You can get married for 10K bhat, 40kBhat , or 100K bhat. what's the point for getting married in thailand, is it because of your resindency needs? There are tons for girls to spend all their time with you
In Thailand it depends on where you live as well. I absolutely love ChiangMai - would choose that town over BKK in a heartbeat. And it was dramatically cheaper but obviously quieter, not as lively. As for cheap in Asia ... Indonesia, particularly on the main island of Java is dirt, dirt, dirt, cheap if you can go local. Then again, you sacrifice clean air, convenient access to some western goods, a degree of personal safety, and you have to function in perhaps the most corrupt country on earth. A few years back we stayed at a ... Hyatt or Shangri-la (?) in Jokyakarta (sp?) for like US$25 a night, with breakfast included. That was a local rate. You can hire a contract wife (or two, no joke ...) and then avail yourself of those kind of rates. I've been told your contract wife will also procreate for you should that be your thing ... My relatives in Jakarta have live-in and live-out maids for ~US$20 per month. Full-time drivers and nannies as well. Thus Indo seems awefully cheap if you just look at price, but ignore value. Malaysia can be cheap but ... why? Cambodia is certainly cheap .... I'm in Singapore now and find the cost / quality of life to be extremely good as far as Asia goes. Also, it is a short hop to anywere else I want to be. Singapore can be as cheap or as expensive as you need it to be - which is just right for me. And it is clean, safe, and extremely expat friendly. If you have a family Singapore is probably your best bet. Would think that the PI could also be cheap, that is if you localize ... Vietnam should also be cheap ... damn I need to make it out there soon.
Yes, my aim for an office would be 20% trading/80% social. It's a new country, new culture, different rules. As an army brat, other brats introduced you to the local culture. I guess I'm looking for like-minded people. Western traders with the mind to move to Thailand to trade are my kind of people. Plus there are obvious things like: Where to live? Where not to live? Where's the best bar? Where are the best girls? etc. etc.
This is another creativity programed by Taxin Shinawatra which you may find intersing to know, which has so many luxerious benifit along with five year residency but it's costly for me to offered it. www.ThailandElite.com
been a trader since 99 and have done very well in the market playing just a few stocks-LMT from it's move from 16 to 71, took a few hits to 42, but back in now. OMG has been my best player the past year and looking like ORCH, for the next year. I am retired military, work for LMT, and married to a Thai and will retire here. http://www.thailandguidebook.com/provinces/phayao.html Age 56 and wanted to retire in Jan 2004 at age 56 but we got my wife's neice here in Sept and currently enrolled in college on a student visa. My handle is browser20 on the YAHOO message boards and LOVE trading/technicals/finding news. I have not checked into stocks on the Thai exchange but will trade something while retired over there-it's in the blood. Got to do it via modem, though-sigh.
FireWalker, I recomend you to think twice before you move to Thailand (or any other country). I have been moving from country to country lately, I can say it is pain in the ass. Besides, you might encounter problems that you never saw coming. Every country is different. You should weight joy of travel against your lost trading opportunities. Besh.
______ I spent 2 months in Bali and over 2 years in thailand. I think Thailand is no more expensive than Bali (except for a few items)and far better for a trader. I lived in a large hotel for which I paid $600 a month, swimming pool, 24 hour room service, gym.... Joe DiNapoli lives in bangkok and trades from there.
If you are married to a Thai, like I am, and she still carries a Thai passport-the import taxes are nil as long as you take one each of something to live there. Including vechiles. Life can be good over there with my golf clubs.
25k won't get you very far over here. it's inexpensive, but not that much so. apartment for $150 a month? don't think so. possible, but do you want hot water? what about a/c? a view? bkk is relatively expensive - figure $400 - $1000 for a nice place. the beaches? that's $120 r/t to phuket or samui, plus hotels, plus airport taxes, plus taxi, etc. you're going to have to leave the country every 90 days for visa purposes (yes, even if you have a one-year), that's $150 r/t each time. like to hit the bars? what about a cell phone? you won't be cooking at home so figure every meal out. what if you get tired of eating at street stalls? that's another $10 a day. don't want to walk everywhere? another $5 a day for transport. if you have a weakness for bargirls, that can really add up. you'll be up all night (bonds open at 8:20 pm and equities close at 4:15 am) so you'll have your days free. the golf is great - greens fees are cheap, but you'll have a caddy and that's another tip. don't forget you've got to pay to get to the course in the first place. all in , figure $50 a round. you'll need an internet connection, they've got adsl but it's expensive and won't be like broadband back home, the pipe in and out of the us to thailand is small. decent dialup will cost about $60 a month. the point is that it all adds up. overall, a lot less expensive than the states but you probably won't be able to stay for several years on 25k - maybe one. a great place to live though.