The environment is a big factor in causing ex-pats to leave. Filthy air, traffic jams everywhere, shonky cafes and restaurants , dirty water, a tainted food supply, people are worried about their health and the effects on their health from living for years on end in China. I know one guy from the UK who just moved to Koh Samui in Thailand from China because of the environmental problems in China.

Mingxiu, you make a lot of good points in your post but this one at least for me, is the most important one. Ok, not saying the air is any better in Hong Kong...IT IS NOT, and it is crowded with people and the traffic can be nuts too, but at least you know that what you are eating is safe and checked over by the food and hygiene department. It speaks volumes mainlanders buy their milk powder and stuff in bulk in HK, to take back to the mainland. There is just little to zero regulation in regards to the food in China, although in the bigger cities I'm sure there is more monitoring, but even then? And as for the water, yes, another big one. I knew one guy who fitted a water filter to his shower, as he didn't trust getting the water unfiltered out of the shower in his eyes, or on his skin. Drinking out of the tap, also impossible, I didn't even like the boiled water. You can't even be sure of the quality of the bottled water for the water dispensers, although I found one of the french-chinese joint venture brands ok in the home water dispenser. The problem is it could just be distilled anywhere? When I left jiangxi I had a horrible grinding left lung, the doctor in HK more or less confirmed it was caused by pollution in China, it was so bad I was coughing constantly and hacking up phlegm for a month or so, and could barely sleep at night due to the need to cough and hack up. An 8 year old girl died of lung cancer in the same province (Jiang su).

Good luck to your friend in Thailand.