Do you have ambition to live or retire abroad? (28 Viewers)

[Mr. Blue Sky]

This thread has me very intrigued. A stateside move has been on my horizon for a while now but there really isn’t any reason why I can’t broaden that search.

I’m interested in DMing some of you, @Mr. Blue Sky, @bclemms, or any others who don’t mind letting me pick their brain. My ignorance regarding world travel is profound.

Go for it.. right now it’s Monday morning for me after a long holiday break so ill be on zoom calls all day, but ill reply when i can.. the first thing id tell you though is research research research.. youtube vlogs and google, of course.. when i first set foot in Asia last year for the first time in my life, i felt more prepared than people who had vacationed here many times, b/c i researched the hell out of it for a couple of years .

 

[Mr. Blue Sky]

i'm beginning to hate you people

What’s kinda crazy to me is , and i know you are kidding and that you don’t actually hate us (i dont think) but what’s crazy is that this type of life is accessible to you or just about anyone else who’s reading this.. not saying that it doesnt take planning and sacrifice, but the world is so small with technology these days that even if you have a family (and if you dont mind the long haul flights as much as i do) you can pretty much live anywhere you want in 2025…. *especially* specifically for someone like urself who spent so many of your younger years traveling so much, it seems very doable.. but huge DISCLAIMER though, im not really privy to anyone else’s life situation beyond my own….. that said, I honestly just dont understand how any of you people can afford to live in America in 2025.. outside of maybe Superchuck and Efil .. it just seems incredibly unaffordable so if for no other reason, forget the good food and the lack of crime and the lower stress relaxed lifestyle- - just escaping the sky high prices for daily living in the West is reason enough , imo, to relocate abroad .

 

[Mr. Blue Sky]

Just curious. If you lived abroad or had an extended stay (say a couple months minimum), how would health care work? Is it just pay out of pocket stuff? Would a foreigner get coverage?

Those prices bclemms mentioned are crazy. I'm hoping to retire with $8000/month. I could be a king! lol

If you are staying short term, then you can purchase a travel policy or just self insure.. for reference, and I posted this in another thread a few weeks ago- i fell last month playing tennis and busted my ribs .. wanted to make sure they werent broken so i went to a hospital here in Bangkok … upon entering the ER, with no wait on a Sunday around lunchtime, i had a nurse taking my vitals and asking me questions in almost perfect English.. in another 5 minutes, i was meeting with a doctor, an Internist i believe but im not sure, it all happened so fast lol.. he sent me for X-rays and- good news- it was nothing serious, no fracture just a contusion (bruise).. he prescribed a painkiller and a muscle relaxer, and then i went to check out.. at the moment i have no employer health insurance policy, so i am self-insuring.. i wondered if the X-rays would push the cost of the visit up to something more expensive and familiar to me like what id experienced in hospitals back home in America.. i pulled out my credit card, and the cashier told me that my grand total for the ER visit, the consultation with the physician, the X-rays and the meds- came to 3600 baht.. or about $105 US dollars.. i gladly paid it, and it reminded me of one of the major reasons i decided to relocate out here .

All of this in a place that more resembled a Four Seasons than a medical facility


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[Mr. Blue Sky]

But i regress. Please boast about your single life overseas

If you wouldnt mind me asking, if you would just indulge me- what was ur SR handle for the approx 15 yrs or so youve been a member here prior to the signing of one mister Derek Carr ?

 

[Snakehead]

Point taken, and duly noted.. you are probably right, i probably havent eaten great Filipino food… BUT i would counter that even if i hadnt been in Cebu City, and if i had tried awesome Filipino food- i would not want to eat it every day, certainly not two or three meals per day.. just like in Thailand , i dont eat Thai food every day.. and that’s the difference; here in Thailand, anywhere i go i can find a great variety- Mexican , Italian, burgers, healthy, unhealthy, whatever whatever.. in the Philippines, every burger i had tasted like arse, every type of food imaginable that I tried was terrible- which is why i may have mentioend that I wound up eating every meal from a TGI Fridays and an S&R (Costco) pizza counter .

The big thing in the Philippines now is the Korean BBQ places. They are everywhere in the Angeles City area. When we were in the Philippines for January 2024, we are at 3-4 different ones. All you can eat Korea BBQ for less that $10 is awesome.

 

[baarbogast]

I don’t live in Austin anymore.

I could do London if the weather was different. Cold & gray is not for me. Maybe climate change will make it more appealing place to live

Been to London twice for 2 weeks each time. I don’t recall it raining, if it did it was short quick shower.

 

[Semper]

Can’t remember what thread it was, but at least 3-4 posters related stories of visiting a euro city and needing a doctor and it being a much easier process than they’d gone through her

otoh I had a student on an Italy tour who caught a stomach bug and she and her mom described the process as a nightmare

And I should add that with all my love of Italy, it’s probably the last place I’d want to get Hospital sick in

The posters were obviously wearing saints memorabilia and the doctor was a Saints fan.

The student was prolly ugly and not up to Italian standards. I believe Italy has an unattractive clause in their code.

 

[Sailorsaint]

I believe Italy has an unattractive clause in their code.

Good to know……crosses Italy off the list…..

 

[sfidc3]

I personally thought Italy was an armpit. I found some decent food for sure but I didn’t find anything overly “OMG” about it.

Greece…. Amazing loved it. Same with Israel.

I mean, every country has their "armpits" and if you are more a country or coast person (I am), then it's probably a large city.....

Though I even like the large cities some, Florence was my least favorite stop but I still enjoyed the sights, history and food.....Venice was cool, but I don't have a burning desire to go back....

Suggest visiting the western coastal area, we stayed in Santa Margharita (near Portofina and about an hour train ride to Cinque Terra), boat tours are a good way to see the coast and for about $90 a person (including wine and food) are a bargain, they typically last 2 hours or more....some of the most beautiful coastline I've ever seen....

 

[zeetes]

i'm beginning to hate you people

i've been waiting a long time for this

 

[rail]

I want to soooo bad.

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

Is this thread what they mean by White Privilege? Asking for a friend....

White privilege is not having to confront the irony of making white privilege jokes

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

What’s kinda crazy to me is , and i know you are kidding and that you don’t actually hate us (i dont think) but what’s crazy is that this type of life is accessible to you or just about anyone else who’s reading this.. not saying that it doesnt take planning and sacrifice, but the world is so small with technology these days that even if you have a family (and if you dont mind the long haul flights as much as i do) you can pretty much live anywhere you want in 2025…. *especially* specifically for someone like urself who spent so many of your younger years traveling so much, it seems very doable.. but huge DISCLAIMER though, im not really privy to anyone else’s life situation beyond my own….. that said, I honestly just dont understand how any of you people can afford to live in America in 2025.. outside of maybe Superchuck and Efil .. it just seems incredibly unaffordable so if for no other reason, forget the good food and the lack of crime and the lower stress relaxed lifestyle- - just escaping the sky high prices for daily living in the West is reason enough , imo, to relocate abroad .

..........in theory
my job is still very much face to face and I just can't imagine a school/company in Thailand or Vietnam getting all giggly about a well passed his prime experimental dance and theatre teacher
plus since my oldest seems to be riding this Musical Theater train - and most of those job offerings will be stateside, I just don't see expatriation is in my cards atm
my youngest is a bit obsessed by Japan, so that might be an easier sell, but...

 

[Mr. Blue Sky]

..........in theory
my job is still very much face to face and I just can't imagine a school/company in Thailand or Vietnam getting all giggly about a well passed his prime experimental dance and theatre teacher
plus since my oldest seems to be riding this Musical Theater train - and most of those job offerings will be stateside, I just don't see expatriation is in my cards atm
my youngest is a bit obsessed by Japan, so that might be an easier sell, but...

I get it.. and i agree with you, which is why i typed my disclaimer in capital letters.. every situation is different, and each person’s scenario is unique.. end of the day, i think one has to get so fed up that they are willing to make a drastic change like going overseas, or else it probably wont happen.. i was at a breaking point, tired of paying extortionate American prices for basic s***…. instead of thinking ‘gee i would like to make a big change, let me figure out how’- it became ‘ok this HAS to happen for my mental health and everything else- let me assume im doing this, then work backwards from there in terms of how to do it’…. It seems trivial, but that mindset shift, to me, made a world of difference .

 

[baarbogast]

The posters were obviously wearing saints memorabilia and the doctor was a Saints fan.

The student was prolly ugly and not up to Italian standards. I believe Italy has an unattractive clause in their code.

What if you are pretty ugly?