micheal_efc

ive lived in chaing mai for 4 years now and ive never experienced (bad air quality) ive found it pleasent all year round the thais ,say it get cold on december nights,but ive never had to put a jumper or long sleeved shirt on.it can get as hot as patong if not hotter,maybe be the humidity not so bad up here, anyway i love it, even though no beach, people amazing up here, compared to phuket. and so much better value for your money.allround.

katongkaren

I guess it depends exactly where you live in Chiang Mai maybe? I was surprised to find that we get smoked out on the occasional days here in the south of Phuket - a lttle bit of agriculture near to us. You don't really think of Phuket as being farmland do you? Oh BTW please don't let people think Patong = Phuket, it doesn't.

IMHO Patong is pretty awful - though there are those that like it

There's some beautiful scenery around the island. Mmmm maybe I should post a few pics....

micheal_efc

i agree some nice places in phuket, always is with the sea as background, kata nice beach, paridise beach lovely, some nice coves dotted around. scenery up here stunning though, mountains, waterfalls, white water rafting, lots to do energy wise.(not beach wise)5555 thialand amazing were ever you are.

Chris351

Unless having prostitutes is what interests you , aside from that, there is is very little to offer after you've visited all the temples.
Thailand offers lots of beautiful women who will sell sex for about 1000 baht and that is the only draw , so the vast majority of immigrants " Sex - Pats " are these kind of men to whom this attribute make Thailand a paradise.
Those and the pedophiles.

There is beautiful scenery but it's often spoiled by garbage that Thais routinely dump on the ground.
Beaches on the southwest coasts in spring and summer are encrusted with filth.


You cannot own land, you cannot start a business without having 4 Thai partners. Thai business laws are not always enforced as to ensnare unwary foreigners and then extrapolate monies from them.

Thai people, behind the facade of the famous smile, dislike foreigners intensely and they are incapable of telling the truth.
Very few speak english and it seems to be a matter of pride to not speak it .
Their language is annoyingly infantile and difficult to learn.

You cannot say anything bad about the King or Royal family or risk jail. Not kidding .

After the 1-2 Go crash in Phuket it is painfully clear the Authorities do not enforce safety regulations and it is that way in all sectors. Look down when you walk on sidewalks and risk of electrocution is constant. Huge, unsightly tangles of electrical wiring is everywhere.
Thai drivers are fatalists and believe that accidents are meant to happen, thus they drive very fast and dangerously.

You will pay far more than any Thai for just about everything including entry to National parks.

You will be an alien, stared at rudely and referred to as " Farang" which means " potato" presumably as westerners resemble fat white potatoes.
If you are black or dark skinned you will suffer from bigotry as bad as any where in the world.

There are no laws protecting animals and there are grossly sick and mangy dogs everywhere. Elephants are routinely beaten so as to be subdued and mother elephants shot so as to take their babies away to the beach to pose for pictures with tourists.
Horses are used to death in beach rental operations where they suffer from hideous neglect.


A long term visa is difficult to procure unless you are over 50 and can get a retirement visa. Investor visa now requires 10,000,000 baht in a fixed depost.
Lots of men marry and then support entire Thai families, as the entire immigration system is set up it to marry local women off to foreigners, put everything in her name, only to get ripped off and ousted by her brothers .


The police are corrupt beyond belief and quite above the law
Even if her on a legit visa, you will not be allowed to work and have to ,
" report" like a sex criminal every 90 days to immigration..

Yes, Amazing Thailand

katongkaren

Oh dear.... did we get out of bed the wrong side this morning????

...and you are from where Chris?

Oh and potato is actually manfarang in Thai, my friend.

Kooky.

I wonder if they're related to Phuketti?

katongkaren

Yeh we've not heard from her/him for a while, have we.

Been trying to upload some pics from this garbage ridden little island but the ol' PC seems to be playing up today. I shall have to try again.

katongkaren

some garbage pics I took ....

Kooky.

God yeah, looks awful. Poor you, having to live there.

Chris351

I don't know you. Please don't be sarcastic with the condescending " My friend" comment


Farang is a racist term and I'm sick of Thai apologists covering up for these racists- usually either Sex Pats or the wealthy that can afford to pay Thais to be nice to them.

Man Farang - farang .Yes an enormous difference
I have had many Thai confirm this and the more educated Thais consider it rude. (Probably not your maids )
As it isn't said to your face, I'm pretty sure it's derogatory.
They ain't calling Japanese tourists by this term.

Chris351

Topic poster asked for opinions on Thailand , these are mine . Argue your own thoughts but please direct your snobbiness elsewhere.

Chris351

Oh no no trash on Phuket , Nope not speck , Nope no pristine , Not a speck Uh Uh . Clean as a whistle , you can eat off the sidewalk , many Thais do ! Oh I forgot to add about the picking of the nose habit, Thanks !!
BoycottThailand.Com

ex reg

I thought Chris read like the previous anti Thai poster on here.

That's not to say the views aren't valid even if we don't agree with them.
Certainly there is a fine border, subjectivity, in some instances between one view and the other.

A good mate of mine was threatened with his life and eventually left the house and business he had set up with his Thai wife and this was over 25 years ago.

We've always enjoyed our holidays in Thailand, never had a problem, although it is nearly ten years since we've been there.

Chris351

Thanks for you compassion and sense of fair mindeness. Heres an example of how it is to live here .. 2 days ago , my neighbor, a high ranking police officer walked up while I was on the lane between out properties and kicked my cat.

Advice from long time residents? Move, immediately . He doesn't like you. You'll end up dead

I'm trying to upload pics of horses I took at a beach rental stable, absolutely sickening The proprietors s would go to jail in UK , ( Pics awaiting aproval - I've got a lot of pics of trash too )
How many horses have been killed crossing that 4 lane road rom the stable in Chalong? Last one , a friend was there and she said the owner DID NOTHING to help the horse , it was an hour before a vet showed up to put him down .
No Thai cops would do anything.
No compassion for animals . I'm really going to stress that on the site .

And don't get me going about the 1-2 go crash UGH if you knew all the illegalities.. See InvestigateUdom.com for a lot more And then DO NOT FLY Thai airlines, any of them .

Seems to me the people who like it here are here for easy sex, or their husbands are, and they enjoy having maids they pay nothing .
There is a smiling face put on for " Madam" or the tourists and then there is the real Thai face
Thai-Two-Faced Land . A CURSE on this Country

katongkaren

1. "My Friend" is an expression used by Brits usually to calm down a person - obviously it hasn't worked. Sarcasm was intended, condescension not intended at all.

2. Farang is not a racist word. It means literally a Western foreigner. Please note "Western". Japanese are not Western. You would normally call them Kon Yee-Bpun. There may be other terms for Japanese but my Thai is still Mai Koy Took I'm afraid. (Ask me in a years time.) I use the term Farang as do my Thai friends.

3. Yes my husband and I have easy sex together - thanks for asking. No, we do not have a maid though I imagine a lot of older retirees (this topic is about Retirement BTW) would be glad for some affordable help in the home.