ramac

We're actually much further away - South east Asia!!! Definately, it factored into some the decision making. We moved for business reasons primarily but we had discussions all the time about the environment that we would be raising kids in. There were so many underage girls pushing baby prams as well! It seemed like there were just too many negative influences on young children.[/QUOTE]


Woh, no kidding, you moved quite a distance.

Where in SE Asia are you?
Are u pretty settled?
You must have had some adjustments to make in the lifestyles etc.

just_the_two_of_us

Woh, no kidding, you moved quite a distance.

Where in SE Asia are you?
Are u pretty settled?
You must have had some adjustments to make in the lifestyles etc.[/QUOTE]

We're in a small town, up north in Malaysia. We're not really all that well settled unfortunately. I have family in Malaysia and so that makes life a little easier. We're really missing our friends and to some extent the lifestyle we used to enjoy over there. There are no trendy bars, jazz clubs, comedy clubs - u know, general 'have a good time places', just shopping malls! Kuala Lumpur is the nearest big city and it is nice, but with work commitments, a bit hard to get to. We have our own business but now plan to just earn as much as possible (we have compared how much we would save compared to living and working in the UK and it seems that we are better off here financially) and hopefully in 4-5 years, move back! We're still deciding on the time frame though, especially with the kiddie factor. It is really good bringing up kids here - good international schools and domestic help is very cheap.

Becs

The teen yobbishness terrifies me, to be honest, and is one reason why I've found it a bit difficult to settle here. Mind you, it's just the same in Sweden, where I came from, but they seem to do a lot more damage to property here. The phonebox down the road has been smashed into I don't know how many times, and this is an affluent area.

I don't know..I still can't call this place home after 2 ½ years, even though I don't hate it here. I do find it interesting to read what you all have to say though, and what you miss about the UK.

-Becs

just_the_two_of_us

Do you plan to return to Sweden or is your other half British? Everywhere has it's ups and downs, Malaysia doesn't feel like home at the moment, I am only hoping that it will grow on me! I read somewhere that somebody had had some difficulty resettling in the UK after being away for some time - in terms of realising that the UK had changed a lot in their absence and that is a worry for me. Children and teens here are a lot more well behaved - not angels - but definately a lot more respectful.

Gezza

This whole idea that you can somehow steer your children clean of the social influences of the country and area you live in I would francly call it a Weedy Magazine BS! Same as host of other ideas which on the face seem like a good solution but upon unravelling they are no use or make the problem actually worse. A good example of this is a theory that "Teenage Pergnancies can be reduced by Rasing Awareness". Parents had an ifluence in the days when the majority of children were from good homes.Today if your child is kept away from all bad influences it will become isolated and in England certainly it will be alone and only more hurt verbally or bullied.

Becs

Hi

No, I'm staying here. We were unhappy in Sweden, which is why we moved. I'm only 18, so there's no permanent other half just yet, but I think I'll find him here

Are you or your husband from Malaysia? I would love to go there, just for a visit. I've never been to that part of the world.

I hope you settle very soon If you ever want to just rant, PM me!

-Becs