This is a guest post by Achilles.Travel blogs tend to discuss quite a bit about the logistics of living in Thailand and spend a lot of time offering tips about heading there as a tourist or expatriate. Any Google search or travel site will discuss the scams, the standards of living, the sex tourism, general day-in-the-life advice, etc. But today, as an Expat from Canada, I’m contributing this guest post to tackle a core discussion topic that needs a little more love:
Why spend an extended visit or move to Thailand in the first place?
I’m from Montreal, Canada, and the last few years there were miserable for me. I was in good shape, I’m not a bad looking guy, I had close friends and I lived in one of the trendiest spots in North-America, home of the best film, jazz, comedy and food festivals. Montreal may very well be one of the last big cities in the country that offers reasonable rent and cheap transportation. Why would I want to leave this place?
The people, the weather, the economy and the culture, that’s why. Again, beautiful city, great, safe country, but compared to Thailand, these elements of lifestyle criteria are laughable.
Montreal is in Quebec, which for quite a while has been suffering from a language-based social divide between immigrants of various ethnicities (including those from English speaking countries) and its French nationalists. This had led to serious tensions culturally, and has deeply soured all social interaction not only for decades, but for generations. I’m not exaggerating when I say that people today are actually intimidated to even ask each other for the time in Montreal on occasion. It’s taboo to talk to strangers and those who do are easily marked as naive out-of-towners.
In Montreal, and similar places in North America, racial divides, prejudices and other such political tensions have made for a stressful and uncomfortable lifestyle in the West. Before I started travelling, I thought some of my Montrealers’ habits and behaviours were normal. More on this later, but the women were a huge issue with regards to how the locals behaved. I actually thought that most women were snobby, superficial, mind-gaming, socialite fashionistas all over the world, and to an extent it’s true, but not to the degrees you’d expect out here, nowhere near those in Montreal. To be honest, In some big cities in the west, it’s really hard out there socially, no matter who you are or where you live or what kind of personal aura you project with your day to day interactions.
Sure, you’ll be reminded by the high-and-mighty that happiness comes from within and that your environment is a reflection of who you are, but until you leave that hemisphere you’d be ignorant to the fact that more than half of that assertion is absolute bullshit, if I may be frank. Even with your fellow man, in corporate or social situations, to be kind, well-intentioned, or gentle in North America is to be WEAK. The dog-eat-dog nature of society is fueled by the greed and jealousy that wealthy, capitalist continents like the Americas create. I might be thrilled at my social power in Thailand because I’m young, foreign, and looked at with celebrity status, but I’m pretty sure it goes beyond that.
In a nutshell, Thailand’s kindness is just kindness, and the line between kindness and weakness is much less blurred. There’s even a ton of expressions and idioms used often to describe the good-hearted here, like “SABAI-JAI”, or “SABAI SABAI”. It’s an actual value and a type of lifestyle. I don’t know if it’s the Buddhist Culture or the community of the nation, but there’s true unity in this country that is welcoming, sometimes even to foreigners. This applies to all aspects of life here including women and business.
I know it’s normal worldwide to associate toughness and bad boy attitudes with strength… I mean let’s be real, women find the confidence and the untamed recklessness of assholes appealing wherever you go, and I’ve even picked up some of those traits out of necessity. But the important takeaway however is that to be soft, sensitive, passive or peaceful actually has extraordinary value in Thailand. To some people, it’s even a virtue. People respect sensitivity in this country because it’s an indication that you haven’t been corrupted by life. If only this perspective was observed in Canada, I might consider myself much more comfortable there.
In Canada, employment wise, there’s a misconception that the average middle-class worker is wealthy because the salaries are high and the conditions are comfortable. False. You make a lot of money, but you have to be a budget-balancing guru of your own personal accounting to see most of what you make and not live paycheck to paycheck. And if you DO manage to save yourself a small fortune, your money is better served investing it into a life here in Thailand than back into the government’s hands where it will keep you enslaved to the rat race. In Canada, poverty means depression or is a gateway to crime and suicide. In Thailand, even if you have even the smallest sources of income from the west, poverty is a difficult stumbling block you’ll happily endure, and nothing more. I lost nearly 25 kilos to poverty from my first attempt at living here, and that’s in a land where food probably couldn’t cost any less. But I will insist that it’s the changes in lifestyle that sustained me and gained me the strength that betrays my health and body.
I’m serious. Case in point, I’ve had zero dollars to my name since mid-August. We’re now into September and that figure hasn’t really changed. I made a couple thousand Thai baht from freelance writing that I didn’t get to see, because it went to a growing list of debts, bills and emergency incidentals, and for weeks, I haven’t even been able to afford a few slices of pineapple at a fruit stand. How can I live like this? Why would I want to? Because to an extent that may surprise you, Thailand is worth suffering and starving for. (uw0tm8?)
The Weather
In North America, the climate has been trolled by global warming for quite a while. I’m told we’re in for a long winter this year, and previous winters have been horrendous, with cold snaps lasting from late October to mid-March. Why would I want to endure cold and sub-zero temperatures for 6 months of the year? (Ain’t nobody got time for dat). In Thailand, there are only two seasons, known here as high and low.In my year and previous visit here, I haven’t noticed much difference between them. One consists of dryer heat and in the other, it rains a little more often. It’s t-shirt weather year-round regardless.
Respect and Traditional Values Thailand Vs. Canada
One fascinating thing about Thais that I’ve observed is that there’s no shame in being young at heart. It could be the fact that children are raised to support their parents early, but it’s the young people who tend to be more serious and responsible than the adults. I’m not condemning adult Thai behavior either, far from it. I’m saying that Thailand is a country where grown men and women are allowed to be free-spirited people with a certain joie-de-vivre that would get you embarrassed, fired or stigmatized in the western world. Example: Last week I was laughing my ass off with a semi-drunk Thai business owner that befriended me and a few other foreign guests. The jokes were stale, the humor low-brow, and it wasn’t the comedy so much as his happiness that surprised me. Meanwhile, the teens and young men are out there hustling in their shops and busker street corners like concerned business executives. It’s fascinating in the best way.
Again, Food
In Thailand, food is not only less expensive than the West (and I don’t mean from a western perspective, I mean for Thai standards too) but it’s cheaper and in many cases healthier. I’ve been warned to beware of street vendors and their lack of sanitation, but I’d prefer food prepared fresh and organically on a rusty food truck or booth-stall than something that was ‘roided up with preservatives and pesticides after being carted from a geneticists’ lab for miles. You don’t even need to refrigerate half the products here including eggs. And don’t forget that this is Thailand, surrounded by sea, so the seafood is fresh, real and delicious.
And since Thailand has a tourist element of its own economy to support, they cater to food from every nation on this side of the world, which means a lot more flavours and dishes than your bland American edibles. In Thailand, some of the best fruits even grow on trees. My mind was blown when I saw a mango tree on the sidewalk and it dawned on me that I could literally pluck my favorite and most expensive fruit in North America right here off the branch for free. And then there’s the food that’s not available in Canada because it can’t grow there. My stomach is grumbling with all kinds of desire as I type this, so I’d better stop.
Film
Like Movies? Thailand does too. When you think about it, I’ve always been fascinated by how a small island nation like this can produce such incredible action and horror films. And let’s not get into the actual movie theaters, replete with reclining couches and towels for your comfort. I hear some theaters even have BEDS for a more VIP film experience. It’s amazing.
But Why Thailand?
But still, why Thailand you say? At the time of writing, they’re in political turmoil, under martial law, enforcing VISA crackdowns and rendering the concept of tourism unwelcoming to all whom are interested. It’s dangerous. All valid points, but none of them are deal breakers, because the points I’ve already made are THAT powerful in practice. Thailand is a beautiful country and one of the last few that has a semblance of its humanity left. I’m not just being hyperbolic here. The second you land, you notice by the customs and behaviours that the values in this country are traditional. You know those good old days that every American generation claims to miss? Those can be found here. The nice thing about a country that has skyrocketed in its development and industrialization like Thailand, is that you have the benefit of first world environment and accessibility, but you can live in the culture of what North Americans haven’t seen since their grandparents were their age. It needs to be experienced to be understood and believed. People are real here, and so is the paradise.
Also, you’ll notice I only grazed the subject of the beaches, landscapes and especially the sex tourism if I did at all, and that’s because you can hear about that anywhere and everywhere. As a matter of fact, anytime I express an interest in Thailand or rave about it to foreigners or acquaintances from back home, they give me strange or supportive looks because they suspect my only interest in this country is beaches, bitches, and sex. It kind of has a reputation for that. I’ll remain a gentleman by not hyping up or detailing those topics.
To sum it all up, everyone’s experience is different and yes there are cons and disadvantages to being Canadian here, but this has been my experience, and I think many are inclined to agree with my notes and observations. Safe, happy travels and Thailand experiences to all!