Considering moving to Thailand, use GI Bill for college, bring Filipina wife. Advice?

[fareastcoastmover]

Greetings Everyone,

I’m new to the forum here and have a million questions. Yes, I’m aware of the “search” feature and will certainly be using it a bunch for a lot of things, however I like the idea of a first initial post introducing myself and why I am here.

A quick background: I’m a 30 yr old American who served 10+ years in the U.S. Army, spending most of my time overseas in Korea. During that time, I made more than 60 trips to the Philippines with Army buddies and contractors, and it soon became a “home-away-from-home”. I ended up marrying a lovely young Filipina girl whom I met in Korea (got married there too) in 2007. I finished with the military, spent a year working as a civilian in Korea and then moved back to the Eastern USA after 7 years away in Asia. Reverse-culture shock indeed.

After about 18 months here, both my wife and I are ready to go back to Asia. Fortunately, we don’t have anything tying us down here. No kids yet. She’s been working a sales associate job, while I have been running my own Web Design company. We are basically free to go just about anywhere.

In my years of being in Korea, I was acquainted with many friends and contacts who frequently traveled to or lived in both the Philippines and Thailand, although I never made it to Thailand myself because I was too hooked on the PI. (something I regret now) After 60+ trips to the Philippines, I must admit I am a little soured on the place and don’t think I could stand to live there long-term.

So my wife and I are seriously considering Thailand as the next option, but we don’t know much about the place yet, so that’s why I am here.

Of course we are planning to make a vacation trip to Thailand before we would actually move there, but we wanted to start some heavy research now.

The 2 biggest issues we’re curious about are:

#1 – College: As a veteran, I’m able to use my “GI Bill” benefits to basically go to school for 3 years wherever I want almost, have the tuition paid 100%, and get a living allowance on-top of it. An old military buddy of mine has lived in Thailand the past 6 years and he did the exact same thing. The Veterans Affairs website has a list of schools in Thailand which they approve of for the GI Bill, and I would be able to get an “education visa” to attend my 3 years of school there.

So it’s a matter of choosing which school to go to, based on location, foreigner-friendliness, and cost-of-living in the area. If anyone knows of good colleges for foreigners there, I’d love to hear about them. Things like language barrier issues, etc. I’m just curious about what it’s like going to school in Thailand as a Westerner.

#2 – Immigration: From what I understand, I’ll be able to get the “education visa”, but what about my Filipina wife? She is still not an American citizen, although she will have her 10-year US Green Card before we would go there, which by our rough estimate would not be until around this time next year. I suppose I need to research the different types of visa one can get. The US/Thai consulate website or Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs site might be the places to go for that. Perhaps she can get an education visa herself and study Thai.

I have a billion more questions and concerns, but like I said, I’ll use the “search” feature here to see what I can learn before flooding the forum with them all. I think a year’s worth of studious research, preparation and planning before a big move like this can make for a much smoother and well-informed transition. I’m glad there are great resources like this around. Yes, I know there are some things you can never be prepared for-----especially when it comes to Southeast Asian countries.

Thanks for taking the time to read my post. I look forward to the replies and my on-going participation on what looks like a very informative and useful forum.

[runker]

For your wife it doesn't take that long or is it that hard to pass the test for US citizenship. I thought of going to Bagio U (nice and cool) after I got out of the Navy my first time around but moved to Guam instead.

You all may find Guam interesting and the university is okay too and easier for the two of you to find work too. You may also find it too small.

I was hoping my son would go to school in Thailand (save me a few $) and maybe my Thai wife would then want to move back too. (didn't happen) From what I remember from my research for schools there are a few US schools in Thailand and a US degree will look better than a Thai degree.

[Davis Knowlton]

Mover: Nice to see a literate post. I am married to a Filipina (21 years), but she is a US citizen. I have lived in the Philippines for fifteen years, but lived in Thailand for six prior to relocating here for my last stop. I went to college on GI Bill just after Vietnam, but did it in the US. Although I have lived in Thailand or the Philippines for over twenty years, unfortunately I can't address many of your issues directly. I got my wife expeditious naturalization right after we got married, with a lot of help from SEAL Team 1 in Guam. If your wife is close to having lived in the US with a Green Card long enough to apply for US citizenship, I would strongly recommend that she get her citizenship prior to you relocating. It will make life much easier in the future and, if you leave the US without her having done so, she may well never get it.

I echo Runker's comments on Guam - it is tiny and you will get island fever quickly.

I hear your comments re burn-out on the Philippines, but question whether you saw much of the country other than the Angeles/Subic areas. There are some nice places here. I live in Batangas, close enough to Alabang and Manila for civilization, but clean air, no traffic, and stress-free province living.

That said, it takes a special type of Filipina to want to relocate here.

I wish you all the best with your relocation plans. Get her her citizenship! And, of course, be aware that living in Thailand with neither of you speaking the language or being of the culture is going to be a bit of a rough go.

[Bangyai]

That said, it takes a special type of Filipina to want to relocate here.

Having said that, there are a lot of Filipinoes living and working here and there numbers are on the rise. Many find work as English language teachers in government schools as their wage expectations are not as high as expats doing similar work.

[Davis Knowlton]

^By "here", I meant the Philippines.

[Dick]

PI was a fun place when Clark and Subic were active US bases , now it's bunk and just has alcoholic losers and wanna be's living there.

Thailand has much better infrastructure but your visa situation will be a hurdle.

[chitown]

Just wondering if you could post a link of the approved schools.

Are these on the list?

• Asian University
• Assumption University
• Bangkok University
• Chulalongkorn University
• Dhurakij Pundit University
• King Mongkut's Institute of Technology, Ladkrabang
• Kasem Bundit University
• Mae Fah Luang University
• Mahidol University International College
• Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University
• Payap University
• Prince of Sonkla University
• Rangsit University (International College)
• Ramkhamhaeng University
• Sripatum University Chonburi Campus
• Suranaree University of Technology
• Suan Dusit Rajabhat University
• Thammasat University

[chitown]

Found a link

WEAMS Public

[DrAndy]

After 60+ trips to the Philippines, I must admit I am a little soured on the place and don’t think I could stand to live there long-term.

So my wife and I are seriously considering Thailand as the next option, but we don’t know much about the place yet, so that’s why I am here.

you don't say why you got fed up with the Phillipines; maybe you will also find Thailand is not for you, for similar reasons

[Seekingasylum]

If you have any sense and care about your wife you should re - establish yourself first in the US, attend a decent college and ensure your wife obtains her citizenship.
Thailand as a long term viable destination is best for retired folk with Thai wives, employees of multinational companies on decent benefits packages, qualified teachers employed by colleges of worth or expat criminals enjoying the fruits of their larceny.

[9999]

Might be an idea for the wife to do a TEFL course or otherwise train in teaching English, as she'll obviously have to change careers.

[forreachingme]

your both visa issues in Thailand will be a hassle.

She could go for singer or teacher and have her visa sorted and you prolly as student, but the idea of staying in US sounds much better choice.

I lived 10 years in Thailand with a Philippina wife but had a business, so work permit was no big issue, specially as i had to travel often abroad, my wife had visa under my work permit as house wife not allowed to work..

We are happy here now in Phils, just 30 km south of Manila. I do have some visa issues here, but all easier compared to Thailand.

Thailand has better infrastructure but people are some how dumber, less friendly then pinoys, the language problem might be a big factor in this last statement.

[runker]

If you like the warm weather I would still take a close look at Guam. Nice University, finding work for either one of you will be easy, a lot of people from Philippines live there. They're doing some large construction jobs there now, great fishing, great diving. This is not the same island of the days of the Vietnam War or even the time I lived in during the early 80's. Find a nice place in the southern end of island.

[fareastcoastmover]

Thanks for all the replies gents. I didn't even realize I had replies on this thread as it's been a few months and I forgot to check back on the thread.

That being said, I've spent a fair amount of time on the other forums on TeakDoor, of which there are so many it's almost mind-numbing. Nevertheless, I've done well to sift through a lot of information since this original post of mine and have learned a decent amount.

Thanks to TeakDoor and all of it's knowledgeable contributors, this site seems to be the largest and most active of it's kind that I have found on the net.

Some updates since my original post a few months ago:

Re: the visa issues - We've decided that we are both going to attend school, which will take care of both our visa concerns. We're 90% decided on the school, which is Ramkhamhaeng University as one of the replies listed here. (my post count won't let me post the website's link - but its on google)

It's located on the outer edge of Bangkok I believe and has many foreign students with courses taught in English by Professors from the US, Canada and Europe.

They only offer a few majors, but both the wife and I look to take the Business courses. And yes, Rham U is accredited by the Veterans Affairs Association thus allowing me to receive the GI Benefits (which, ontop of fully paid tuition and book stipends, comes to around $1,300/month for living expenses).

Of course the GI Bill only covers my tuition, so we will need to pay out-of-pocket for hers. Fortunately Ram U. is pretty affordable at around $1,200 US a semester.

The school will set us up with a letter to take to the Thai consulate here before we move over to obtain a 90-day initial visa which should make our transition a little less hectic----gives us time to get settled before starting school. A nice thing about Ram U is they have modular classes, meaning we can start school at the beginning of any month and not need to wait for a semester to start.

As for some of the replies suggesting we stay in the US, get "established", get the wife her citizenship, etc. While appreciated, we're both considering all options and possibilities, but for right now, we really want to experience a new place aboard and live life versus just "working to exist" as we're doing now in the States.

That being said, we will ensure we get her 10-year green card before we move over next year, and to my understanding, as long as she returns to the US once a year, she can retain her green card status, as we will only be "temporarily residing" overseas for school 3+ years. I may be completely wrong about that however, but I recall that was the case with some friends spouses I knew while in Korea. Of course we'll get the concrete answer before anything happens.

Also, I think I should put it bluntly and say that I'm not overly concerned with the level of education I'd be receiving and that I'm mostly looking for a way to utilize my GI Bill that I probably would never utilize any other way (it expires 15 years from the date you leave the Military) and we want to live in Asia and experience new and exciting things. This idea accomplishes both of those things simultaneously.

I should also further mention that I run my own online business which nets me several K's a month, which in addition to the GI Bill money I am told will allow for a fairly comfortable lifestyle there in Thailand. We're both pretty simple and travel light, so an average 2-bedroom townhouse (which allows pets---we are bringing our Maltese with) and is reasonably near the school will suit us just fine. A friend said we should be able to find something like that for between 8 and 12k baht per month. Does that sound right?

To answer one of the replies----why am I soured on the Philippines and have I been to areas besides AC/Subic. Have I? Oh, have I. Spanning 10 years, 2 wives and countless "friends", I made literally 50+ trips (easy 3-hour flight from Seoul) with stays varying in length from 3-night weekend runs to 30 and 45 day excursions. While I no doubt spent (un)healthy amounts of time in Angeles, Subic and Manila, I also explored numerous provinces, on & off the beaten paths.

Listing them off the top of my head starting from first trip as a wide-eyed 19 year old in 2000 until my most recent a few months ago:

- taking paddle-boats across the filthy, feces-filled Pasig river near the ghetto my first wife lived
- countless hours in the "mega-malls" of Manila, learning how to travel in trikes, jeepneys, buses and taxis
- jeepney rental trips with entire family & neighbors in tow up windy, harrowing mountain roads to visit Grandmothers bamboo hut in Pakil, Laguna with old Spanish church down the road whose bell tower we climbed to look out at the ocean down below.
- running around Manila for all the passport and visa requirements w/ ex-wife, NSO seminar the day before our flight to the US
- Bus rides down through lower Luzon to Batangas pier for choppy Bangka boat trips across the channel to Puerto Galera on Mindoro, riding 4x4's up muddy jungle paths seeing wooden dwellings on stilts with naked kids running around
- visiting lonely resort on beach in Iba, Zambales. at night, walking into small town, being the only white guy in Filipino beer house, sitting on plastic patio furniture watching naked girls on poles
- week long stay in small town near Solano, Nueva Viscaya for friends wedding, getting electrocuted in hotel shower, dancing with the "village princess" at the reception
- multiple trips to Boracay and Subic and all the touristy stuff that goes with
- lengthy month-long+ stays in Cavite with current in-laws and all the daily cultural goings-on thereof, trips to Tagaytay, sight-seeing in Manila, etc

Anyway, maybe I gave off the wrong impression with my first post. I still love the Philippines but I'm a tad burnt out of the place and I really don't think I could live there full time. Others have mentioned the infrastructure being better in Thailand, and that is one of the draws for me. Of course I know both places are far from perfectI'm just ready to try something new is all.

Also news since my first post, we are now finalizing our plans for our "scouting trip" to Thailand if you will, this November. We're planning to stay around 12 nights, of which we'll spend time in Bangkok and also Krabi. (at the recommendation of a friend) Haven't settled on hotels just yet, so if anyone has good recommendations for both of those places, please let me know.

In BKK, we're told anywhere on Sukhumvit is a good location. We'll want to visit the school, see a temple or two and just take in the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of the city.

In Krabi, it seems Krabi town is a good area to stay. Is that correct? Ao Nang sounds too much of a tourist trap and Rairay seems like more of a backpacker/reggae crowd place. If anyone has experiences they can share about any of the above it would be welcomed.

Thanks for reading my extra-long reply here, I hope to get on TeakDoor more often and contribute some after our trip in November.

Who knows, maybe after this trip, we'll decide we hate the place and there's no way we could live and attend school there...........