This Sunday evening I will make my way to Toronto Pearson International Airport and board Cathay Pacific flight 826. This will be my 27 winter in Thailand. I normally leave during the first week of November ,but anoher massive renovation of one of my rental unit has delayed me. It will continue in my absence and I will attend to the finishing details when I return to Toronto at the end of March.
Why Thailand , you might ask of all the sunny spots on the planet. It is not called ,”The Land of Smiles “ for nothing. It’s the service industry. A lovely clean room with balcony will set you back $300.00 a month , a two hour divine Thai massage is $12.00, A facial is $12.00 , an organic vegetarian meal is from $3.00 to $6.00 at most. This is in Canadian peso’s my American friends tease me.
It’s extremely safe. In all my 27 winters I have yet to encounter an unplesant incident. I know many retired woman ove 60 who walk or cycle about after midnight. I must say that this is in Chiang Mai, Thailand ,Thailand second biggest city situated in the Mountains where it is 28C by 10 a.m. every day of the year. The summers are hot ,but very pleasant after a heavy rainfall. The ideal weather usually begins in mid October and finishes in the latter part of March.
No place is perfect and in the end it all depends what you are seeking . For me, I enjoy spending time with an ex pat community who are into healthy living and also those who are not so into it ,but are fascinating freinds to hang out with. I go to the Sunday morning organic market where there are hundrds of Thai and foreigners milling about choosing wonderful healthy food for the upcoming week. I meet up with a core of folks ,mostly Americans who frequent the venue every Sunday.
My budget is about $1000.0 a month ,but I rarely spend all my budget.
