@Tony *********

The relationships between any two people are often transactional.

@Peter ******

You may think that it's "a fact", but I disagree. It may be true in many cases, but that does not make it a universal fact. If you view everything in such simplistic terms, then you aren't being honest with yourself.

@Richard **************

Ah, another cynic. I'm retired and for the first couple of years in the US, I did support my wife. However, she soon decided that she wanted to work and she now generates more that half our combined income. She would be just fine without me. And no, she's not working just for the money; she's working because she loves to be doing something.

@Peter ******

I agree that online dating can have issues in any country, but that doesn't mean that it can't have merit. As I said below, there is some advantage in getting to know someone very well before actually meeting. And why are you so cynical regarding Thai women; many of them are wonderful people.

@Peter ******

That's true in any country. Don't judge Thailand too harshly.

@Peter ******

I later discovered that during the first few weeks we were chatting, her older sister was sitting just out of sight of the camera. I didn't know that she was there, but she was judging and vetting me. After she approved, my wife was much more comfortable about me.

@Peter ******

In one way, online has an advantage over traditional dating. Traditionally, you meet and immediately know if there's a physical attraction, then you start dating, and soon you have sex. Once you start sex, it colors your outlook on everything, but often before you have really gotten to know each other completely. Sometimes you then discover that you really aren't all that compatible except for sex. Online, sex is not an option, so you get to know each other much better before you meet and before sex can even be an option. I think that it can actually build a much stronger foundation if you take the time before meeting (my wife and I video chatted hundreds of hours over many months before meeting).

@Peter ******

I agree, but online can be a start. My wife and I spent hundreds of hours video chatting before I flew to Thailand to actually meet her. And yes, even all that video chatting didn't completely prepare us for the actual meeting. It did, however, give us a very good start. I'll admit that it's a bit strange at first; it's like meeting a stranger that you already know very well, but the strangeness wears off very quickly since you have already gotten to know each other in advance.

I met my Thai wife online 14 years ago and we're still very happy together. We have always lived in the US, but are considering moving to Thailand. However, she is not in the US because she prefers to be here; she's only here because of me. If I should die, she would be back in Thailand immediately to stay, taking my ashes with her. Don't make any assumptions or generalizations. I can attest that some Thai women have no motive other than love.

This is a ranking based on the ratings given by residents of each of their own cities. Of course there were 6 in the UK; they also like haggis, jellied eels, black pudding, and marmite. They wash it down with warm beer. Compared to that, of course they think that their cities are great.