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Many co-workers (in Thailand but from from Taiwan) had Thai wives (and Taiwan wife, and China wife...) Seems expensive to me, but my Singapore Taxi Driver said his Vietnam wife only costs him $100 / month and comes with a home and motorbike! He flies to Vietnam 1 weekend a month to see her (But probably more to drink with his buddies). Seems pretty sad, but I am not of that culture.
My tailor / scooter rental / cafe / laundry owner guy in Thailand is from Afghanistan and has a Thai family (with adult kids and grandkids) and a wife and adult kid family (+ grandkids) in Saskatchewan (as he has had for 40 yrs). He is a very devote Christian and we have interesting and insightful conversations.
You meet all kinds when you get out and about!.
Philippines was the sad story (All the gals lined up at airport to meet their western 'internet partners'. Many we talked with had several on the string. (We were volunteering in a vocational school for adult (male and female) victims of 'body' trade). Their partners seemed kind, but that isn't very genuine.
I know many Taiwan businessmen who run their own companies in China, and almost all of them have a second wife or second family in both Taiwan and Mainland China. I never could understand it, as if you wanted sex with someone besides your wife, a hooker seems much cheaper ( I would assume) then paying for an entire second family.
We have a family from Afghanistan next door to us in our apartment complex here in China, and the father, who's a nice guy, has either a long term Chinese GF or a wife here in Guangzhou, China as well as his Afghanistan wife with his three kids. I saw him one time in town with the Chinese chick, and he looked away. His first wife is nice, but a overweight, lazy woman who doesn't do much besides take naps and watch TV.
I could write a book about the people I have met living in Asia for 18 years as a young American and the times I've had with some of these expats.
Last edited by JakeinChina; 02-06-2019 at 07:19 AM..
Cost aside, if you get cancer, would you rather be treated for it in Thailand or the U.S.?
I think this may be the only concern I would have if living in Thailand and God for bid got cancer. Healthcare in Thailand is excellent, and when you factor in the cost, its amazing. The doctors are Western trained, they speak English, Docs and nurses are very professional, and the equipment is mostly imported brand new German or U.S. equipment. Most hospitals are brand new in the larger cities and you could eat maple walnut ice cream off the floor they're so clean.
The cancer treatment is the only medical issue where I think I would feel more comfortable in the U.S. Its not about the medical professionals caring for their patients that would concern me, but that the U.S. has the best research and technology for fighting cancer. World leaders of countries fly into places like NYC and Minnesota just to be treated for various cancers.
Cost aside, if you get cancer, would you rather be treated for it in Thailand or the U.S.?
Thailand. However, I am the type of person that would not want aggressive (or any) treatment unless it is known to be associated with very good survival (ie, standard chemo protocols for some leukemias), and I would not want experimental drugs. I WOULD want good terminal comfort measures. Medicine in major hospitals in Thailand is the same quality as in the US, nursing care is better, the cost is incomparably cheaper.
It is possible to get expat insurance, but very few companies sell it for people older than 65. The only company that I know of that has no age limit for international insurance is Cigna. Their insurance policy for, say, an 88 year old person, that covers inpatient care and chronic conditions, has a high deductible ($10,000 per year), and covers you in all countries excluding the US, costs just under $500 per month, or less than $6,000 per year.
Is it worth to have this insurance, or just pay out of pocket? Total cost of cardiac bypass (preoperative workup, surgery, hospital stay, everything) in an excellent hospital in Bangkok costs on average about $25,000.
I think you are mixing up traveler's insurance with expat (resident) insurance. As I've said many times, our resident health care plan here is $80 a month for both of us. We've both used it and it's fine. We're 63.
International traveler's insurance is a whole other thing that we use when traveling somewhere else.
I think you are mixing up traveler's insurance with expat (resident) insurance. As I've said many times, our resident health care plan here is $80 a month for both of us. We've both used it and it's fine. We're 63.
International traveler's insurance is a whole other thing that we use when traveling somewhere else.
No, I understand what you are saying, I know the difference between traveler's insurance and expat (resident) insurance. But I do not know of any insurance company (either a US or Asian company) that offers expat (resident) insurance (for, say, Thailand, or any other specific country) after certain AGE - and that maximum age tends to be pretty low (like 65 or 70). I see that you are 63, but what do you intend to do when you reach the maximum age that your policy will cover? If you have an insurer that provides expat (resident) insurance for unlimited age, would you mind sharing the name of the insurance company?
The only way I know of how to insure a US citizen in his/her 80s who is living in Thailand is this Cigna comprehensive travel insurance. If there is a way to insure this person cheaper (with any insurer) I would be very interested in finding out about it. Could you possibly give details, either here on the thread, or in a DM? Thank you!
Money indeed solves a vast passel of things. But no amount of money will make a Midwestern summer less humid or oppressive, or a Midwestern winter less blustery or bone-chilling. No amount of money will turn endless fields of corn and soybean into mountains, rivers, forests or beaches. No amount of money will alter the cultural ethos. Money famously influences elections, but no amount of money will really change our convictions on what we believe to be decent and proper, reasonable and wise - or their opposites. Money assuredly drives our decisions and actions, but can it sway hearts?
The question then obtrudes: suppose that we already have a modicum of money. Not a vast fortune, but something. Beyond what point, ought we to declare "enough to be enough", and thenceforth pursue quality of life? This is a question that often we can't much answer while still working full-time. But it's more accessible once in retirement, or at least semi-retirement.
Amen to that! I ask myself those questions every day, and my answer means I should prepare to move from here and seek out greener pastures.
No, I understand what you are saying, I know the difference between traveler's insurance and expat (resident) insurance. But I do not know of any insurance company (either a US or Asian company) that offers expat (resident) insurance (for, say, Thailand, or any other specific country) after certain AGE - and that maximum age tends to be pretty low (like 65 or 70). I see that you are 63, but what do you intend to do when you reach the maximum age that your policy will cover? If you have an insurer that provides expat (resident) insurance for unlimited age, would you mind sharing the name of the insurance company?
The only way I know of how to insure a US citizen in his/her 80s who is living in Thailand is this Cigna comprehensive travel insurance. If there is a way to insure this person cheaper (with any insurer) I would be very interested in finding out about it. Could you possibly give details, either here on the thread, or in a DM? Thank you!
How much would you say in US dollars an average lunch would cost a person?
Depends on the lunch, but in the picture it was about $8 for the two of us but that's a pretty nice place well known for the roast chicken so one can eat for much cheaper.
Our go-to place for lunch we usually split a soup, a salad, and a noodle dish for $4 for two people, that's a local sit down restaurant. If I had to say what an average simple lunch at a local place I'd say 35-50 baht, which is about $1.12 - $1.60. Street food stalls are a little bit cheaper since they aren't paying physical rent, as low as 30 baht or a little under a dollar.
However be careful when budgeting with an assumption you're eating local food every day, it's easy to say but hard to do and I absolutely love Thai food. Western food costs more but still cheaper than in USA especially since the price doesn't add tax and tipping isn't as much of a thing.Pizza $5-$7, pasta dish in Italian restaurant $5-$6, sandwich in a delhi $6, etc. McDonald's is the same price as USA, it's not like Mexico where McDonald's is far cheaper and I believe this is because beef.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hefe
I've heard it's cheaper for expats to eat out every meal at local non-tourist spots than it would be for them to cook for themselves.
It's still cheaper to eat in, but no so much so that it's worth the trouble. Reason is one can buy curries at local markets for even cheaper, it's in big pots that you order and they spoon it into little plastic bags to take away, our freezer is full of them. If you have a rice cooker you can definitely eat cheaper at home by just defrosting something to eat over rice. Problem is you're talking 25 baht versus 40 baht, so really it's something for when don't feel like going out versus saving significant amounts of money. That's just for Thai food though, you aren't making yourself spaghetti at home for cheaper than you can eat out.
Also = Food in Thailand is just as cheap in tourist areas because locals eat too, it's not like Pon Thet who makes $2/hour at the boat rental stand is going to wander over to the big restaurant bar for lunch to order fish&chips for $8. Just don't go to the big tourists places, go around the corner and prices are same as anywhere else 35-50 baht for lunch.
Cost aside, if you get cancer, would you rather be treated for it in Thailand or the U.S.?
USA, without question. Well I guess with a question, depends what type of treatment since I'm confident one could do something like a series of chemotherapy in Thailand and there would be no difference. Same drugs, some procedures, etc.
Thailand has very good medical care, some of the best in Asia with doctors who went to medical school in USA and relatively modern medical facilities. If expats in Laos/Vietnam/Mynamar/Cambodia get very sick they are hopping on the first flight to Bangkok. However it would be foolish to believe it's on par with USA, which despite the problems with medical system is far superior in actual treatment and results. Five year survival rates for various major diseases including cancer show USA is either at the top or near the top in every one of them.
I think Thailand (and Malaysia, Singapore) have healthcare systems that are good enough where one shouldn't be concerned about quality of care, but that is a different question than given a choice where would you rather be treated. I'd also have no problems living in rural Kansas knowing I'd rather be treated at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona.
I could write a book about the people I have met living in Asia for 18 years as a young American and the times I've had with some of these expats.
Jake, IMHO you should write a book, lol! Let us know when it's coming out. I'd be only too glad to buy it and give it good press! **
**some of us derive thrills by proxy. I've come to the conclusion that I'd rather read about it than do it, based on experience. Got a really vivid imagination. I imagined where I might move from my Metro DC rental apartment - I work from home, sweet gig. ?Paris? ?London? ?Rome? ?Malta?...I wound up buying a condo eight blocks away from my rental. Rationale? I know all the good dog walking routes. And everything else that makes life convenient. Some world traveller, huh? Gotta laugh.
Back to my regularly scheduled reading on paleogeology. I'm tellin' you, I am a laugh a minute at a party.
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