Wouter, Sunaree Ratchasima's husband
A few days ago I made an article about the relationship of the famous Thai singer Sunaree Ratchasima with a much younger Dutchman, see: www.thailandblog.nl/opmerkelijk/sunaree-ratchasima-trouwt-wouter-nederland
I wanted to know who Wouter was, what his background is, how he got to know Sunaree and what it means to him to marry a considerably older lady.
Identity
How do I find Wouter? That name as a search on Facebook gave several hundred possibilities, that was impossible. Still I found him on Facebook, but for privacy reasons I won't tell you how. I know his full name, his place of residence, which is indeed – in North Holland – half an hour away from Amsterdam and I also know that there is not yet a Thai restaurant in his beautiful village. For that he has to go to a bigger place nearby. So, enough data to find him on Facebook yourself right now, if you really think it's necessary. I have now been in contact with Wouter, who was quite willing to tell us something about himself and his relationship with Sunaree. He emphasizes that he does not really need publicity and prefers to stay in the background.
Introduction
Wouter went on holiday in Thailand with two friends a few years ago. During their stay in Bangkok, they visited some nightclubs near Sukhumvit Road one evening. In one of them he met Sunaree. Wouter says: “She had just finished her job, namely promoting a film that had just been released at the time and in which she acted. (She also does some acting, especially on TV). It was incredibly coincidental, because she hardly ever goes to nightclubs and the like at all, and certainly not on her own. On that night she wanted to relax from work and on the advice of a friend she came to the same nightclub where we were. We had a good conversation, exchanged phone numbers and spent quite a bit of time together during the rest of the holiday.
I also went to one of her performances, but I had no idea that she was a well-known singer in Thailand. That was a bit scary, haha!
Back in the Netherlands
Wouter continues: “When I returned to the Netherlands, we kept in touch via Skype and the messaging service Line (the Asian whatsapp). After a few months I went back for a month. She has shown me around to various parts of the country in between her work. The other way around also happened, Sunaree then came to the Netherlands to meet my family. She got on well with my family and that was of course important. Sunaree enjoyed that visit, although she thought it was a bit cold in the Netherlands. It was really a stress-free period for Su, because normally it's just work, work, work.
Sunaree RatchasimaThailand
“It became clear that we really liked each other and we decided that I would come to Thailand for a longer period of time. At the moment I'm not doing anything with my studies (sports marketing), because I don't have a job here (yet). As soon as my Thai is better I can basically start working at a TV studio where my wife often does work, which is very nice. I am therefore busy learning the language and go to school for a few hours a few days a week. Furthermore, I am still studying via LOI in the Netherlands, so remotely, and I try to help Su as much as possible with her work, which often means that I drive for her to her performances, etc. ”
Pros and cons
I asked Wouter what he sees as the advantages and disadvantages of a relationship with an older woman. He replied: “The advantage of dating an older woman is that she knows exactly who she is and what she likes and dislikes. It's very nice that she doesn't have to discover that anymore. She also has a lot of experience with things that I may have less experience with and she has already built up a lifetime of friends, acquaintances and network.
You could call the fact that we don't have the luxury of waiting years to think about a possible child wish. She no longer has that time.
Future
Wouter thinks it is important for the future that he gets settled in Thailand and that he can work here. It is perhaps far from the future that they will indeed start a restaurant or something similar in his native village. “That would be really great!”, Wouter dreamed aloud.
Anything else
I told Wouter that I had copied a few things from the article on Thaivisa, which turned out not to be correct. It says, for example, that Wouter says nothing during the TV broadcasts and only stares at his Su in admiration. I have watched the videos of two shows and Wouter is properly, if not too much, involved in the conversation. Wouter is also called a "toyboy" and he doesn't like that as much, because he certainly doesn't feel that way.
Wouter has also read the article on Thaivisa and says that there is still something wrong in it. Sunaree is said to have a 6 year old son, but in reality she has two sons aged 20 and 21. “Those sons are nice guys by the way and they like our relationship. As long as their mother is happy”
Finally
In my first E-mail contact with Wouter I congratulated him on his “intended” marriage, but Wouter corrected that: It is no longer an intended marriage, because we are already married before the Amphoe. What is yet to come is the wedding party! My congratulations are no less!
I would like to congratulate Wouter and Sunaree and wish them lots of success!
Hopefully we will hear more good news from them in the future.
To Wouter:
You don't have to tell everything. We have no business with that. Even though Sunaree is a celebrity in Thailand, I think you have an absolute right to a private life, something that belongs only to both of you.
And know Wouter, Thai are very good gossipers. Don't trust a Thai! Thais like to laugh. Something told to them as a joke can be spread all over Thailand as a gossip!
With caution!
Who knows, we might see Wouter on Thai TV as a sports reporter… 🙂
Good luck!
'It could be wrong' said Bredero!
Congratulations to the newlywed couple! and to put it in the Antwerp dialect 'Congratulations and bonk, every year a joenk' (translation: ….and every year a child) But then again it won't be that many. 5555
Also congratulations to the 'Sherlock Holmes-on-duty' for being able to look all this up!
The world is small, isn't it?
It is not that difficult to find Wouter's full name. From the textbook “Facebook for dummies”: take the well-known name of the singer and search for Wouter in the comments and “likes” on her photos and messages. Voila, there we have Wouter.
My congratulations to Wouter. I see her regularly on Thai TV. She seems like a very nice lady….eg how she treats children…and beautiful.
Good choice Wouter, Sunaree is a beautiful woman. Age means nothing, it's just a number. Some people of 30 are already old and others of 60 are still young.
Much happiness together.
I doubted for a moment whether I should read this piece, normally I skip the Entertainment (read: gossip) page in the news. I wouldn't care what celebrities (most of whose names mean nothing to me) do in their private lives and how their relationships are according to the press.
It happens to you, I also accidentally found my treasure in Thailand and her age didn't matter either (she was a bit older than me, but the regular readers know that). The only thing that matters is that two people are both fully behind their relationship, what the outside world thinks doesn't matter. Enjoy, there are enough other things to make you busy, angry or sad about, leave a relationship between two people to them. After all, life is short, sometimes too short. Laugh, enjoy, love!
Just like any other couple, I wish Wouter and Sunaree all the happiness and love. Congratulations!
It is of course not normal (average) for a young Dutch man to marry an older Thai woman. Just like a marriage between a much older foreign man and a very young Thai woman. And if you enter into a relationship that is not your average, you will inevitably encounter prejudice. Whether you want it or not: in close family, friends and acquaintances, government agencies, employers, etc. etc. Age may be a number, interests, attitude to life, stage of life, physical and psychological condition are certainly not and differ - as a rule – rather by age. There comes the difference between Thai and Dutch culture (conceptions about a relationship, role of man and woman, money, ownership of house and land, previous relationships, inheritance). So no sinecure.
I don't see myself becoming a father at 30 - even with a much younger woman - and then going back to music lessons and school with my child like I did 70 years ago. I've had that phase and don't want to do it again. At 10, I want to do my own thing with my wife and not play computer games with my XNUMX-year-old son. Several parenting experts have already warned that many Thai children in rural areas are being raised by their grandparents, who – at their to put it mildly – holding not very modern views.
So if you start a non-average relationship, you have to be strong because the prejudices probably don't diminish with age. When Wouter is 50 (and absolutely not old), Suranee is around 70. In Thailand you are old then. You also have to stand together against these prejudices. In this case, Suranee could be Wouter's mother, not his lover, in terms of age.
I sincerely hope that both of them not only have strong feelings of love for each other (because I think they really need them in a world full of prejudices) but also put their minds to work before deciding to marry each other.
Thanks for the nice and positive comments, much appreciated!
@corretje I don't necessarily have to stay out of the publicity, because that won't work anyway, but I don't look it up either, that's something else. By the way, it's not too bad with the press, we're really not followed everywhere, luckily.
@Danzig Idd not hard to find, but that doesn't matter either. If someone takes the trouble, they will find me, but I don't necessarily have to put my full name in every article
” In Thailand you are old. You also have to stand together against these prejudices.” I think you're old here too, and prejudices are true, in most cases, you can tell by a person's looks and behavior. So, she can stay young in principle, and he old quickly, it's all possible. Rigidity, nestling in a cocoon of safety and comfort, makes your mind old and narrow. You have choices, but fate also decides.