No one has mentioned it, so I'll say that one of the things that I found most pleasant about Thailand was the religious aspect of it. I'm more of an atheist, but spending time in a primarily Buddhist country has a very different feel from a primarily Catholic or Muslim country.
Also:
- There are still cost differences between Latin America and Thailand.
- The weather is awesome. Wearing shorts and short sleeves 24/7/365 is great.
- I love Thai food and it's easier to eat vegetarian there than in Latin America.
- There's no expectation that foreigners need to learn Thai. Beyond 'hello' and 'thank you' they basically expect to be speaking English (or Chinese).
- I've always liked hanging out with Australians and New Zealanders and there's a lot of them in Thailand.
- The internet is much better. Not only than Latin America, but also better than I get in the US.
On the negative side, foreigners are looked at as sources of money and not everyone is good at pretending they're interested in something else. It's very easy to feel dehumanized and that you're only interesting to them because you have money. Also, while many people are listing girls as a positive, in Bangkok the assumptions they make about white men made it hard for me to be there. It gets depressing to be offered sex that often. Considering you get all benefits of Thailand in other locations as well, I strongly recommend potential expats consider Thai destinations other than Bangkok.
Also:
- There are still cost differences between Latin America and Thailand.
- The weather is awesome. Wearing shorts and short sleeves 24/7/365 is great.
- I love Thai food and it's easier to eat vegetarian there than in Latin America.
- There's no expectation that foreigners need to learn Thai. Beyond 'hello' and 'thank you' they basically expect to be speaking English (or Chinese).
- I've always liked hanging out with Australians and New Zealanders and there's a lot of them in Thailand.
- The internet is much better. Not only than Latin America, but also better than I get in the US.
On the negative side, foreigners are looked at as sources of money and not everyone is good at pretending they're interested in something else. It's very easy to feel dehumanized and that you're only interesting to them because you have money. Also, while many people are listing girls as a positive, in Bangkok the assumptions they make about white men made it hard for me to be there. It gets depressing to be offered sex that often. Considering you get all benefits of Thailand in other locations as well, I strongly recommend potential expats consider Thai destinations other than Bangkok.