A husband from the West

Isaan,a region in northeast Thailand,has nearly 11,000 foreigners who have married Thai girls

The most dazzling creatures Nui Davis saw when she was a child were the village girls who had found foreign husbands,visiting in their Western finery and handing out candies to the children.

For me,they were like a princess, she said. I made a wish that one day I would like to be one of those ladies.

Today,at the age of 30,she lives with her husband,Joseph Davis of Fresno,California,in an air-conditioned,three-bedroom house with a driveway and basketball hoop,surrounded by flower beds and a well-kept lawn.

My family keeps saying,You got it. You got your dream now, she said.

Davis,54,did not take his wife home with him,choosing instead to settle down in northeastern Thailand,a region known as Isaan.

He is part of an expanding population of nearly 11,000 foreign husbands in the region,drawn by the low cost of living,slow pace of life and the exotic reputation of Thai women. Thai women are a lot like women in America were 50 years ago, said Davis,

The American women now know they are equal, added Davies,so the situation is not as relaxed and peaceful as it is between an American and a Thai lady.

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Mixed couples are common on the streets and in the markets of Udon Thani. One street where Western men gather to eat and drink is popularly known as Foreign Son-in-Law Street.

There are villages in Isaan that are almost entirely comprising foreign houses with foreign husbands, said Phil Nicks,author of Love Entrepreneurs: Cross-Culture Relationship Deals in Thailand.

Isaan is one of the poorest parts of the country,the source of most low-wage workers in Bangkok and the home of many of the women who work in the entertainment industry in the capital.

Some of the earliest Thai-American marriages were in Udon Thani,the site of a US air base in the 1960s during the Vietnam War. In the following years,most Americans left,sometimes taking a Thai wife with them. Now the presence of American and European men is growing again. A huge majority of the women are looking for a foreign boyfriend or husband,and I think some of them can be quite assertive,and aggressive in their pursuing of a foreign man, said Nicks.

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A clash of expectations strains many marriages,and more than half end in divorce,said Prayoon Thavon,manager of international services at Panyavejinter Hospital in Udon Thani.

While the menmany of them retired and living on pensionsmay be seeking an emotional connection,the women are generally motivated by economics,said Prayoon.

Getting married has become a business more than love. People want to improve their social status. Sometimes these ladies spend the husbands money,use it all,then hes cut out.

Many men are expected to help support their wives extended families,beginning with a dowry of several thousand dollars.

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There seems to be less concern about differences in age,with many bridegrooms in their 50s or 60s or even 70s.

Age is not a factor here, said Davis. In America if I marry a girl who is 24 years younger than me,all youre going to get is eyes and bad talk,bad gossip. Here its not a n issue.

Foreign marriage has become so common that it has lost much of its stigma here in Udon Thani,and many girls share Daviss dream of becoming a princess. It looks pretty good and they look pretty happy, said Rojjana Udomsri,30,who is married to a Thai man and has a 2-year-old son.

But she had her doubts.

I dont know if they are really happy, she said. There were times I wanted to have a good life like them,but I cant live with a person I dont love.