Originally Posted by
Rigger
I enjoyed living in Thailand for 15 years and had a lot of fun but towards the end l would cringe with most the Thai bullshit really couldn't be bothered. It's all a load of smoke and mirrors.
Since returning home l am not sure why l bothered leaving in the first place
Rigger, your last sentence is brutally honest.
Every time I pass through Customs to get on a plane to visit family in the States , I stop and ponder as to why I'm really making the trip. Why am I leaving ?
Essentially I'm just going through the motions of being a good son, brother, uncle and father.
After three weeks or a month it feels great when the aircraft sets down at Suvarnabummi (sp...ugh) and I pass back through Customs into a waiting Toyota taxi to my hotel and a night out in BKK.
The crazy vibe as an 'older individual' being among youthful masses 'feeling alive' without any real or perceived 'threat'.
That feeling is something very special and tough to put into concrete words that can no longer be felt by an older individual walking on the streets of NYC, Miami, Seattle or LA without being in group of friends or without 'protection'.
The busy night-time areas have a noticeable police presence that is not on display in BKK. Assuredly none of those cities has anything that compares to the 'knowingly' vibe on greater Sukhumvit.
Albeit top-shelf museums and such will not be among the local fare. We do give up quite a bit when we reside here but somehow don't dwell on what is missing. If we do we should not choose to reside here.