay long term.

[Destiny1990]

Marllorca nice climate..

[steven100]

just stay here and bang your arse off as I do.

I drink from morning till night and bang as much as i can ..

but i'm drunk from 8.00am so thats how it is.

[JKfarang]

2 hours ago, elgordo38 said:

Can I buy terrorist insurance there? I heard they do not discriminate when it comes to chopping of heads. 

 

My impression is that if you stay away from Mindanao (the southernmost large island in PI) and the Sulu Islands (near Mindanao) the possibility is probably slim to none.

[JKfarang]

2 hours ago, smotherb said:

I have to admit, the PI is nice for many reasons--among them the women, the thousands of islands and beaches, the mountains, the cheap booze and cigarettes. However, there are some drawbacks--the food, something is always out of stock, the continuous brownouts, the horrendous natural disasters, the lack of clean toilets, the abundance of garbage; the continuous hand-out to give them something, the penchant for expecting BH (bring home to feed the extended family) whenever invited to someone's house for dinner, the thievery the corruption  . . . .  

 

Having visited many places in PI, I tend to agree.  And would like to add that I found infrastructure as a whole to be very lacking, transportation from one island to another often difficult and the possibility of quality health care very suspect.  In addition, outside of Manila anyway (which I couldn't get out of fast enough) I couldn't find any decent long term rental accommodations (though I didn't spend significant time looking).

[lungnorm]

3 hours ago, rodentwarrior said:

After 7 years living in Bangkok, I needed a change of pace and lifestyle (boozing too much!) and visited most other SE Asian Countries.

 

Eventually I settled on the Philippines.  It's inexpensive, english is common, the people are friendly and it's pretty safe.  Forget Manila, unless you need that packed conurbation feeling, I settled in Cebu City.  I'm from London, and I wouldn't live there again - it's whole flavour has changed due to the massive influx of refugees and economic migrants.  

 

Oh, and the filipinos really don't mind foreigners, unlike Thailand, where we are merely tolerated.  Filipina women are stunning as well.

100% correct, I have settled in Cebu, friendly towards foreigners and most speak English. Compared to Thailand its a lot better in my eyes having lived in Pattay, Phuket and Chiang Mai. The only drawback is they drive on the wrong side of the road. Taxi's are cheap enough so no need to drive.

[anotheruser]

Are we really going to do another Thailand vs. Philippines thread? This thread is supposed to be where people are actually going. If you are planning to go to the Philippines fair enough otherwise it would be interesting to try and stay on topic and see where people are actually moving to.