Pattaya Can Break Any Man If You Are Not Careful

I wanted to share my story and my experience in Pattaya and how that amazing city can break a man.

My story is a little different from the rest that are normally submitted on this channel but I think its interesting and shows the effect that the Thailand lifestyle can have on people.

I have been traveling to Thailand for quite a few years, mainly to Pattaya but I have checked out some other places a long the way.

I always end up in Pattaya at some point on my trip, I don’t think I really need to explain the reason why.

While visiting Pattaya many times over the years, I have met so many Westerners on my travels.

You really do meet all sorts of people there: simple backpackers that have just heard all the buzz about the city, those that are there mainly for the nightlife and dating scene, those that are completely fake and can’t believe a word they say, and finally those that become friends for life.

I always travel solo, and I’ve never ended my travels without meeting people as I really enjoy talking to new people in the bars that are also out there solo.

You are never really alone when you go to Pattaya, even if you travel there solo.

Meeting Mike, The Low Life In Pattaya

During one specific trip to Pattaya, I was out and about doing the normal bar hopping stuff, and I ended up meeting a guy named Mike that had recently moved to the city permanently.

He was also a Brit, in his early 50’s that has been in Thailand for a few years but had only just settled in Pattaya.

He told me that he used to stay in Bangkok with his then girlfriend, and would spend a week on his own in Pattaya every other month just as a getaway.

He said he liked Bangkok, but would get bored of the place and doing the same thing over and over with his girlfriend, so Pattaya was his escape.

He became addicted to the Pattaya lifestyle, he told me that it was nothing like Bangkok when it comes to the nightlife.

Even though he wanted to make Thailand his permanent home, he was only on a tourist visa at this time, so would have to do border runs and fly out and re-enter.

Things changed on one of his getaways to Pattaya. He ended up getting friendly with what he said was a fantastic girl.

Falling For Someone In Pattaya Can Be Risky

One thing led to another, they spent time together and then Mike went back to Bangkok to his girlfriend.

Still keeping in touch with the girl from Pattaya, they talked about a potential future together and how they could make this work.

This was enough for Mike to pack his bags, end things with his Bangkok girlfriend and make the move to Pattaya.

He was only in Pattaya for around a month before him and his new girlfriend opened a small bar. Yes, everything in her name.

Now we all know and heard about what can happen when you rent property, buy land, or anything else when it’s put in your Thai girlfriend’s name.

It seems that he had this dream and fantasy that opening a bar would be a great source of income for him and his girlfriend to live comfortably in Thailand.

Opening A Pattaya Bar In Your Thai Girlfriend’s Name

He told me that he enjoyed that life in Pattaya, managing a bar albeit illegally having a relationship and being able to stay there full time.

However, he did not realize that the area the bar was opened in wouldn’t pull in many customers.

The bar did not do well financially, and the little money that it did make, his girlfriend would put it all back into upgrading an already failing bar.

Not only this, but any money that was left over would be sent to his girlfriend’s family in Isan to support them.

While he was telling me all his story, he went into detail but I can’t remember a lot of it, though from the start I kind of gathered where it was heading.

As time went on, he realized he had made a mistake financially, and would have been better off staying in Bangkok.

Mike was running out of money, and with the job of managing a bar and supporting his girlfriend’s family, it caused a lot of stress on his part.

After a year of running the bar, it was no longer profitable and they were losing money rather than making it. He realized that he couldn’t keep up with this venture much longer.

Dating In Pattaya Can Be Complicated

His girlfriend was not helping out much. All she really cared about was having money to send home to her family every week. Other than that, she did not really care about Mike’s situation.

Because she showed no interest in the situation that they were both in and failed to realize that the money wasn’t going to last forever and was running out fast, Mike decided to step back from it all.

He took his chances, spoke to his girlfriend about selling the bar and going their separate ways.

She agreed but refused to give Mike anything, stating that everything is registered in her name and that he is not entitled to any of it.

Which I guess is true. Even though it’s a scummy thing to do, she knew full well what she was doing when they opened the bar.

I personally believe this would have been her plan from the start, but I’m a very paranoid guy and question everything.

Mike did tell me that he thought about taking her to court over it but because he was working there illegally, still technically a tourist, her being Thai, and everything in her name, he thought it would be a waste of time and did not really have a leg to stand on.

With the realization that he had nothing to stay in Pattaya for, he went back to Bangkok with the hopes of explaining to his ex-girlfriend what an idiot he has been and begged for a second chance.

She was having none of it and had already moved on as it had been over a year since she even heard from him.

I can’t blame her either. She would have been a fool to take him back after he walked out on her so easily.

He stayed in Bangkok for a couple of weeks, living off what money he had left, but soon found himself back in Pattaya.

Pattaya has that aura about it. Once you get bitten by the Pattaya bug, it’s hard to leave and stay away.

The city is not for everyone, but for people that enjoy that life like me, Mike, and a million other expats, it’s the dream city.

When I first met Mike, he seemed like such a nice and genuine guy. Even though he had been put through a lot, he always seemed to be in a good mood, often making everyone else laugh and easily made friends with other expats.

He would always look out for me, showing me new bars in the city, introducing me to new people, and all in all a top-class guy.

I actually became quite close to Mike. We would go out drinking together, eat, and just hang out.

As I got to know him better, he told me more about the financial situation that he was in.

A Lot Of People In Pattaya Have No Money

Although he was living the life in Pattaya, hopping bar to bar, and seemed to be doing OK, he told me that he was running extremely low on funds and would soon be broke.

He hated the thought of returning back to the UK and starting fresh again, especially since he has been in Thailand so long and did not want to leave Pattaya.

I could tell by the look on his face that he was worried and really did not know what to do.

He went from this hyperactive funny man when I first met him, to this lost-looking soul.

He told me that he was expecting a big payout of inheritance that he hoped would come through soon, so he just had to wait it out and hope he could survive for the time being.

Even with the dire situation that he found himself in, he still went to the bars, met women, and spent money like it was nothing, which confused me.

If I was in that situation, the last thing I would be doing is going to the bars and buying drinks for women in the bars. That soon puts a dent in the wallet.

And this was not just a once-a-week thing. I would pretty much get a text from him every day to see if I wanted to go out to the bars or hit up Walking Street.

Sometimes I would buy him drinks because he ran out of money, but I would never lend him any money.

Eventually, I would ignore most of his texts and start only going out with him a couple of nights a week.

It’s not that I did not like the guy, but I’m not on holiday to pay for another foreigner to have a good time.

My money is for me to have a good time, spend it enjoying the nightlife and social scene.

Do Not Forget About Your Health While Living In Pattaya

Although I liked Mike and thought he was a really nice guy inside and out, he was extremely unhealthy and overweight.

I did not really mind the unhealthy stuff I got up to because it was a holiday for me. I would get back into a routine once I got back home.

But for someone living in Pattaya, I think he should have started to focus on his health a bit more maybe go out once a week, work out, eat healthy, stuff like that.

I don’t want to be too judgmental of people; it’s just my opinion.

And I guess it’s easier said than done to stay home working out rather than going out in Pattaya when there are girls and bars everywhere.

On my last night in Pattaya, I went out with Mike but ended up leaving early with someone I met and went home pretty early for my flight the next day.

I told him it was nice meeting him and maybe see him again on my next trip, even though I did not think he would make it to my next trip.

I went back to the UK and carried on with my life. I kept in touch with Mike for a bit but like us guys, we have better things to do than keep in touch with people we meet on holiday, so the communication kind of just stopped.

After around 7 months, I got ready for another trip and of course I went straight back to Pattaya after landing in Bangkok.

I went to the local bar that I would go to on every trip and met some of the guys I had met previously, caught up with them, and had a good first night.

A couple of nights after, Mike came into the bar. I hadn’t tried to reach out to him so he did not know I was there, which was a nice meeting.

We got chatting over a few beers and I asked him how he’s doing financially, if his situation has improved, and basically asked him how life has been treating him.

Working Illegally In Thailand Is Not The Smartest Move

He told me he got a job managing a bar in Pattaya, but it was cash-in-hand pay and obviously illegal as he’s not allowed to be working in Thailand.

The inheritance money still hadn’t come through, so he was living off the small money he got paid for this job.

He told me he gets free food and gets to drink for free at the bar, so he was happy to be doing it, even though the pay was small, it had its perks.

He also mentioned that he has a new girlfriend that would often come to the bars with him and even to his work and join him for drinks.

It was clear to me that Mike was now a fully fledged alcoholic and did not care about his health in the slightest.

I met his new girlfriend one night, and she seemed like a nice girl but I could see that she loved a drink, keeping up with Mike’s heavy drinking.

She told me that she met Mike after he visited the bar where she worked and they started spending time together and they just ended up staying together.

If that is not a big red flag, then I don’t know what is.

Watch Out For Farangs Asking To Borrow Money In Thailand

I later learnt from other expats that I am friends with that Mike had been asking and borrowing money from them, and even some of the locals.

I was actually waiting for him to ask if I could borrow him some money. Surprisingly, he never did. I think he knows I wouldn’t have.

I went to see Mike and the bar that he worked at a few nights, and one night he told me that he is thinking about opening another bar and giving it a shot again.

He seemed more confident this time having opened a bar before with no experience, to working as a bar manager, he believed this time he could pull it off.

He claimed that all the expat friends he had would make it their local, his girlfriend would help get girls to the bar, and it would be in a better location.

To me, it was just another fantasy of his, and I told him he should think long and hard about trying it again after what happened last time.

Opening A Bar In Pattaya Is A Recipe For Disaster

However, a few weeks later, he did indeed go ahead with his plan and opened a bar with his girlfriend.

Everything again in her name.

Mike is a lot older than me. I did not want to put him down or talk him out of it; it was his life after all.

I attended the opening night of his bar, and it was actually a pretty good and successful night.

All our friends turned up, lots of girls, and everyone seemed to have a good time.

Even owners of other bars stopped by to wish them luck and rang the bell.

What seemed like a successful future at the bar, it all came to an end quite quickly.

I went to the bar the second night after the grand opening and there were literally 3 customers all night. It seems like people only came to wish luck and never planned on returning.

Even though I knew it was a stupid idea for Mike to open another bar and it’s his own fault, I couldn’t help but feel extremely sorry for him.

In his eyes, this was a way to pay off all the debt and get back on track with his finances. Looks like it’s just another money pit for him to throw money down.

Bar Number 2 Is A Complete Failure

Now he is left with his second struggling bar that is in his girlfriend’s name. I don’t think things can get much worse than that.

When I would go out, I would drop by his bar on the odd occasion just to have a beer or two.

I have never seen a bunch of girls look so bored at a bar. Half of them just looked like they wanted to sleep; there were zero customers.

It became harder and harder to actually talk to Mike. He was always very drunk by the time I would get to the bar, and he would be shouting orders at the girls, making them dance even though there were no customers apart from me.

I would buy the girls drinks, not because I liked them, just because they all looked bored out of their heads.

It was clear that this bar was not working and Mike was just drinking away his disappointment.

Remember when I said that things couldn’t get any worse? Well, listen to what happened next.

One particular night, I went into his bar again and of course Mike was drunk, but this time he wasn’t an angry or happy drunk; he was actually sad.

I asked him what was up, and what he said to me kind of shocked me.

He replied that a customer was walking past the bar while Mike’s girlfriend was outside trying to get customers in.

The guy that was walking by asked if he could take her Mike’s girlfriend to which she accepted, and he paid the bar fine so she could leave work early.

When I said to him, “Why is your girlfriend going with customers?” He said that he was almost broke and they desperately needed the money, so they had to do what they could to make ends meet.

Mike Is Unhealthy, Broke, and Hitting Rock Bottom

He looked like he had aged 20 years in the 6 months I had been gone. He looked dirty, smelled horrible, and he was relying on friends and of course me to buy him drinks.

More often than not, someone would feel sorry for him and buy him a drink or two.

The friends in the bar were heading out for some bar hopping but Mike said he would be staying at the bar. I decided to stay with Mike so I could ask him about what has happened.

He told me that yet again the bar made no profits and was just becoming a money pit.

He said that he argued with the girls, and then one of their boyfriends came down to the bar and threatened him, which gave him a bit of a scare.

After that, all the girls eventually left as they were making no money either, and he couldn’t find anyone to replace them or afford anyone.

He finally came to the conclusion that it would be best to walk away from the bar at a loss, even though he did not have anything else to fall back on.

I told him straight: “Why don’t you just go back home and figure out a plan? Go back to work, save money, and come back.”

My advice fell on deaf ears. He was adamant that he is not going to return to the UK, stating that Pattaya is his home even if he is struggling to get by.

To top it all off, he was now on overstay, which is a big problem in Thailand.

His visa had completely expired because he could not afford to do a border run or fly out of the country and back in.

But to be honest, him getting deported from Thailand would have been the best thing for him at the time.

Things were extremely bad for Mike.

He had gone from this lovable, funny, and friendly character when I first met him, to this sad, old guy that nobody wants to be around.

Not only that, I had heard from other expats that he had dealt with Thai loan sharks and they were looking to get their money back.

Don’t Borrow Money From Thais If You Can’t Pay Back

After hearing that he might be in trouble with some bad people, I wanted to distance myself a little from him. I did not want to be dragged into any mess that he has created.

Much to my surprise, Mike and his girlfriend were still together, though she was exactly like Mike, getting other people to buy her drinks.

Even though they had no money between them, they would still be drinking heavily every day as if everything was fine.

It really was a sad situation to see them both in. They looked terrible.

The only money they had coming in was from his girlfriend socializing with customers from the bars and receiving small tips.

Mike knew about this, and even encouraged it.

The overall situation was truly dire.

On this trip, I did try to help Mike out a bit by buying him a few beers when we were together, but I told him I can’t lend him any money because I’ll be leaving and can’t get it back.

I used this as an excuse. The truth is, even though I liked Mike and wanted to help him out, I knew that I would never see that money again if I did lend him any.

The only thing I offered him was the advice about going back to the UK and starting fresh.

I told him to go back and work for 6 months and then come back and try again in Pattaya.

Though with him being on overstay, and not sure how long, I don’t know if he would be blacklisted from entering the country again.

He just looked terrified at the thought of moving back to the UK.

I mean, for me, Thailand is way better than the UK and I would love to live in Thailand, but if I was in the same situation as Mike, I would 100% go home.

Thailand Is Fun But Without Money, It’s Just Stress

He had become fixated on having a life here in Thailand and had a fantasy of setting up here full time.

But it was just that, a fantasy one that wasn’t working out in his favor.

Again, I wished Mike and his girlfriend luck and returned back to the UK.

Once back in the UK, I got promoted at work, which meant I made more money but the downside is I had a lot more work to do, so it would be a while before I could return for another Thailand holiday.

It took about 8 or 9 months before I was back in Pattaya.

The first two nights I went to the expat bar but I did not see Mike or his girlfriend around.

Finally, I met up with a few friends from previous trips and asked about Mike’s whereabouts and his situation.

I learnt that things had gone from extremely bad to extremely dire for Mike.

It turns out that Mike and his girlfriend had been kicked out of their place for not paying the rent and had ended up sleeping rough, with his girlfriend begging on the streets for food and drinks.

For me, this was heartbreaking to hear, but with how things had been going for Mike, I was not surprised that this had been the outcome.

Going Home Is Sometimes The Only Option

It seems that Mike finally realized this was rock bottom for him and with no other options, he borrowed more money and headed back to the UK.

A couple of his friends rounded up the money for Mike to get a flight back and pay any fees at immigration for overstay.

That just shows that some expats have a big heart and are worth keeping in contact with.

About 6 months after that trip, I searched around for Mike on Facebook with no luck, but I finally got in touch with a mutual expat friend who gave me Mike’s new number.

I gave it a call expecting more bad news from his life, but it seems he is on the road to recovery.

He told me that once he returned to the UK he was allowed to sleep on his friend’s sofa while he was job hunting.

He got a job fairly quick in a factory. He said it was a boring job with long hours but at least he was making money.

He even said that he has been paying back the expats that helped him out.

The fantasy of living in Thailand had not left his mind though. He stated that he is saving up whatever he can for his eventual return to Pattaya.

I was happy that Mike had finally got his life back on track. Better late than never, I guess.

For some reason, he stopped replying to my messages and we lost contact. I just assumed he was busy with work and life, or maybe he had met someone and wanted to put the past behind him.

I travelled back to Thailand a few months after and again met up with everyone.

The End of The Road For A Pattaya Veteran

Unfortunately, I was greeted with terrible news about Mike.

I learnt that he had lost his job back in the UK, was struggling financially again, and had finally had enough.

Sadly, his life ended in a tragic way.

I had to use different words there because of YouTube but hopefully you understand what I mean.

I can’t imagine being in the situation that Mike got himself into.

Yes, he only had himself to blame, but at the same time, it’s just heartbreaking.

He was one of these people that had gotten bit by the Pattaya bug and just loved the lifestyle there, maybe a bit more than most people.

His fantasy of living there combined with financial difficulties just led him down a dark path.

Also for me, I think Pattaya is addictive. Of course it’s not for everyone, but I love the lifestyle there also.

However, visiting every 6 months or so is enough for me.

So that’s the story about my good friend Mike that had a Pattaya dream and chased it to the very end.