Homeward Bound?

[hhfarang]

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Where would you rather be.

The second one! Looks like a very nice neighborhood.

[GLCQuantum]

^

Without a doubt, the second one for me too. With Christmas coming too...that'll do me fine, thank you.

[oakdale160]

Interesting HHtel.
A few years ago my boss asked me for help. He wanted to send his 2 Thai sons to a British Boarding School. I was not 100% enthusiastic, I was non-british and went to an English 'Public"school and its not an easy life, but he persisted and they went off. The first term they were very homesick but got over it and after 3 years they just love it and are reluctant to come for more than a couple of weeks in the summer. Its fun to meet them, their passion for Rugby and Cricket amazes me.

[Homer]

Where would you rather be.

Depends. How far is #2 from a Tim Hortons?

[STEVE G]

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Where would you rather be.

The second one! Looks like a very nice neighborhood.

Not for me, I like to cycle a lot and snow really sucks in that department.

[Pleng]

Thailand seems to be full of people who are desperately trying to spend either more, or less time here. On the pone hand we have people trying find a way to be here permanently, or find ways of working less at home and spending more recreational time over here. And on the other, we have people who've moved out here, burned their bridges and are desperately wanting to return home... and people who moved out here when times were good and now wish they could at least afford to go 'home' more often/for longer periods of time.

I spent 7 years being one of those who was desperately trying to move out here. I'm one of the lucky ones, I guess. I'm just happy

[STEVE G]

Yes, I suppose the reality for the vast majority of people is that they have to make compromises in how they live there lives and perhaps more importantly the lIves of their dependents. I could wrap in my job and find a way of making a living in Thailand but I have two teenage children in private schools in Asia who'd have to go somewhere cheaper which I feel would be pretty selfish of me.

[margaretcarnes]

Just to add my satang...

This point hasn't been mentioned yet as it is not a frequent occurrence in Thailand. For younger people who come here to live, I would venture a guess that 1 person out of ten make it, and I think I'm being very generous there. By younger, I mean in their twenties, early thirties (like I was when I came here). Unless you are walking in to an international company (I'll emphasize the international) with a contract that's worth more than the paper... Don't come buddy! You will struggle, you will waste opportunities 'living the dream' and you WILL suffer because of that. Thailand is no place to just kinda turn up and hope for the best on the back of a government school teaching job.

Personally, I would love to get back to England. Not to stay, but to weigh up what my options are for a long term move elsewhere. Unfortunately, with no place to crash in the uk until I find my feet, it will prove quite difficult for me. I can't see my future being in Thailand. I think I'll go crazy before I kick the bucket, thinking about how I wasted my 'younger' years living and working in a country that doesn't really want me here.


I've had offers from an international school in Laos which is tickling my taste buds, if not just to experience a different culture for a bit. I like Laos but as we all know, it is very different living somewhere full time.... to taking a trip there.

Unless they are backed up with money I would advise anyone in the younger years not to move here. It will usually end up bad for you, pal.

Mags... Where do I stand if I turn up (a young, respectable, literate lad like me) in the uk with no home. I know they are busy housing the immigrants for free but... Do you think they'd have a slot for one of their own.

Doubt it.



Edit : just to add Mags, I wouldn't be coming penniless, of course. I also wouldn't be coming with money that could afford a year's rent anywhere. Would the government help me? Or do I need to 'obtain' twelve Romanian/polish/Indian etc. children from somewhere before I get given a big old pad?

Good points there GLC, although I think you're one of the young 'uns who have done much better than most in the LOS. So far anyway - and you are being realistic. But there's a lot of crap talked about what immigrants to the UK do or don't get in handouts!
PM me any time if you want serious advice. Meanwhile my own view is that expats returning to the UK can be treated with suspicion by potential employers. Maybe with some justification - after all 'free spirits' can often decide to up sticks again, or at least rock the boat.

[Spitfire]

The other problem for younger expats returning home is that you are totally out-of-date regarding skill sets for jobs. You would have to retrain, start at the bottom again in a company maybe, have a manager that's 10 years younger than you and have a crappy starting salary. It is also true that saying you were an expat in Thailand for 10-15 years is probably going to sink your interview (talk about gaps in your CV), primarily due to the pejudices many of the unworldly hold.....not to mention having PC nazis and the thought police round every corner you turned in society or hellish work environment.

Even if you have been a teacher at respectable schools here in Thailand and working all the time, who would want to teach in the UK? Not me.

Another problem is obviously where to live and unless you have a decent lump of cash, or helpful family, then you'd end up in a less than desirable type of accommodation somewhere uninspiring, as living next to sprawling fields of agriculture in cozy villages with the Hugh Grant type of neighbour and commuting to town in a car is for the privilaged these days in the UK. I think if I went back to the UK then the shine of change would soon rub off to the same dull reality that made me leave, even now, after 15 years.....visiting for a couple of weeks is fine every now and then as it reminds me of how much better off I am where I am.

In a perfect world then, I too (like Richard said), would like to spend say 9 months here and a couple of months in the UK visiting family/friends and some time in NZ where my sister lives. But also, (as Buksida said) bad days here are still better than days back there....agree.

Living here has it's contrivances and annoying aspects but so does everywhere and at least I feel positive about the future here, for example, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel about things like paying off our house (not some insurmountable sum like a UK house). Other things like starting a business is easy here, taxation is reasonable (not like in the UK), decent weather, entertainment industry second to none, culture with a lot of latitude on many things etc....and all these would soon be missed as they would all become the past tense if you moved back.

The money thing is relative, if you want to 'live-it-up' it's going to cost you anywhere you are in the world, so relying on a static exchange rate to do so is questionable policy. If, however, you want to "own" (I know) your house, be a family guy and are happy with who you married, spend time at home with the wife and go out together judiciously from a money perspective, go on holiday a couple of times a year, not drink to excess, not chase girls around bars, live within your means and find interests that don't involve splashing cash around then it's still a much better bet than back in the UK. You need to be much more well-off money wise than I am here to do that back in the UK.

It's about quality of life, and it's simply better here as to have a good quality of life in the UK you need to be rich and getting old in the UK doesn't appeal really to me as UK society seems to sort of abandon older people. The other thing with going back is that you have now seen the flip-side of the coin of life/paradise/reverse cultures etc. Re-submitting to what went before becomes way more difficult as you can be more judgemental and resistant of things you took for granted and normal/par-for-the-course before due to your increased worldly experience.....you may find that you no longer "fit-in" there. I often mused in my first 5 years of being here about when long time expats said "You get to a point when you realisticly can't go back, even if you want to"........now that I'm a long time expat, even though only early fourties, I think I now understand the meaning of what they said.

The big thing being here (Thailand) is making sure you have a few angles covered like health insurance arrangements of some description as health care costs can rip through savings fast or a cash lump so that you can move on if anything happens. Being happy or contented is about looking inwards to yourself and understanding yourself........some people won't be happy wherever they are as they are unable to do this, hence often seeking change (the grass is always greener etc.) or engaging in activities excessively that ultimately are shallow.

So, in answer to the OP question....."No".

[PeteC]

Do British citizens have the right of unlimited abode and employment permission in all Commonwealth countries?

[STEVE G]

Do British citizens have the right of unlimited abode and employment permission in all Commonwealth countries?

No, you can go anywhere in the EU but the Commonwealth doesn't really get you anywhere, they all hate us!

[PeteC]

Do British citizens have the right of unlimited abode and employment permission in all Commonwealth countries?

No, you can go anywhere in the EU but the Commonwealth doesn't really get you anywhere, they all hate us!

I should have asked at the same time if Commonwealth people have right of abode in the UK?

Concerning Steve's answer, seems like a political/diplomatic misstep not to have insisted UK people can live and work freely when the group was formed. England was the prime mover behind forming it in the first place...right?

EDIT: ....or at least a right to retire in those places with no visa hassle.

[Pleng]

Other things like starting a business is easy here

hmm..? Starting out as a sole trader in the UK means filing a couple of bits of paperwork with the inland revenue each year.

There's no way that I know of to start a business in Thailand, as a foreigner, without a stack of capital behind you. And I dread to think of the amount of paperwork that might be involved..?

[GLCQuantum]

Other things like starting a business is easy here

hmm..? Starting out as a sole trader in the UK means filing a couple of bits of paperwork with the inland revenue each year.

There's no way that I know of to start a business in Thailand, as a foreigner, without a stack of capital behind you. And I dread to think of the amount of paperwork that might be involved..?

And if you can keep that business operating smoothly amongst all the 'handouts', change of rules, regular change of people making the rules, visa requirements, lazy staff...

Yes, as Pleng said, you need a decent bit of capital to start a business here. If I had a decent bit of capital to start a business in Thailand ( I mean nowadays. I'm not talking about the people who are now established here and invested in a business some decade ago) would I do it...

No. Why?...

I may make stupid choices occasionally, but...I'm not that stupid.

Edit: mods, please take away that bloody 'final warning' thing above my avatar. It should be there a week at most. It's been around a month now. It's annoying... Like a bad smell.

[GLCQuantum]

Spitfire said...

The other problem for younger expats returning home is that you are totally out-of-date regarding skill sets for jobs. You would have to retrain, start at the bottom again in a company maybe...

Good post (as usual) Spitfire. I'm prepared to do that if it comes to that. I feel, at my age, that I need to age and learn from a country whose people don't swamp, in its thousands, to a temple to rid themselves of any wrongdoings... instantly. Fortunately, 'Confession' and the like are done at a much lesser scale.

To live and learn amongst a people that don't believe in 'consequences for actions', isn't a healthy place to be for younger people starting their 'career'.