In Ireland now and I like it better than Thailand

[gsjackson]

Well, it's a bit premature after four days to be giving a report on a new locale, and in any case I'm not sure how useful my experiences and perceptions are to anyone else. But that raises a point that isn't brought up too soon: You really need to go to these places yourself to see what they are like; you can't rely on somebody else's impressions. Specific information, yes, bring it on. But overall impressions -- you've got to form those for yourself.

Ireland gets hammered pretty good here and in the Roosh forum -- dismissed as typical anglosphere, full of unapproachable women. That's not my experience so far at all. Just as I flew into Thailand and immediately hated everything about the place, with Ireland I've had the opposite experience. I love the place. Clean, well-cared for, and the people are fantastic -- very friendly, in a low-key, classy kind of way. Kind of intellectual, well informed about things. That includes, in my experience so far, the young women. I'm staying for now in a college town 15 miles west of Dublin (will move into the city center for a month Saturday), and the girls I've talked to have been as sweet as they can be, much like Polish girls. There may be some bitch deep down inside of some of them, but on your way to finding out you won't have to deal with the fear of men and personality interaction that seems so common now in the U.S.

The last six months outside the anglosphere have taught me that I personally need to be inside it. Getting by in English is just too difficult outside, and I'm clear now that I'm looking for a woman with whom I can communicate in nuanced English. As always, different strokes for different folks. Which is the point of this post. You've got to go there yourself to find out how agreeable or not a place is to you.

[Repatriate]

If you haven't dated multiple women yet, had relationships, or gotten the lay of the land when it comes to the social setting I think your assessment is a bit premature. Ireland is very much typical anglosphere and a lot of Brits AND Irish guys i've met abroad have said as much.
If it was so great you wouldn't see loads of Micks hopping off the plane to Bangkok to wet their willy at the local girlie bars. I see it all the time.

[gsjackson]

My assessment is only this:

(A) I like this place. I could live here.

(B) You don't seem to have to deal with fear and bitch shields in chatting up the young women. This seems to be a matter of cultural convention, rather than deep, underlying female nature.

That's as far as my assessment of any place will go. Even with multiple relationships, I don't think anyone, even those who have grown up in a place, can get a large enough data sample to make generalizations about the female population.

[Yohan]

How long have you been in Thailand?
Where did you live in Thailand?
Did you bring your own money or did you try to work in Thailand?

For sure Thailand is not a good place when looking for a job, but it is a good place for retirement especially during winter time. - I consider Thailand to be better for long-stay than Philippines.

Europe? No way for me to go back. I prefer to live in Japan, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Malaysia...

Fully to accustom to life-style in Asia might take several months at least, more likely one or two years.

[MrPeabody]

You are doing the right thing traveling and finding out for yourself what works for you. Trust your experience. I have found that my experience is all I can rely on at the end. Other people just relate on what they prefer and what works for them.

[gsjackson]

How long have you been in Thailand?
Where did you live in Thailand?
Did you bring your own money or did you try to work in Thailand?

For sure Thailand is not a good place when looking for a job, but it is a good place for retirement especially during winter time. - I consider Thailand to be better for long-stay than Philippines.

Europe? No way for me to go back. I prefer to live in Japan, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Malaysia...

Fully to accustom to life-style in Asia might take several months at least, more likely one or two years.

Three weeks vacation in Pattaya, with three bus trips to Bangkok. There's no way I could ever get acclimated to the weather, the sights or the smells of Thailand. But obviously, there are many who feel otherwise about the place.

To Repatriate's point: If all we're doing here is identifying the lowest common denominator shithole where any hamburger can get his willie wet, well I think we've long since accomplished that. But anyone who's gotten laid knows it takes more than that to be happy. That's why I'd like to see more here on the overall quality of life in these countries.

[eurobrat]

Well, it's a bit premature after four days to be giving a report on a new locale, and in any case I'm not sure how useful my experiences and perceptions are to anyone else. But that raises a point that isn't brought up too soon: You really need to go to these places yourself to see what they are like; you can't rely on somebody else's impressions. Specific information, yes, bring it on. But overall impressions -- you've got to form those for yourself.

Ireland gets hammered pretty good here and in the Roosh forum -- dismissed as typical anglosphere, full of unapproachable women. That's not my experience so far at all. Just as I flew into Thailand and immediately hated everything about the place, with Ireland I've had the opposite experience. I love the place. Clean, well-cared for, and the people are fantastic -- very friendly, in a low-key, classy kind of way. Kind of intellectual, well informed about things. That includes, in my experience so far, the young women. I'm staying for now in a college town 15 miles west of Dublin (will move into the city center for a month Saturday), and the girls I've talked to have been as sweet as they can be, much like Polish girls. There may be some bitch deep down inside of some of them, but on your way to finding out you won't have to deal with the fear of men and personality interaction that seems so common now in the U.S.

The last six months outside the anglosphere have taught me that I personally need to be inside it. Getting by in English is just too difficult outside, and I'm clear now that I'm looking for a woman with whom I can communicate in nuanced English. As always, different strokes for different folks. Which is the point of this post. You've got to go there yourself to find out how agreeable or not a place is to you.

I spent a week in Ireland and enjoyed it more than my year in London. The Irish are much more friendly and accommodating than the British. The girls, although too pale for my liking and a few fatties are much nicer than American girls and Londoner British girls. The culture is very welcoming and friendly, people are down to earth and "real" not out to play games like you might see in the UK or US.

Ireland is clean and safe, with a good infrastructure and going through a semi-tech boom, I have about 2 recruiters a month calling me for positions in Dublin and the last one had an interview for a city in Cork with base salaries starting at €40k.

For me it's liveable, but it's still expensive and the weather is horrible nasty misty rain in your face for 6 months out of the year. You're also on an island and I would see myself travelling to Europe proper if I lived there just to get off the island. At the end of the day I would rather live there then in Britain again but there's a few cities in the US I would rather live over Dublin.

[eurobrat]

If you haven't dated multiple women yet, had relationships, or gotten the lay of the land when it comes to the social setting I think your assessment is a bit premature. Ireland is very much typical anglosphere and a lot of Brits AND Irish guys i've met abroad have said as much. If it was so great you wouldn't see loads of Micks hopping off the plane to Bangkok to wet their willy at the local girlie bars. I see it all the time.

Repatriate you probably also see Germans, Americans, Brits, Italians, Spanish, Greeks, Chinese, Japanese, Canadians and every other nationality/race/color etc. under the Thai sun because that's punter central you're living in so the vagina magnet pulls them in from all over the world.

[gsjackson]

I spent a week in Ireland and enjoyed it more than my year in London. The Irish are much more friendly and accommodating than the British. The girls, although too pale for my liking and a few fatties are much nicer than American girls and Londoner British girls. The culture is very welcoming and friendly, people are down to earth and "real" not out to play games like you might see in the UK or US.

Ireland is clean and safe, with a good infrastructure and going through a semi-tech boom, I have about 2 recruiters a month calling me for positions in Dublin and the last one had an interview for a city in Cork with base salaries starting at €40k.

For me it's liveable, but it's still expensive and the weather is horrible nasty misty rain in your face for 6 months out of the year. You're also on an island and I would see myself travelling to Europe proper if I lived there just to get off the island. At the end of the day I would rather live there then in Britain again but there's a few cities in the US I would rather live over Dublin.

Interesting to get your impressions of Ireland. The people here have such a great demeanor. Yes, it is decidedly more expensive, especially food and lodging. The weather's been mostly very good since I've been here, but I understand the default position is gray and drizzly. The jet stream does prevent many temperature extremes, like the UK, but I'm too addicted to the sunshine of the western U.S. to live in a European climate full time. I may have found my regular European summer destination, though

I have noticed the female obesity thing. Nothing on the order of the U.S., but different from what I've been seeing the past six months. Otherwise, I've got no problems with the look of the women. I'm good with reddish hair and pale skin.

[Yohan]

Three weeks vacation in Pattaya, with three bus trips to Bangkok. There's no way I could ever get acclimated to the weather, the sights or the smells of Thailand. But obviously, there are many who feel otherwise about the place.

There are about 5 million visitors and about 400000 foreigners living in Chonburi province, many of them directly in Pattaya.

There is not much in Bangkok what you cannot find in Pattaya area or nearby cities like in Sri Ratcha.

Comfortable in Pattaya is the large number of available accomodation of any category, the easy access to the international airport, excellent hospitals, best food supply fitting to foreigner needs, plenty of swimmingpools etc. This is a holiday city, it is not a typical Thai town.

If you do not have any special reason, like to meet some friends living there, or some sightseeing, or some job to do, there is no reason to go to Bangkok.

The weather is almost always hot and sunny and often very humid. There is however still the influence of 4 seasons, not like in Malaysia.
During winter time temperature can drop considerably in Pattaya, often too cold for swimming.

It takes about 1 month to feel comfortably in tropical temperature, after that you will start to dislike any air-conditioning in your rooms using only fan. You will start to feel badly when you are again back in a country which has a cold winter season.

The smell of Thai or other Asian food will follow you everywhere, except if you rent a house with greenery around you a few miles outside of Pattaya City. However for living outside of the cities, you need a car or at least a motorcycle, as there is little public transport available.

Pattaya itself is a large area, there are plenty of places without any nightlife. It will take you some weeks to explore the entire area.

[Stag]

How about the health care system? Can you purchase insurance? Are the hospitals clean, functional, and adaquate, and are most drs competent at their jobs?

[Yohan]

About hospitals in Thailand, Pattaya, I had to stay 6 nights in the Pattaya Memorial Hospital, a small medium-class private hospital a few years ago, after getting a very high tropical fever and high blood pressure. I paid for all and everything about USD 700,-.
It is located near my second condo-unit in Central Pattaya, all our family members and friends are using it.
This USD 700,- was including everything - room, food, medicine, laboratory, EKG and other consultation with medical doctors, even dentist when I left the hospital.

http://www.pattayamemorial.com/memo/index.php
2 years ago I had a accident late night and was thinking my knee is broken, but luckily it was not, only strong internal bleeding and other injuries, I paid for X-ray, taken the blood out with a large needle, some medicine and also bandages for various injuries about USD 50,-.

In both cases, medical certificates were issued and my Japanese national insurance paid back about 60 percent, the rest was paid by my travel credit card insurance. I have no insurance in Thailand, I pay with credit card and claim later when back in Japan.

If this hospital is not good enough for your needs and they cannot help - for example in case of lasik eye surgery etc. - contact the Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, this is the largest private hospital in the Pattaya area.
https://www.bangkokpattayahospital.com/en
I think they can do almost everything, except maybe a heart transplant, but medical fees are much higher of course, but services are excellent. We use it sometimes too - but only for their ear, nose and throat specialist.

There is also the private and fairly large Pattaya International Hospital, but I never used it, so I cannot comment on it.
http://www.pih-inter.com/

For locals and foreigners who are short of money, there are some cheap public hospitals in Pattaya City available, but I never used them, while treatment seems to be OK, there are many local people waiting all the time.

Further there are large hospitals in the nearby cities of Sri Ratcha (Red Cross Hospital and others) and the public new hospital in Sattathip.

Beside these hospitals there are also many private medical doctors along the Central Road in Pattaya.
Most of these medical doctors in private clinics had some training overseas, I have no complaints about them.

If you use medical services in Asia, even in expensive places like Japan or Singapore, you will soon realize that doctor fees and pharma products in USA and in other Western countries are seriously overpriced. Just got here in Tokyo a large metal-crown fixed over one of my tooth for USD 150,- and 70 percent are paid by the national insurance, I paid only totally USD 45,-.

About the situation in Thailand in hospitals, privately managed hospitals are all in good condition, very clean.

It is said even by foreigners, that public hospitals are also clean in general in Thailand, but often very primitive - no air condition, very old furniture, crowded with local poor people as medical care is free in Thailand in their place of residence etc., friendly but very young and inexperienced staff with zero knowledge about foreign languages etc. etc.
I cannot really say anything about them, as I never used them.

[Stag]

Thanks for the detailed reply.

The fever you experienced did seem expensive, but the rest is quite cheap. I think for serious medical issues, I will probably catch a flight back to the UK (for free NHS care).

[Yohan]

I stayed 6 nights as in-patient in the hospital, USD 700,- is not expensive, more the opposite.
The fever was very strong and high blood pressure - similar to dengue fever. Also breathing problems, throat swollen.
During the first 2 days I was thinking I will be out soon in a coffin.
I had no contact with plants or insects, animals etc. and also was not into nightlife at that time, it could never be confirmed by laboratory testing what it really was. There were no reports from other hospitals either about patients with similar symptoms.

I doubt very much in case of a serious emergency like in my case if you are still able to return to UK.
I got the high fever and other complications suddenly late evening and missed the flight back to Japan at 6:00 AM the next day.

Medical care if traveling or considering longstay outside of your own place of residence is a major concern which should not be ignored.

For medical care in such countries like Thailand you are best off in the larger cities with many tourists. In rural areas in Thailand medical care is quite limited, and even worse in the neighbouring countries - Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.

Malaysia has also very good medical care in Penang and Kuala Lumpur and is cheaper than Singapore and HongKong.

[Winston]

OP,
I find that hard to believe. Is it easy to get dates in Ireland? Are the girls just polite or are they socially engaging and try to get to know you and agree to go out with you too?

What else is good in Ireland? What about the culture and vibe? Isn't it expensive to live there?

How are Irish compared to English people?