Why Do Expats Leave Thailand? [Season 3, Episode 70]

Greg and Ed address an important but tricky question: Why do expats leave Thailand? How do you know when the right time to leave is? The boys ponder the various reasons why to find out what’s more common - work or family issues, personal problems with fitting in, or more Thai-centric problems such as just plain growing tired of Bangkok, Thai culture, or the confusing politics. Greg recounts several expat families who have left due to the expense of international schools for their kids, while Ed points out that that certain expats seem on a very specific timetable due to the length of a posting, either at a private company or NGO. And as evidenced in our two-part expat women dating show, many foreign women leave due to lack of dating opportunities. 

Then Ed runs through some specific cases of his friends: one left due to a relationship ending, another due to visa issues, but a third did leave after being harassed by Thai cops and getting frustrated with the Thai political situation. All in all, it does seem that most people seem to leave over work related or personal issues, rather than problems with Thai society itself. 

To conclude, the boys offer some advice to expats who are bored with Bangkok but have a choice over when to leave: check out another city in Thailand such as Chiang Mai or consider another city in Southeast Asia such as Kuala Lumpur or Phnom Penh. Just because you are tired of Bangkok doesn’t mean the adventure has to end!

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