For mums who are considering moving to Kuala Lumpur, I would highly recommend you join the Ibu Family Resource Group in KL. Ibu means mother in Malay. This is a support group for mums (and dads are welcome too!). What you'll find is a network of expat and local mums, playgroups you can join, Parents' Night Out events and many more.
I am not a member but I have joined their group on Facebook. Everyone has been really helpful on FB. You can ask anything you like e.g. where to find a good paediatrician for your children, recommendations on schools, help with asthma/sleep problems, where to buy furniture, maids recommendation... friendly mums will chip in with useful info. There is also a separate group linked to it where you can sell/buy used baby/kids' stuff.
I remember being a new mum all alone in Jakarta and if not for the help of my friendly neighbour, I would have been lost. When we moved back to KL, Connor was 14 months old and I was bored to tears sitting at home alone with him. I found out about ibu and attended various playgroups organised by ibu and had a lot of fun meeting other people.
Do check them out if you are thinking of a move to Kuala Lumpur.
Showing posts with label Relocation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Relocation. Show all posts
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Back from the dead
Well I haven't been posting for a LONG time. So long that I can't believe my last post was to commemorate Hillsborough. I apologise to everyone who wrote comments on this blog and didn't receive a reply as I was too busy offline to even look at this blog.
The reason for the silence is that a LOT has happened in our life. First Dear Hubby was told he was surplus to requirements here, so bye-bye KL, hello Aberdeen. Then jobs in all sorts of exotic locations from Rio de Janeiro to Lagos in Nigeria were dangled in front of our eyes and ultimately, nothing came out of them. Finally at the very last minute, Dear Hubby received word that he was required in Kuala Lumpur after all and would he please come back to the office on Monday morning just like he has for the past 1+ years?
How last minute, you ask?
Well.... last minute as in... when 2/3 of our worldly belongings were packed up and boxed up, all ready to be shipped to Aberdeen. There we are, dusty and tired, almost everything in cardboard boxes and the phone rings and erm... we have to unpack.
ARGH.
As a friend described it, it was as if I'd been on a roller coaster going up and down and up and down and when it finally stopped and I opened my eyes... ooiiiiiii.... I am still in the same spot.
It was EXACTLY how I felt. I'd been going nuts researching schools in Aberdeen for Connor, where to live so that we would qualify as a catchment area for said school, playgroups, bus routes, various shopping attractions... and I was all ready to start shopping on Asos.com, TheOutnet.com and all the various e-boutiques that had free returns for UK customers and then....! Major ARGH!!!!
Well Aberdeen, I guess we'll have to wait at least another year before we grace you with our presence.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Home Sweet Home
It's been 2 weeks of hard work but we've finally got a home. This is our 2nd move since we've been together and I've become convinced that men and women really do come from different planets when it comes to making a home.
HIM
Unpack hi-fi equipment. Spend all afternoon rewiring plugs for hi-fi. Sort out CDs and LPs by genre, then alphabetically. Spend more time finding sweet spot to put his leather armchair for best possible listening experience. Try to get PC started. Ignores everything around him while tinkering with PC, cables, hi-fi and CDs.
HER
Unpack toys so that Connor can keep occupied and stay out of our way while we're unpacking everything else. Unpack his mattress so that he can have somewhere to have naps. Organise our clothes and bedroom so we have somewhere to sleep. Organise kitchen. Dash out to get some groceries so that we can have something to eat. In between unpacking, life goes on ie change diapers, make lunch for Connor, offer him juice from time to time, wash dirty cups, put Connor down for his naps.
This is why Nature chose women to be the nurturers of the family. Because if it had been men, it would have been Origin of the Species swiftly followed by Showing Off Who Has the Biggest Stone of the Species followed even more swiftly by Death of the Species Because No One Bothered to Do Something Useful Like Catch a Woolly Mammoth for Food Instead of Showing Off Collection of Clams.
Why men focus on things that aren't critical to living like hi-fi and where to hang pictures when the kitchen and bedroom (the bits of a home that ensure we have something to eat and somewhere to sleep) aren't sorted out yet is beyond me.
We've still got the study room and some odds and ends to sort out but it's good to have somewhere to call home again.
HIM
Unpack hi-fi equipment. Spend all afternoon rewiring plugs for hi-fi. Sort out CDs and LPs by genre, then alphabetically. Spend more time finding sweet spot to put his leather armchair for best possible listening experience. Try to get PC started. Ignores everything around him while tinkering with PC, cables, hi-fi and CDs.
HER
Unpack toys so that Connor can keep occupied and stay out of our way while we're unpacking everything else. Unpack his mattress so that he can have somewhere to have naps. Organise our clothes and bedroom so we have somewhere to sleep. Organise kitchen. Dash out to get some groceries so that we can have something to eat. In between unpacking, life goes on ie change diapers, make lunch for Connor, offer him juice from time to time, wash dirty cups, put Connor down for his naps.
This is why Nature chose women to be the nurturers of the family. Because if it had been men, it would have been Origin of the Species swiftly followed by Showing Off Who Has the Biggest Stone of the Species followed even more swiftly by Death of the Species Because No One Bothered to Do Something Useful Like Catch a Woolly Mammoth for Food Instead of Showing Off Collection of Clams.
Why men focus on things that aren't critical to living like hi-fi and where to hang pictures when the kitchen and bedroom (the bits of a home that ensure we have something to eat and somewhere to sleep) aren't sorted out yet is beyond me.
We've still got the study room and some odds and ends to sort out but it's good to have somewhere to call home again.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Bye-bye Jakarta, Hello Kuala Lumpur!
Well, this is it. Our adventures in Jakarta are coming to an end. Dear Hubby is being transferred back to the Kuala Lumpur office and that means my days as a leisurely, pampered expat wife (hah!) are coming to an end. Seriously.... where is this leisurely pampered expat wife person? I've never met her!
As we were returning to KL this weekend anyway to attend a wedding, we decided that the Little Monkey and Mummy will stay on in KL instead of flying back and forth Jkt-KL for the next month. That means Daddy will be wife-less and baby-less for a couple of weeks. Which means that he will a) play all his CDs at top volume b) not have to put up with bah kut teh smells in the kitchen c) have the PC all to himself.
Am I happy to be going back to KL? Yes. I prefer KL to Jakarta. I've missed my hawker food and cheap English-language local magazines. I've missed my family and friends. I miss you Toys R Us and IKEA!
But I will miss Jakarta too. It's not the easiest city to live in but I've enjoyed my time here. I will particularly miss having a driver at my beck and call! I've asked Dear Hubby if we could settle for a Proton Gen2 + driver back home instead of the Honda + no driver and he said NO. Tsk, tsk. That man has no idea how tough it is to handle toddler + giant stroller + diaper bag + shopping at one go.
I'm busy mad packing now because we fly back on Thurs... and after that... bye-bye Jakarta! Thanks for the memories.
As we were returning to KL this weekend anyway to attend a wedding, we decided that the Little Monkey and Mummy will stay on in KL instead of flying back and forth Jkt-KL for the next month. That means Daddy will be wife-less and baby-less for a couple of weeks. Which means that he will a) play all his CDs at top volume b) not have to put up with bah kut teh smells in the kitchen c) have the PC all to himself.
Am I happy to be going back to KL? Yes. I prefer KL to Jakarta. I've missed my hawker food and cheap English-language local magazines. I've missed my family and friends. I miss you Toys R Us and IKEA!
But I will miss Jakarta too. It's not the easiest city to live in but I've enjoyed my time here. I will particularly miss having a driver at my beck and call! I've asked Dear Hubby if we could settle for a Proton Gen2 + driver back home instead of the Honda + no driver and he said NO. Tsk, tsk. That man has no idea how tough it is to handle toddler + giant stroller + diaper bag + shopping at one go.
I'm busy mad packing now because we fly back on Thurs... and after that... bye-bye Jakarta! Thanks for the memories.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Expat Questions on settling down in Jakarta
I've just had the chance to read a comment from a Achuthan Kutty on a previous post of mine. I haven't been able to reply earlier due to my lack of internet access so I'm only doing it today. Since the questions he asked are common expat questions, I thought I'd just do a post related to his queries. Maybe some other expats considering a relocation here will find this post useful. If any more experienced expats or locals would care to add/amend some of my stuff here, I'd like to thank you in advance for that.
1. Cost of housing in a gated community
I suppose the cost is all a matter of location here. When we were searching for a home ourselves, we saw houses in various compounds that ranged from US$2,500 to US$4,000. The cheaper ones we saw tended to be in areas which are reached by a maze of narrow roads. We knew we didn't want that because if I had to travel alone, we didn't want to risk having an evil cab driver take me elsewhere instead. We finally found one that was within our budget and was within walking distance to a major road but was still tucked into a quiet corner. We knew we didn't want to live too close to a major road and have to contend with the traffic jams on a daily basis right on our doorstep.
From what I've been told, Kemang is a popular area for expats and we've seen nice houses here that cost about US$2,500 in gated compounds. That was our lowest end of the budget to the agent, so sorry, I didn't see any houses which cost less. If you have family, it is definitely preferable to live in a gated compound as the wife and kids can make friends quickly and it's safer. There's also the advantage of having a compound superintendent to consult when your pool gets clogged or when you need the lights fixed.
Be sure to check if the amount quoted to you by the agent is inclusive of various other fees such as maintenance, security, pool etc. If you don't check and you agree to the house, you may find yourselves over your budget when the final figure is quoted to you. And remember, house rents in Jakarta are paid for about 2 years in advance, so that's a BIG lump of money.
2. English-speaking maid and cook
Check the Jakarta International Community Center (JICC) for maid listings. They are located near Hero Kemang. Hero is a chain of local supermarkets. Alternatively, Hero Kemang and Hero near Kristal Hotel has a bulletin board where maids often post letters of recommendation from previous employers and their phone numbers, hoping to find potential employers. Pick those who are accustomed to working for expat families as they tend to have experience running the whole household and will manage things such as handling repairs, topping up the groceries etc. They should cost over Rp1 million monthly (approx US$100+) and they get every Sunday off. You should also be aware that you should pay them a month's bonus around Hari Raya and depending on your agreement, they can get up to two weeks off for the holiday period. This seems to be standard practise here and I've read somewhere that Indon law requires them to be paid that bonus, so don't skimp on it.
What I've been told by other expats: Always ask for a reference and check out the reference before you hire the maid. Spell out clearly what you want them to do and ask if they can do it. Do a trial period first, say for a month, before you agree to hire them permanently. ALWAYS send them for a health check prior to employment, the cost of the health check will be borne by you.
This excellent expat site has a table of approximate costs of hired help in Indonesia.
3. English-speaking driver
Okay, ours came with Dear Hubby's job. He speaks basic English. If you have an accent, please speak slower than your normal speed. Sometimes the accent matters. There have been many hilarious moments when Dear Hubby says something to our driver/taxi drivers and they don't understand him because of his English accent but when I say the exact same thing in a Malaysian accent, they all get it.
But if you need to hire your own, I've found that again the Hero bulletin board and JICC has ads for drivers. Our driver costs about Rp1.5 million per month and he gets to claim all the various parking, toll and food charges as well.
4. What car to drive in Jakarta
Haha.... I'm just glad I don't have to drive in Jakarta, the traffic is crazy! Where we live is prone to floods in the rainy season, so Dear Hubby insisted on a 4WD. We were issued with the standard expat vehicle that is the Toyota Kijang (the Innova in other countries) when we arrived but we changed it to a Honda CRV. I would reco a vehicle that's got BIG HIGH wheels so that when it floods, the waters don't get into your car and you can still get past some flooded areas. A no-no car for Jakarta roads will be something sporty and low. That's just plain asking for trouble and it's simply not practical in a city where I've never gone faster than 60km/h and there are more craters in the roads than there are on the Moon.
5. Shopping for food
Okay, Achuthan didn't ask this but I thought I would just put this in anyway. My favourite supermarket is Ranch Market. They have various branches but the two I know of are in Dharmawangsa and Pejaten. This is where I can get my supply of roasts and bacon to feed Dear Hubby. They also carry all our favourite curry pastes and various stir-fry sauces (guess how else I manage to serve up Nasi Goreng Belacan for Dear Hubby without stinking up the whole house!).
Kemchicks is pretty good too for expat-y stuff and they have one in Kemang. A bigger outlet is located downtown in Pacific Place Mall (hope I got the name right, I keep getting that one wrong!)
Hero Kemang is also quite good for your everyday needs. I've also tried Giant and Carrefour in Lebak Bulus but I found the quality of the meats there to be a bit dodgy. And the broccoli I bought from Carrefour had a family of worms in the center! *sigh* Well, at least that shows they didn't use that much pesticide...
Another supermarket I frequent is the one in Cilandak Town Square (Citos). I pop in there if I'm in Citos for lunch.
6. Trawling for furniture
We've spent the past two weeks doing nothing but this. We found that Jln Kemang Raya has a lot of furniture shops - some hideous, some nice. My reco would be Koi Gallery, just next to the McD in Kemang. It's in the same building as Celebrity Fitness. It's a furniture gallery-cum restaurant and I think it's run by a Frenchman. We met him but I don't know if he's French or Belgian-French. They do some nice pieces in recycled teakwood and we've bought some. For price comparison: a dining table made of recycled teakwood that can seat 6 costs about RM2,500. I've seen pieces in IKEA catalogues from pinewood that cost the same.
Another shop I liked was Eight Rooms, also along Jln Kemang Raya. It's got very nice pieces and they can customise the furniture to your measurements.
Jln Benda nearby also has a lot of furniture places and a lot of local places where they can make what you want. If you're looking for rattan furniture, a friend of mine bought some lovely pieces from The Rattan House. You can't miss it on Jln Benda, the shop signage is visible from the moon.
Achthan, I hope this helps if you do decide to relocate to Jakarta and do come by and say hi!
1. Cost of housing in a gated community
I suppose the cost is all a matter of location here. When we were searching for a home ourselves, we saw houses in various compounds that ranged from US$2,500 to US$4,000. The cheaper ones we saw tended to be in areas which are reached by a maze of narrow roads. We knew we didn't want that because if I had to travel alone, we didn't want to risk having an evil cab driver take me elsewhere instead. We finally found one that was within our budget and was within walking distance to a major road but was still tucked into a quiet corner. We knew we didn't want to live too close to a major road and have to contend with the traffic jams on a daily basis right on our doorstep.
From what I've been told, Kemang is a popular area for expats and we've seen nice houses here that cost about US$2,500 in gated compounds. That was our lowest end of the budget to the agent, so sorry, I didn't see any houses which cost less. If you have family, it is definitely preferable to live in a gated compound as the wife and kids can make friends quickly and it's safer. There's also the advantage of having a compound superintendent to consult when your pool gets clogged or when you need the lights fixed.
Be sure to check if the amount quoted to you by the agent is inclusive of various other fees such as maintenance, security, pool etc. If you don't check and you agree to the house, you may find yourselves over your budget when the final figure is quoted to you. And remember, house rents in Jakarta are paid for about 2 years in advance, so that's a BIG lump of money.
2. English-speaking maid and cook
Check the Jakarta International Community Center (JICC) for maid listings. They are located near Hero Kemang. Hero is a chain of local supermarkets. Alternatively, Hero Kemang and Hero near Kristal Hotel has a bulletin board where maids often post letters of recommendation from previous employers and their phone numbers, hoping to find potential employers. Pick those who are accustomed to working for expat families as they tend to have experience running the whole household and will manage things such as handling repairs, topping up the groceries etc. They should cost over Rp1 million monthly (approx US$100+) and they get every Sunday off. You should also be aware that you should pay them a month's bonus around Hari Raya and depending on your agreement, they can get up to two weeks off for the holiday period. This seems to be standard practise here and I've read somewhere that Indon law requires them to be paid that bonus, so don't skimp on it.
What I've been told by other expats: Always ask for a reference and check out the reference before you hire the maid. Spell out clearly what you want them to do and ask if they can do it. Do a trial period first, say for a month, before you agree to hire them permanently. ALWAYS send them for a health check prior to employment, the cost of the health check will be borne by you.
This excellent expat site has a table of approximate costs of hired help in Indonesia.
3. English-speaking driver
Okay, ours came with Dear Hubby's job. He speaks basic English. If you have an accent, please speak slower than your normal speed. Sometimes the accent matters. There have been many hilarious moments when Dear Hubby says something to our driver/taxi drivers and they don't understand him because of his English accent but when I say the exact same thing in a Malaysian accent, they all get it.
But if you need to hire your own, I've found that again the Hero bulletin board and JICC has ads for drivers. Our driver costs about Rp1.5 million per month and he gets to claim all the various parking, toll and food charges as well.
4. What car to drive in Jakarta
Haha.... I'm just glad I don't have to drive in Jakarta, the traffic is crazy! Where we live is prone to floods in the rainy season, so Dear Hubby insisted on a 4WD. We were issued with the standard expat vehicle that is the Toyota Kijang (the Innova in other countries) when we arrived but we changed it to a Honda CRV. I would reco a vehicle that's got BIG HIGH wheels so that when it floods, the waters don't get into your car and you can still get past some flooded areas. A no-no car for Jakarta roads will be something sporty and low. That's just plain asking for trouble and it's simply not practical in a city where I've never gone faster than 60km/h and there are more craters in the roads than there are on the Moon.
5. Shopping for food
Okay, Achuthan didn't ask this but I thought I would just put this in anyway. My favourite supermarket is Ranch Market. They have various branches but the two I know of are in Dharmawangsa and Pejaten. This is where I can get my supply of roasts and bacon to feed Dear Hubby. They also carry all our favourite curry pastes and various stir-fry sauces (guess how else I manage to serve up Nasi Goreng Belacan for Dear Hubby without stinking up the whole house!).
Kemchicks is pretty good too for expat-y stuff and they have one in Kemang. A bigger outlet is located downtown in Pacific Place Mall (hope I got the name right, I keep getting that one wrong!)
Hero Kemang is also quite good for your everyday needs. I've also tried Giant and Carrefour in Lebak Bulus but I found the quality of the meats there to be a bit dodgy. And the broccoli I bought from Carrefour had a family of worms in the center! *sigh* Well, at least that shows they didn't use that much pesticide...
Another supermarket I frequent is the one in Cilandak Town Square (Citos). I pop in there if I'm in Citos for lunch.
6. Trawling for furniture
We've spent the past two weeks doing nothing but this. We found that Jln Kemang Raya has a lot of furniture shops - some hideous, some nice. My reco would be Koi Gallery, just next to the McD in Kemang. It's in the same building as Celebrity Fitness. It's a furniture gallery-cum restaurant and I think it's run by a Frenchman. We met him but I don't know if he's French or Belgian-French. They do some nice pieces in recycled teakwood and we've bought some. For price comparison: a dining table made of recycled teakwood that can seat 6 costs about RM2,500. I've seen pieces in IKEA catalogues from pinewood that cost the same.
Another shop I liked was Eight Rooms, also along Jln Kemang Raya. It's got very nice pieces and they can customise the furniture to your measurements.
Jln Benda nearby also has a lot of furniture places and a lot of local places where they can make what you want. If you're looking for rattan furniture, a friend of mine bought some lovely pieces from The Rattan House. You can't miss it on Jln Benda, the shop signage is visible from the moon.
Achthan, I hope this helps if you do decide to relocate to Jakarta and do come by and say hi!
Sunday, July 13, 2008
A good news day
I'm happy today because...
- My bestest-westest fwen from Uni has just been offered a job in Penang at better pay than his current job! He went for the interview the week we were in Balikpapan and he's just got the news that he's been offered the position! Way to go!!!
- Our house is almost ready!!! The old tenants have moved out and the landlord is now doing the touch-ups and minor repairs that the house needs. Guess the house should be ready by Aug.
- Our shipment from KL is coming! It was originally scheduled to only ship out in August and we were disappointed because it meant we would have a house with no furniture. But Dear Hubby managed to get them to ship it out on 17 July which means it should arrive and clear customs by Aug. Home sweet home at last.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
We've finally moved!
Finally. Our bags have been packed, we'd left on our jet planes and are now sitting pretty in our hotel suite here in Jakarta. The suite has a hall, dining area, a kitchenette, two rooms and two baths, so it's not too claustrophobic.
We've grown tired of the hotel menu, so we went out and shopped for groceries and cooked dinner on Sunday night. On Sat, we went exploring in Kemang which is where we'll be living when our house is ready in July. We found this nice restaurant called Koi Gallery. It's actually a furniture shop-cum-restaurant. When I looked around the dimly lit, tastefully furnished restaurant, it was filled with mainly gwailo expats and well-to-do Jakartans. How did I know they were well-to-do Jakartans? Easy! They had Chanel bags and Imelda Marcos hair!
Food was quite good. We had duck spring rolls with hoisin sauce and chicken tempura with wasabe mayo for starters and the portions were just right. Dear Hubby picked a shrimp salad with ginger sauce for his main course while I went for the home-made fettucine with pan fried lamb. The home-made fettucine tasted a lot like pok mee, a noodle that can be found in my hometown but not in KL. This plus his two beers and my two pink guava juices cost us Rp280,000++ (Approx RM90). Not bad hor. I think a close local equivalent would be something like... oh crap... forgot the name... the place in Bangsar which is located at Jln Bangkung and serves great pasta in small portions? Dang. Memory going. Been that way ever since I got pregnant.
We're planning to go back to Kemang again soon to look for more restaurants. One had caught our eye that night, it was an eatery above a bookshop near the Duty Free area. Yes, Kemang has a duty free shop but I'm told only those with diplomatic passports can enter. Dang.
Another eatery I'm eager to try is a lively hawker stall area that's quite close to McDonald's, Kemang. This McDonald's is my landmark in Kemang. Since I'm not very sure of where I am yet, I always tell the cab driver to drop me off there and from McD, I can get my bearings and make my way around.
All our wordly possessions are now sitting pretty in a warehouse somewhere in Shah Alam. We can't ship them over yet as Dear Hubby has yet to receive his official work permit. We expect to get them at the end of this month though.
It was a very busy week for us last week as we hurried to pack our carry-on luggage and had to direct movers to pack our other belongings. The company settled on Asian Tigers and they were pretty efficient. They came in on Sat morning and packed up the stuff in our hall, save for the sofas and tv, and stored the boxes neatly under our Stairway to Heaven. Then on Monday, about 10 of them showed up at our place at 9am and by 5pm everything had been neatly wrapped, packed and labelled and wheeled out to the truck for transporting.
Credit to Dear Hubby who stayed behind and did most of the work while I was off at the Canadian High Comm securing my visa. He stayed up on his feet all day supervising the movers and helped them to carry stuff. So at the end of the day, he was rewarded with a nice massage from me, the least I could do to say thank you for shouldering most of the work.
Right now, all we have are two suitcases of clothes each, his golf clubs, my guitar and about six pairs of shoes. And Dear Hubby's cowboy hat. He dragged it out of storage and insisted on wearing it, saying he would wear it as well when we go to Canada in June. He went on wearing it until he realised the combination of his hat and my guitar made him look like the latest country and western singer employed by the hotel pub. The hat came off real quick then! HAHA!
All I felt when I stepped on the Jakarta-bound plane at KLIA was a sense of relief that this was all over. After months of shuttling back and forth and house-hunting and feeling like we were hanging in no man's land, we have finally settled that bit of our lives.
So yep, looking forward to this new phase in our lives, absolutely looking forward to checking out all the eateries in Jakarta (the Malaysian in me speaking there) and looking forward most of all to the arrival of our Little Monkey in Nov this year.
We've grown tired of the hotel menu, so we went out and shopped for groceries and cooked dinner on Sunday night. On Sat, we went exploring in Kemang which is where we'll be living when our house is ready in July. We found this nice restaurant called Koi Gallery. It's actually a furniture shop-cum-restaurant. When I looked around the dimly lit, tastefully furnished restaurant, it was filled with mainly gwailo expats and well-to-do Jakartans. How did I know they were well-to-do Jakartans? Easy! They had Chanel bags and Imelda Marcos hair!
Food was quite good. We had duck spring rolls with hoisin sauce and chicken tempura with wasabe mayo for starters and the portions were just right. Dear Hubby picked a shrimp salad with ginger sauce for his main course while I went for the home-made fettucine with pan fried lamb. The home-made fettucine tasted a lot like pok mee, a noodle that can be found in my hometown but not in KL. This plus his two beers and my two pink guava juices cost us Rp280,000++ (Approx RM90). Not bad hor. I think a close local equivalent would be something like... oh crap... forgot the name... the place in Bangsar which is located at Jln Bangkung and serves great pasta in small portions? Dang. Memory going. Been that way ever since I got pregnant.
We're planning to go back to Kemang again soon to look for more restaurants. One had caught our eye that night, it was an eatery above a bookshop near the Duty Free area. Yes, Kemang has a duty free shop but I'm told only those with diplomatic passports can enter. Dang.
Another eatery I'm eager to try is a lively hawker stall area that's quite close to McDonald's, Kemang. This McDonald's is my landmark in Kemang. Since I'm not very sure of where I am yet, I always tell the cab driver to drop me off there and from McD, I can get my bearings and make my way around.
All our wordly possessions are now sitting pretty in a warehouse somewhere in Shah Alam. We can't ship them over yet as Dear Hubby has yet to receive his official work permit. We expect to get them at the end of this month though.
It was a very busy week for us last week as we hurried to pack our carry-on luggage and had to direct movers to pack our other belongings. The company settled on Asian Tigers and they were pretty efficient. They came in on Sat morning and packed up the stuff in our hall, save for the sofas and tv, and stored the boxes neatly under our Stairway to Heaven. Then on Monday, about 10 of them showed up at our place at 9am and by 5pm everything had been neatly wrapped, packed and labelled and wheeled out to the truck for transporting.
Credit to Dear Hubby who stayed behind and did most of the work while I was off at the Canadian High Comm securing my visa. He stayed up on his feet all day supervising the movers and helped them to carry stuff. So at the end of the day, he was rewarded with a nice massage from me, the least I could do to say thank you for shouldering most of the work.
Right now, all we have are two suitcases of clothes each, his golf clubs, my guitar and about six pairs of shoes. And Dear Hubby's cowboy hat. He dragged it out of storage and insisted on wearing it, saying he would wear it as well when we go to Canada in June. He went on wearing it until he realised the combination of his hat and my guitar made him look like the latest country and western singer employed by the hotel pub. The hat came off real quick then! HAHA!
All I felt when I stepped on the Jakarta-bound plane at KLIA was a sense of relief that this was all over. After months of shuttling back and forth and house-hunting and feeling like we were hanging in no man's land, we have finally settled that bit of our lives.
So yep, looking forward to this new phase in our lives, absolutely looking forward to checking out all the eateries in Jakarta (the Malaysian in me speaking there) and looking forward most of all to the arrival of our Little Monkey in Nov this year.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Our life is being packed away in cardboard boxes
Sigh. The movers are finally here. I'm seeing our life being packed into boxes as I type. The whole house looks like a typhoon has swept through it. It was even worse in the past two days because the water pump failed and we had only a trickle of water to shower and wash with. My god. I felt like I was on a camping trip in Inner Mongolia.
I guess the house didn't want us to move. First it "protested" by tripping a light switch and I was trapped in darkness the first night I arrived home from Jakarta. Boy, was I pissed. My flight had been delayed an hour from Jakarta, so it was close to midnight when I arrived home and I had to grope about in the dark summore. Wah liao. Funny thing was, the table lamps were working, so I put those on.
Then two days ago, the water pump just refused to work. Our landlord managed to find someone who would come in on a Saturday and they fixed it in an hour. So now we have water again. Phew.
I'm soooooooooo going to miss this apartment. It's the nicest home I've ever lived in. My favourite feature is the ceiling in the living room... erm.. what do you call it? A vaulted timber ceiling? Yes, I've just googled it and that's what you call it. I adore sitting in the living room with the music on and just staring up at the ceiling. Very peaceful, easy feeling.
(I love our ceiling!!!)
*sniff, sniff* Bye-bye, KL.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Yep, the move is on
Well, we're finally moving. Yes, really, really, really.
The packers came in today to take a look at our things so that they can estimate the time they need and how much they've got to pack. I'm so glad we're hiring these guys to pack AND unpack for us. I will go mental trying to pack Dear Hubby's collection of CDs and LPs alone.
My big red suitcase is out and I'll have to cram as many clothes as I can inside as they'll be all I have for the next two months or so. (Reminder to oneself: Take all clean knickers!) My guitar is coming along with us on the plane and some favourite CDs and books. We won't be able to move into our new house in Jakarta till July so I'll need something to amuse me till then.
I'll have to contact my banks and change my addresses and try to see my friends once more before I leave. I've always moved around anyway, there was a period of time in my life when I was moving every 6 months but it had always been around KL or within Malaysia. It will be fun to move to a new country and a new life and see what things are like.
I already miss being called "Nyonya". :))
The packers came in today to take a look at our things so that they can estimate the time they need and how much they've got to pack. I'm so glad we're hiring these guys to pack AND unpack for us. I will go mental trying to pack Dear Hubby's collection of CDs and LPs alone.
My big red suitcase is out and I'll have to cram as many clothes as I can inside as they'll be all I have for the next two months or so. (Reminder to oneself: Take all clean knickers!) My guitar is coming along with us on the plane and some favourite CDs and books. We won't be able to move into our new house in Jakarta till July so I'll need something to amuse me till then.
I'll have to contact my banks and change my addresses and try to see my friends once more before I leave. I've always moved around anyway, there was a period of time in my life when I was moving every 6 months but it had always been around KL or within Malaysia. It will be fun to move to a new country and a new life and see what things are like.
I already miss being called "Nyonya". :))
Monday, March 17, 2008
What's it like being an expat wife?
I met up with my bunch of girlfriends on Sat for brunch. We're quite a close bunch, we'd all worked in the same company, suffered through endless Budget Reviews and meetings together, had tiffs with Legal and Sales together and so have come to formed a sisterhood, bound together by our mutual corporate suffering.
They've all continued on with their careers, some have moved on to different companies, I'm the only one who has opted out of the rat race. I was asked, "So what's it like being an expat wife?" Erm.. very hard to say... as I've never been any other type of wife, so I don't have a basis for comparison. Hee.
I think most people confuse expat wives with tai-tais. Tai-tais are wives of the wealthy, they have real money, they can really afford to spend their days doing nothing but going to spas, pedicures, manicures and salons. They can afford to waltz into designer boutiques and waltz out with bags and bags of merchandise. They get chauffeured around in lux cars that actually belong to them and play mahjong with gold-plated mahjong tiles. Okay, maybe I'm wrong about the last bit.
Expat wives are different. We find ourselves in unfamiliar foreign countries as we follow our husbands, often left alone with the children while hubby works hard at the office. Sometimes we get lucky and end up in a country where hubby gets a driver, nice housing allowance and maids. Then we get to be a little bit like tai-tais but it only lasts till hubby's next posting.
I don't know about other expat wives but I certainly don't have an endless budget to spend on bags and clothes and what-nots. Staying expat means a chance to save up as much as we can just in case hubby gets sent to expensive Europe and UK to work and pouf! - there goes all our money.
Expats tend to stick together because it's convenient and it's a relief to see others who know what you're going through. It can be quite lonely when you arrive in a new town and you don't know a single person, you miss home and all the familiarity of it and when you find people who are in the same boat, you find that you attach yourself to this group. You identify with them. I do see some expats try to make friends with locals but it can be difficult sometimes with the cultural and language gaps. Sometimes it works... like Dear Hubby made friends with me, the local in KL, and we ended up getting married! Haha!
Some expat wives work, some don't. Most of those I know fill their time by volunteering at local charities and at the schools their children go to, so it's not exactly as if they all spend their time sipping margeritas by the pool. I know of some who love the adventure and travel but I also know of those who get so homesick that hubby has no choice but to ask for a transfer back to their home country.
I'm approaching our stint in Jakarta positively, I take this as a chance to see another city, experience something different. I'm aware I could get quite bored in Jakarta if I can't find things to do but I've made the choice to follow Dear Hubby, so I'll make the best of it!
They've all continued on with their careers, some have moved on to different companies, I'm the only one who has opted out of the rat race. I was asked, "So what's it like being an expat wife?" Erm.. very hard to say... as I've never been any other type of wife, so I don't have a basis for comparison. Hee.
I think most people confuse expat wives with tai-tais. Tai-tais are wives of the wealthy, they have real money, they can really afford to spend their days doing nothing but going to spas, pedicures, manicures and salons. They can afford to waltz into designer boutiques and waltz out with bags and bags of merchandise. They get chauffeured around in lux cars that actually belong to them and play mahjong with gold-plated mahjong tiles. Okay, maybe I'm wrong about the last bit.
Expat wives are different. We find ourselves in unfamiliar foreign countries as we follow our husbands, often left alone with the children while hubby works hard at the office. Sometimes we get lucky and end up in a country where hubby gets a driver, nice housing allowance and maids. Then we get to be a little bit like tai-tais but it only lasts till hubby's next posting.
I don't know about other expat wives but I certainly don't have an endless budget to spend on bags and clothes and what-nots. Staying expat means a chance to save up as much as we can just in case hubby gets sent to expensive Europe and UK to work and pouf! - there goes all our money.
Expats tend to stick together because it's convenient and it's a relief to see others who know what you're going through. It can be quite lonely when you arrive in a new town and you don't know a single person, you miss home and all the familiarity of it and when you find people who are in the same boat, you find that you attach yourself to this group. You identify with them. I do see some expats try to make friends with locals but it can be difficult sometimes with the cultural and language gaps. Sometimes it works... like Dear Hubby made friends with me, the local in KL, and we ended up getting married! Haha!
Some expat wives work, some don't. Most of those I know fill their time by volunteering at local charities and at the schools their children go to, so it's not exactly as if they all spend their time sipping margeritas by the pool. I know of some who love the adventure and travel but I also know of those who get so homesick that hubby has no choice but to ask for a transfer back to their home country.
I'm approaching our stint in Jakarta positively, I take this as a chance to see another city, experience something different. I'm aware I could get quite bored in Jakarta if I can't find things to do but I've made the choice to follow Dear Hubby, so I'll make the best of it!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Hello Jakarta!
Well, here we are. Jakarta. Home to 15 million people not to mention rats, dogs, cats and chickens (hopefully not with bird flu). Home to some of the most lavish mansions I have ever seen and also to some of the poorest settlements, some of them side by side.
Born and bred in Malaysia, I have lived all my life there and before I met Dear Hubby, I thought that I would always live in Malaysia. I thought that life would be as it had always been: a job in marketing for some MNC, a modest apartment in Kuala Lumpur, an okay car to drive around and my friends. Then I met Dear Hubby and life turned upside down in the space of two years.
We're here because Dear Hubby has been appointed Country Manager of Indonesia and will be expected to run the Indonesia operations for the next 2-3 years. So here I am, we've been married for four months now, been together for 2+ years and I am sitting in a hotel in Cilandak, looking out at the winding streets below and wondering "OI! How the hell did life turn out this way!"
But as the song goes, my bags are packed and I'm ready to go. So Jakarta.. here we come!
Born and bred in Malaysia, I have lived all my life there and before I met Dear Hubby, I thought that I would always live in Malaysia. I thought that life would be as it had always been: a job in marketing for some MNC, a modest apartment in Kuala Lumpur, an okay car to drive around and my friends. Then I met Dear Hubby and life turned upside down in the space of two years.
We're here because Dear Hubby has been appointed Country Manager of Indonesia and will be expected to run the Indonesia operations for the next 2-3 years. So here I am, we've been married for four months now, been together for 2+ years and I am sitting in a hotel in Cilandak, looking out at the winding streets below and wondering "OI! How the hell did life turn out this way!"
But as the song goes, my bags are packed and I'm ready to go. So Jakarta.. here we come!
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