Job Discussion Forums

[Ellsbells]

I have done some searching for answers to these questions, but to no avail. Can anyone help?

Can anyone tell me anything about this place, e.g. size, climate, etc please. Thinking of going there for my next job.

Also, what is a comfortably living wage there?

Thanks for your help

[isanity]

I've not spent much time there, but from what I saw (and hear), apart from the temples, it's an average upcountry provincial capital with 150000-odd people. East coast, so dry in spring and summer. Hot. The temples are nice, but realistically you wouldn't be spending most of your days looking at them. Not far enough south to be dangerous.

[Welshguy]

Agreed,

Its certainly not rock n roll central. Its pretty easy to get around for a few baht per trip. Rentals down there are from about 3000 pm for a soi house which will more likely than not be unfurnished. You'd get through a month on 25-30000 depending a lot of course on you. There are some very nice temples down that way indeed. Its very much a place to go to adopt the local lifestyle. You will still be something of a novelty down that way.

Happy trails
W

[filiusterrae]

I was an exchange student for a year in nakhon about ten years ago & went back to visit a couple times while I was teaching in thailand (only didn't teach there because of my poor timing & need to get a job fast). IMHO it's a great place, one of the best in thailand, with fantastic people.

don't have info on the population and a previous poster already covered that. the thing about the climate is that it's stable - hot, but stable...which means you almost never get the above 40 degree days like you do further north (also, if you stay long enough to adapt to the heat, you don't ever get "cold" in the winter). last I'd checked on the teaching jobs going there (probably over a year ago now, I just do it periodically out of wistfulness) schools seemed to be offering the standard upcountry rates of 30k +/- 5k, which (as the previous poster said) can certainly be a liveable wage depending on your lifestyle. the city itself has more than just temples going for it: there's a small but nice branch of the national museum; the shadow puppet place; silver shops; non-chain restaurants with (something like) western food (my favorites were a burger joint near the post office - they put a slice of pineapple in the burger, threw me off at first, but I acquired the taste - and one of the restaurants in bovorn bazaar, I think it was called rock 54 or something - they do a decent pizza, though again, the toppings can seem a bit odd at first). there're also decent opportunities for day/weekend trips, both in the province and in nearby provinces: beaches up in khanom or sichon (not spectacular, but good enough); some national parks with jungle (watch out for leeches), mountains, waterfalls; rubber tree plantations (I wouldn't go more than once, but that one time was okay); fruit orchards; you can easily get over to krabi or go up to samui (if you'd want to).

whew, anything else you'd like to know? btw, do you have a specific school you're looking at?

[Gringo Greg]

I am very familiar with Nakhon Sri Thammarat. Any specific questions? The three big schools, Kanlayanee, Benjaman, Sri Thammarrat Suksa, all of them are great. Nice city, has 3 KFC but no McD's. Several farang hangouts, there are probably more than 100 foreign teachers in Nakhon.

The standard starting wage is 30k per month which is enough to make a go there. 3k to 4k is about the standard rent price. The climate is typical of southern Thailand, it rains pretty much all year but October to January is called the rainy season. Lots of waterfalls, parks and beaches within an hour ride on a motorcycle.