Why is Indonesia special to you?

Hello Herman,

I will try to give a brief person opinion of how I see Indonesia.

I must say that currently I am not living in a remote part of Indonesia but through my work I do need to travel to such parts which include the most remotest areas of this country. And, as my history with Indonesia stretches back many many decades I have watched it develop from essentially shanty towns and villages to prosperity in some areas but also simple as bigger shanty towns than they used to be.

Many of the beautiful beaches have worsened as villages and towns develop and prosper. Development is a little hectic in Indonesia as there seems to be little interest in town planning. This is why so many towns and villages look a mess and full of one way streets and poor drainage that is incapable of handling heavy rains and awful sewerage systems.

However, one of the great thing I like about smaller towns and villages are the people who in many cases are "unspoiled" by western influences.

As a country, Indonesia is not really special to me. I see Indonesia as just a step in my life journey and it just happens to be a convenient place to settle for the moment. Bear in mind that I left my own home country after graduating from university, so I suppose I would consider myself more of a citizen of the world than an Indonesia lover.

Probably Indonesia is the cheapest place I have lived in. If you stick to basics and live as the native Indonesians do you can survive on very little. However, hygiene is a major problem here as are drugs and violence and crime. Of all the countries that I have lived and worked in, with perhaps the exception of India, Indonesia is probably the place where I feel the least safe and where crime is the highest.

This means that when out with my family, extra care needs to be given to closely keep an eye on my children at all times as we actually worry about child kidnappers.

Sometimes I feel sad that a country with so much potential has not developed more and in better ways and I feel there is no sign of anything changing too much in the future.

However, Indonesia is an easy escape for those looking to live in Asia on a budget because of the low cost of living and the low cost of getting a long term visa to live here compared to much higher costs in neighbouring countries.

In Indonesia, when I travel to places where few white western faces are seen, the locals look up to me as something special, all wanting to take a photo with me, or get my number to WhatsApp me or email me. It's quite embarrassing really. I can imagine for those westerners who have not traveled to many countries before that this might lead to illusions of grandeur. And, I imagine that you must have faced similar situations when based in Africa.

Cheers