I’ve been reading a lot of Thailand forums recently and noticed that there is something of a trend in the kind of topics people post. The first post comes from the guy who went to Thailand, fell in love with the place and now wants to relocate. His primary concern is work, so he inquires about two things: bar work and teaching.

It’s odd that teaching in Thailand is often given the same prestige as bar work. We expats are a curious bunch. I would advise against anyone going to Thailand with the intention of finding bar work. It is possible, but only if you are lucky enough to find work as a bar manager in a high-end place or as a cocktail waiter in somewhere similarly swanky. There is almost no bar work for foreigners in Thailand.

Once bar work has been ruled out, Jonny Foreigner will usually start asking questions about teaching. It’s always amusing to look at the number of spelling and grammar mistakes these potential teachers make when writing posts about how to go about finding work teaching English.

The second recurring thread is about hotels and where to stay in Thailand. If the thread is about Bangkok, I always recommend Suk 11 on Sukhumvit 11. It’s close to the BTS, the rooms are only about 400 baht a night and they have aircon. It’s a bit of a maze in there, but it does have a certain charm. In terms of hotels in Phuket, I haven’t stayed in many, but one that stands out is Phuket 346, which only has three rooms, but it is a very cool guesthouse.