• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Mr. Free At 33

Save, Invest, Retire Early, Move Abroad

  • Coaching
  • My Story
  • Portfolio
  • Getting Started
  • Contact

Thanksgiving In Thailand?

November 22, 2018 by Jason Fieber 14 Comments

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone out there!

Turkey. Family. Football. And stuffing.

Stuffing, as in the food? Or stuffing your face? 

“Up to you”, as they say in Thailand.

Anyway, I thought I’d give you readers a quick update as to what I’m doing for Thanksgiving 2018.

I don’t want to sound pretentious or weird, but I’m actually starting to lose track of the US holidays after living abroad for more than a year.

Thais don’t celebrate many of the US holidays over here, much as how Americans don’t celebrate Thai holidays. And I never really cared for many of the holidays anyway, so it’s a natural fit for me. I don’t exactly long for Thanksgiving. I don’t even like eating turkey.

To me, every day is an opportunity to be thankful.

Frankly, I’m grateful for every day above ground. The odds of even being born are infinitesimal. Then you have to stay alive, which isn’t exactly easy.

There’s no need to waste money on too much food and overeat in order to feel great.

So I won’t be celebrating Thanksgiving today, nor will I be eating turkey.

What will I be doing?

In regard to food, I’ll be downing some delicious Thai food. Probably one of my favorite dishes.

And while Thanksgiving isn’t exactly a thing over here, Thailand has got my back.

No FOMO here. Thailand has, in my opinion, an even better festival to rock out to today.

Actually, make that two festivals!

They’re called…

Loi Krathong and Yi Peng. 

They combine to function essentially as one gigantic festival, usually celebrated toward the end of November.

The former involves floating a small vessel down a waterway and making a wish under the full moon. You give thanks and also pay respects. The latter involves releasing a giant lantern into the sky under the same general conditions.

Wikipedia’s got you covered on the details.

It’s incredibly magical, guys. It’s goosebumps city. I’ve been looking forward to it for a while now.

Here’s a video of Oh and I releasing a lantern for Yi Peng last year:

Now, there are some drawbacks to the festivals.

Just like how in America the Thanksgiving celebration wastes food in honor of some pretty terrible things that went down many years ago, these festivals create waste. Nothing’s perfect.

But it is one of the most beautiful celebrations I’ve ever been a part of. Just being alive is a blessing, but there’s something extra special about seeing this in person.

I end up feeling more grateful than I ever did with turkey in my belly. Turkey is cool, I guess. But this is much cooler.

So that’s what I’m up to for Thanksgiving this year!

Regardless of how you celebrate today, or if you even celebrate it at all (Thanksgiving isn’t a global holiday), just make sure to use today as an opportunity to see how much of a gift every day is.

Let’s not rely on the calendar to tell us when to give thanks.

Give it every day. And you’ll get it back.

Happy Thanksgiving! Happy Everyday!

What are you up to today? Celebrating Thanksgiving? Celebrating life?

Thanks for reading.

P.S. If you’re interested in achieving FIRE, check out some awesome resources I personally used on my way to becoming financially free at 33!

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Dividend Expat

About Jason Fieber

Jason Fieber became financially free at 33 years old through a combination of hard work, frugal living, strategic entrepreneurship, intelligent investing, and geographic arbitrage. He currently lives his early retirement dream life in Thailand. Jason has authored two best-selling books: The Dividend Mantra Way and 5 Steps To Retire In 5 Years (also available in paperback).

 

Jason recommends Personal Capital for portfolio management, Mint for budgeting, Schwab for the brokerage account, and Seeking Alpha, Daily Trade Alert, and Motley Fool for stock ideas. He uses TunnelBear VPN service while living abroad. Traveling Mailbox handles his US mail. This blog is hosted by Bluehost. If you'd like to start your own blog, Jason offers free coaching when you use our Bluehost affiliate link.

 

Jason's writing and/or story has been featured across international media like USA Today, Business Insider, and CNBC.

« Dividends Are (Almost) Always “In The Green”
Undervalued Dividend Growth Stock Of The Week »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Joe says

    November 22, 2018 at 9:17 am

    Happy Thanksgiving & Loi Krathong! 😀
    I love releasing the krathong in the river. It’s so spiritual.
    We tried the floating lantern a few times, but I never really enjoyed it much. It seems like such a fire risk to me. Fire is such a big problem on the US west coast these days. We’re trained to be careful with it.
    Enjoy!

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 22, 2018 at 10:23 am

      Joe,

      Thanks a lot, man. Hope you guys have a fantastic holiday over your way!! 🙂

      Best wishes.

      Reply
  2. Brian says

    November 22, 2018 at 11:06 am

    I think if you need a day designated by someone years ago, to give thanks for what you have, then turn around and pig out until you pass out, it kind of seems shallow to me. This is something you should be doing everyday, not on one day a year, with actions, not words. For me, it is just a day to watch football.

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 22, 2018 at 12:03 pm

      Brian,

      Definitely agree.

      I do miss the football a little bit. That’s about it! 🙂

      Cheers.

      Reply
  3. Royce says

    November 22, 2018 at 10:25 pm

    Happy thanksgiving! I spend my thanksgiving evenings at work… that’s ok though as all those work dollars will be creating dividend dollars someday that will allow me to spend all my days as I want! So believe it or not I am thankful for my job, for now anyway!

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 23, 2018 at 12:29 am

      Royce,

      I totally hear you. I saw my job the same way. Just something to get through so that I could later live the life of my dreams. Totally worth it. 🙂

      Best regards.

      Reply
  4. Ernest says

    November 23, 2018 at 12:13 am

    Hi Jason,

    My wife and I recently retired from the rat race and started our slow travel around the world. Our first stop was/is Chiang Mai. We got to experience the lantern festival first hand yesterday. It truly was an experience of a lifetime. We were by the river, it was beautiful and crazy at the same time!! lol.

    I also saw your post regarding some of your favourite food here. We’ll definitely check them out!

    Thanks for your posts!!
    E

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 23, 2018 at 12:32 am

      E,

      It’s definitely an amazing experience. Like you said, it’s crazy. It’s magical, beautiful, and hectic all at the same time.

      Enjoy Chiang Mai while you’re here. I know I sure do. 🙂

      Cheers.

      Reply
  5. Fred says

    November 23, 2018 at 7:24 am

    As a child I was fortunate to have good food and good family. Thanksgiving was/is my favorite Holiday. One of many things I would miss about the US, Many warm memories. The kind of warm memories you are creating now. With FI even your routine days seem pretty darn good.

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 23, 2018 at 9:08 am

      Fred,

      That’s great. It’s really all about creating wonderful memories. That’s, at the core, what FIRE is about. The opportunity/time to create experiences and memories. Sounds good! 🙂

      You made a neat observation there. I never was a fan of holidays due to the rationale for having them. But I’m even less a fan now. However, it’s probably easier for me to shun stuff like that because my day-to-day life is so enjoyable. I don’t mean that in a “braggy” way. Rather, I guess I don’t look forward to stuff like Thanksgiving (which obviously includes the time off from work) because my daily life isn’t something to escape from. The main thing I liked about holidays in the US was the time away from the job (which meant more time for family, interests, etc.).

      Best regards!

      Reply
  6. The Dividend Pig says

    November 23, 2018 at 3:27 pm

    Happy Thanksgiving! Very cool tradition! On the flip side, I would think those flying balls of fire would, well you know, cause fires when the landed. I guess it can’t be too dangerous if it’s been going on for so long! Anyway, very pretty, thanks for sharing the video!

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 24, 2018 at 1:46 am

      DP,

      Yeah, that’s interesting. I haven’t heard anything about fires starting/spreading as a result. These things fly way up in the air and then go out. I’ve always heard the bigger issue is related to the lanterns getting in the way of flight paths. I’ve always been concerned about waste/pollution. But that’s more due to the Krathongs.

      Cheers!

      Reply
  7. firewtk says

    November 25, 2018 at 7:46 am

    Hi Jason,

    Treat every day as a gift, is the right way to go as per my perspective. The same also applies for the birthday in which every day is a birthday for one.

    WTK

    Reply
    • Jason Fieber says

      November 25, 2018 at 8:56 am

      WTK,

      Absolutely.

      Today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present. 🙂

      Cheers!

      Reply

Join the discussion. Let's have a dialogue. Just please make sure comments are respectful and relevant. Cancel reply

Primary Sidebar

About Me

About Me

I'm Jason Fieber, Mr. Free At 33. I became financially free at 33 years old by working really hard, living well below my means, engaging in strategic entrepreneurship, intelligently investing, and using geographic arbitrage to my advantage. I currently live in Thailand, where I'm making my early retirement dreams come true. I write and coach so that I can help others make their early retirement dreams come true.

Recommended

My Best-Selling Books

My Best-Selling Books

Let’s Stay In Touch

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

As Seen In

As Seen In

Most Popular

  • Two Big Reasons Behind My Decision To Move Overseas And Become A Dividend Expat 118 comments
  • Financial Freedom Should Be Just One Chapter Of An Otherwise Fantastic Book 108 comments
  • My Recent Experience With Visiting A Hospital In Chiang Mai, Thailand 106 comments
  • Why I Moved Most Of My Assets From Scottrade to Charles Schwab (And Why You May Want To Do The Same) 96 comments
  • It's Not About The Money: Rent Versus Buy 87 comments

Search

Archives

Categories

Footer

Disclaimer

I’m not a licensed professional of any kind. I’m not a financial advisor, tax professional, or doctor. This site should be viewed for entertainment purposes only. Before you invest any of your money, exercise, or undergo any financial, business, or personal changes at all, please consult an appropriate professional. Unless your investments are FDIC insured, they may decline in value. Any stock transactions and/or analyses I publish should not be considered to be investment recommendations. I am not liable for any losses or suffering experienced by any party.

Privacy Policy

This site does not attempt to collect any personal information whatsoever other than that which is freely shared publicly (through comments), or that which is collected automatically via servers and Google Analytics. I do not sell or voluntarily disclose anyone’s personal information to anyone.

Disclosure

This site is largely supported by way of advertisements. As such, third-party ads may be served up at any time, and I may be paid on your clicking of these ads or your giving of information to third-party representatives. I offer no guarantees as to the accuracy of these ads. These ads may not necessarily reflect or represent my opinions or viewpoints. In addition, I may also have affiliate partnerships with companies whereby I earn a commission if products and/or services are purchased after you click on a link from this site. I only set up affiliate relationships with companies who offer products and/or services that I personally believe in and/or personally use. If I don’t believe in a product and/or service, I don’t endorse it.

Copyright © 2016-2019 Mr. Free At 33. All rights reserved.
sponsored

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

Mr. Free At 33
Powered by GDPR plugin
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognizing you when you return to our website and helping us to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

You can adjust all of your cookie settings by navigating the tabs on the left hand side.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.