Falangs Invade Udon Thani

[rick]

I have noticed the increase in just 2 years. I think of myself as one of the 'new breed' of older falang who due to the internet, can learn a lot about Thailand before ever setting foot here. As a result, we are able to short circuit the Pattaya WBU as we realise it is not really for us and come straight to Isaan. Sorry old timers, as has been said, the baby boomers are on their way. I can only suggest we start posting stories of how awful it is here to cut down the flow!

[Shado]

The internet has changed everything. As long as there are farangs looking to retire soon (lots of baby boomers) and Thai dating websites to provide a nearly endless supply of young(er) Isaan lovelies, the influx will continue. I really don't see the farang traffic to Udon slowing down in the near future. Many farangs planning the move have based their projections on current exchange rates, local prices and current housing costs. If the numbers add up in their favor, they will be on their way. The long distance relationships will come to fruition thanks to the internet and cell phones.

[part-timer]

Any idea how many Falangs live in Udon Thani?

[jorg]

Don't know how recent the information on this website is, but according to them it is 7.000.

Udon Thani is a city in Isan, north-east Thailand. It has a population of 142,670, including an estimated 7,000 foreigners.

[rickfarang]

Thats about half a percent, presumably not counting the tourists and transients.

Think about it: 1 out of 200! Could this be correct?

[jackspratt]

Sounds more like 5% to me rick ie 1 in 20.

[rickfarang]

Hey! You're right.

1 in 20 is beyond belief.

[Shado]

The Udon Thani (city) population of 142,670 seems to be a bit conservative. I've seen several sources cite a population exceeding 200,000. Several times over the past couple of years I've searched for solid population numbers and some of the results (estimates) varied by nearly 100,000 people. So, I think it is difficult number to get a handle on. As a percentage of the population I'm guessing that 5% or less are farangs, but I've really never seen any hard data to back that up. For sure, it appears to be increasing weekly.

[BobHelm]

The 142 thousand figure appears to be missing a zero.
The correct figure in the year 2000 would appear to be 1.42 Million. This, of course is the figure for the Province & not just the town. The figures (plus a few more about the population age/sex etc.) come from here...
http://www.unescap.org/esid/psis/popula ... ni.htm#pt2
The stats also say that 27.2% live in "Municpal Area" - which I am guessing is Udon itself....so a third of 1.4M makes approx. 400,000 inhabitants....

[KHONDAHM]

Any idea how many Falangs live in Udon Thani?

My guesstimate based on observation while roaming around is that the falang population is about 2-3%. I have no good basis for estimating what that number works out to be.

[Laan Yaa Mo]

<> I hope no-one is going to Nakhon Phanom.

Too late

http://www.udonmap.com/udonthaniforum/v ... 48#p215248

<> I was lucky," says Olsson sitting in the sala outside his house between Nakhon Phanom and Sakhon Nakhon. <>

Well, thanks a lot for that information Jorg, it does put a damper on the enthusiasm somewhat.

Well, I hope Phu Kra Deum is still open for business.

............................................................................................................................................

I think the influx of those from Europe and America will decline as the value of their currency declines. There are many here that appear to be struggling already to qualify for their visa's at the current exchange rate, especially those on marriage visa's .I am sorry but coupled with the inflation we are also experiencing ,it is not viable to expect to raise a family on 1,500$ pensions per month much longer .On the other hand . The Chinese currency is improving along with a better living standard at home, which will give increased spending power to them. Making them more attractive as suitors to the younger Thai ladies. This coupled with their better understanding of the Asian mind set will increase their desirability to the detriment of us poor , "you don't understand me" farangs .

Maybe, True Brit, maybe. On the other hand, I remember when I was courting my former wife in a village outside Chiang Mai and noted that every Sunday various suitors showed up and they were not just there for her four sisters. One was army soldier from a nearby village. This one was no threat. However, the well-dressed Sino-Chinese millionaire posed more of a challenge. But she said no because Thai women fear the Chinese mother-in-law, and the Sino-Chinese exploited the Thai farmers unmercifully. This village was one of centres for the Thai Peasant's Federation back in the '70s. Close to 30 of their leaders were assassinated at the instigation of Sino-Thais from outside the Chiang Mai area.

The Sino-Chinese exploited the villagers in any number of ways, and villagers resented it. Well, times change and not all Sino-Chinese are nasty and exploitative, and many Thai women do marry Sino-Thais.

I am sure Chinese coming to Thailand will see opportunity when they view Thai women. But, some of them lack social skills and graces that may not make up for their wads of dough. For instance, some of the Chinese women in my classes like to make fun of the 'Shanghai boy'. These are very rich young men, but the girls say they are all flash and no substance. They have been spoiled by their parents and emotionally act as if they are 10-12 years old. So, there may be hope for the lonely farang yet so long as he can keep up with the rising cost of living. Maybe there will be a mass exodus of farangs to Cambodia!!! 55555

............................................................................................................................................

Khon Dahm, I doubt your guesstimate will do any good if you have just been roaming around in a tuk-tuk on the outskirts of Pattaya. Even it that survey was applied to Udonthani, it must be fatally flawed since there is no self-admitted basis for the number have. You must be one of those guys who adapts the principles and research tools he sees on your beloved Fox News. 55555

..............................................................................................................................................

[UdonExpat]

Farangs are relatively insignificant in their numbers. An estimated 7,000 in the changwat (province) out of a population of over 1,500,000. ( http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x ... &geo=-3503 )

We make up about .47% of the population here. A definite minority. The significant presences are Thai, Chinese, and Vietnamese who are mostly also Thai citizens as they have been here for generations. Our presence is still tentative and those with children have mostly young children, although a few guys have adult kids as they have been here a long time.

Our financial significance is greater as we are wealthier than the average resident of Udon Thani, but I see great advancements in the overall wealth of the general population. I also see many more wealthy people. The number of cars on the roads have mutiplied by at least 5 times compared to 8 years ago.

I don't think our presence can be realistically called an invasion, but there has certainly been a visible increase in farangs since I first arrived in 2002. Then farangs who didn't know each other would often stop to converse when we saw each other at the complex or Lotus. People would come up to me just to touch me.

I'm glad to see more of us here. Now we aren't such a novelty. But then again, familiarity can breed contempt, and I see some signs of that that I didn't see before.

My nieces are more interested in Korean men than Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, or Japanese. Farangs aren't really viable in their eyes because the ones who come here are too old. Of course this is all fantasy on their part.

[KHONDAHM]

Tilo, *sigh*. That's all.

[Laan Yaa Mo]

555555

Hey, not all is lost, you got the vote for medical reform. That must count for something. 55555

[trubrit]

Well Tilo. Yes there are many historical reasons why in the past Thai ladies tended to avoid the rich Chinese merchants. I am afraid history doesn't seem to play a part in the modern young ladies thinking ,take my own experience for example . When I first came here 30 years ago I had the pleasure to escort a well known TV actress out to dinner . When we crossed the lobby of the hotel we passed a Thai man sitting there. He mumbled something , unintelligible to me, but which my companion obviously understood, as she took off her shoe and put it in his face .Yes even as recently as 30 years it just wasn't acceptable for even a very respectable Thai lady to be seen with a farang, not even in a high class hotel foyer .
Now look at today .History and accepted customs have been washed away by the present generation .
I particularly liked the following two comments you made on Chinese men.
"quote"Some Chinese men lack the social skills and graces that may not make up for their wads of dough" and
"quote"Shanghai boy is all flash and no substance, emotionally acting like 10-12 year olds .
You could of course equally be describing many of the present day farang around town . It doesn't seem to have deterred many of the Thai ladies though .
I think Udon Expat has hit the nail on the head re'; Korean men .Just in my village, in the past year. Five girls have married them and gone to live in their country. I am told not difficult to get them visa's. I am also aware of others actively seeking Korean men on the inter net .Move over Farang

[jackspratt]

Not surprising about S Korea, when you consider the following:

.......... South Korea’s sex ratio rose from just above normal to 117 in 1990—then the highest in the world—before falling back to more natural levels. Both these countries [Taiwan] were already rich, growing quickly and becoming more highly educated even while the balance between the sexes was swinging sharply towards males.

South Korea is experiencing some surprising consequences. The surplus of bachelors in a rich country has sucked in brides from abroad. In 2008, 11% of marriages were “mixed”, mostly between a Korean man and a foreign woman. This is causing tensions in a hitherto homogenous society, which is often hostile to the children of mixed marriages. The trend is especially marked in rural areas, where the government thinks half the children of farm households will be mixed by 2020. The children are common enough to have produced a new word: “Kosians”, or Korean-Asians.

http://www.economist.com/world/internat ... d=15636231

[trubrit]

Thanks for that link Jack. Interesting reading. I particularly liked the term Kosians for mixed children. Sounds a lot better the the Thai "lookhun"

[Shado]

Just guessing, but it seems doubtful the Chinese/Korean connection will have much impact on the "invasion" of Udon Thani. Just the opposite, it appears, with Thai women leaving to go live abroad. Don't think that will dilute the availability pool very much however, at least for the short term.

[trubrit]

Just guessing, but it seems doubtful the Chinese/Korean connection will have much impact on the "invasion" of Udon Thani. Just the opposite, it appears, with Thai women leaving to go live abroad. Don't think that will dilute the availability pool very much however, at least for the short term.

Yes it does appear that most girls with Korean boyfriends are eventually planning to go and live in their country .The reasons for this are many but I think the most obvious is the age of the Korean suitor is considerably younger than the average farang. Normally in the early thirties which means he is still working and commanding a good income. it is apparently easy to take the Thai girl there . She can legitimately work, therefore able to send money home. He doesn't have any worries about exchange rates or getting a Thai visa .
It may not make much impact on the availability pool, but it will certainly change it. The younger , more attractive will no longer have to put up with us wrinklies, as one 20 year old , blushingly told my wife . So we will be left with the older woman with possibly a couple of kids that no one else wants .Now I am not saying that is necessarily a bad thing. In fact it might keep some from going bananas and losing their all to a kid young enough to be their grand daughter .So things are definitely changing, although I don't expect to see an influx of Korean faces about town .

[wazza]

Im still grinning on Trubrit doing the walk of shame with a movie star.