hello from China

[Pearl]

Hello,

My name is Arnaud, french and I currently live in China, Shanghai (China since 2002) with my chinese wife. We run an E commerce website (for Europe market) .

Next year, we are going to move to south of China (Zhuhai city, subtropical climate) for a while.

Our plan, after that, is to set up our life in Bali (over the next 2/3 years). Yes, Shanghai city, China, are beautiful but also stressfull, highly polluted and intensively populated... after 6 years there, I wish to discover something new and different, in south east Asia. A place where we can take more time for living.

Of course, we plan to have some vacations in Bali, in order to taste it (I know in my deep heart that a place as Bali is probably the right one).

So, I will take time to read the posts of this forum, try to find some answer about all my questions. Eventually, I will come back to you to ask some. It concerns the usually things :

- Stable visa to continue to run our chinese business in Europe
- Own a house (property title on our names)
- School for children (level and price)
- Taxes (we don't pay any in China)
- Internet speed (very important for us)
etc...

Thanks

Pearl

[Bert Vierstra]

Welcome Mutiara (=Indonesian for Pearl)

[Pearl]

Hello Bert,

Nice to meet you and thanks for the translation...

[BaliLife]

Hi Pearl,

Welcome to the forum. I'm going to start by saying that you're probably going to get some attacks from some people here for suggesting you're planning a move to bali having never visited. Don't let that discourage you - anf in your own way, nicely tell them to foff :)

But I do want to mention something else. The cultural gap between bali and china is significant - and perhaps that's exactly what your looking for. But even me being here in Indonesia - I do need to give you my honest opinion. Being here, for me is not paradise - it's comfortable only because my wife is indonesian, and her family is here - and we met in australia when we were studying at university - so a lot of my friends from there who are indonesian, now live back here so I am fortunate enough to have a very close circle of friends with whom to pass time by.

You on the otherhand probably won't have that immediately, and I'm going to make a suggestion based on the things you outlined in your post. I would suggest before you dig your heels in and say, "that's it, we're going to bali", go and check out Chiang Mai in northern Thailand - infrastructure, progressiveness, peace and welcomeness for foreigners to prosper is in my opinion far greater than such in bali, or anywhere in indonesia. I suggest chiang mai because you're looking for a slower pace - and bangkok is probably almost as hectic as shanghai.

I'm probably going to get a string of attacks for suggesting this, but nonetheless - I really believe its worthwhile for you to investigate. The cultural shock between china and thailand will be far less than that between china and indonesia. For one, regardless of the instabilties in Thailand at the present time, I am strongly of the opinion that Thailand has far more stable econonomic and political systems on its worst days than indonesia has on it's best. I wish I could say otherwise as I am here in indonesia, and not there.

Nothing I write is intended to suggest that as a people balinese or indonesians are beneath thais, but as a place to live and work - I'm sorry - but if I didn't have ties here and I was looking for a place to call home in the developing regions of south east asia, it would be Thailand any day of the week and twice on sundays.

Just my thoughts. You are in all liklihood a person with unique values, likes and dislikes - which of course means that my view is likely very innapplicable to yourself.

All the best,

Ct

[Pearl]

Hi Balilife,

Thank you for your answer, I appreciate. Of course, we do not personally know Bali at this moment... as I say, we need to taste, few times. We have been to Thailand (Patong) and we liked it... however, despite the beautiful scenery, we are looking for something more pure (social environment, cultural...). I am not sure it can be better in Chiang Mai but things need to be seen for validation.

The cultural gap between china and Indonesia is not a problem... as I am french, I freshly arrived in China in 2002... as many members of this forum, I experienced situations in a east asia country, positives, negatives, sometimes easy, nice, sometimes hard, unpleasant but you always learn.

By the time, I definitively got the Virus for South east Asia...

In the next 2/ years, we are looking for something "exotic", with beautiful and various sceneries (nature : forest, mountains, sea (my passion), people : locals with lives more simple, less stress) and a place where children can grow happily.

We work for our own and are independant financially. We would like to continue our business and live in a nice place. (such as bali as my father says, who is also preparing his new life in this island).

Anyway, your opinion is pretty well considerated and once again, thank you.

[Jimbo]

Pearl you are more than welcome on this forum and I wish you all the best in your searches to find what you need. There are some very knowledgeable folks here who will help on both Bali and Indonesia in general.

There is lots in here already and you can do searches which will answer most of your questions and then ask the specifics on what you are unsure of. Once again welcome.

[chilli]

Welcome Pearl,

All the information you require is on this forum, especially
read all the info regarding buying a property (title in your name) in Bali,
not possible for foreigners as far as I have learn't.

regards, Chilli

[Pearl]

Hello Jimbo and Chilli,

Yes, I already read that we can not own property under our name... it is frustrating but understandable regarding Bali situation.

[Roy]

Hi Pearl, and may I add a welcome as well? You wrote that you were thinking of Bali as “a place where children can grow happily.” My wife and I have three boys all born here on Bali, and I can’t imagine a better place anywhere to raise children than right here on Bali. If that is top on your list of priorities, then I’m betting you’ll be very happy here in Bali. Welcome to the forum.

[Pearl]

Hello Roy,

And thank you ! Yes, we really care about children educations... we would like to offer them something different. (in China, the education (in school) is really really excessive... children studied 7 days/week, late and very hardly... They don't live their childhood due to a massive competition. The result is : high pressure from the age of 10).

I am very pleased to see Bali as a great place for children.

By the way, I really appreciate this forum and their members (nice and warm, very welcome...)... is it Bali effect :D ?