There can no be denying the fact that being in Jakarta, Indonesia has been interesting.
I don't speak a word of Indonesian so all communication has been done through translators. This can be a challenge, trying to get by this way but somehow I have managed.
The people here are wonderful. I have received more than an occassional stare from a few folks; I guess that should be expected. I dress differently than the majority of the Indo population. I have a lot of tattoos and a ponytail, I've only seen one other male to make that claim.
Overall the experience has been positive for me. I came thinking I might make it my permanent retirement home. That hasn't worked out and immigration has made it clear that it is time to say adios. They are very serious about their immigration laws here. I unfortunately am handcuffed by not having a lot of funds to work with so will be traveling to Singapore the 1st of January, then onto to the Pilippines for a month before returning home to California.
It would have been awesome to have been able to visit Bali and other areas of the country; circumstances prevented that from happening. If I am able to return someday that will part of the plan. Recognizing that it is a Muslim nation very strict about its observance of certain rites helps navigate the social arena and avoid complications.
Jakarta itself is congested, air quality is terrible, it can take two hours to go from point A to point B so don't be a rush. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to experience Indonesia as much as I have. I will be very glad to get back where I can speak my language with others and be understood without the use of a translator/
My Indo Experience
Glad you enjoyed your stay in my wonderful Indonesia
I'm Muslim and I want to move my Family there from USA....What would allow us to stay?!
money, patience and most importantly an indonesian native sponsor; without that its not possible.
seeds101 wrote:money, patience and most importantly an indonesian native sponsor; without that its not possible.
No messing around with minor details in that post - also roughly accurate.
How much American money monthly can a Family of 7 live off of comfortably?
There are so many variables involved that it is impossible to answer that.
What kind of lifestyl are you use to living?
Where in Indonesia do you want to live? It is a big country?
Do you want a house? A large condo?
What kind of diet are you accustomed to? Prices are lower here, but they don't give things away.
My best advice hire a visa service. Make an exploratory trip and check out some of the areas that might interest you.
Take some language classes first so your not flying blind; that will help a ton.
Try to make some friends on line with people who live here now.
The best of luck to you
Be prepared for a lot of trips to immigration. It really is advisable to spend the money for a visa service/representative once here.
MrMaleek wrote:How much American money monthly can a Family of 7 live off of comfortably?
Big question but not drinking alcohol will make a big difference (I'm guessing you don't imbibe) - the rest down to lifestyle and level of luxury along with location.
If you want English speaking schools, that's going to create expenses as they start quite high but finding a national plus using English and a mix of curriculum 2013 and Cambridge will reduce things there - more so if it's outside Jakarta.
I'm in a small town, my daughter attending a school as described above, and things are pretty cheap. I earn far more than I use, but I generally live on a little over US$500/month plus housing, that being $1,300 per year for a big 3 bedroom place including rubbish collection and security.
Currently your US$ is worth quite a bit now than historically
As mentioned in above posts, budget will have 3/4 major factors and a few more added
1. Location : massive differences in rents also your a foreigner and will pay a premium most likely
2. Lifestyle, again massive differences in location and depending what lifestyle 7 of you want can be a small fortune
3. Type of home you need or want in my location rooms go for about $20 a month to a “semi” luxury home to $3,000 a month add, electric water drinking water and security etc etc
4. Type of schooling (if required) some “follow” Cambridge” look for the ones that are Cambridge “members” and check them out
AIS In my area is around US$20,000 per child per year others with equally as good facilities and same affiliations are US$ 4/500 per year
Difference being nationality of teachers
Local schools are much less and some very good ones
5. Food can be a huge influence for expats some not so, myself I like less than 10 Asian dishes so I visit Singapore regular for my expat goodies and save many $100s than getting a crap local version, some things are similar priced, beef, ribeye etc in Indonesia is cheap and excellent quality silly but typical example Heinz baked beans batam 68,000, Singapore 8,000
Alcohol again depends on $1.25 in a typical bar expat bar about $2+ my local restaurant sells Carlsberg on draft roughly us$ 1.50 / 22000idr a pint
You can live cheap or as expensive as you want
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