Asian Expat and Travel Thread

[Cynllo]

Passing through Thailand at the moment. Other countries in Asia I have been to a Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Singapore, Mongolia and the Asian part of Russia. I can feel the deep underlay of something that was also apparent in the East and North Asian countries (Singapore included as they are mostly of Chinese origin).

There is something similar about the way they all lay their cities out. Things are often quite small and close together. Small roads. Huge numbers of very tightly packed blocks. The buildings, althogh built to Western schematics, have something oriental about them. You could look pretty much anywhere and not think you were in Europe as a result. Thailand seems like the Southeast Europe of Asia - following the same patterns of the north, but less regimented and less tidy.

The people seem exceptionally polite and want to make sure they don't step out of place. Comments about the hive mind in this region relating to COVID make a lot of sense. It seems a large number of men are guy, or at least extremely camp. This is something that really makes me recoil a little. Women seem to be very shy or reserved. They want to stay in the correct place, whatever that is. It comes across as them having no personality.

Woke up early and went to breakfast. First in. Then in come filing a series of fat Western men in their 50s and their presumed Thai brides to be.

For those that know the country, what can you say about the place?

Tagged: @LaAguilaNegra and maybe @dicknixon72

 

[Rax Moscow]

Haven't been to Thailand yet, but have been nearby recently, and planning a trip there soon. Everyone advises to visit northern Thailand (and as soon as possible after the recent king's death). I believe the Chiang Mai area but I haven't looked into it specifically.

Thailand is one of the only countries in the world to escape from western colonialism, and has a rich and proud history.
Vietnam comes close, as it was briefly occupied by the French but then kicked them and the Americans out.

Coastal areas universally attract a lot of tourists, drugs, sex, foreigners etc.
I was exposed to drugs the first time on a spring break trip to Florida as a teenager.
Think how different Miami and San Francisco are to the non-coastal areas of America that have far less tourists and transients, where the people are just going about their everyday life.

In the coastal areas to the south and around Bangkok and Phuket, you will likely find a lot of tourists, and those locals who want to rebel against their tradition and move to the big city for all its freedoms (living alone, night club life, drinking, partying). Outside of Bangkok you'll find intact families whose children live and work at home until they marry.

I'm familiar with Thai language, customs and culture, and I have found them (as well as most Asian cultures) to be extremely bifurcated. Unlike America, where the entire culture has been dragged down considerably since I was a kid, in much of Asia you have strongly divergent cultures: both extremely traditional and extremely wild subcultures coexist.

This is why many of these areas have things like the Thai ladyboys (please send us a photo to update the Thai Men Vs American Women Meme), and Japanese Sex Shops, but if you meet almost any woman who is not into that subculture, it is very common that they are devout and remain a virgin until marriage. Unlike the USA where maybe the ladyboy stuff is still considered weird but everyone just accepts casual sex hookup culture as normal.

Their Songkran festival is coming up soon, but I think it's still a bit away. They have the most beautiful written language / alphabet of any in the world. They of course have the Muy Thai fighting tradition. Great food. Excellent tailors. I had planned for years on buying a tailored suit there but no one wears those anymore. This is one such shop:

Suits | Tailor On Ten

OUR SUITSPerfectly UniqueWith world-class fabrics and careful construction, our master tailors cut individual patterns, creating suits that are truly un...

www.tailoronten.com

Another dream I had is to take the luxury Orient and Eastern Express train, which I believe recently reopened, though it is much more expensive than I was hoping (starts at $3,000 but looks incredible and is a true step back in time).

Eastern & Oriental Express, A Belmond Train | Luxury Trains, Asia

Eastern & Oriental Express is one of the world’s best luxury trains. Southeast Asia’s vibrant cities, rural villages and gleaming pagodas can be explored like never before.

www.belmond.com

The level of service I've gotten in Asia has been unmatched anywhere in the world. I believe this is tied to the traditions they have of respect, honor, and humbleness, which allow them to genuinely serve others, where westerners in the service industry probably secretly hate their customers !

The low cost of labor allows people to eat out, get massages, treat themselves to things like a coffee or tea or fruit drink more often, where in the states these things can cost you hours of wages.

Also they are not easily triggered and don't care about racism / sexism / political correctness. Probably the region with the strongest traditional male/female dynamic. Recently an asian girl asked me who some of my heros were and when I responded Hitler she just vaguely smiled and nodded. To her it's just like saying I love Napoleon or Alexander the Great or any dead historical leader. (Now that I think about it the Hitler Fried Chicken place is in Thailand).

Fried chicken takeaway called 'Hitler' opens in Thailand and comes complete with logo of Nazi leader in a bow tie

Thailand's obsession with so-called 'Nazis chic' just won't go away - and now a fried chicken takeaway called Hitler - complete with a logo showing the Nazi leader in a bow tie - has opened its doors.

www.dailymail.co.uk

I'm a fan of those "street tour with the locals" where they take you on food tours, walking tours, etc. I've had extremely memorable experiences in places from NYC (which I knew already, but was taken to some very intimate places) to Istanbul. Often the guide opens up and tells you things you won't easily discover elsewhere.

Take as much of it in, and please give us a detailed report when you are done. I fear that many of the great things about the country will erode with the King's death. I'm always curious about people's experiences and perceptions of a place, even one that I know well. It's interesting to note the details and what strikes and impresses someone.

 

[Cynllo]

Also they are not easily triggered and don't care about racism / sexism / political correctness. Probably the region with the strongest traditional male/female dynamic. Recently an asian girl asked me who some of my heros were and when I responded Hitler she just vaguely smiled and nodded. To her it's just like saying I love Napoleon or Alexander the Great or any dead historical leader. (Now that I think about it the Hitler Fried Chicken place is in Thailand).

That seems to be the case in most places outside of the West and certain other places like South Africa.

Hitler seems to be a normal guy in most of the world. When I had a GF from Colombia I showed her that there were 1000s of people named Hitler in South America (as a first name). Some are called things like Hitler Stalin Lopez Arrellano, Stalin Mao... She couldn't stop laughing and spent some time sending it to all her friends and relatives.

I see there are some Nazi memoramillia stores here. Being this is one of the few places they are not shut down.

Not much to report. Was not allowed to stay at one hotel I'd booked as they said they did not get the booking. But was in a bit of a degen area. So not too much of an issue.

People in shops are very polite and will often bow their heads and offer their hands in prayer when you pay, especially if you tip.

 

[TrainedLogosmotion]

I lived in Thailand for many years in my 20s as an international school teacher. I also did some import work and online marketing stuff.

I went for the wrong reasons and got myself into a lot trouble spiritually. I foiled many great chances at a blessed life there, but I believe there could be a redemption for me in the coming years.

After some deep contemplation, I'm actually considering returning there to settle. There's some really amazing looking Russian Orthodox Churches I've been learning about and they haven't been there very long, seemingly less than 15 years as far as I can tell, but you wouldn't guess that by the sheer magnitude of the Church diaspora. I didn't realize they had such a strong presence and I wasn't Orthodox when I lived there. I was a lost soul.

The first Church started in Pattaya, which is the sin city of Thailand known for its red light districts. I lived there for about a year that I'm not too proud of. Apparently what happened was they were being inundated with many tortured souls from there, so they began their mission from that angle. They do good work for the foreigners in the prisons there and at other Thai RO churches, which is the kind of thing I'd like to get involved in to try and give back what I've taken.

The blend of Russian and Thai religious architectural design and landscaping is really something to behold, and the Parish communities seem to be flourishing. There's lots of young Slavic and Thai women. Outside of red light districts, Thai women are conservative/traditional and retain their virginity moreso than other countries. There's also many chad-looking men in the Parishes.

The people take off their shoes before entering the Holy Church, just as they do for Buddhist temples, which is a lovely gesture that I appreciate and expect for Holy ground (For my Orthodox Chrismation I was barefooted). They use mostly Old-slavonic and some Thai language for services. Thais chanting Russian Orthodox hymnology in Thai sounds wonderfully unique. Thais appear to be exceptionally ripe for conversion to RO from what I can see when compared to many other countries. It wasn't always even legal for Thais to be any other religion than Buddhist.

Yeah, it's a Buddhist country, but at least it makes the people peaceful, kind, humble, etc. It makes for a pleasant society. Besides, what is the USA? Satanism? It can be argued that Buddhism is more of a philosophy than a religion in many ways, while not being totally the case, but even in regards to the supernatural, for instance, some Thai-styled Buddhists actually have a concept of hell that seems reminiscent of Christianity. Logos spermatikos at work.

Thais are very superstitious people and have a strong belief in nonphysical realities. Concepts like praying for the dead, Holy relics, Saints, etc aren't really a stretch for them. Their civilization is structured as a heirarchical monarchy (As opposed to egalitarian like the USA) as is the Orthodox Church, which make things like obedience naturally understood. Seeds of Russian Orthodox Christianity seem to have met fertile ground with the Thais in ways that outshine other Christian denominations.

I have a head start since I can speak Thai and have gotten accustomed to the local culture. I also have a network there already. If I do end up in Thailand again, I'll make sure I do it for the right reasons like Marriage, children, Church, family, community building and other involvements that Glorify God.

I'm working on transitioning my work to be fully remote while still retaining a decent chunk of my income. I just need to decide when I have saved enough of a nest egg for my late 30s. The cost of living is very low there if you live like a Thai - I was able to live comfortably on around $700 a month, and sometimes much much less.

I'll probably work at an international school again which will give me benefits like an extra salary, a Thai visa, Thai health insurance, free or discounted schooling for my children, relocation/accommodation assistance, etc. A wife can be a major help since foreigners cannot fully own property. A friend of mine just built a charming Thai-style house for a fraction of what it would cost me here in the states.

Please don't blackpill me and tell me about all the negative attributes of living there, like trannies, hive mind, etc. I'm fully aware. I'm willing to accept the tradeoffs and act diligently to avoid the pitfalls. Nowhere is perfect and I understand it's not for everyone.

I'm looking forward to things like Muay Thai, Thai food (IMO it's simply the best on earth), cheap 5 USD massages (I'm paying 120 USD for one hour currently! Sigh...), cheap barber, endless summer, hired cleaning/laundry, bum guns (Toilet paper is an f'in joke honestly - so gross), no more 'Tyrones' ('Scholars', or AKA...), Thai beaches, street dogs, seeing people with normal BMIs, and riding a motorbike again. I could sell my Harley in the US and buy five brand new Honda motorbikes from the dealer in Thailand.

As an aside, I think it's hilarious that they had this mass legalization of weed recently making the hippies go wild and cheer for victory and now they are already backpedaling. Typical Thailand. Lol.

I think I'll give the Land of Smiles another shot.

 

[Sandalwood Peak]

I don’t know if anybody cares but I’ll give a little update and ramble A LOT about some nonsensicals.

So last time I made a comment was about Malaysia. I actually really liked Malaysia. Outside the cities they got a very strong Muslim thing going on, lots of Palestinian flags, obviously the Muslim thing doesn’t appeal to me. They’re a multicultural society which is also a big negative. The Indians there seem to create slums. Like I believe I mentioned it’s fairly modernized, affordable in the touristy areas/cities and is quite nice for a vacation. Nice beaches and attractions where you don’t get hassled and can find shade not occupied by someone selling something.

To put it in perspective, I took the MRT in the capital to a station that connects to a bus terminal, I took a bus there to another terminal that connects to ferry port. I took the ferry to the island where I finally had a taxi driver try to flag me down from afar, instead I walked to my accommodation. Good luck doing that in the Philippines, lol. When I went back to the mainland, the ferry port connect to a train station. Couple bucks for a couple hour ride to my next destination. 3USD taxi to drive 7 miles/11kms in a local uber. To be fair some places are not as developed and might involve you getting hassled. I met a guy who was able to haggle a scooter down to around 5USD a day, although usually expect 7USD or up in SEA unless you do long term.

Anyway, the Malaysian dating profiles for Christian/buddhist women are fairly atrocious. Career woman stuff, alpha widows and “don’t want children”. The people overall are fairly decent.

Thailand has a certain charm, apparently it’s never been colonized. I like the country overall and I truly tried to like the place. To be honest if I’m given some purpose to be there I would go back. I honestly can’t explain why. The Buddhism they practice in this part of the world is a pagan [hindu] Buddhism. Thais are surprisingly traditional and got shrines everywhere. Unfortunately the culture is quite reserved and shy. They also have some resentment towards whites, believe it or not, that’s my position. They get annoyed quickly from not being able to communicate with you. Money talks over here, so that’s another plus. Anglin talked about this, but I love when corruption is accessible to the average Joe instead of the upper class. I did feel all the attractive women flood to the where the money is so you got to pick your poison. Bangkok for a Chinese city style living. Pattaya to be in a city of prostitutes and white retirees. Phuket for more A-hole experience. Chiang Mai to be in a fairly charming city with a bunch of white liberals. I also foresee Thailand getting flooded with Indian tourists in 10 years, good luck to them.

I’m now in Cambodia. The negatives is it’s small, people are poor, greedy, and it’s not very touristy. The positives is the people give off a good vibe and I actually like them. This is what I wanted the Philippines to be. The girls seem to giggle sometimes about me so white men can still wing it here.

What I love about SEA is it has an outdoor culture, everyone is outside. A lot of low incomers pretty much live where they work so that creates a community experience unless that aspect depresses you. They do work boring jobs, long hours, 6 days a week. They’re not breaking their back but it’s a very stationary lifestyle with the good and the bad aspects. The thing about Asia, China is becoming big brother over here, Korean K-pop is what the girls gravitate to. Unfortunately us whites are out of style, lol.

 

[Rax Moscow]

I'm looking forward to things like Muay Thai, Thai food (IMO it's simply the best on earth), cheap 5 USD massages (I'm paying 120 USD for one hour currently! Sigh...), cheap barber, endless summer, hired cleaning/laundry, bum guns (Toilet paper is an f'in joke honestly - so gross), no more 'Tyrones' ('Scholars', or AKA...), Thai beaches, street dogs, seeing people with normal BMIs, and riding a motorbike again. I could sell my Harley in the US and buy five brand new Honda motorbikes from the dealer in Thailand.

A friend just returned to the US after waiting (2 years! while African migrants stream across the Mexican border daily!) for his wife's visa to enter the US. The biggest adjustment was having to forgo the maid and nanny they could easily afford abroad.

The massages abroad are so cheap that I would have them weekly or more if I lived there. That alone is a HUGE quality of life factor for me.
I fully endorse everything above, from my experiences around Asia (haven't experienced Muay Thai yet).

The biggest negative to me, is I've found poor air quality in the cities. I guess the obvious answer is to live in the countryside. But then the frequent massages, housekeeping, cheap restaurants and beaches, malls (yes I actually enjoy going to the mall in Asia) and great service (best service anywhere in the world) are not really present in the countryside. But I've had agitated breathing after spending a couple of weeks in places like Cebu PH.

 

[TrainedLogosmotion]

I got some more granular info from someone on the ground in the Church. I was a little misled. In Thailand the churches speak 99% Russian. That's an issue for me as I do not. Was hoping it was going to be more of an international experience. Seems like they are quite insular. I'm not saying that's a negative necessarily. If you speak Russian I'm sure it would be great for you. I do understand that I could study Russian. That's a possibility, but nevertheless it's frustrating.

The response to this is that most of the Parishioners speak Russian and they would be happy to have English services if it were a necessity. This is the same thing that my Greek Church says in the states, an English-speaking country. It's my main gripe with Orthodox Churches. Constantly I see new people walking away because of this. We aren't there for language and culture class - we are there to worship God. When people in our Parish suggest even doing some of the Hymns in English there's a pushback from the 'old Greek guard'.

Fact is, if we build it, they will come. In USA, the Liturgies need to be at the very least partially done in English, and in Thailand, in Thai. I do understand many Orthodox Churches have English services, but let's not pretend this isn't a hurdle within Orthodoxy. If the places are set up as ethnic clubs, then they will remain ethnic clubs. Sorry for the rant. This kind of thing is just really agitating me lately for a lot of reasons I won't get in to.

To be honest, I'm in favor of revamping the whole Greek festival stuff also. Why can't these be Pan-Orthodox at the very least? The nationalistic immigrant bubbles aren't doing us any good. For our last festival, the Church was absolutely empty. There was no effort to promote Church tours, which requires interrupting the ethnic Greek DJ and dancing for 15 seconds.

Some of you might say just choose another Church. I get that. But I have a house. I have a job. This requires me to be in a specific location and I'd rather not have to drive 6 hours round trip to find an English-speaking Church.

If I'm choosing somewhere overseas, I'm at the mercy of however the particular flavor of Orthodoxy has set up its jurisdiction there. There is a short list of countries that I want to resettle in based on my personal preferences, so I'm limited to what's being offered.

 

[Australia Sucks]

Eastern & Oriental Express, A Belmond Train | Luxury Trains, Asia

Eastern & Oriental Express is one of the world’s best luxury trains. Southeast Asia’s vibrant cities, rural villages and gleaming pagodas can be explored like never before.

www.belmond.com

The level of service I've gotten in Asia has been unmatched anywhere in the world. I believe this is tied to the traditions they have of respect, honor, and humbleness, which allow them to genuinely serve others, where westerners in the service industry probably secretly hate their customers !

As a westerner who spent many years working customer service jobs I can say 99%+ of customers are well behaved and okay to deal with and I always did my best to serve them the way I like to be served.

Working in customer service jobs in my personal experience the problems are 95% caused by company management (whether it's top brass or front line managers) 4% of problems caused by colleagues and 1% of problems caused by the nature of the job itself or customers. By a wide margin management is always the biggest hurdle and the thorn in everybody's side (both customers and employees).

I feel in the west by and large customer service staff for the most part are doing their best to be helpful but the issue is due to the decline of functioning society, reduced levels of competition and the third worldification of the west customer service standards in general have dropped due to deliberate decisions by company managements. I feel in general quality of management at most large corporations has declined markedly over time for various reasons. Also cost cutting by corporations has meant less front line customer service staff, call centers getting offshored to India and the Philippines, etc. In addition to this legacy systems (especially IT) at many companies not get upgraded and general lack of investment by corporations (corporate capex and investment has weakened substantially over time percentage-wise), etc as well as various anti-customer policies that have been implemented at various large corporations. For example in recent years I have noticed some large retailers implementing rules about not allowing their employees to assist customers with taking items (and loading them) to peoples vehicles. An employee would be saying "Sorry Mrs. Smith I know you are 85 years old, but the company won't allow me to take the barbecue to your car and put it into your car boot".

I feel that in the west employees still have some level of respect for customers unlike the no fucks given attitude in Latin America but western employees are being let down by the corporations. No matter how good you are as an individual employee if the company gives zero fucks about its customers then the customer service experience will be bad.

 

[TrainedLogosmotion]

What do yall reckon the age gap here is? 50s fella with 20s gal? Inspiring. Dare I say legendary...this could be us...don't fret!