Could you live in rural Isaan?
Not Udon Thani, Not Khon Kaen, rural, out in no where, Isaan?
Away from any city or civilized town?
Where I live, the nearest town with stores is 38 km away. It is an easy country drive, void of any traffic, so getting to town is a nice ride and change of pace. The closest town has a Tesco, KFC and Pizza Company should you craze western food!
Having a western style house, running water, air-con, etc. (build is very cheap cost in rural Isaan), land, and a swimming pool and outdoor entertainment area provides everything we need.
Isaan is a very peaceful place with hard working and dedicated neighbors who will help at the drop of a hat.
If you enjoy peace and quiet, this is a very nice life to settle into. (You can always get in your car and travel if you feel like it).
People argue that there is not much to do in Isaan and that is very true. However, you can have a garden, fruit trees and animals on your land. There is always something to keep you busy. Most people are quite hospitable and interested in foreigners, however most will not understand a word of English.
Rural Isaan does not have many of the issues found in tourist areas.
Police are rare to see, and maybe you never would see any unless you were on a major highway. The police know the villagers have NO money!
There are no bars or night clubs.
There are no restaurants.
Some locals may set up a noodle shop outside their house but that is about it for choices.
Folks still cook on fire pots.
Although my husband and I do go to Tesco once in a while to get things he wants, most of our shopping is done in the town’s outdoor market.
Vendors setup at midnight and are usually sold out by 8:00 AM. Prices are the lowest you will find and the produce, fruits and other things sold are wonderfully fresh.
This, for us, usually involves a trip in the middle of the night, which is actually quite fun. We can stock up on fresh goods for the entire week or longer.
It is very easy to get help in Isaan and it seems you can always find someone to fix what ever needs fixing very cheap.
There is no city water, so sewer system and a water well is required. The cost of that is very cheap.
We have a 80m deep well that the water is very clean and refreshing.
There is a local rural medical clinic, however, for a major hospital we are looking at 60+km to get there. There is no 911 emergency service to save you.
We have a family that does local carwashes, inside and out for less than US $5.00
The chances of seeing or meeting other foreigners is zero. However, in some neighboring towns you may see a couple if there is a weekend market going on.
The streets do actually roll up at dark. When it gets dark, it is as quiet as a mouse.
Many folks here are laborers in the fields and they get up at 05:00 AM to start their day.
It might be a good thing, because at dusk the mosquitoes are quite bad in most rural houses that cannot afford to spray for them.
This is a typical house for a family of 6 that you will find in my area. Most parents have little to no education and can only earn 300 baht a day when there is manual labor cutting rice or sugar cane.
A foreign person that lives in rural Isaan has that stigma of having a lot of money, whether they do or not. Just owning a car is a big deal.
It is best to be very humble and generous if you can. We do our best to help out as much as we can.
Many of the families are really dirt poor and do not have running water, appliances or furniture. They will sleep on a hard concrete floor on a straw mat. Kids will never have even 10 baht in their pocket.
Some may have relatives working in the cities or tourist areas sending money each month to help them survive.
If you do not believe folks here are poor, trying eating this and feeling extremely lucky you caught some to eat!
There are many families to do not earn enough to buy a car. This is a common site.
Rural Isaan is the same way it was 30 years ago. Not much has advanced and maybe it never will. It is a tough life and younger teens are feeling the desperation of growing up with nothing. It is very sad and one has to be aware of this.
Sometimes, 10, 20, or even 100 baht can make a world of difference for these kids. If you cannot be accepting of some kind of generosity as a foreigner, it is probably not the place for you.
This is rural Isaan. This is where I am from. I am very, very lucky to have an understanding husband that can share this life with me. There is nothing glamorous or exciting, it is just simple living amongst simple people. It is peace and quiet. It is nature. It is home!
