Thailand's foreign retirees see their good life slip away

ThatOwlWoman said:
No, I've never been to Asia nor do I have any desire to go there. Their food, culture, music, living conditions, climate, etc. are not attractive to me. I also would never consider moving (or even a long-term stay) in an area where I would not want to at least try to assimilate to some extent. It's just rude not to. For that reason I'm also disinterested in living in the rural Mississippi you mentioned, or in Seattle, or NYC.

It would be cool to live abroad for an extended time though, just to learn about another spot on our planet. Maybe Iceland, or Norway, Switzerland, northern Italy, British Columbia.
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You like the cooler temperatures, no harm in that. I like warm now! I say to each their own.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
You obviously have not been to Southeast Asia. First it’s spectacularly beautiful and you can have a beachfront home or a home in the mountains where the temperatures are milder for a fraction of what it costs here. In addition Thailand has pretty close to a first world infrastructure and the cost of living is roughly half of what it is here.

Now don’t get me wrong, to live a middle class life style you still need money. For example, for about $2,500 per month net income I can have pretty much the same standard of living, with first world accommodations, that I have here for about $4500/ month. Now I could live for significantly less, say around $1,000/month in the provinces but I’d be living a local lifestyle, eating local food and living in local housing and have a decent lifestyle but I wouldn’t have the lifestyle I have here.

The other issue is can you adjust to the cultural differences and integrate like would be expected if you immigrated here?

Now having said that, I could retire to rural Mississippi on $2500/month and have close to the same standard of living I have in suburban Columbus for $4,500/month.

I personally want to have the experience of living abroad so the misses and I may live abroad for a year just for the experience but I have no desire to leave the US permanently.
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Are you & the misses planning on doing a year in Mississippi as well??? :thinking:
 
ThatOwlWoman said:
No, I've never been to Asia nor do I have any desire to go there. Their food, culture, music, living conditions, climate, etc. are not attractive to me. I also would never consider moving (or even a long-term stay) in an area where I would not want to at least try to assimilate to some extent. It's just rude not to. For that reason I'm also disinterested in living in the rural Mississippi you mentioned, or in Seattle, or NYC.

It would be cool to live abroad for an extended time though, just to learn about another spot on our planet. Maybe Iceland, or Norway, Switzerland, northern Italy, British Columbia.
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I have a friend that just got back from 9 months in Norway... Her daughter lives there & I am surprised she is coming back but she kinda misses the warmer weather hiking, camping & in season snow shoeing..
 
Mott the Hoople said:
I’m sorry but you’re stereotyping. I mean sure Manila, and Bangkok and Saigon are teaming crowded large cities but so are New York, Chicago, LA, etc,. Where as my father in-laws farm in Luzon is very reminiscent of my Uncles Farm in Indiana and the bug thing is mostly a figment of your imagination unless you plan on hiking through an unpopulated rain forest.

It can certainly be sweltering hot there but that’s like around 3 months a year...kinda like Winter here.
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I don't much want to visit our teeming crowded cities either.

I'm just going by what the real estate agents on those foreign home-seeker shows say. They often mention that the highs in the tropical areas (Central and S. America included) are in the 80s year round, except when they're even warmer. Sometimes the apartments/houses don't come with a/c -- or even window screens. Yuck, no thanks.
 
Bill said:
I have a friend that just got back from 9 months in Norway... Her daughter lives there & I am surprised she is coming back but she kinda misses the warmer weather hiking, camping & in season snow shoeing..
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It would be fun to talk with her and see what her impressions are of the country. I have a friend who will show us around if/when we visit. He was in Tromso but is now in Lofoten (sp?).
 
Phantasmal said:
You like the cooler temperatures, no harm in that. I like warm now! I say to each their own.
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Yep! A lot of ppl just adore hot and humid; my late brother (who lived in Floresville near San Antonio) was one. If it was up to him he would have never turned the a/c on, his wife said, but she insisted on it. lol
 
Phantasmal said:
It is brutal, but my fans, mister and pool help.
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Cool........ Are you able to get the pool cool enough? Not like bath water???

I have a friend that just moved to Phoenix.. Oddly enough she had a pool here & hated it~cleaning etc but she got a house w/ one there & that has got to be like a hot bath all summer.....
 
Bill said:
Cool........ Are you able to get the pool cool enough? Not like bath water???

I have a friend that just moved to Phoenix.. Oddly enough she had a pool here & hated it~cleaning etc but she got a house w/ one there & that has got to be like a hot bath all summer.....
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The water is always cooler that the surrounding temperature, so it’s a relief. I am blessed to have one in the backyard. We use it in the winter to cool off after the spa ;)
 
ThatOwlWoman said:
It would be fun to talk with her and see what her impressions are of the country. I have a friend who will show us around if/when we visit. He was in Tromso but is now in Lofoten (sp?).
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I am hoping to hike w/ her in a few weeks & listen to her stories...

She is almost 80 (although she could be lying about it. :dunno: ) but you would never know it... She can out hike the average hiker. Not fast but endurance...

Still fond of a drink or two & camps out w/ boyfriends almost year round.........:cool:
 
I hear lots of ppl complain about humidity there, it does rain more than here but it is relative.... Compared to Houston or NOLA-surrounded by hot water, it's not bad @ all....... (& that is what I always thought passing through there traveling back & fourth from dry Calif to NOLA which average about 100% in summer, much of spring & into fall)..........
average-relative-humidity-united-states-of-america-san-antonio-texas-us.png
 
Mott the Hoople said:
You obviously have not been to Southeast Asia. First it’s spectacularly beautiful and you can have a beachfront home or a home in the mountains where the temperatures are milder for a fraction of what it costs here. In addition Thailand has pretty close to a first world infrastructure and the cost of living is roughly half of what it is here.

Now don’t get me wrong, to live a middle class life style you still need money. For example, for about $2,500 per month net income I can have pretty much the same standard of living, with first world accommodations, that I have here for about $4500/ month. Now I could live for significantly less, say around $1,000/month in the provinces but I’d be living a local lifestyle, eating local food and living in local housing and have a decent lifestyle but I wouldn’t have the lifestyle I have here.

The other issue is can you adjust to the cultural differences and integrate like would be expected if you immigrated here?

Now having said that, I could retire to rural Mississippi on $2500/month and have close to the same standard of living I have in suburban Columbus for $4,500/month.

I personally want to have the experience of living abroad so the misses and I may live abroad for a year just for the experience but I have no desire to leave the US permanently.
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:thumbsup:
 
ThatOwlWoman said:
Yep! A lot of ppl just adore hot and humid; my late brother (who lived in Floresville near San Antonio) was one. If it was up to him he would have never turned the a/c on, his wife said, but she insisted on it. lol
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I think I am genetically pre-disposed towards cooler weather.

Scotland is my idea of great weather - overcast, foggy, cool, brisk!
I actually like the winter weather of Belarus, Poland, and western Russia to a limited degree.

I like sunshine and balmy weather to some extent.

But there is something about fog, rain, overcast, cold or brisk weather that just makes me feel alive, in a way that balmy weather does not.


Another downside: My pale, translucent northern European skin is defenseless against UV radiation, and I do not think they make SPF factor one million sunblock yet!
 
Bill said:
I am hoping to hike w/ her in a few weeks & listen to her stories...

She is almost 80 (although she could be lying about it. :dunno: ) but you would never know it... She can out hike the average hiker. Not fast but endurance...

Still fond of a drink or two & camps out w/ boyfriends almost year round.........:cool:
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Lucky you -- she sounds like an amazing person!
 
Cypress said:
I think I am genetically pre-disposed towards cooler weather.

Scotland is my idea of great weather - overcast, foggy, cool, brisk!
I actually like the winter weather of Belarus, Poland, and western Russia to a limited degree.

I like sunshine and balmy weather to some extent.

But there is something about fog, rain, overcast, cold or brisk weather that just makes me feel alive, in a way that balmy weather does not.


Another downside: My pale, translucent northern European skin is defenseless against UV radiation, and I do not think they make SPF factor one million sunblock yet!
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LOL @ Factor 1M sunblock. You would like it here; we have that maritime climate with frequent clouds, fog, mist. Summers are lovely -- sun some days (and often fog on the Lake), cool (70s, low 80s), and by the shore in the afternoons wonderful cool breezes. Our house has big glass windows that allow it to heat up quickly in the morning, but it cools just as quickly in the afternoon when those onshore breezes turn on.

Have never been to Scotland but it sounds lovely. Middle daughter and her husband went there a few years ago and loved it. What did you think about their cuisine?
 
ThatOwlWoman said:
LOL @ Factor 1M sunblock. You would like it here; we have that maritime climate with frequent clouds, fog, mist. Summers are lovely -- sun some days (and often fog on the Lake), cool (70s, low 80s), and by the shore in the afternoons wonderful cool breezes. Our house has big glass windows that allow it to heat up quickly in the morning, but it cools just as quickly in the afternoon when those onshore breezes turn on.

Have never been to Scotland but it sounds lovely. Middle daughter and her husband went there a few years ago and loved it. What did you think about their cuisine?
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I have never been to Scotland, but I just have an affinity for Goth-like weather: cool, brisk weather with lost of overcast skies and fog.

Love Maine and Nova Scotia on this continent. Upper Penninsula sounds pretty good too! There is a beauty to a Russian winter that is timeless. Though I would not want to live year round in it.

If I had a choice between Bahamas and Iceland, it would be a no brainer. Great White North for me! Suprisingly, I have had a hard time selling that choice to girlfriends and significant others throughout all the years.
 
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