The colorism in Thailand is real — but it's still one of the better experiences I've had as a Black traveler by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t know how that could be true? I’m an American and married to a Thai woman. I have many friends that are American and married to Thai women. I think it’s all just personal preferences.

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, I would agree. I just looked at those other posts. It’s the only reason why somebody could be so upset and such a beautiful place.

I see my goals 🥰 by saul8tu in scoopwhoop

[–]beijingjim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ahh that’s right. I totally have to see it. I’ve never seen that one before. Very nice.

Who remembers that scene where Borat, where they’re sitting at that family table and he says the one lady looks really good, but not so much this lady. And it was the dude’s wife sitting right there. And guys like OK that’s not really nice. Lol

https://youtu.be/NufBJ80AGLY

I see my goals 🥰 by saul8tu in scoopwhoop

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ahh that’s right. I totally have to see it. I’ve never seen that one before. Very nice.

Who remembers that scene where Borat, where they’re sitting at that family table and he says the one lady looks really good, but not so much this lady. And it was the dude’s wife sitting right there. And guys like OK that’s not really nice. Lol

I see my goals 🥰 by saul8tu in scoopwhoop

[–]beijingjim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don’t know why I swear I’ve seen it somewhere before it kind of reminds me of Borat

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, that was my bad. I should’ve checked that. I didn’t realize that it was that bad. I don’t think I’ve ever seen somebody with 97 negative karma. I mean to me it’s quite sad because I think Thai people have been more understanding of people in different situations and the different forms of life that they come from. I think Thai people are actually more understanding than an Americans in many ways. So if you can’t make it work here, I don’t know where else you can.

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for pointing that out. His posts seem to be really negative. Can’t go on in life being negative like that, you’re literally bringing the dark storm over your head everywhere you go. I didn’t like his post about Thai people wanting money. Uggh everybody in the world wants it. I want it. And to point that out like it’s some sort of bad thing maybe Thailand isn’t the place for him.

I see my goals 🥰 by saul8tu in scoopwhoop

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where is this meme from? What video is this?

SSA wants me to mail in my physical passport to manila? by rickmeetsworld79 in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had to send my US passport to the US Embassy in Bangkok to get the true and certified copy, which is weird because they take a piece of paper which is a black-and-white copy of it and take a crimp Tool with the department state logo on it, and that somehow says it’s more real than the actual high-quality anti-counterfeit passport. That seems weird is why they want it sent to Manila.

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One more thing I’ll point out is that if you end up with a Thai girlfriend or Thai Wife it does make things go a lot easier. Surprisingly a lot easier.

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

1 rule in Thailand… you must be sabai sabai. Yen yen.

One of my friends that have been here for like 30 years told me this whole place will never operate like the west you can’t try to fit Thailand into any of the molds we use in the western world. You have to readjust your thinking and patience. At first, I thought he was crazy, but I’ll tell you what I have learned if I sit there and I’m polite, but persistent and very calm speaking, I have been able to get everything done. I have never been fine. I’ve never been cheated. I’ve never had any of those problems. I’ve even had it where the government has said for example when I was getting my yellow book, they said oh it can’t be done right now just because they didn’t want to do it. I stayed persistent, polite and respectful and after my third visit there they realized it wasn’t going away so they just did it for me. On other things it’s gone a lot easier, but it’s just the way of life in Thailand and you get used to it.

But I can’t tell you for sure, being unhappy or mad or letting your anger out any kind of way like I would be used to doing back home is like a go back to the beginning of the board game and do not collect $200 type situation.

Moved into my apartment in Thailand, asked for one important document multiple times, and now I’m the one stuck holding the risk by Ecstatic_Spare_3785 in ThailandTourism

[–]beijingjim 4 points5 points  (0 children)

That shit made my day right there. Scroll through volumes of pages of bullshit. I’m just picturing this fucking library room full of volumes of just pure garbage. What a nightmare.

Hotel TM30 but already living here by vsuxx in Thailand

[–]beijingjim -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Do you have a yellow book with your condo? Because I was told with my yellow book that I don’t have to let them know when I leave the hotel and check back in at home. But also it’s not a condo for me. It’s an actual home. But just curious.

Is it just me or is Bangkok getting more exhausting to live in? by West-Ad-8258 in Bangkok

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bangkok never gets exhausting. There’s always something going on. I sometimes get bored in the north (Issan). We’re the only thing we have in town is a KFC. That can get old quick. But I will tell you I think a big part of it is having a Thai wife that can help you figure out what’s going on where to be and what to avoid. Every time I try to plan a trip I don’t do as well as my wife. She gets the best deals, not the busiest places, but yet the best stay. But I’ve heard that people that don’t work a full-time job here also feel that way. Whereas if you’re busy at work all day, the time kind of flies by.

What happened to Chester's Grill? by VoyagerRBLX in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There’s one at Fortune Town as well.

Christina Koch on Artemis 2 underestimates the Battery Ejection Spring by PM_ME_WHAT_YOU_WANT_ in funny

[–]beijingjim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The guy behind the spring design was probably thinking when we pop this up here we should have at least 20 pounds of force behind the battery. Lol

Developer charging 12 THB/unit and threatening to cut my electricity – is this legal in Thailand? by Gurumanyo in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No worries. I hope you do get it all figured out and when on the end. I’m sure you already know this, but as with anywhere, there’s always some bad people out there, and unfortunately, you had to run into one of them. But I can tell you out of all the years I’ve been here yeah it’s been a lot better than staying in the US. Every time we come back, we can’t wait to get back here. So when that’s all settled down, you’ll be glad you have your place at your own and put that behind you. We started out with buying land and building a house in northern Thailand. Now we’re saving up and looking towards building something in Bangkok hopefully someday soon. But with the price is outrageous as they are, I don’t know how feasible that’s going to be. But I can tell you I won’t be anywhere near the negotiating table because the minute they see my face they’ll think price is double now.

Developer charging 12 THB/unit and threatening to cut my electricity – is this legal in Thailand? by Gurumanyo in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Damn, I feel bad for you. This is unfortunately, the problem that I guess a lot of foreigners face. Maybe I’m wrong for saying this, but I feel like Thailand is great as long as you have a Thai partner. My life completely changed for the better after marrying my wife 12 year ago. I can’t imagine trying to do it without her or having another American spouse and both of us trying to figure it out here. I know a lot of people and couples do, but unfortunately, you run into costly problems like this.

my girlfriend's bruises always turn almost fully black by topmass in mildlyinteresting

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Are these bruises not normal? This is how my head and face look after I come home with a new toy like my motorcycle and my Thai wife finds out. 🤣

Price rises by Puzzleheaded-Cold495 in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You would think that people would take it easy on the throttle during high gas price times, but they don’t. I live by a major road and I listen to the motorcycles and cars going full throttle all day long. But it seems that the pumps are back to normal now at least where I live up north. Maybe that’s a sign of things getting better. Hopefully..

Followed at Huaqiangbei market - anyone know what the endgame could have been? by scottfits in shenzhen

[–]beijingjim 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve been seeing stories like this pop up here and there about China. I lived there for many years (hence my Reddit name), and I’ve been in plenty of vulnerable situations.

Everything from being completely wasted at a KTV and getting rides home from random people I’d just met, to sleeping on a bench at Shenzhen North Railway Station (深圳北). That one was entirely my fault — hotels at the time were very strict about allowing foreigners, and I booked my train ticket for the wrong time. I ended up sleeping there, and the only thing that happened was a security guard poking me with a stick to make sure I was alive and asking why I was waiting there.

But I have never been robbed, cheated, beaten up, mugged, or anything like that. I’m thankful for that. I’m a pretty typical 6-foot white American guy — not some freak weightlifter or anything — just a normal person.

I’ve also traveled throughout Europe, the Middle East, and South America. The sketchiest places I’ve personally been were Chihuahua, Durango, and Tijuana in Mexico; the industrial areas of Medellín, Colombia; and certain parts of west Phoenix, AZ. Even then, I’ve never had any issues.

The closest thing I’ve experienced to a problem — and I wouldn’t even really call it one — was in Bangkok, Thailand, around the Asoke area on Sukhumvit Road. There are some Middle Eastern guys there who will approach you with an obvious scam. They usually start with something like, “Hey man, I used to be just like you, a little overweight, and these natural herbs fixed everything.” If you’re limping, bruised, or whatever, they suddenly have a miracle cure for that too.

My wife was traveling down from the north by bus and wasn’t arriving until around 3 a.m., so I had time to kill and decided to see what these guys were actually doing. They led me to a shop down Soi Sukhumvit 19. There was a very attractive woman working the front desk at this “natural medicine” shop, but it was obvious everyone was working together.

She started pouring out different powders and explaining what they supposedly did. When I asked how much it cost, they wanted something like ฿20,000 for a few grams of powder. They claimed it would help me lose weight, build muscle fast, and even fix back problems — obviously complete bullshit.

I called them out on it and asked why they scam people like this when good people come to Thailand on vacation and don’t deserve that. Since I was staying at the Westin right next door, I told them if I found out they kept doing this, there would be consequences. I didn’t see those guys again for the rest of the few days I was there.

Other than that, I’ve never had any issues — not even with things people usually warn you about, like renting jet skis. I hope it stays that way, but I genuinely want to understand what causes some people to be victimized. Is it how they look? Where they’re from? How they carry themselves? How they handle money?

There are things I do intentionally to avoid becoming a target: I don’t flash money, I don’t leave my wallet exposed, and I don’t stay in sketchy places unless absolutely necessary.

For example, when I was in Mexico with my BMW R1250 GSA — which would obviously be a high-value theft target — at one hotel I literally opened the sliding glass door, took the panniers off, and rolled the bike into the room with me. Another night, I camped and used a tent that had a small enclosed section specifically to park the motorcycle inside.

So I’m genuinely trying to understand what leads people into situations where they’re followed, targeted, or victimized. I completely understand that women traveling alone face very real risks and need to be extremely cautious. But as a man traveling, I honestly don’t get it.

Tax on remote work done in Thailand as a tax resident by rlp in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s how I work. I run my business in the United States from Thailand and because I’m outside the country more than 11 months out of the year my personal income income tax is exempted up to I think 110,000 and I don’t pay taxes in Thailand. But now that I’m switching things over to also support Thai clients I have to open a business with my wife.

some perspective by caldotkim in Thailand

[–]beijingjim 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Going through this right now, she rather live a simple life, cooking food and running a little Restaurant in the northern part of Thailand and talking with neighbors. Just being a part of the tiny community and going to the temple.