Another reason we are moving to Udon Thani

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8:00 Am EST Western Pennsylvania - The snow is beautiful and when we were young we enjoyed riding sleds & sheets of cardboard down hill but as we have got older we perfer Thailand We will not miss the snow and cold weather.

What is the first reason that you are moving to Udonthani?

My, my, you are having a real winter in the U.S. Here in Toronto, it is -2 (centigrade), with little snow, and tomorrow it will be a balmy 10, and the snow will melt. Still, I think I prefer Thailand although Toronto is nice enough most of the year...okay...for about four months of the year. 55555

This is the morning picture that I prefer.
The first reason is a decision my wife and I made about 8 years of so ago to retire in Udon.
We were married in Amphur Hongharn in 1973. Our hearts never left Thailand.
The Issan sunrise is beautiful. I embraced the culture the Issan People and the Issan way of life and that passion and the desire to live there has never diminished.

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Those are certainly good reasons. Once 'Isaan' gets in your blood, it is hard not to want to stay forever.

But, there is passion in Pennslyvania too as witnessed at Penn State, the Steelers, Eagles, Phillies, Penguins and Flyers.

Joe Papa is no more. I wonder what his legacy is really going to be.

Just a thought, remember lot of difference from a vacation and full time living without a military support base. Don't burn the bridges just yet. Rent for a a year or so, The memories of our youth are very different then the reality of today.

That being said I have been here nine years it's home. But, I went through a huge period of adjustment.

Good luck on your adventure, your reasons are valid

" That being said I have been here nine years it's home. But, I went through a huge period of adjustment. "

Thank you .
You are right about the military base support and the memories.
That reailzation set in 2004 when my brother in-law drove us past where the old US main gate used to be.
Things have changed alot.
My wife and I have a discusion regulary that there will be an adjustment.

I agree. We live within one and half miles of a 1711MW baseload coal-fired power plant. We have flyash, Coal truck traffic, Jake brakes sounding off at 4:00AM when you are asleep. My wife and I realize that the decision to move will come with regrets. The thought of not living in Issan far out weigh the regrets of moving. It is the love that I have for my Thai wife and Issan that gives me the motivation to go.

You know your doing the right thing listing why you want to do this and why you want to leave. During tough adjustment times it serve as an excellent reality check.

PF
What Bumper is saying is worth listening to. I was stationed here in 1970 and the memories of Udon were warm and fuzzy before we decided to move here. Things have changed a lot since 1970. By all means try it out for size before commiting to it. There's a lot of adjusting to do if you want to live here full time. We moved here 6 years ago and built our home just outside the ring road in Nong Samrong. It wasn't a pleasant experience as building a house here is an exercise in frustration. Things you expect to happen don't, Installed electricity can be a real joke (hazzard) with mismatched wiring, incorrect polarity and overall poor workmanship. The same goes for plumbing and the rest of the trades. There is no such thing as an inspector to make sure the square peg doesn't go in the round hole. On the plus side is the cost of labor which is much cheaper here than in the US because most laborers are also farmers with little training in the building trades. Swimming pools are becoming very popular. When we built our pool there was only 1 contractor who sort of knew what he was doing. Now we have probably a half dozen who may or may not know what they're doing.
Buying a vehicle here is much more expensive than in the US due to the tax structure. There is no such thing as government supplied potable water running through the water lines which may be held together with pieces of rubber inner tube. Law & order are definitely not widely available so it's sort of a lawless society. Long term visa's can be a bit frustrating for the inexperienced person.
On the plus side we have most everything available here that you have in the US. However, costs may vary widely depending on if it's imported or domestic. Routine medical care is pretty good here in Udon Thani and Tricare (assuming you're retired military) will pay the expenses as long as you're willing to wait the 2-3 months to be reimbursed. Excellent care for serious illnesses is available at any one of the many hospitals in Bangkok.

The internet is sort of catching up to us here with ADSL becoming widely available. WIFI 3G is trying to get its foot in the door as well. Postal services are fine and reliable with the average delivery to the US taking 7-10 days. In the 6 years we've been here I've never lost a package or letter in either direction.

The bottom line is don't burn your bridges before trying it out overhere for at least a year. It will take that long or maybe longer for the "shine" to wear off in order to evaluate the situation.

I wish you the best of luck.

Hi,
Hear what your saying about renting for a year. When i came to Udon Thani Jan 2006 and bought a new house. We bought this for less than one million B. I drew the money out of my home bank, against advice from so called experts, and glad we did, and it was approx. 14,000GBP's then. My mate, who had a Thai. G.F., now married, decided not to come with me and leave it for a few years, The GBP dropped and the price of land went up, in LOS, by over 100% overnight. For the same type of house and land i got, inside the ring road of Udon. he payed 2 Million B for his. or nearly 40,000GBPs. I am glad i did not take peoples advice about renting. I have always said you are making a rich landlord even richer. Mind you he is happy living in LOS. In his own house now.
The other year i went to have our house valued, to cut a long story short i was quoted 2MB. min. Not saying i will get this. But if i was paying 10,000B a month for rent, think of how much money i would have lost. Unable to get back what i paid in rent, And rents have a habit of increasing every year. And for the doom and gloom people, my personal opinion is that land and house prices will not drop in Udon. To many people moving here, supply and demand. Just look at the single road, ring road, and see how many houses have gone up there. In approx 5 or 6Km, have not measured it.
When i bought the new house, it was fitted with hot water showers, cooker, curtains, the living room furn. and one bedroom of the three was furn. Plus a tiled carport. Now if you want a 2,000L water tank, or showers toilets etc. in a new house, you have to pay extra for it. But U.T.Y.
Cheers Doug.

All good advice to my Western PA homeboy. But... you have to **** or get off the pot. If you're coming get your butt off fence and get over here.Stay living your dreams or nightmare if you don't listen to our advise. If you want it both ways (should I say or should I go now?)you can...stay here for six months (like the snow birds do in Fa.) Easter to Labor day in the USA Wal- mart and Taco Bell **** we don't have here. When the snow flies you fly and come to your Thai house in the fall and winter and escape the heat to fly home to western Pa. One day the light will go on in your brain and you'll decide that you want to live here or not.When you had enough of the flying every six months you'll end up selling your house and buying yourself a one way ticket and never to return. There is something to be said if you have the bucks to have two houses.#1 will be you visa hassles will be nill. You'll get a 2 multiple entries that would be 2 for two three month periods. Go to the boarder and buy your cigs and liquor and enjoy your retirement ,and then no hassles with having 400,000 baht in a Thai account or showing your month transfers that add up to 400,000. (In all fairness to the Thai's, it has gotten a lot easier and don't worry about that small ****) Make the leap and come see us falongs in Udon. Oh, by the way falong isn't a insult so don't be thin skinned and take offense, you're not going to change what they call us. There is no BC here my friend. Nor is guava, mak see da isn't an insult. Insults would be falong kee nok, falong kee nell, falong ga ga falong burk(stupid) falong suck a pook (dirty) now these are busting your chops if you heart them call you this stuff.
Jackman