Relocation questions

[Dori]

Choosing to live on Bali only because it's conveniently close to fly to visit family doesn't sound like a reasonable motivation to me.

*******************************************
Everyone has different reasons/motivations for doing something and I’d never judge anyone based on that decision.
Good luck to you and I hope you stay healthy.

 

[Balifrog]

Yes, I moved here permanently in December 2020 after visiting for holidays for several years. I choose to live in West Bali where there is very little traffic, beautiful and undeveloped land and beaches. It's 3-4 hours to Denpasar from where I live and I love it here but there is a downside with all major moves and no place is perfect. I was going to suggest Candidasa but you have already been there and the place didn't agree with you. If you have never lived (or visited) a third world country then it's good you came and visited first because Bali certainly doesn't suit everyone. I've been 'ripped off' a few times by seedy locals and recently I posted in this forum about Foreigners being targeted by a government official to pay 500% more for medical treatment on Bali than locals pay at the hospitals here.

I've had poor medical advice from Doctor's here on Bali that could have led to serious health consequences, so now I avoid hospitals on Bali and fly to Jakarta for proper medical treatment in a clean hospital with knowledgeable doctors providing care. It's a beautiful place to live if you are flexible with traffic gridlock, bugs, a bit of mold and mildew, and a poor healthcare system for out of the ordinary medical conditions.

You will be viewed here as a rich foreigner so street vendors will harass you constantly to buy something so you'll need to get used to it. Choosing to live on Bali only because it's conveniently close to fly to visit family doesn't sound like a reasonable motivation to me.

Good Luck.

Living here since 6 years, I have to disagree with most of the above...
Where shall I start ?
- If you call Bali a 3rd world country it means you never visited or lived in one. It is FAR from being 3rd world
- In 6 years here I have never been "ripped off". Yep, hospitals have 3 tiers of.pricing, locals, resident expats and tourist. It doesn't really shock me.
- It is not a "poor health system"
- I have never been harassed by street vendors, of course now and than getting asked but I politely say "No, thank you" and it works perfectly.

If you want to compare cultures / coulntries, I could add that seeing the vast majority of Aussies here, as an European I find them culturally and intellectually very disapointing and limited to put it very diplomatically....

Oh, and yes, I have lived all over Asia for 30 years, plus a few other "developping" countries.

Guinea Konakry, Haïti in the 70's...now yes that was 3rd world......

 

[YachtRock]

Living here since 6 years, I have to disagree with most of the above...
Where shall I start ?
- If you call Bali a 3rd world country it means you never visited or lived in one. It is FAR from being 3rd world
- In 6 years here I have never been "ripped off". Yep, hospitals have 3 tiers of.pricing, locals, resident expats and tourist. It doesn't really shock me.
- It is not a "poor health system"
- I have never been harassed by street vendors, of course now and than getting asked but I politely say "No, thank you" and it works perfectly.

If you want to compare cultures / coulntries, I could add that seeing the vast majority of Aussies here, as an European I find them culturally and intellectually very disapointing and limited to put it very diplomatically....

Oh, and yes, I have lived all over Asia for 30 years, plus a few other "developping" countries.

Guinea Konakry, Haïti in the 70's...now yes that was 3rd world......

I'm so tired of people using the "third world" label without even knowing what it means or how it orginated.

 

[Rellek]

Living here since 6 years, I have to disagree with most of the above...
Where shall I start ?
- If you call Bali a 3rd world country it means you never visited or lived in one. It is FAR from being 3rd world
- In 6 years here I have never been "ripped off". Yep, hospitals have 3 tiers of.pricing, locals, resident expats and tourist. It doesn't really shock me.
- It is not a "poor health system"
- I have never been harassed by street vendors, of course now and than getting asked but I politely say "No, thank you" and it works perfectly.

If you want to compare cultures / coulntries, I could add that seeing the vast majority of Aussies here, as an European I find them culturally and intellectually very disapointing and limited to put it very diplomatically....

Oh, and yes, I have lived all over Asia for 30 years, plus a few other "developping" countries.

Guinea Konakry, Haïti in the 70's...now yes that was 3rd world......

Anything other than your first point, we can agree to disagree.

I Meant developing country, apologies for using 'Third World' to describe Bali, it's incorrect and a poorly chosen term by me; Congrats if you've never been scammed once in 6 years...I have, and have seen the many reports on Bali Sun and various forums and FB pages I'm a member of; The International Hospital will open in a year from now, we can wait and see how the treatment facilities improve. I've never been harassed by street vendors either...The OP said she was "sick of saying no" all the time to presumed street vendors.

 

[Foamcrest]

Rellek I live in Sydney and have a home in Bali and I find your summation of Bali , well Im simply lost for words.
In the western world scammers are everywhere and take you for thousands and sometimes millions. Any of the health systems in any of your favourite Ist world countries you will find stuff ups.
Perhaps you’d be happier elsewhere.

 

[Rellek]

Rellek I live in Sydney and have a home in Bali and I find your summation of Bali , well Im simply lost for words.
In the western world scammers are everywhere and take you for thousands and sometimes millions. Any of the health systems in any of your favourite Ist world countries you will find stuff ups.
Perhaps you’d be happier elsewhere.

You do not know the first thing abut me so don't pull the same old line 'if your not happy here then go someplace else'. I'm very happy living far and away from South Bali. Somehow you misread what I posted.

 

[Balifrog]

You do not know the first thing abut me so don't pull the same old line 'if your not happy here then go someplace else'. I'm very happy living far and away from South Bali. Somehow you misread what I posted.

Well, judging from your post #80 you don't really sound happy....

Anyway, to make it short, stay in your jungle or hop back to Aussie land.

Over and out.

 

[AuroraB]

In the western world scammers are everywhere and take you for thousands and sometimes millions. Any of the health systems in any of your favourite Ist world countries you will find stuff ups.

Yes they are: The western world scammer are in Bali having set up joint venture with locals. They pulled off the classic fraud of offering land they do not own as "collateral":

https://www.news.com.au/travel/dest...d/news-story/2e160ea27d0d92b6a68136dfe312acb8

Around 130 investors have already joined Golden City (Sumbawa). But ground has not yet been broken because, as lawyers have discovered, the developers don’t own the land.

62 angry investors have joined a $US5 million ($7.8 million AUD) class-action lawsuit against the founders of Golden City (Sumbawa development): Yansen Barry, the Indonesian director of Bumi Kristal Sumbawa, a company formed to sell property in Sumbawa; and Brett Sorenson, the face of the project, an expat American who goes by the name Brett Black and co-owns Clear Cafe Ubud.

 

[Markit]

Yes they are: The western world scammer are in Bali having set up joint venture with locals. They pulled off the classic fraud of offering land they do not own as "collateral":

https://www.news.com.au/travel/dest...d/news-story/2e160ea27d0d92b6a68136dfe312acb8

Around 130 investors have already joined Golden City (Sumbawa). But ground has not yet been broken because, as lawyers have discovered, the developers don’t own the land.

62 angry investors have joined a $US5 million ($7.8 million AUD) class-action lawsuit against the founders of Golden City (Sumbawa development): Yansen Barry, the Indonesian director of Bumi Kristal Sumbawa, a company formed to sell property in Sumbawa; and Brett Sorenson, the face of the project, an expat American who goes by the name Brett Black and co-owns Clear Cafe Ubud.

I'm always astonished that they always find people to give them so much money for so little evidence.

I mean, who in their right mind gives anyone thousands and thousands on a promise and some pretty pictures?!

Clearly the answer is lots of people do....

 

[harryopal1]

Even if you finish up with the unit in the tall tower it doesn't mean you are thereafter living trouble free. A notable feature now in Australia seems to be the huge number of completed tower units which then have serious problems. Residents of a newly completed 35 story tower on the Gold Coast Queensland have been required to leave as faulty plumbing fixtures has led to water leaking into electrical systems and real danger. Having had to deal with a couple of kitchen and bathroom leaks living here I find that all the fittings are made in China and bloody awful quality and really unreliable. I suspect worldwide that the trend to economize with building has led to this kind of poor quality Chinese made stuff being at the heart of many of these new tower problems. From what I read of the Gold Coast debacle it looks like this again is the source of the problem. After WW2 Japan became infamous for terrible quality products but a technology there changed Japan then became the producer of top quality materials. Cameras for example. So this is not an anti-Chinese rant, it is a reflection of the way new start up industries often lead to poor output.

 

[Shadrach]

You are suffering the usual "tourist" experience that we (expats) don't encounter and know how to avoid. 1.5 hours to the airport is about normal if you live in the east OR near the airport in Cangu/Seminjak (which are geographically much closer) etc.

We can all spot visitors a mile off and the locals are even better.

The only way to survive here is to build/buy your own place, resolve to travel to Oz with your dedicated driver taking up to 1. 5 hour from Tabanan or the Candi area.

Avoid any contact that isn't necessary with locals (sorry to say we are all "rich" and treated accordingly.

I saw this coming 25 years ago, when it was not so crowded. Then there few motorbikes, only bemo's and Jimny's. No Suv's yet or mega buses! I said then that these people are going to breed like rabbits and there will be a population explosion which has happened! Now they are all grown up and have a new crop of kids all of which want a car or motorbike. The roads are too small to handle this, so what should take 30 minutes to go, now takes 1 and a half hours to go. A good example is Canggu, Ubud, Ulu Watu! Back then, it was just rice fields and beaches. Now it is madness with so much traffic. The locals can't resist the thought of big bucks in their pockets so all of them move to these places and create a huge mess of traffic. Yes the tourist want their gyms, spa's, fancy vegetable juices, villa's, with private swimming pools. But it has created a situation that is madness. The prices have skyrocketed! The locals have dollars for eyes now and speak with a forked tongue. They pretend to be so nice and welcome the tourist, but it's only for show and really just want the money! The greed now is unbelievable!

Unfortunately plastic is still treated like a banana leaf and thrown everywhere. I cannot understand why these supposedly spiritual people don't understand this and don't educate the children in the schools and the pollution piles up higher and higher! It is not the tourist that throw all this rubbish in the streams, rivers, and ocean! There is an expression I heard ( Jaga Bali Bersih) which means ( Keep Bali Clean) Too bad it's not taught in the schools and Banjar meetings!

 

[YachtRock]

I saw this coming 25 years ago, when it was not so crowded. Then there few motorbikes, only bemo's and Jimny's. No Suv's yet or mega buses! I said then that these people are going to breed like rabbits and there will be a population explosion which has happened! Now they are all grown up and have a new crop of kids all of which want a car or motorbike. The roads are too small to handle this, so what should take 30 minutes to go, now takes 1 and a half hours to go. A good example is Canggu, Ubud, Ulu Watu! Back then, it was just rice fields and beaches. Now it is madness with so much traffic. The locals can't resist the thought of big bucks in their pockets so all of them move to these places and create a huge mess of traffic. Yes the tourist want their gyms, spa's, fancy vegetable juices, villa's, with private swimming pools. But it has created a situation that is madness. The prices have skyrocketed! The locals have dollars for eyes now and speak with a forked tongue. They pretend to be so nice and welcome the tourist, but it's only for show and really just want the money! The greed now is unbelievable!

Unfortunately plastic is still treated like a banana leaf and thrown everywhere. I cannot understand why these supposedly spiritual people don't understand this and don't educate the children in the schools and the pollution piles up higher and higher! It is not the tourist that throw all this rubbish in the streams, rivers, and ocean! There is an expression I heard ( Jaga Bali Bersih) which means ( Keep Bali Clean) Too bad it's not taught in the schools and Banjar meetings!

Just a reminder to avoid talking in generalizations. It's always a surefire way to breed hatred and negativity. Are there greedy Indonesians in Bali with dollars for eyes? Absolutely. But you can find that anywhere in the world. Not all Indonesians are that way. Are there Indonesians who pretend to be nice and welcome the tourists but just want your money? Absolutely. But there are also many Indonesians who are genuinely good people as well.

As for the trash problem, there are a few NGOs here in Bali that are teaching Jaga Bali Bersih in the schools and the Banjar meetings. I've lived here for several years and have seen a vast improvement in how locals think about their waste. Especially in the younger generations.

I know it's against the philosophy of this forum to think positively about Bali's future but I see a lot of things to be optimistic about personally.

 

[mugwump]

Do you really think that there is a philosophy to think specifically in a manner that isn't positive on this forum?
What about the many inquiries seeking help that are answered positively in an attempt to aid or provide information that is factual good or bad.
When you first joined I don't recall such criticism. What has changed?

 

[harryopal1]

Just a reminder to avoid talking in generalizations. It's always a surefire way to breed hatred and negativity. Are there greedy Indonesians in Bali with dollars for eyes? Absolutely. But you can find that anywhere in the world. Not all Indonesians are that way. Are there Indonesians who pretend to be nice and welcome the tourists but just want your money? Absolutely. But there are also many Indonesians who are genuinely good people as well.

As for the trash problem, there are a few NGOs here in Bali that are teaching Jaga Bali Bersih in the schools and the Banjar meetings. I've lived here for several years and have seen a vast improvement in how locals think about their waste. Especially in the younger generations.

I know it's against the philosophy of this forum to think positively about Bali's future but I see a lot of things to be optimistic about personally.

Growing up in Australia in the 50's it was the usual thing if travelling to just throw empty bottles, cans, cigarette boxes and general trash out the car window. When picnicking, rubbish was just left laying on the ground. Large public events always left trash in their wake. Outside country towns the nearest ravine or area of bush became a place to dump rubbish. It took many years before habits changed. And then there were no plastics. The big petroleum companies make massive profits producing plastics but the blame for the leftovers gets placed at the door step of citizen users.

It is common and understandable that people in less developed countries see western visitors as rich and the unscrupulous will try and tap into their wealth. But in the main I find Indonesians much friendlier to strangers than is the case in western countries.

 

[YachtRock]

Do you really think that there is a philosophy to think specifically in a manner that isn't positive on this forum?
What about the many inquiries seeking help that are answered positively in an attempt to aid or provide information that is factual good or bad.
When you first joined I don't recall such criticism. What has changed?

I was being slightly tongue-in-cheek there mate. Most people on here are helpful and positive. But there are a select few, loud voices on here that seem a bit jaded. Don't want to name any names

 

[YachtRock]

Growing up in Australia in the 50's it was the usual thing if travelling to just throw empty bottles, cans, cigarette boxes and general trash out the car window. When picnicking, rubbish was just left laying on the ground. Large public events always left trash in their wake. Outside country towns the nearest ravine or area of bush became a place to dump rubbish. It took many years before habits changed. And then there were no plastics. The big petroleum companies make massive profits producing plastics but the blame for the leftovers gets placed at the door step of citizen users.

It is common and understandable that people in less developed countries see western visitors as rich and the unscrupulous will try and tap into their wealth. But in the main I find Indonesians much friendlier to strangers than is the case in western countries.

Growing up in the US was very similar. We used to throw our burger wrappers and beer cans out the car window on the highway as rebellious teens. Many of the rivers we played in were filled with old car tires, shopping carts and toxic waste. That's probably why I'm so messed up in the head now

 

[harryopal1]

Returning to the original thread, "relocation". we haven't had a recent post from Dori and she and her husband have been here now for three weeks. I wonder what they make of the place?

 

[mugwump]

I was being slightly tongue-in-cheek there mate. Most people on here are helpful and positive. But there are a select few, loud voices on here that seem a bit jaded. Don't want to name any names

I try to ignore the cranks. You can't change them so the less attention they receive the more they will either adjust or vanish.

 

[Markit]

I try to ignore the cranks. You can't change them so the less attention they receive the more they will either adjust or vanish.

Yeah, me too. Can't stand em myself.

 

[Dori]

Hi Harryopal, we are now in Australia for Christmas and New Year. Okay what were our thoughts about the parts of Bali we saw……..firstly we stayed in Candidasa, definitely not for us, distance to the airport. Then on to the exact opposite, Kuta. Benidorm on speed. An experience let’s say. Then to Sanur. Loved the area, quieter and some really lovely restaurants and shops.
Now for the burning question, could we live in Bali. I’m not sure yet. My husband says he could. So we’ll probably stop there on our way home to Spain for a longer stay in Sanur. We looked at some properties but they were on the west side of the bypass. We prefer the beach side.
Anyway that’s my update. Id like to wish you all a very happy Christmas and thank all of you who have helped with advice over the last few months. Have a great day.