sglad, I only wish I knew, honestly. If you've been reading my posts over the last couple of months, you'll know I have a couple of issues to deal with before I'm ready to rejoin the workforce.
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sglad, I only wish I knew, honestly. If you've been reading my posts over the last couple of months, you'll know I have a couple of issues to deal with before I'm ready to rejoin the workforce.
AppositeQuote:
Originally Posted by sglad
sglad, I think it's great that your grandma is still active. My mother was going dancing a couple of times a week in her late 80s. But you don't know anything about my personal circumstances, so you're not in a position to comment.
In 1999 when she turned 60, my mother started walking 2 miles a day.
Fuck knows where she is by now
I sometimes wonder about retiring to a warmer climate. I have a few years more to go than Joe - still in my forties. Sometimes I like imagining it, especially in chilly November days like today here in Ireland.
However, like Joe I think about my family connections here. I wouldn’t say that I am particularly close to my family, but still I would think twice before moving so far way from them as the connections I do have are important to me. I sometimes think it is slightly sad to see that, from reading various gay message boards, that a lot of older single gay people feel they have few connections to family and friends that would put them off retiring along distance away. At the moment my parents are still alive so it would feel weird it to contemplate such a thing but I guess if I reach 65 and my parents had passed on, there would be a different consideration.
I will have more options than Joe as I will have an occupational pension and also I hopefully we’ll have a mortgage on my flat paid off which means I will have some capital when I retire. But at the moment I think Tenerife a would be a more attractive prospect, even though Thailand would be more fun in the obvious sense. The difference in culture and being so much farther away if anything went wrong would be factors too.
Actually, as a gay guy, wouldn’t Gran Canaria be a better option than Tenerife? That is where most of the gay nightlife etc. is, I think.
There any particular reason why you choose Terrine over Gran Canaria Joe?
Is it just because you’re are used to visiting Tenerife with your family
I was just trying to post same as Ronan above. But lost (yet another!) Post on my mobile.
Joe: why not try the spanish mainland instead if the Canaries. Malaga and Costa del sol area?
Food and drink are cheaper on the mainland. Flights also cheaper, more frequent and of shorter duration.
Of course you would have to contend with a harsher winter on the mainland to the canaries... But their winter is about as bad as our summer!
South of Spain has far more historical and cultural things for you to keep busy with!
Thanks for your reply, Ronan, but really if you're working, shouldn't you be in bed by now?
Re: Gran Canaria - I've been there twice, and just didn't enjoy it. I tend not to seek out gay life on holiday. I went alone the first time. Visited a few bars in the Yumbo centre (is that right, SG?) Found nothing special. The 2nd time I went with a friend, and we tend to just go for dinner and a few (?) drinks.
Yes,there's a familiarity to Tenerife, and that helps. As I've said before, I'm effectively celibate, and that doesn't really bother me any more. I'm looking forward to a bit of sex in Pattaya on my holiday, but I'm sort of resigned to being alone in my real life. If that sounds a bit pathetic, it's not meant to. I have a couple of issues to deal with, but generally, I'm not in a bad place in my life.
colmx, we were obviously posting at the same time. I spent one of my birthdays in Malaga and really like it. Also spent a Christmas with my mate in a place called Antequera, half an hour in the hills above Malaga. Great place. So yes, mainland Spain is certainly an option. You're right about the variety of cultural attractions. Something to think about.
Let's add another question into the mix. Without question, I'm happier, more comfortable, and more at ease with my life than I probably would ever be in Canada. As a sacrifice though, yes, I do somewhat have to give up the family, even though it's only be for a few days maybe 2or 3 times a year as we're pretty spread out.
So stay in Canada, probably be unhappy or at the very lease uneasy / uncomfortable with my life. Or enjoy life here where although hard at times, I do know I'm far happier, and more at ease with myself, plus enjoy being in a Thai society much more than Canadian society. Simply more polite, respectful, peaceful, etc. It's a better fit for me.
How does the above type of scenario factor into your guys' decisions? Do you have family you see once or twice a week? Or is it more like my family, where we get together for a few days during the holidays, weddings, etc., and that's it?
I would see my sister about once a month, and we talk twice a week. My older brother I would talk to on the phone every couple of weeks. If I lived in Tenerife, I could maintain that level of contact. And as I've mentioned, lots of my family (nephews and wives) enjoy going to Tenerife on their holidays. So regular visits would be easy to arrange.
Yes Joe that's right.
The Yumbo Centre gay bars - there must be 25-30 of them - are OK the first few times you visit but I found you end up there every night and once you've seen them then the novelty rapidly wears off.
The bars are far more tailored towards the leather/bear scene than anybody interested (as I am, in twinks). There is absolutely no commercial sex offering in any of the bars - and believe me, I've asked :D but as I've said there is hardly any eye candy either.
I couldn't imagine myself spending a night there on my own.
Monthly visa runs implies you are on visa-exempt status (which gives 30 days permission of stay, extendable by 30 days for 1900 THB). I would suggest tourist visa (60 days + 30 days for 1900 THB), and taking those 30 days extension for 1900 THB, as that will be cheaper than doing a visa run.
You receive unemployment benefit, that means you have to be physically in Ireland? If not, I would rather start now (spending some months in Tennerife or Thailand to see how you like living there long-time), if you have the money now.
Leave the typos, I will take care of them. (Just kidding!)
'Your' only half kidding Christian. Go on, I dare you. Haha.
Don't give up on Christian.
This man is really cool.
November 10th is National Punctuation Day in Thailand - and this year it is being hosted in Pattaya.
Christian is there as guest of honour (and will take the opportunity to stock up on toilet rolls from various venues)
:p
Gorbals Jock wrote.
"So, out of interest, how many of those 1900B extensions could one get? Surely not unlimited - or is it?"
I'll leave this one to you Minimee.
😎
If it's all right with you, I'll wait for Christian to answer.
Unlike either of you he tends to know what he's talking about
Here's another long term visa question - just out of interest - and perhaps bob is our resident expert. Is it easier to get a long term visa for Vietnam than for Thailand?
I have an older brother who's lived in Cambodia for a few years. As far as I know, he gets some kind of annual business visa for a couple of hundred US$, although the lazy fucker's rarely worked a proper job in his life.
Moses, note the presence of the $
Joe, Vietnam visa rules are ephemeral at best. Because of the nature of my work, I am not eligible for the ordinary long term visa available to certain types of business people. So, for the past 17 years, my office has been renewing my tourist visa. Sometimes the VN government allow 3 months per renewal, sometimes 6 months, and if you've said your prayers and brushed your teeth regularly, you get a one year renewal. Got 2 of those in 17 years.
Now there is also a new type of multiple entry visa, valid for a year. Looked into it but it seems to be only for people who actually run a local business or who are sponsored by a local business.
There is nothing resembling a retirement visa in Vietnam. Check the website of the Vietnamese Embassy in Dublin. May be some new items that have cropped up very recently.
I think the Cambodian government came up with some sort of 3 year visa earlier this year. Details on their website.
As I said bob, I was asking just out of interest. But there may be others here who will find that information useful. Thanks.
bob, I'm somewhat surprised that you're still 'employed' (no insult intended). Is it your own company who gets your visas for you, or how does that work?
"Employed" as in "show up at the office every day" ? No longer, though that was true 17 years ago. For the past several years I have not been to the office more than a few times each year. Fortunately we have reliable staff here in Vietnam and at my former home base in Orange County, California.
I and my Vietnamese business partner in San Jose started an immigration support services agency 30 years ago. He's in his early 50's now and with my blessings is taking a very active role in running the company. I just do a few things that are easily handled with a computer: editing letters, appeals, inquiries destined for US government agencies; Contacting the US Consulate here with status inquiries; keeping staff up to date on changes in US immigration laws; preparing scripts for our weekly radio shows in the US.
In fact, I rarely have the energy to devote more than 10 hours a week to such work, often less. So I spend my days looking after my health and continue to receive half of the net from our business. Everyone seems satisfied with the situation.
Thanks, bob
You like that one, don't you?
I will give you a signed copy of my upcoming book "How I got rich and retired at age 35 by collecting returnable bottles, squeezing all toothpaste out of tubes, and taking toilet paper rolls from hotels" next time we meet.
(It seems the use of returnable bottles is limited to German speaking countries, wikipedia entry is only in German language. For standard beer bottles, you get 0.08 Euro when you return them to a retailer. However many people are too lazy (or too drunk?) to do so, and leave the bottle next to a dustbin - so people who collect returnable bottles - which is a sport in my family - don't have to go through the contents of the dustbin - in the train/bus, on the lawn, wherever they consumed the contents.)
The toothpaste is inspired by bangkokbois:
Attachment 5871
I thought it is common knowledge that you can get one extension of 30 days on visa exempt or tourist visas entries to Thailand.
Yes but I wanted it confirmed that only ONE extension can be obtained
The context was Joe seemingly being advised he could live in Thailand on the basis of 30 day extensions, and I couldn't see how that was the case - or perhaps I misinterpreted the advice.
Only one extension.
Just an update on my research in Tenerife - a studio/one bed apartment can be had for €350 per month
Tenerife is certainly the safest option for the reasons u stated..EU, close to home, gay community, warm...