Completed one year in KL.. Been a mixed feeling so far..!

It's an interesting thread that you have opened. I have been in Malaysia for about 10 years and now spending more of my time in Indonesia. There have been mainly good times in Malaysia but I just found that it was lacking in excitement that I can find in other perhaps less developed countries. Malaysia for me has great food, nice beaches and a few nice places to visit, but overall it seems to be very westernized and lacking a bit in traditional culture. So for me it was time to move somewhere else. I think as an expat, it is interesting to move around a bit and that's what keeps life interesting.

Malaysia has graduated.  It is no longer a cheap little bolt hole in Asia. It's as expensive as Europe in many areas and foreigners are certainly not welcome if they don't have oodles of money. MM2H deposits have been hiked to deter less well heeled people from qualifying and the RM1 million minimum property purchase level also has an effect.

If a person wants to scratch a living in Malaysia and has the necessary visa, then its possible. Illegals are likely to be caught as there are lots of ops to flush them out.

All in all, nice place, but times change and no longer a free for all.

Thanks for these insightful comments. I am about to leave for Malaysia (KL) for my job. It will be my first time there and hopefully all goes well

If you are over 50 and already have properties in Malaysia then the Fixed Deposit amount might be reduced. When I applied for mine they only required me to open an FD for RM60,000 (which I cannot touch). It seemed a reasonable deal at the time, especially with the tax free car. However, these days I am not sure what they are asking but I think being over 50 years of age certainly helps.

Interesting topic & completing my 1st year in KL, I feel lonely & also busy. Hope more fun in future.

I hope you don't get too lonely. Loneliness can lead to dangerous things.

Yeah.... I know but no time to have fun. & boring weekends with no friends.

Perhaps you should find a girlfriend or something like that....

It is interesting to see what people think about moving to my country to work and live in. While at the same time, people like myself move out and want to find somewhere else to settle. I can't say what my experience is of being an expat in Malaysia as I am a Malaysian (of Chinese descent on my ID - but I am actually a Baba which is ethnically a mix between Malay and Chinese), but I can say one thing is of my experience moving to Canada and living here:-
I moved out because I want a better future for my family and personally the odds were stacking against me staying back home. It hasn't faired any better either after the last general election. Malaysia is not your typical democratic country. There is favouritism for a particular kind of race in its society. Which means that if I want my children to have equal opportunity, I have to make sure that they get it from another country. As an expat, I don't think you'd fare any better either in the long run. But if you're there for the short haul, then yes, Malaysia is an exciting place. Lots of colours, festivals, lights, things to do, different types of culture and cuisine. The excitement is exhilarating but, when it comes down to family and your future, there are other more important things like civil liberty and equal opportunity.

PAY RISES - Well one thing is for sure, I expect in Canada there is such as thing as a pay rise.  Something major seems to be going on in Malaysia at the moment and just becoming noticeable. Keep hearing from different quarters that people are still on the same pay as they were say 6 years ago (expats too) and with the cost of living rising steadily, they are finding it hard to make ends meet. People are saying they are getting poorer, not richer and it does not make them happy. It's difficult if/when this is happening, to see a way forward.

Pay rise would be essential if COL goes up. Inflation in Malaysia is bad. Since I left more than 5 years ago lots of changed and I agree that cost of things has gone up drastically since then. Unfortunately pay rise does not go in tandem with COL. That falls back on a weak and messed up government. Bad politics and poorly enforced policies that ruin the future of the country.

Pay raise in Canada isn't exactly fantastic, then again, rate of inflation is not that fast compared to back home.

Hi chaps,

As a well travelled Malaysian, I'll add my 0.02cents if it helps..

1) Malaysia is definitely growing up, and its sitting in a region with one of the highest rate of middle class growth. Money, brands and marketers are pouring in and this unevitably drives COL up. In the past, when the population is 17mil and malaysia have abundance of natural resources, things were cheap and heavily subsidised, life was simple and good with a post colonial feel to it. Now there are about 30million and the country is running out of natural resources at the same time. An extimated 2million legals and illegal workers siphon an average of about RM20billion a year out of the country. Political expediency followed by a smaller share of the economic pie and a very receptive muslim local population means radicalisation is mute (this is a global problem btw, almost all islamic centric nations are suffering the same).

As an traveller and also as reponsible tourists, i always believe in the motto of 'travel light' and 'only leave footprints behind' ... but if you have different longer term motives such as settling dow, etc, the transition from 'expat' to 'resident' becomes blurry and thats when things such as local issues will get to you. For some.. its time to move on.

However Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur, for all its misgivings, remain one of the most open trading nations in the world, and as such, issues like urbanisation, congestion, loss of culture, environmental pollution etc is a given. But removing the political veneer and venturing deeper, especially if you are a genuine expat, it is still possible to have a good time in malaysia and experience the expat life here..  when the nation is in flux and moving towards a more tourist friendly, inclusive, worldly liberal stance.

Regs
Jake

I like this in-a-nut-shell-approach and very worth reading.

As this thread is about why getting used to Malaysia is not always swings and roundabouts, I just wanted to add another aspect, and that is the integration process. According to social research there are four stages which last about 9 months (gestation period) if successful.

Stage 1
The first is when you arrive and is the honeymoon phase when you feel euphoric about your new life.

Stage 2
Then as time passes you become irritable with the fact that things are not like they are back home and become hostile towards the local population, being overcharged for example, and the euphoria turns to anger and resentment.

Stage 3
The third stage is adjustment when the anger is replaced by a grudging acceptance  of the cost of electricity for example. No point in moaning about it as there is nothing you can do to change it. Adaptation is required to make things work best for you.

Stage 4
The final phase is adaptation which maybe happens for those who are totally integrated. This is when you accept and thrive totally to your surroundings with no need to shop at international supermarkets or watch TV shows from home and are regularly socialising with other people.

ghgoh123 wrote:

As an traveller and also as reponsible tourists, i always believe in the motto of 'travel light' and 'only leave footprints behind' ... but if you have different longer term motives such as settling dow, etc, the transition from 'expat' to 'resident' becomes blurry and thats when things such as local issues will get to you. For some.. its time to move on.

That's so true. Malaysia's fine as a stepping stone but for those who intend to settle down in the long run, may find lots of issues. I know of a former colleague who was an Indian national that worked in Singapore for many years. When he had the opportunity to move to Malaysia for career growth, he did so but did not remove his family from Singapore simply because the quality of education they were getting from there was better than the average Malaysian schools. Of course there's many other things to consider in the long run when you plan to settle down like healthcare, home, etc.

Gravitas wrote:

A like this in-a-nut-shell-approach and very worth reading.

As this thread is about why getting used to Malaysia is not always swings and roundabouts, I just wanted to add another aspect, and that is the integration process. According to social research there are four stages which last about 9 months (gestation period) if successful.

Stage 1
The first is when you arrive and is the honeymoon phase when you feel euphoric about your new life.

Stage 2
Then as time passes you become irritable with the fact that things are not like they are back home and become hostile towards the local population, being overcharged for example, and the euphoria turns to anger and resentment.

Stage 3
The third stage is adjustment when the anger is replaced by a grudging acceptance  of the cost of electricity for example. No point in moaning about it as there is nothing you can do to change it. Adaptation is required to make things work best for you.

Stage 4
The final phase is adaptation which maybe happens for those who are totally integrated. This is when you accept and thrive totally to your surroundings with no need to shop at international supermarkets or watch TV shows from home and are regularly socialising with other people.

I like the way you sum things up... This is pretty true no matter where you go. If you can get past stage 3, than it makes life a whole lot easier. When in Rome, do what the Romans do - well almost... Have you tried Durian yet?! :p

Hi. Iam taking the reverse direction of yours. And I am still stage one and see it is comfortable and pleasant to be in Malaysia. People still moderate and kind in general. Moreover, life is easy for me as an expat without going through the politics.

On the other hand, Canada has its own problems and concerns.I can not claim that either public school education or health are the best. Moreover, for the family with small children I prefer to be here than in. Canada, where teenagers are at risk and largely exposed.
Not to mention, the average Canadian is suffering and living very moderately to put it politely. You see people in supper market cueing at cashier to buy one Banana or apple. On the other hand, hold women or man is suspiciousness of others to attack them or rub them. They do not talk to strangers.
Here the situation is different, you can say hello to every body and make a conversation without fear or risk. Moreover, you can walk in the street safely, without having women or children harassed or attacked. You do not see homeless people with miserable situation as you can see in Toronto main streets. Not to mention about young and old beggars in the street asking you for a coin.

Talk about the weather is another factor to consider. At the bigs nine, you do not mind the weather and long snow season, but you would enjoy it. But latter on you start to be demoralized and get sick of it. In Malaysia it is beautiful to have 12 months summer with access to beaches and water..

Tax! Is another matter, which may be Malaysia will come to it lat on, but for now it is merciful...


May be it is a matter of age and what to achieve and perception. I am not looking for struggling and competing with others nore in the phase of career development. Thus. Malaysia May suite me better at the short term. I may go through all the stages safely.
Good luck in Canada..... It is beautiful country but....

Everyone has their right to their opinion. So as to you. I can't say I agree with you. Infact I disagree on so many levels. It seems you have a very 1-sided view of Canada. Canada is huge and there's lots of provinces. There's definitely poor everywhere you go, even in Malaysia. Anyhow, I'll spare any further explanation or debate as I don't want to waste my time typing it out as I can see that you are fix with that mind set. All best with you in my country!

Btw, I love the 4 seasons and embrace winter
And I live in Halifax, Nova Scotia not the horrid Toronto (which wouldn't be much different from busy and congested KL).