How I Met My Thai Wife After Divorce
In 2016 after 24 years of marriage I got divorced from MY Canadian wife.
The split was mutual and not a terrible experience as after that much time together we had totally grown in different directions.
The Marriage Had Been Failing For Years
She had been cheating on me and the red flags were everywhere.
Because of my job I know everyone would think it would have been me doing the cheating, I am a long haul trucker and people automatically assumed truckers have a girlfriend at every port.
I honestly don’t know how they have time as I drove 11 to 13 hours a day and all I wanted to do was sleep when I wasn’t driving.
Sure there were down times in some places waiting on reloads but to me the difference between being married and just living together is that piece of paper.
It’s not so easy to step out on your wife when you know it could cost you more than just a marriage.
Freedom Opened A New Future
The good news was that when I got over the initial shock that she actually had a new boyfriend, I was kind of relieved because it meant I could get a new girlfriend.
I hadn’t had bedroom fun for almost a year at that point and was certainly ready for some fun.
One of the things we used to talk about was if we ever get to the point of retirement, I would like to do it away from Canada.
I love Canada and the winters are stunning, but trucking in the winter is a whole other story and I was getting really tired of it.
So one of the huge red flags was when I would bring up maybe starting to think about where we might like to semi-retire to, she would say, Good luck with that and when asked if she didn’t want to go there she just stayed silent.
Online Dating Did Not Work
Fast forward to the divorce.
As that was getting closer and closer I was online dating at the usual sites like Match, Plenty of Fish and not having any luck at all.
The problem was that the women I wanted to have a connection with were not interested in me.
Women who reached out to me, I wasn’t interested in them. I did not meet in person one single woman.
At this time I was also actively reading International Living magazine and researching online for cheap places to retire.
Divorce Left Me With Debt
Now I needed cheap places because I gave My ex wife the house and everything. I took the debt. Call me crazy but this actually worked in my favor.
Where we lived in Canada according to my lawyer if she didn’t agree to what I offered, I would have to pay her alimony for the rest of my life.
Remember I was getting tired of trucking in the winter months so the thought of paying for the rest of my life monthly was not something I was interested in doing.
The reason she agreed to take the house, car and leave me with the debt and no monthly payments is because I held the ACE.
She had a boyfriend and she didn’t want anyone to know it.
Taking Responsibility For The Marriage
Her dad especially being a GOD FEARING Christian would have dropped dead with the news that his little girl was the cheater and not the truck driver.
He passed away in 2021 I think believing I was the reason for the breakdown in the marriage.
I do accept my part because truthfully I lost interest in her a long time before she got a boyfriend so I Blame myself for driving her into the arms of another man.
Side note, guys if your married and you ignore your wife there’s a very good chance she will step out on you.
For my part I actually really didn’t care, She treated me with contempt most of the time and when your wife doesn’t have your back, you got nothing.
Thailand Entered My Retirement Plans
Fast forward to Thailand.
Never was Thailand or Asia for that matter even on my radar.
I was actually thinking because I’m from Canada, the place to retire would be Mexico, Belize, Ecuador or Panama. All had good points according to International Living.
But Google brought up places like Thailand and when I really dug into retirement, I realized that I could probably afford this place.
I consumed hours of YouTube content on life in Thailand.
Choosing Thailand For A Fresh Start
Other countries as well, but I was fascinated with this country I really only knew the name of but nothing else.
I decided that January 2017 I would go there as a divorce gift to myself.
But where in Thailand? What about the language? And how would I get around? I knew this would be huge barriers.
I actually saw a video where people talked about paying for guides to show them around and even heard mention of the Girlfriend type experience, and the price was right.
But I’m not wired that way, I can’t meet a lady, pay for her company and maybe more only to go our separate ways one month later. So I went a different route.
Thaifriendly Opened A New Possibility
I found Thaifriendly and after setting up a profile, it didn’t take me too long to realize that I may have struck gold.
It also didn’t take me too long to find the button in the settings to turn off notifications from Ladyboys.
I’m thankful that the ladyboys were at least honest because I could have been tricked, once or twice, the photos could have been doctored up, and maybe I would have noticed in a face to face meeting but I wasn’t flying 13 hour time zones away to meet that type of woman.
And another couple things I learned on Thaifriendly, women had no problem asking for support like really fast.
And even really young girls have no problem reaching out to a man my age. Don’t forget I’m ready to retire soon.
Looking For Someone My Own Age
As much as I would be flattered to have a young lady hanging off my arm, it’s not me. I actually like women that I may have something in common with.
So I set my parameters to the age group of 40 to 60.
My thinking was this, I already have kids and don’t want anymore. A young lady may still want one at some point.
Also if I wanted to tour around Thailand with a lady, I didn’t want her having a school-aged child tagging along.
I didn’t care if I met a lady with kids, my number 1 deal breaker before getting emotionally involved was the kids had to be old enough to fend for themselves.
Waiting For The Right Woman To Contact Me
instead of me reaching out to the ladies that caught my eye, I looked but waited for someone to reach out to me based on my profile.
I continued to get contacted by 18, 19 and 20-somethings but continued to ask them to look elsewhere.
I hate the music of today so I really not interested in GEN Z or whatever they are called now. I’m a Boomer and a total Classic Rock guy.
One day I wake up to someone who had reached out to me with a simple Hello how are you message.
Before I replied I looked at her 2 photos, And was stunned, This was a lady who according to her profile said she was 44 and she didn’t look a day over 30.
Talking Every Day While Trucking
I replied back to her and from that day to this there really wasn’t a day we didn’t talk. She was so taken back that I called her every day. She had told me to download the App LINE.
Remember I was still trucking so it was easy for me to call her when I woke up in my truck in the AM which of course was her PM.
And when she woke up she would call me and I would be pretty close to being parked for the night or finished.
I had my smartphone mounted on my dash so I could have Live chat on as I trucked down the highway and still keep my eyes on the road.
We met online in August 2016. My divorce was final in December and she made it perfectly clear to me that she would NOT be interested in meeting me in person until I could show her the divorce paper.
Meeting Her Family In Thailand
Apparently there’s a lot of Bull shitters out there lying about their marital status. Imagine that. Turns out men & women.
I landed in Bangkok Thailand January 3rd 2017 caught another flight to her province and she met me at the airport with her sister and daughter who was 20 something at the time.
First thing I wanted to do was try real Thai food.
Sister had a car and we drove to a place that I don’t know the name of but was fantastic.
The sister had recommended a hotel and I had found it online and booked a room there.
My First Night In Her Home Province
My lady asked if it was alright if I spent my 1st night there by myself which I was totally ok with as I knew full well that she was going to be talking to her sister and daughter asking about their first impression.
They liked me as I found out later but were a bit concerned that I was up to something because I only had a backpack with a change of clothes.
It turns out my checked bags with all the goodies I promised to bring, didn’t get from my first transfer flight in Canada to the China Southern flight out of Toronto.
It came 5 days later exactly the day we were booked to fly back to Bangkok then on our way to Koh Chang after one week in Bangkok.
I learned my lesson when booking flights that required transferring from one flight to another carrier, give at least 2 hours in between flights if you check any bags.
Losing My Luggage On The Journey
When I was getting off the plane in Toronto walking into the airport they were actually calling my name and telling me to report to my gate.
I remember thinking that if I’m running to my gate there is no way that bag is going to make this next part of the journey and I was right. It worked out in the end.
As you all can probably guess the month flew by.
one week in Chiang Mai, one week in Bangkok, one week in Koh Chang and the last few days in her home province before I flew back to Bangkok for one night by myself, before leaving for Canada.
A couple of things I will say at this point.
Falling In Love With Thailand
The country is very easy to fall in love with.
After I checked my attitude and reminded myself this is NOT North America I started having a much better time.
I was a little put off by how quickly she wanted to move the relationship along. I had to keep reminding her that although I was looking for a long term relationship, I just got out of a marriage and wasn’t looking to jump right back into one.
Her story was similar to mine, although she was never married, she was with her daughter’s father for 26 years.
She worked at her brother’s restaurant which is why it was so easy for her to get the time off to tour around with me.
She Wanted A Gold Ring
Her daughter is self sufficient so leaving her to fend for herself wasn’t an issue.
She really pushed hard for me to buy her a gold ring to show my intention to remain hers. I didn’t do it. And it did cause some strife in the relationship, I told her that she had to trust me that I was in fact a man of my word.
My last night in Bangkok by myself I went for a long walk and a beer, I don’t even know what area I was in but I was walking by a sports bar and to my amazement there was a hockey game on the TV so I went in to have a couple brown ones.
A young lady came and sat down right away, asking me to buy her a drink, I did not she wasn’t my type at all.
I finished my beers and went back to my room. Feeling depressed at how quickly this was over.
Returning Home Made Me Miss Her
I flew back to my life in Canada and I was now living at my widowed sisters house and went back to my job.
I also went back to talking to my lady friend every day.
She was so worried that I would go back to Canada and she would never hear from me again.
I really was smitten by her. So much so that I returned again February 2018 for one month.
The third time in December 2018 right through to April 2019 to see if I could actually live here.
Marriage Plans Took Shape
5 months blew by. Still no ring but at least she trusted me as we talked almost daily when I wasn’t in Thailand.
January 2020 I arrived for the fourth time and it was going to be for 6 months.
We got married in Bangkok, a paper marriage not a traditional Thai wedding.
We all know what happened in 2020 so it was a struggle getting back to Canada which turned out to be just over 4 months and not the 6 I planned for.
It was nearly 2 years later before I could return to Thailand but trust me as soon as travel restrictions started to ease up, I was on the first flight I could get. Feb 2021. Which by the way was the most expensive flight I ever paid to come here.
Bringing My Wife To Canada
That was only for one month as I had already submitted the paperwork to bring her back to Canada and after doing the sandbox thing in Phuket, we went to Bangkok for her biometrics appointment thinking that I would be able to fly with her when I returned.
Didn’t happen, we jumped through all the red tape but then it was time for me leave.
The great news came a couple weeks after I was already home and back to work.
She had been clear to come to Canada on a visitor visa.
She arrived in Canada April 4th 2021.
Our Life Together Became Real
Right away we applied for a PR card and a work permit for her.
She got the work permit quickly, and a two-year extension, but a few months later the PR Card was approved.
We stayed in Canada until we returned to Thailand in December 2023.
4 years married in a 7 year relationship. I couldn’t be happier.
She treats me way better than I deserve and I’m now in a position to come here every year for the winter as long as we can travel.
Building A Life Between Canada And Thailand
I can’t fully retire in Thailand because I still have children and grandchildren I want to see in Canada. I wish I could afford to bring my kids here for 1 month. Thailand is awesome.
I know this story isn’t as exciting as your other followers that go out with bar girls but I just wanted to maybe give some guy hope that if he found a Thai lady that isn’t from that kind of a background there is hope that all will be well.
They all don’t end in tragedy and heartbreak.
My wife owns her own home here which really saves on cost of living. I just wish it was closer to the beach. At least there’s no Snow!
