@joshontheweb

If you are looking to retire here: Life can be cheap once you get past the initial euphoric stage where, you eat in expensive restaurants that cater to foreigners. Watch where the locals eat and you can really eat rice & “gab kao” (any soup, stew or curry you decide to pour over it) for USD 1.50-2. A small bottled water 30 cents. (To put it into perspective minimum wage here is EUR10/day for locals, 2-3 people usually share a room which cost THEM €135/mo. You can do the math.) Unofficially there is double pricing going on toward foreigners (foreigners pay more). Beware of Mosquitos, Dengue is serious. Sweating can bring it’s unexpected problems. We are naturally covered in yeast which can be caused to accelerate growth in hot humid climates and especially during Monsoon season, you may find yourself subject to Yeast infections and skin Eczema’s, especially if you are overweight and insist on maintaining a bread (Yeast) based diet. Side walks are rare so, if you plan on getting exercise through walking, you will have to drive (transit) to places suitable for safe walking. Jungle walks are nice but with their own natural hazards. Biking, relatively dangerous, unless you go to a track. Automobile drivers practice “instinctive driving” and are ignorant of many rules. There is little consideration for pedestrians or bicycle riders. Properly organized public transportation has begun recently; the oldest form for locals was the Songteaw (an covered open sided, converyed truck with 3 long benches) however, the scheduling is unreliable. Snakes, lizards, spiders and ants are common. The common green garden snake is innocuous however, the mildly venomous, gliding Golden Tree Snake and Cobras are often sighted. Red ants with painful bites are ever present If you intend to build or buy a house, look for as little wood as possible, Termites love a nice wooden door or frame. Phuket is mainly Buddhist & Muslim so, if you want to attend Christan services you will have to transit to them as there are few places here (only 2 or 3 that I have heard of). Pets: plenty of strays (cats & dogs) you can take in or adopt but, please don’t have a pet if you plan on moving away and abandoning it. Tap water cannot be consumed. Phuket is a great home base if you plan on exploring the “oriental” side of the globe. Work is hard to find unless you start your own business which, comes with plenty of it’s own hassles - you will ALWAYS need a Thai intermediary, the system is not transparent and ALL the paperwork is in (bureaucratic) Thai. Please do not try to work locally if you do not have the right visa to do it, the trouble is not pretty. Retired tradesmen often innocently/inadvertently fall into the trap of doing small jobs illegally. If you get paid (money) for your activity, you ARE working. If you are not a repeat offender, you will get off with a salty fine. (Not nice if you are living on a budget). Finally, just let me say, HAVE A HOBBY, have a plan if you tetire here and stick to it. Create/find your routine and find your spaces, this will take about 2 years. Don’t get “distracted”! .... or you may find yourself going back to your native country to escape or live off welfare .... or the parents. Get to know people (locals & expats) well before you share personal details, i.e. be guarded. Good luck!🍀