Greetings to everyone
My Canadian wife and I are moving to Penang in the spring and wanted to introduce ourselves to the community. We currently live in a suburb of San Francisco, USA. Exactly one year ago I was laid off and we decided to try early retirement in Malaysia. I'm Rob, 49, and my wife is Diane, age 43. We'll be filing for MM2H in April, as soon as I turn 50. The fixed deposit is double the amount for applicants under 50 so it made sense to simply wait it out. Diane is a Registered nurse and will continue working until April. I worked for 30 years in the financial services industry.
We're simultaneously selling our house and almost everything we own when we apply for the visa and plan on leaving as soon as the house closes escrow. Sadly, we met a Malaysian on another forum who works in the USA and owns a condo in the Miami Green Apartment Complex. He was going to rent to us ahead of the move but changed his mind so it appears we will try to rent a short-term unit for a few weeks while we search for housing unless we can find another option via this forum (we would really love this !!). We're interested in Batu Feringghi, Tanjung Bungah or Tanjung Tokong. We've never been to Penang so this is a huge leap of faith.
Although the move is 6 to 8 months away, we're hoping to touch base with some expats or locals ahead of time. We'd prefer to secure a lease from the USA ahead of time but understand it's hard until you're move-in ready.
We're also seeking a new social network; We can hang out with anyone from their 20's to their 60's as long as they're friendly and reliable. We enjoy dining out, walking, hiking, bird watching, music, festivals, discovering cultural attractions, wine tasting, any wildlife volunteer work and yoga. We also LOVE monkeys and orangutans and have visited Sabah (see the blog for details)
Our blog was just added to the site. I've never blogged before and I'm really trying to increase readership and get a decent following; I write and Diane photographs. More information about us about is there. Please check it out and if you like it, please comment, like, follow or share our stories with others.
If you're interested in friendship, can help us with our housing search or have any suggestions, ideas or comments useful to new expats, please contact us. Thanks so much; we look forward to contacting many of you.