Whiling away the days....

[Philbot]

I've visited Phuket twice for a couple of weeks each time. As I'm approaching retirement age complete with pension, I'm thinking longer stays would be more convenient.

 

However, I'm wondering about how do couples like, expat men & their local dates/partners while away the days if they both dont work.

 

Drinking all day may be one way but thats not for me, I'm just a 2 or 3 stubbies drinker.

Going out for breakfast or meals and going for long walks over the same ground over & over again surely must stretch boredom to its limits.

 

I dont know anybody here so that puts an end to socialising unless it involves continuous drinking.

 

Any info & advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

[trd]

Stay until you get bored and then go home. Doesn't that make sense?

[inThailand]

Yup, you need to have or find a hobbie or something to keep you busy or you will end up in the bar. 

[Old Croc]

Your actual question is "what am I gong to do in retirement".

It has little to do with where you are at the time. In the latter part of your post you could well be talking about your current environment.

Most of the things you can do where you now live are also available here,  perhaps much more, depending on the lifestyle you want.

[steven100]

just drink piss all day every day  ...  the hours soon pass

and you'll meet lots of friends.

[InMyShadow]

What would you do back home?

[Old Croc]

23 minutes ago, Old Croc said:

Your actual question is "what am I gong to do in retirement".

It has little to do with where you are at the time. In the latter part of your post you could well be talking about your current environment.

Most of the things you can do where you now live are also available here,  perhaps much more, depending on the lifestyle you want.

Of course, a big factor in deciding to live in another country in retirement is leaving the comfort of family and friends behind. If you can do this, you can build whatever lifestyle you require.  

[Nemises]

Get a car - heaps of interesting places to visit in Thailand and in neighbouring countries.

Get a fast internet connection - essential for streaming your fav sports or shows from back home.

Get a dog.

Return to your home country occasionally- it makes you want to return back to retirement in Thailand asap

For a more healthier, safer, cheaper, relaxing lifestyle suggest living in a rural area well away from Patong, BKK & Pattaya.






Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[Pilotman]

Its a good question. My worst fear was being bored on retirement, as work has been my whole focus for 50 odd years. I can certainly share with you and others my plans, for what they are worth to others.   I retired earlier this year and I have set myself some tasks and targets.  First is getting the new house right, that will take some project management,  I am going to work on fitness much more, so exercise of all kinds, including more use of my bike. I like creative writing so more on that.  I may try photography and blend that with some country trekking. Reading and travel come next. I was a keen motorbiker in the UK, so I may take that up again, if I have the nerve to tackle it here.  I have also set aside a small amount to invest in the SET.   Its an amount that I dont mind losing,  no more than golf club membership, so I will take it slow, learn the ropes, do the research and then try my hand.  Its more a hobby and academic activity than it is a way to make money . Finally, it has always been my ambition to turn my PhD thesis into a readable book, its far from that now.  That would be a major piece of work and involve a lot of updating research and follow up.  It will no doubt take years, so I wouldn't be bored for a long time.  Those reading it may well  be!!. Very little of this involves my Thai wife.  She has her own interests, mainly eating and socialising, at the dame time of course  and we don't have hobbies that we both follow, but we are both happy with that arrangement and it works for us.  

[happyas]

OP, Really?..

At retirement age and you don't know what you are going to do in the years ahead?

No different here than in your home country IMO.

 

Edited August 14, 2017 by happyas

[InMyShadow]

30 minutes ago, Gregster said:

Get a car - heaps of interesting places to visit in Thailand and in neighbouring countries.

Get a fast internet connection - essential for streaming your fav sports or shows from back home.

Get a dog.

Return to your home country occasionally- it makes you want to return back to retirement in Thailand asap

For a more healthier, safer, cheaper, relaxing lifestyle suggest living in a rural area well away from Patong, BKK & Pattaya.






Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

I wouldnt see being surrounded by roosters yapping dogs and a language barrier plus extreme boredom as being healthy. If you read OPs post he is concerned about how to fill in the time.

[Nemises]

I wouldnt see being surrounded by roosters yapping dogs and a language barrier plus extreme boredom as being healthy. If you read OPs post he is concerned about how to fill in the time.

The OP said he is to be on a pension hence the advice that it's a lot cheaper to live in a rural area. Up to him if he wants his pension to go further by basing himself in a rural area or pay a LOT more for the "joys" of living amongst tourists, scammers, polluted beaches, ladyboys etc etc

From the money saved by not living in Patong, BKK & Pattaya he will have more funds to support other retirement options to help fill his time.

[geriatrickid]

There is lots to do on the island of Phuket.

1. Lots of counting opportunities at the beaches; Count the;

- illegal jet skis, motorboats and commercial establishments

- the pollution slicks of raw sewage effluent

2. Record car and motorbike crashes. there are several every day with lots of mangled bodies. You could post the best of the week's crashes on Youtube.

3. Visit the foreign  labour camps and see how many kids are  there. Photograph the living coinditions. Careful though, you might not be welcomed by the operators.

4. Have fun with the touts.  Everytime you meet one, see how far they will go to try and make a sale. See if any will engage in carnal activity.

5. Meet a bar workers  weekly and see how far they they can get trying to sucker you out of money. Is it 1 week, 1 month or perhaps a year that they will keep at it?

6. Visit  the bars of Patong, Bang Tao, Karon and take pictures. Start a facebook page with an intent of comedy. You can make memes or post amusing captions. Be discreet, especially when you are in Paradise Patong. The old men get very nervous when their picture is taken.

7. Hang out in the emergency rooms of the hospitals. There is always some farang drunk coming in with a crisis. The alcohol and drug induced attempted suicides and injuries are amazing. They could use a shoulder to cry one and someone to call  a family member to scrounge some  dosh.

8. Enter some of the beauty contests. There is Mr. Gay Phuket; Mr. Motorcycle (during bike week); Mr. Seafood (during the  seafood promotion festival) and of course the Miss Kathoey, which is very popular with farangs.

9. Be a member of the volunteer tourist police. You get a uniform, a whistle and a chance to hang around with some lovely people.

10. Become a gym bunny.

 

 

[Psimbo]

With a bit of self discipline you can easily fill the day with different things to do (I'm just waiting for the bread to finish at the moment).

 

It's all down to having focus and a plan each day- it doesn't have to be rigid. The beauty of it is that if you want to you can just roll over and go back to sleep if you want. There's always the next day.

 

Set yourself a time of day to start drinking if you drink and don't break it. Do you want to be one of those sad guys knocking down beers at ten am or do you want to be out doing things? 

 

People ask me what I do and my reply is that I'm busy doing nothing. Sometimes I don't know where the day has gone.

 

This doesn't suit everyone- I know some people who find it difficult to decompress after working for X number of years and need more structure but that's not for me.

[Jimi007]

I do pretty much the same things I do when I'm at my house in California. Read the news, my email, check out FaceBook, Thai Visa, maybe watch some news. Listen to music, play guitar, watch TV series/movies, walk on the beach. I go in the ocean here, too cold for me in CA these days! I used to play golf, before my hip replacement. I like to cook and BBQ, travel around a bit, visit family and friends. Deal with having property in both countries, cars, motorcycles, etc. Just doing vehicle registration and insurance can be a pain when you're not around. But I've managed to pull it all off. Now I'm making plans for my wife, our dog and myself to head back to our home in CA for 6 months to fulfill her US residency requirements. That reminds me, I better order some firewood!

 

I kind of like not HAVING to do something! 

[NamKangMan]

 

I suggest some sport and education.

 

Sport exercises the body, and education exercises the mind.  Both will keep you healthy. occupied, and challenged.

 

Plenty of sports available on Phuket, from gyms to water sports.

 

Education in the form of learning some Thai, or gaining some tech knowledge, like how to build a website, or learning a new hobby, like photography.  These can be self taught, at your leisure, with the use of the internet and / or books and magazines.

 

I would also suggest you take advantage of Phuket's well connected airport and plan some short trips throughout the region, starting with other provinces in Thailand, and then onto neighboring South East Asian countries.  Maybe tie these trips in with the various festivals and events that occur throughout the year.  

[dotpoom]

Buy a house, you will always have plenty to do taking care of it......in Phuket or anywhere else in the world.

[JHolmesJr]

Join the tourist police as a liaison officer….never a dull day.

[davidst01]

If your an oldboy and bored you should do a free course online:

 

https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/research-project/5/register

 

many to choose from. 

[KarenBravo]

1 hour ago, dotpoom said:

Buy a house, you will always have plenty to do taking care of it......in Phuket or anywhere else in the world.

Yup.......garden and house could take up 25 hours per day........if I let it.

[Destiny1990]

Just do like most other guys here eat walk date drink and all the other free time u can spend it on thaivisa forum.com while ur gf looks at the Thai soaps on the telly.

[Pinot]

3 hours ago, dotpoom said:

Buy a house, you will always have plenty to do taking care of it......in Phuket or anywhere else in the world.

 

No, don't buy a house. Last thing you do is buy property here.

 

I'm really busy doing nothing here. It happens to be raining but usually I'm on the go everyday. My day is built around exercise. About noon time I go to a pool and swim a mile. Come home, eat lunch, take a nap and walk the beach. I got a Fitbit so I try and reach my goal everyday. I started an online news magazine, written 3 books, play music in my home studio, something to be creative everyday. 

 

Social life is crazy active. Always something to do after you get to know some people. Join the Hashers and you'll have 50 local friends.

 

It's raining hard today and I'm taking a rare day where I do nothing. It's nice for a change, but  do feel a bit guilty for being keegeeiat (lazy). I'll be back at it tomollow.

 

In eight years I've never had a boring day. What a life. Join us.  

[JHolmesJr]

3 minutes ago, Pinot said:

I'm really busy doing nothing here.

 

if in a real bind, kegel exercises can fill up the hours quite easily.

[PeCeDe]

On 2017-08-14 at 10:04 AM, Gregster said:

The OP said he is to be on a pension hence the advice that it's a lot cheaper to live in a rural area. Up to him if he wants his pension to go further by basing himself in a rural area or pay a LOT more for the "joys" of living amongst tourists, scammers, polluted beaches, ladyboys etc etc

From the money saved by not living in Patong, BKK & Pattaya he will have more funds to support other retirement options to help fill his time.

That's a trifle cynical.

[murraynz]

i have just started my retirement to pattaya-also after 43yrs of work,work,work and raising family.

i am buying a second condo here,so looking forward to furnushing that,just how i want it, tmaybe to last me out ?

i manage to keep busy--walking, short cycle rides to jomtien,swim and restaurant meal,then return..reading There is an excellent second hand bookshop{canterbury tales}....i go to bar approx 3 nights pw ,sometimes spend time with lady friend,the ocassional small trips to see neighbouring countries....listening to my oldtime cds,swimming in pool....

shortly, i intend to join one of the expats clubs-dont play golf, but hope to find somebody who needs fishing or sailing companion.

i never get bored---the intenet is good to keep up to date with news from home,also gives some mental stimulation

[adammike]

I only used to come for the 28 days in February now I have retired I can do eight weeks,if I get a bit bored and it's groundhog day again I just look at the weather forecast back home and I feel better. 

[bazza73]

I've found I can tour the whole of Thailand in my own car in the low season for about the same cost as staying put in one place. Hotels are mostly empty, food is cheap. My favourite trick in a new town is to go to the largest hotel and buy a buffet breakfast.

I was budgeting 2000 baht a day, and I very rarely exceeded that.

If the OP feels like staying in one place, Chiang Mai has a large population of expat retirees.

[paulsingle]

1 hour ago, bazza73 said:

I've found I can tour the whole of Thailand in my own car in the low season for about the same cost as staying put in one place. Hotels are mostly empty, food is cheap. My favourite trick in a new town is to go to the largest hotel and buy a buffet breakfast.

I was budgeting 2000 baht a day, and I very rarely exceeded that.

If the OP feels like staying in one place, Chiang Mai has a large population of expat retirees.

I spent 8 months in Phuket and never got bored. My activities included cycling, swimming at a local 25m pool, riding around the island on the scooter, learning Thai, going round the markets (and sitting with a beer watching the people), spending time on the beaches, learning about Thai food and Thai life in general from my girlfriend and last but not least having fun in some of the bars.

Touring the country by car sounds great fun! I'll be back in January for another long stay and will definitely give that some thought!

[Mansell]

I have lived in Phuket for 2 1/2 years now on the beach out towards Cape Panwa. Check out the area and get a smaller car for the island itself. What did you do where you lived before you retired? Whatever it was it should be more of the same with more time to do it? Don't be one of those people who are bored stupid and die in two years. Many ways to fill the day. I am 73 with a 41 year old girlfriend with two boys 7 and 11......never a dull moment with them and lots of fun things to do. And sex with Thai women beats anything in the west.....probably because they don't have any of the Judeo Christian hang ups western women have in spades. I found making friends was slow here, but eventually it picked up......you will find people with similar interests. I wouldn't buy a house or condo, mainly because you have more flexibility without being tied down to a structure. I like the guys comments about traveling around on 2000 baht a day and having fun. Thailand is fun day after day after day.....just keep smiling and a sense of humour present.

[smotherb]

On 8/14/2017 at 4:01 AM, inThailand said:

Yup, you need to have or find a hobbie or something to keep you busy or you will end up in the bar. 

Make sure you are on TV for at least four hours a day.

 

Get in the habit of getting up late daily and have two hour breakfasts, three hour massages, and and it'll be time for happy hour. 

Edited August 15, 2017 by smotherb
to add to it