Stayed a month, want to move here permanently.

Hello PapaGus

Welcome to Expat.com


Wish you all the best in your new venture 

Regards
Kenjee
Expat.com Team

PapaGus wrote:

My experiences in Thailand can best be viewed on my FB page...Lots and lots of photo's of all the friends I made, places I went to, and things I did.... and did so within the warmth of my adopted Thai family.   (face.book.com/gus.colgain) which included a talented group of Thai Dancers... who recently placed First in a National Competition in their age group.

Now my hostess/adopted daughter wishes me to move to Thailand.

Welcome

For those of us who do not do Facebook perhaps you could share a little more here.

Okay, the first damned thing I got tagged with was being a "cowboy"......yeah, but was a lifetime ago when I was raised on a ranch.  However, there seems to be a fascination with cowboys in Thai. So I went with the flow.  Now, figure I am 71, Old, Mean, and Ugly, and that's on a good day. But damnme if I don't love Thailand. I found the pace of life suiting me to a "T" though not as free wheeling as I am used to being. Through my Thai family I had a face to face sit down with Ven. Phra Debvisuddhikavi (Pichitr Thitavanno) though I am not sure what he took away from the meeting.  I found it faintly disturbing that all the women with me were prostate on the floor in a supplicant posture while I am sitting in a chair.
Down in Phuket, my #2 daughter, Kung, put us up for a week after we visited the 3 Sisters.  Kung owns three rubber tree plantations in the area... tho she tells me that the prices she gets has dropped 50% in the last year or so. 
In Ayutthaya a monk (female) took me aside to give me instructions on breathing.  I have COPD and use a cane....which caught her attention.
Now my relationship with my #1 Daughter, Janthima, came about because she lost her father and was very depressed.....and since I have been online since the early 90's...I am a soft touch for a sob story.... soft touch, not a sucker..... and I offered to be a surrogate father.  That girl (she's 49) takes this relationship dead seriously.  I am her father and she is my daughter and she lets all her friends know that up front.  As a result I now have more grand daughters than I know what to do with....and, bottom line. I had one hell of a dance as my intro to Thai.  Now I am being encouraged to move permanently to Thai......and I am seriously considering it.   What say ye all?

Oh, and for those of you who say you don't face book, you don't need to... if you have a computer... or iPad/iPhone, or pretty much anything capable of getting online... just put in face.book.com/gus.colgain and you are there.

Happy Trails, folks

PapaGus

Cheers Gus
Hope you have a great life here if you decide to settle.

Thanks, looking at October 10th flight reservation.  Everyone is in sync so far.

Hey PapaGus,

I was here under 24 hours before i want to move here, so i understand you !!
The weather here was/is so good for my Goat pain, then i feel improvement in the pain level so fast.
And i lost 12 kg in 88 days on my trip here from eating Thai food, So it was a win win for me to move here. he he
Be here 3.5 years now, and still i am happy about my move to Thailand, So easy to come here and be part of this wonderful country, wonderful people.

Sure one have to keep once common sense, and know there is Bad Thai people all so.
But i can say after 3.5 years, i have never experienced any bad things from Thai side.
From Fa-Rang side is another case.

You write your 71 years old, my advice be to you and others no matter what age, be sure you have good health cover here, it can run up pretty fast here, and if no cover, no money, The hospital Don´t help one.
I sadly see so many here with no insurance, and see what happened when a accident happens.

Be sure you have some social network outside your Thai family, Thai friends, One never know when need help, and IF one need help back in from your home country.

Be sure you have you paper ready for you Thai GF/wife and family back home sake.
I am thinking about if / when you going to be dead, I know many don´t think about it, But Thailand don´t always do what the Thai family want, or the Family back home want, need and so on.

I know of one person there want to be burn in crematoria in Thailand, But as he didnt have make the correct paper work before hes dead, it was a hard fight for hes wife (widow).
Because the mans family back in he home country want hes body back home to get buried.

Other then that, i hope you enjoy your time here, It is a great great country, and great people.

Kindly.

Totally agree with Never Done That.

Make sure you have a fallback plan in case you have to head back home.

Health insurance if you want to get it, I think they have a UK company called BUPA if I recall right, maybe someone can correct me on that though. If you know you will be spending a lot of time in the hospitals, would be worth looking into.

And for sure I know that feeling, my first trip over to Thailand was about 8 years ago for 9 days, decided to move over before I even left.

No matter what I do, I will have family in America...great grands, grands, and a step daughter.  I lost her mother to cancer last year.  Shauna wants me to be happy...so, yes, I have a fall back plan.  I have health insurance that will carry over to Thailand... and a one time Max payout that should damned well cover anything Thai medico's can come up with.  I figure to kick on back and play the hand that I am dealt.  My health outside of smoking for 55 years, is top notch....and the doctor is amazed that I don't seem to stress out.  Hey, work a midway for a roaming carnival as a pitchman, roustabout, midway shill, etc... and you learn not to stress.
I have enough bucks from SS every month that I can live comfortably on my own.. but with my Thai family... I will be a contributor...and still put some aside.  Mostly though, my part of the "family" structure will be taking care of the kids, giving the parent a break, and doing a fabulous job of grandfathering ( spoiling the hell out of the kids).  I won't cut all my ties with home.

I wish you the best of luck Gus. There will be some that have made the move and failed that will tell you its not worth it, others that have made the best decision of their lives by moving over.

For the most part though I think all of us want to see each other move over successfully and live the dream. Probably a few sour codgers in there though somewhere lol.

Sounds amazing

i moved here 30 yrs ago this coming,10 November when it was quite different;   no tuk tuks, no cheese, no English movie theaters, and no American sports on TV.     well you get the idea.    hardly anyone spoke English so i began to teach English just so i could be around people who did.  i also took Thai language lessons but that is still a work in progress.   

after 6 months i was broke and lonely but i made a commitment to stay here for one year.   without that commitment i may have gone back to the USA long ago.    it was the commitment that kept me here.   i think you need to be committed because it is real easy to pack up and go back.   now i cannot imagine going back but it was difficult the first few years.

over the years i have done lots of interesting things like a was a Buddhist monk for several months.   that was not easy.   i was in a Thai movie, in the newspapers, on the radio and taught journalism at one of the universities.    then i got into the shipping business and i am just now winding that down.    without the one year commitment none of that would have been possible.

good luck to you.

Great live you have here Howardski. Sound really great.

Opposite you, about easy going home, I sadly see to many people staying here to long, And for my eyes living a poor live, struggle every day, week, month to live here.
I never understand why !!!
I know for 100% sure if people from my own country, going home = Take care of them, get a place to live and food every day, and little pocket money.
As in my country we take care, But only if people come home and ask for it.

For my self i really can´t see me going home again.
Have to go home one times, as my Thai wife want to see my country, so one day we go home for 2 weeks, and then i hope never again.
I love this country, the Thai people, the relax way of live, living.

But ofcause, only time can tell, if my dream can be live out, but i do hope one day in many many year, i end my days here in Thailand in my bed, not waking up again, but but that in 35-45 years time (i hope)

You bet they do......make sure you bring lots and lots and lots of cash.....you will be so welcome.....

I've been here in Thailand for 17 years..seen it all and would ask you to think long and hard before you decided to move here after only a month.
It's not as it seems my friend.  90% of Expats would rather be elsewhere (especially if in a relationship).  Remember, if it's too good to be true, then it's too good to be true.
I'm one of the lucky ones, but I've witnessed first hand people coming here and being fooled by the niceness of the people..simply put..They're not at all!