New year, new member, new plan

[pooochie]

Re: RE: New year, new member, new plan

Dear Pooochie, i am just learning bahasa indonesian.

I thought indonesian would be better to learn first rather than Balinese.

But understood what you wrote. so im kind of proud. lol :wink:

Dear Davo

Indeed you should be proud. You seem to be interested in both learning Bahasa Indonesia and Balinese. Good on you.

I clicked your profile and you put your interest as “Living in Paradise”. I presume that Paradise is Bali. Would you be so kind as to tell us, if it is not too personal, why do you think Bali is a Paradise (if it is indeed Bali)? “Living in Paradise” sounds like an interesting topic to me to say “ratball soup” which is not my cup of tea. I am also moving back to Bali to chase that same dream. While we are young, what is the worse that can happen, we can always go back to the grinder.

Many thanks
Ni Luh

PS. Pilih Kucing di “Pet Survey” thread.
:roll:

 

[BLI GEDE]

Hey everyone,
I suppose this is as good a place as any to jump in! As we're planning a move back to Bali ourselves, I've been reading the mountains of info that exist in these forums. Thank you all very much for your insight and
recounts of your experiences.
Since we last lived in Bali we have become 3. The biggest factor in this
move is education for our 6 year old daughter. I am not very interested in
an international school, but I see a lot of conflicting info regarding her right to attend public schools. My wife's cousin is married to a foreigner and their son attends sekola dasar di Ubud. They supplement with tutoring.
Of course our immigrasi situation is different as our houshold has a Bapak bule!
I would like our daughter to be immersed in Bali and not be separated
from it. She speaks both Bahasa Indonesia and English (sometimes both at the same time!), and I think having a balanced viewpoint her family's
heritage would be a very positive thing.
I would appreciate ANY feedback from parents facing similar challenges.
Oh yeah, Saya mengucapkan banyak terima kasih atas resep Sambal
Sereh yang saya ambil dari forum satunya. Weekend yang lalu saya masak terus dihidangkan dengan Ikan Salmon Goreng...I'm not saying that I got lucky because of that sambal...BUT maybe it was that good?!
Matur Suksema
Bli Gede

 

[Roy]

Gede, welcome to the forum...and you too Davo! If I read your post right Gede, you are Balinese and your husband is a foreigner, and you have a daughter?

I’m in the same situation, in that my wife is Balinese and we have three sons age from going on three to going on six. In Ubud, there are a number of mixed married couples with kids, and you’re right, the main issue of our concern is the education of our children.

The choices made by many of us is as various as the cultures we come from. For instance, a western GM, married to a westerner and with children will almost certainly put their children in the Bali International School. This makes sense as the amount of time they plan to live in Bali is limited, and sooner or later they will move on. Some Indonesians who can afford the very, very expensive tuition also send their children to the Bali International School.

Most of us in “your boat” meaning, planning to live in Bali forever, and wanting to raise our mixed children primarily as Balinese/Indonesian, usually opt for other alternatives. You mentioned Ubud in your post. In Ubud, the choices are very limited. There is one “mixed” school, and I believe the name is Suda Darma, but the English program there is weak. In Denpasar, there are a number of good schools, the problem there being a daily grind of commuting the kids back and forth from Ubud to Denpasar.

Our two older boys currently attend the Bali Children’s Center, in Denpasar, which at their current ages is more than adequate. For their language skills, it’s pretty simple. If they want to talk to dad, it’s English only. With mom, its Indonesian and sometimes Balinese, and with our pembantus and my in-laws, it’s Balinese and sometimes Indonesian. This has worked out very well so far as at their age it is so easy to absorb these various languages.

As for the child of a mixed marriage being able to attend primary schools in the banjar, that depends on two factors. One is the banjar itself, the other is the parental association with the banjar. As I am a member of our banjar, we have that option, but we have never used our banjar’s schools as they are 100% Balinese. My wife and I prefer those schools which are more mixed...Balinese, other Indonesians, mixed, other Asian and western.

These are all tough choices for us parents as we all want what’s best for our kids. Good luck on your move back to Bali. .

 

[made marko]

Welcome bli Gede!

 

[BLI GEDE]

Roy,
Thank you very much for your post regarding the schooling issues. I should probably explain that my wife is Indonesian and that I, the token Bule in our house, am using the handle BLI GEDE. There is a funny story there, but it is probably better left fo a forum called, "Humour among the Balinese", or ,"12 steps to becoming a better mascot".
The distance to the International School from our prospective locations, and its prohibitive cost lead me to feel that I need to be more resourceful and perhaps more self reliant in my plans to educate si kecil, but I can't think of many environments as stimulating as Bali in which to raise a young child!
I was always impressed with the wisdom of those kids. It clearly showed that their little brains were being nurtured. Matur Suksema, Bli Gede.

 

[Davo]

Dear Pooochie, i had a good laugh at your comment on "ratball soup".

Now to your question.

Yes, Bali is the paradise that i refer to.

Why do i think it is paradise?

I originaly went to bali to get married. but before i left, the relationship ended.

So I Thought stuff it im going to go anyway.

What i found was quite a shock to me. I could say it was the friendly balinese, the tropical paradise, the culture. All of which would be true.

But the shock was, i found a peace that I didnt even know I needed or existed.

Im not afraid to talk like this here because after reading on this forum i know that most people here are like minded about Bali. "Feel her call".

Roy says
"For me, the greatest challenge of conducting a successful business in Bali is Bali herself. This is likely to seem strange, or odd, but the fact is, Bali is the ultimate seductress and master of distraction. She emits an energy which makes it very difficult to stay on target, or concentrate on matters that are of no interest to her. The most seasoned and disciplined executive will find Bali to be the biggest challenge of their career. For me, there are just too many more important issues than business."


I hope roy doesn't mind me quoting him here, but what i saw him trying to say was forget what you know or you think you know. Bali is different. (haven"t worked out how to use the quote tool yet.

So. Come july im going to leave australia and try to make Bali my home. And let me tell you doing Business in Bali scares the heck out of me. But i dont wont to look back in twenty years and think gee i wish i had of given it a go.
JUST DO IT I SAY.

But you are correct Pooochie, whats the worst that could happen. 8)

 

[Git]

Welcome Davo
What type of business were you thinking of?

Gina Tyler

 

[Roy]

Davo, I don't mind you quoting that at all.

You wrote:

I hope roy doesn't mind me quoting him here, but what i saw him trying to say was forget what you know or you think you know. Bali is different.

Indeed she is, and Bali is a woman, make no mistake about that. She can be a loving mistress, because you treat her with affection and kindness, or she can pounce on you in heart beat, and banish you forever.

Expats...they ebb and flow like the tide. Many are called, but few are chosen, and that's just the way it is.

 

[Roy]

Gede! regarding the schooling of our anak...it seems we are on the same plane.

It wouldn't matter to me if we weren't, as this issue of education, di anak, is so personal, and each couple (the parents) have to make some very hard decisions.

As far as I know, none of the "Bali Angels” have children, but if they care to speculate what their decisions would be, I for one, would love to hear more from them than pining over Thorsten.

 

[BLI GEDE]

Roy,
Selamat malam, I would be interested to hear the viewpoint on education of any expatriate Balinese/Indonesian people who had elementary-secondary education in Indonesia and could compare it with western education on the basis of acedemic curricula (?). My gut feeling having experienced schools here and there (friend is a principal in Indonesia) is that the REAL contrasts are to be found in the amount and types of resources available to the teachers and pupils.
One thing I experienced was the difference in classroom atmosphere. Indonesian children are so respectful of their teachers. That goes back to the family context. Many kids in the West do not have the advantage of a close family environment...
I think I'm getting away from the topic of this forum a bit. We all identify with different aspects of Bali. Each of us has our own thing, but we have all connected with the place and its people and it has become part of us. Seperti rasanya rindu kampung sendiri...
Matur Suksema, Bli Gede

 

[Jimbo]

Two of my children began their education in Indonesia and whent to sekolah dasar like all other children. When I took my family back to the UK it was for the education they would receive there. There were differences but due to the help they received from relatives in the university system in Indonesia thet were not behind.

The standard Indonesia education is not as good as in the west unless you put time and money into their education. How you do that and the values you want you childeren to receive is up to the individual but one thing is for sure....If people have the money they invariably have their children educated outside the country.

Living in a town the education system may be better than in the countryside and the opportunities for more or better education available but ineviteably you have to pay. As an aside rspect for teachers is very real however I have witnessed in remoter areas children beeing used as labor for the teachers for cleaning and gardening. Not saying its abuse but this was happening during school hours.

I am sure that you will make the right choice and I expect Roy to take me to task but the question you need to answer is that do you believe that the Indonesian schools system ( This is not a Bali thing) will give your children what you want for them or do you feel it will have a disadvantage when they are adults. If it yes then no problem. For me the second was true.