ZARIS

It has something to do with the strength of the aussie dollar.Destinations that were unaffordable are now not only affordable but even cheap.USA is the current hot destination for aussies.Asia used to be the cheapest and still is but for maybe 30/40% more we can go to europe or Uk or USA.Maldives, hawaii used to be prohibitive for aussie but now are well within a reasonable budget. Expect to see less aussies in thailand, not more.

you must have missed the memo jimmac.Dontcha is in love now and cashed up with lottery winning.Ignore all previous advice untill further notice.

Most of you are missing the point of the thread here.Your implying the BM somehow"should have known better". That of course the result was what is to expected as a normal course of events when dealing with thais. However I think rockyran is merely relating a story that outside of the p4p area where , presumably, a more normal thai lifestyle exists.Even after a night of drinking and sharing of the events of the day,all paid for by the BM, the thais showed zero consideration to the farang. Further the BM points out that its not just the farangs the thais are ungenerous to, but also to each other.The BG who was cashed up with 5k ran away when asked to give away 100bt. The imbecile who claims'you take their women they hate you" conveniently ignored the fact that the thais asked to donate refused, even though clearly they could afford to. That is called 'selective racism' by the experts. The story is a poignant reminder of some of the cultural differences between thailand and farangs. Those who believe that their generosity is well received because they are "loved" by their thai friends { see the sinsot thread} may need to do some deep thinking.

hired one on my first trip.Would NEVER do it again. Don't ride a bike at home so far from an expert, get full of beer so impaired abilities , couple that with having a BG on the back multiplied by 100's of madmen on other bikes/vehicles- no friggin thanks!

seems to me there are a few versions of "living" A . living alone- frugal lifestyle {under 30k a month} B .Living with gf, albiet changing a few times a year C.Living with wife/kids/ inlaws/hangers on D.Living with mongering the retirement requirement with visa ia a recommended 65k income per month most guys who seem to be sensible keep quoting expenses in the 60,000's per month, none of them quote they are living like a king. is living with a wife"living like a king"? is living with a gf"living like a king"? is living on less than 30k a month "living like a king"? personally I would rather holiday and chose which days/nights I want to "live like a king"

if you are willing to invest 40 million bt I have to ask the question. Why do you want to work still? Why do you want to take the risk of the investment??? To me that idea is totally crazzzyyyyyyyy! 40 million bt is about 1.4 million AUD. If I bought a commercial investment or industrial uniit for 1.4 mill my yield would be about 6-8%. It would be 10 % at least if I but in a non metro area. Take the worst case scenario at 6% thats 84,000$ a year less tax @ 30%= about 58k a year.Thats about 135,000 bt a month after tax. Now tell me why you still want to work if you have this kind of capital to invest? Oh your gonna borrow part of the 40 mill and do it that way? Are you totally mad? The risk profile goes thru the roof. Heres an idea- borrow part of the 40 mill in your own country and invest there.If its a winner employ a manager and spent months at a time in thailand. Or if you have the 40 mill already-invest it in your own country , go live where you want and live off the net income. The propensity to invest your funds in some kind of business is fraught with danger, as you get older capital is your king. Think investment first, work second. If your over 40 yo and you have no capital just your labour/skill to sell stay in your own country.If your have not been able to acquire some assets in your own country using your"skills" your sure as hell not going to acquire anything in thailand. As your motivation dwindles and the market place changes in thailand your likely to be left seriously struggling.One hears and see these cases all the time.

most bars for sale seem to me to be priced in disneyland? I mean if they lose money or make very little surely they are not worth much? Token value for fixtures and fitting? I've never been able to make any sense of asking prices.The good ones that make a buck seem to get sold in 5 minutes.

pesonally I prefer music from my own era.I love 60's stuff, even though its b4 my time a bit.I dont know if its pratical but if a bar could vary its content according to who is in the bar at the time.eg a bar full of 20 yo's will like something far different from a bar full of 50yo's And not toooooo loud please!

really funny.I had tears rolling down my face.Too much of it rang true.