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Living in Thailand
A wide range of subjects about living in Thailand and single pattaya girls: http://www.escapeartist.com/Thailand
See more information in depth information below links

Guide to Bangkok
Hotels-Restaurants - Night Clubs - pattaya thailand hotel - Go-Go Bars - pattaya nightlife - Shopping- Gay scene - Lady boy's - Shopping - Places of interest, and much more…..
http://www.nanaplaza.com/guest/

Phuket Info
The Phuket Gazette is the leading on line paper containing everything you
will need including Flights - Hotels-Beaches - Night Life - Classifieds (Including Apartments to rent, jobs, articles for sale / rent)

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Pattaya
The Pattaya Post is the leading on line paper containing everything you will need to know about Pattaya. Including Getting there - Budget Hotels-Beaches - Night Life - Go-Go Bars, Classifieds
(Including Apartments to rent, jobs, articles for sale / rent)
http://www.pattaya-at-night.com/info.htm
and:
http://www.pattaya-at-night.com/links/morelinks.html

THAI VISA Obtain a "NON-O visa" from a Thai Embassy abroad; it can be for 90 days, or for one year with multiple entries. If the former, you need to depart Thailand every 90 days and reenter for a new 90 day period. Closest border point to Bangkok is at Aranyaprathet-Poi Pet on the Cambodian border. Many people drive or go by train, bus, fly, to Nong Khai and cross over to Laos and stay in Vientiane for a day or two. Others head south to Malaysia, Penang, for example or go to Singapore for this "visa-run". A Non-Immigrant Visa is necessary to apply for a retirement or any other long-term visa. A tourist visa will not suffice.

LONG TERM STAYS Highly recommended is that before you cut your ties at home, quit your job, sell your house, divorce your wife and etc, you move here for a longer term, rent an apartment where you think you want to live, and live like you're going to stay here. Thailand is not for everybody! There are frustrations, aside from just the language; make sure that this is where you want to stay.

HOUSING how and where do you want to live? 2-4 bedroom apartments downtown in the Sukumvit Road high price area will run Baht 20,000-baht 75,000 per month. A single bedroom apartment, not so fancy, way down Sukumvit Road, or in northern Bangkok might be had for Baht 5,000-10,000 per month.

Buy a house? Townhouse?? Condo??? Possible, and also in every price range. Baht 1,000,000 ($22,000) will get you something relatively decent, especially out of town. Prices are usually much less "upcountry" than in Bangkok. Foreigners cannot own land, thus houses and townhouse are out, but condos are permissible, up to 49% of the building. Note that there is no "condo law" as yet in Thailand, so be cautious if looking at a condo for a home.

WHERE TO LIVE Bangkok area?? Up country?? Down country?? Housing is much more reasonable in the suburbs of the city. Ring Roads and new highways and provide relatively fast access to the traffic jams downtown. New shopping malls are springing up all over the country. An example is Future Park in a Bangkok suburb. (http//www.futurepark.com/welcomen.html). Local neighborhood markets (including 7-11's) are available for daily needs.

You can live in Pattaya or Hua Hin, on the beach, very reasonably, and within a 2-3 hour drive of Bangkok. An unfurnished townhouse goes for Baht 5,000 per month, about same for a small apartment. If it is furnished, it is a bit more.

IN-LAWS Live at least 100 km from your local in-laws, if you have such. This is still close enough to visit, but not on a daily basis. No matter how much or, more Importantly, how little money you have, they'll think you have more and it's available for "loans." You should not mind a loan on occasion, but the initial one must be paid back on schedule, or never again.

MEDICAL/INSURANCE Excellent care here, fine doctors and hospitals, no real worries on this one. Much cheaper for everything than in most of Europe or America, but still not free. Many local doctors and dentists have trained abroad and speak English, French, German, Japanese and Chinese. Medical insurance is available here with a new plan, BUPA/Blue Cross. It runs about Baht 36,000 per year for what looks like good coverage countrywide.

Of note is that U.S. Medicare and many European insurance programs do NOT cover overseas. CHAMPUS, covering U.S. military retires does cover overseas, but at age 65, you are supposed to switch over to Medicare, so you will need other medical insurance at that time if you live abroad.

CARS/INSURANCE Many expatriate live in Thailand and do not own a car. New cars are expensive but used cars are rather more reasonable. You can get a regular 2nd hand Toyota, Nissan, or Isuzu pickup for about Baht 125,000; 3-5 years old. Possibly with four doors or the "King Cab/Super Cab" model (jump seats). Do not plan on shipping a car, the import duty would be 200% or more and not depreciated from the year you bought the car.

Car insurance runs about Baht 11,000 for full coverage, more if you buy a luxury car. For new insurance, be sure to bring a "no claim" letter from your former insurance company. This should be good for a 25%-40% discount. Thai law requires a minimum legal coverage, which costs about Baht 1,500/year.

Get a U.S. International Driver's Permit, issued by AAA and most other national automobile associations. It is handy in two ways. First, it will enable you to get Thai driver's license with no hassle, which is great for ID when such is needed locally. Secondly, if/when you get stopped by a Thai traffic cop, you can hand him the International license and, oftimes; you may get because of the language barrier. If you do get a traffic citation, the traffic cop will confiscate your license and it will be held at the local station house until you pay the fine. Better to give him your International drivers license. Many Expats keep several expired ones in their glove compartment for just this purpose.

BANKING. The current exchange rate is about Baht 43.5- to US$1. You can check the rate at several www sites, such as Siam Commercial Bank's (http//www.scb.co.th/bk-index_exchange.htm)

Keep a foreign bank account for direct deposits of your foreign income such as retirement funds, social security, interest and dividends. You can transfer such funds to Thailand easily. Also open one or more bank accounts here. You get an ATM card with them. Once a month write a personal check on your foreign account for deposit to the Thai account.

The Thai bank holds the funds availability for 45 days (60 days for some banks) to ensure that the check clears. This is a "problem" only on your first check. After that, you're on a cycle of a check deposit every month, and clearing of the check every 45 days.

If you need funds transferred quickly, use a wire transfer from the offshore. Account to the Thai account, which takes about three working days here. You should set up with your offshore. Bank that they will do this based on a signed FAX from you Thailand. Bring a credit or debit card from your offshore. bank. You can use it in many local ATM machines to draw down Baht directly from your offshore. (Note as of June 2000, there seems to be a "problem" with foreigners opening local Baht bank accounts, unless they have a work permit, which the bulk of the retirees and long-term stayers do not have. The problem is not yet resolved.)

CREDIT CARDS Thai banks do issue credit cards, MasterCard/Visa, etc, for a price. It's well to maintain a foreign credit card, with the common foreign banking laws covering it. Stolen incoming replacement credit cards in the mails are a common problem; some people have the cards mailed to an address in their home country, and hand carried to Thailand.

MARRIAGE Usually easy, done at the local District Office (Amphur) and simply a registration of a marriage ("jot tambien"). A foreigner may need a form letter, notarized, from his/her embassy stating that they are not currently married and are legally able to be married. Note that a women of pattaya marrying a foreign man, and registering the marriage in Thailand, loses her rights to own property in Thailand.

CHILDREN BORN IN THAILAND Children born in Thailand of a foreign father and a Thai mother may hold dual citizenship . Application must be made with the local district office/amphur. With many countries, however, the USA for example, the children are U.S. citizens. A "report of foreign birth abroad" must be filed with the U.S. Consulate, and may be similar with other Embassies.

DIVORCE Uncontested divorce between foreign and pattaya bar girls spouses is relatively simple, just a reverse of the marriage registration. Do this at the District Office (Amphur). A contested divorce is rather more complicated, must be done at a Thai court, and really requires the services of a Thai lawyer. It is possible, is some circumstances, to obtain a divorce from a Thai spouse in your home country.

WILLS and ESTATE PLANNING To be legal, a will must be registered at the District Office (Amphur). A Thai woman cannot leave property/land to a foreign man. Other assets may be willed to a foreign spouse.

EMPLOYMENT this can be difficult. Expats are expensive to maintain by the employer and there are thus not many local positions available. Virtually all will require a Thai work permit, which is available on legitimate request from the employer. There are many expats living in Thailand but working outside the country such as, for example, in oil exploration related fields. It is possible to teach English, French, Japanese, etc, to supplement other income, but if you don't have teaching credentials, the pay is pretty slim.