Living In Thailand

[sensual_lover20]

I have began to consider an early retirement in Bangkok. The cost of living there is one of the lowest of all the cities in the world yet you can get all your first world amenities there which makes it so beautiful. Many prefer to just vacation there, but I wanted to take it one step further by looking into real estate, visa's, investments and health. Upon further inspection I found a website which truly deterred me from considering retirement there and the reasons are outlined below. For anyone who was considering this, please read below as it may help you in your decision as it helped me. I have decided though that a two month vacation there on a tourist visa each year would be adequate and an investment in real estate would help contain the living costs and perhaps rented out on off season to help pay for annual plane tickets.

Financial Reasons

• Overspending - A remarkable number of expats decide to "live a little" when they arrive in paradise. A few weeks of high living become months or even years. Cash reserves can deplete very quickly.
• Bad Decisions - More than one expat has been played for a sucker by a pretty young wife with expensive habits. A divorce forces some from the house they built for cash, and there is no realistic way of recovering their investment.
• Misfortune - A pension or investment that an expat relies on for his income is suddenly no longer sufficient or available.
• Medical - As you get older, medical insurance is no longer available, or the premiums become exorbitant. A medical condition is not covered. Returning to the public medical care assistance of your home country is the only financial alternative.

Cultural Reasons

• Laws Change - Visa regulations change. Financial requirements for visas change.
• Cultural Change - When you arrived in paradise the country's culture fit nicely with your perception of how things should be. But some cultural aspects of developing countries tend to change much more rapidly than in developed countries. Those changes often make the culture more like those of developed nations.
• Perception - Since you arrived, you have been looking at the top layer of the culture. As you are able to peel back layers, you see more of the reality. In the early days, it was much easier to make excuses for negative experiences. As time marches on and the layers come off, making excuses for cultural negatives becomes much more difficult.
• Friends & Family - Sometimes you may start missing friends and family so much that moving back will make you a happier person. Maybe you need to go back home to take care of someone.

How this relates to t-girls? I think you can figure out rather quickly how.

[milkandhoney]

Pattaya seems like a very dangerous place. Some of the ladyboys there are vicious thugs...

http://www.pattayaone.net/news/2009/..._07_52_3.shtml

http://www.pattayaone.net/news/2009/..._07_52_2.shtml

[sensual_lover20]

If it is any consolation I meant Bangkok. I wonder if you can keep a knife on you for self defence. I have read though that you should not be wearing valuables on yourself and leaving them on the table as people commonly steal there. Go to the right area in Toronto and be subject to the same issues. Likely after someone stabbed me, they wouldn't look as pretty as those girls did after I caught up to them.

[Rose]

I have a friend who has been living there for about a year now, and he really loves it. I think he's in a touristy beach area, though, not a big city.

[flight09]

the braod in the 1st link is fuckin hot

[Rockheart]

Pattaya seems like a very dangerous place. Some of the ladyboys there are vicious thugs...

http://www.pattayaone.net/news/2009/..._07_52_3.shtml

http://www.pattayaone.net/news/2009/..._07_52_2.shtml

Pattaya has the highest concentration of ladyboys anywhere.
They flock their usually from the poorer regions to make money and find foreign men. Of course some get into drugs and crime.
Chances are the culprits here were doing this for drug money.
The ladyboys that hang out on the beach at night are usually the desparate and dangerous ones. Most of the action is away from the beaches at night.

Pattaya is mainly a tourist city with one of the worlds largest continuous red light districts. (Walking Street)
Going to secluded areas alone after dark is not recommended.
Of course this is a rule of thumb anywhere you travel especially in touristy areas. All tourist traps have criminals looking to get you.

Overall Pattaya is a pretty safe place, considering what goes on there.
You just have to watch the situations you get into and also watch your drink at all times. This i not specifically for Pattaya but just common sense for anyone anywhere.

Even in toronto it's not particularily safe to go many places after dark.
Especially don't wear gold or expensive jewelry/watches. You are just asking to be robbed.

Just use your brain and you will be safe just about anywhere.

[Rockheart]

I have began to consider an early retirement in Bangkok. The cost of living there is one of the lowest of all the cities in the world yet you can get all your first world amenities there which makes it so beautiful. Many prefer to just vacation there, but I wanted to take it one step further by looking into real estate, visa's, investments and health. Upon further inspection I found a website which truly deterred me from considering retirement there and the reasons are outlined below. For anyone who was considering this, please read below as it may help you in your decision as it helped me. I have decided though that a two month vacation there on a tourist visa each year would be adequate and an investment in real estate would help contain the living costs and perhaps rented out on off season to help pay for annual plane tickets.

Financial Reasons

• Overspending - A remarkable number of expats decide to "live a little" when they arrive in paradise. A few weeks of high living become months or even years. Cash reserves can deplete very quickly.
• Bad Decisions - More than one expat has been played for a sucker by a pretty young wife with expensive habits. A divorce forces some from the house they built for cash, and there is no realistic way of recovering their investment.
• Misfortune - A pension or investment that an expat relies on for his income is suddenly no longer sufficient or available.
• Medical - As you get older, medical insurance is no longer available, or the premiums become exorbitant. A medical condition is not covered. Returning to the public medical care assistance of your home country is the only financial alternative.

Cultural Reasons

• Laws Change - Visa regulations change. Financial requirements for visas change.
• Cultural Change - When you arrived in paradise the country's culture fit nicely with your perception of how things should be. But some cultural aspects of developing countries tend to change much more rapidly than in developed countries. Those changes often make the culture more like those of developed nations.
• Perception - Since you arrived, you have been looking at the top layer of the culture. As you are able to peel back layers, you see more of the reality. In the early days, it was much easier to make excuses for negative experiences. As time marches on and the layers come off, making excuses for cultural negatives becomes much more difficult.
• Friends & Family - Sometimes you may start missing friends and family so much that moving back will make you a happier person. Maybe you need to go back home to take care of someone.

How this relates to t-girls? I think you can figure out rather quickly how.

Thailand is a nice place to visit but I agree there is many reasons to keep Canada as your home.

It is always hot in Thailand 365 days a year. Often the temprature is in the 30's and it never ever goes below 20 degrees at night.
Bangkok is the hottest city in the world on average.
As such Bangkok is humid and sweaty, it is also very polluted and I do not like spending long periods of time there because of this.
Bangkok is a fantastic city but I would choose another place if I was to live in Thailand. Chiang Mai in the North is a good choice, large but not crazy and polluted like bangkok.

Cars and motorbikes rule the roads in Bangkok, so if you like to ride a bicycle around this city is not the place. Suprisingly almost no one rides bicycles anywhere in Thailand other than small children, most are driving motorbikes soon after they learn to walk.
Driving a car is horrendous as small motor bikes are everywhere, driving not recommended in this city.

They have decent subway system though, although being a pedestrian can be quite dangerous. Crosswalks and pedestrian rights are not respected at all.

Being Thailand has an unstable government you can expect coups and frequent law and visa changes. Occasionally there is military actions or fighting in the streets in many places from time to time. I've run for my life at least once in fear of terrorist activity.
Currently Thailand is cheap but it's economy is rapidly growing and I suspect it will be like everywhere else in 10 years or so. As the country becomes more democratic things will change and wealth will increase.

Another problem is foreigners cannot own land or property in Thailand.
This makes sense because real estate is very cheap there and people like us would have bought out the country long ago, if it was legal to do it.
(Truly I think real estate in Canada is a better investment)
Thailand has almost no gold sources left because foreigners have smuggled much of the gold Thailand was once known for, out of the country. Many a man has lost a house because he has put it in his girlfriends name. However many men live happily ever after and keep their houses and girlfriends long term.

Medical concerns are important because doctors and hospitals just do not meet the same standards as Canada and often health insurance is not easy to get if you are staying long term.

Anyway there is alot more I could say but as much as like Thailand, i do not want to live there full time.

I built a house for my ladyboy in her home village out by Buriram.
She also has a store set up there and some cows and chickens.
She also has some rice fields together with her father.
The washroom and shower are a little primitive but I could get internet and cell phone coverage, even in the middle of nowhere like that.
She would like me to come live therefull time, but I just cannot see it.

Unfortunately I don't think we will work out and she will end up keeping the house, but i never claimed any ownership of it even though she calls it my house too. It turns out that she is not that interested in coming over to Canada which hurt my feelings. She is willing to wait there for me there until the end of time, very close to her family.
Plus it is just too far and expensive to get there, i just cannot afford a long distance relationship like this.

[flight09]

Has anyone been to Sao Paulo, Brazil? To visit or work?
I would love to go there. Brazil sounds very dangerous with the crime, etc.

[cobbler]

Thailand is a nice place to visit but I agree there is many reasons to keep Canada as your home.

It is always hot in Thailand 365 days a year. Often the temprature is in the 30's and it never ever goes below 20 degrees at night.
Bangkok is the hottest city in the world on average.
As such Bangkok is humid and sweaty, it is also very polluted and I do not like spending long periods of time there because of this.
Bangkok is a fantastic city but I would choose another place if I was to live in Thailand. Chiang Mai in the North is a good choice, large but not crazy and polluted like bangkok.

Cars and motorbikes rule the roads in Bangkok, so if you like to ride a bicycle around this city is not the place. Suprisingly almost no one rides bicycles anywhere in Thailand other than small children, most are driving motorbikes soon after they learn to walk.
Driving a car is horrendous as small motor bikes are everywhere, driving not recommended in this city.

They have decent subway system though, although being a pedestrian can be quite dangerous. Crosswalks and pedestrian rights are not respected at all.

Being Thailand has an unstable government you can expect coups and frequent law and visa changes. Occasionally there is military actions or fighting in the streets in many places from time to time. I've run for my life at least once in fear of terrorist activity.
Currently Thailand is cheap but it's economy is rapidly growing and I suspect it will be like everywhere else in 10 years or so. As the country becomes more democratic things will change and wealth will increase.

Another problem is foreigners cannot own land or property in Thailand.
This makes sense because real estate is very cheap there and people like us would have bought out the country long ago, if it was legal to do it.
(Truly I think real estate in Canada is a better investment)
Thailand has almost no gold sources left because foreigners have smuggled much of the gold Thailand was once known for, out of the country. Many a man has lost a house because he has put it in his girlfriends name. However many men live happily ever after and keep their houses and girlfriends long term.

Medical concerns are important because doctors and hospitals just do not meet the same standards as Canada and often health insurance is not easy to get if you are staying long term.

Anyway there is alot more I could say but as much as like Thailand, i do not want to live there full time.

I built a house for my ladyboy in her home village out by Buriram.
She also has a store set up there and some cows and chickens.
She also has some rice fields together with her father.
The washroom and shower are a little primitive but I could get internet and cell phone coverage, even in the middle of nowhere like that.
She would like me to come live therefull time, but I just cannot see it.

Unfortunately I don't think we will work out and she will end up keeping the house, but i never claimed any ownership of it even though she calls it my house too. It turns out that she is not that interested in coming over to Canada which hurt my feelings. She is willing to wait there for me there until the end of time, very close to her family.
Plus it is just too far and expensive to get there, i just cannot afford a long distance relationship like this.

I totally agree about Chiang Mai. I loved it up there. Bangkok is a vibrant, bustling hell hole. Fun to visit, but to live there? South or north the country is magical, but for quality of life and safety Canada is by far the most attractive country to live.

[milkandhoney]

...
Anyway there is alot more I could say but as much as like Thailand, i do not want to live there full time.

I built a house for my ladyboy in her home village out by Buriram.
She also has a store set up there and some cows and chickens.
She also has some rice fields together with her father.
The washroom and shower are a little primitive but I could get internet and cell phone coverage, even in the middle of nowhere like that.
She would like me to come live therefull time, but I just cannot see it.

Unfortunately I don't think we will work out and she will end up keeping the house, but i never claimed any ownership of it even though she calls it my house too. It turns out that she is not that interested in coming over to Canada which hurt my feelings. She is willing to wait there for me there until the end of time, very close to her family.
Plus it is just too far and expensive to get there, i just cannot afford a long distance relationship like this.

thanks for that--that's a very interesting story. your situation sounds complicated (just like life!) but you're attitude seems very grounded. i had a friend who had a similar situation with a GG from Cuba.

anyway, its clear that a lot of things can happen--between being robbed on a beach, and finding that Hollywood dream of 'happiness ever after' with the LB of one's dreams. its always good to be reminded that there is a lot more gray in the world than black and white...

[Rockheart]

Has anyone been to Sao Paulo, Brazil? To visit or work?
I would love to go there. Brazil sounds very dangerous with the crime, etc.

I've been to Rio de Janeiro.
Sao Paulo is one of the largest cities in the world and is not as tourist friendly as Rio is. In the tourist areas of Brazil it is very safe as they keep the rif raf out for the most part. I barely saw any panhandlers or anything.
Once you get out into the general population it is different.

Brazil does not really have any type of shemale clubs to speak of.
We drove past the main shemale stroll in Rio and there was up to 100 tgirls there in various states of undress. There was actually completelly nude shemales running around the street.
Even the GG workers you would see on the street would get more naked as the night wore on.

Brazil is more dangerous that thailand for sure. The people are bigger and meaner that thais. They are all catholic and are not like the calm and peaceful Bhuddists. Men are very machismo and you have to watch that a little, there is alot of men who like to fight.
Also everyone in Brazil seem a little hornier than anywhere else in the world. This is the only place i remember having to tell a girl (gg) it was time to stop fucking and get some sleep.

Anyway if you want to go to Sao Paulo or Brazil for a shemale adventure, you need to plan ahead a little more. In Thailand the best girls are found in the bars and out and about. You can find awesome GG girls in bars but not tgirls usually. Best to arrange one or two escorts. They in turn can hook you up with friends if you need more. Most only speak portugese there but many speak some English. Spanish will get you by.

If you search for Brazil post by me on the forum you will find some links to meet some tgirls. Also get on the forum at brazilian-transsexuals.com and my buddy Louie or the members can probably help you more.

[flight09]

Cool man, thanks for the good info. I have had memberships for some of the sites you mention in some of your posts. I thought Sao Paulo would be the place to go to meet T-girls as it seems many hot T-girls are from there. Now that you mention it Rio De Janeiro sounds very interesting. I heard there were some really dangerous areas in Rio, so I wondered since Sao Paulo is a business center, maybe it would be less dangerous. Maybe more crime, but possibly less dangerous? Getting robbed would not be my main concern, it is the other more serious stuff you here about.
Anyway, like you say you need to be smart anywhere you go. It is my dream to go to Brazil. Argentina may be a cool place to visit, for both TG and GG.

[sensual_lover20]

I think I will make that investment in a condominium and then visit annually. I will rent it out slightly below market rate and hire a property management company to take care of collections and other concerns when I am not there (or just keep it rented and stay in a hotel). Perhaps after 30 years if I do decide to retire there, I will have that option and it will be fully paid off and likely increased in value. I could probably write off my annual plane ticket there against rental income eventually paying no tax on my rental property. Flexibility is key. Oh yes and not get married, that will reduce my flexibility.