• Travelling/Migrating Discussion thread
    43 replies, posted
I thought it'll be nice to have a thread that talks about countries from your own viewpoint, so that people can have a better understanding of what its like. Shitty thread title, and I couldn't think of a good place so I placed it here. I find that too many travel shows and online info give the same old boring shit about every country, when there's alot more to it. And I think this place could really use a thread about traveling, since quite alot of fpers are quite outgoing. And this could really help for people who plan on travelling or migrating for studies and work. Plus, it'll be good for people to post about their own countries and what its like. I live in Singapore. Its a pretty good place, but people like to think of this country as world class. It is in some ways, but isn't totally. Its got lots of fancy buildings in the country, the Marina Bay Sands(that 3 buildings with the huge sail on top), the pretty amazing airport, the great transport, and etc. Well its something like Dubai in a way, there's shopping malls with all sorts of fancy shops (those really high end products like Boss,Chanel etc.) everywhere, and lots of places build up to be a tourist area. Okay here is what to expect if you plan on visiting here: [B]AS A TOURIST [/B] If your plan is to visit shopping malls and the popular attractions of the country, its quite easy, because those places are easy to find. And all the tourist spots and destination are all within one area so its pretty easy to find. [t]http://www.citytours.sg/images/VI-Map-City-Centre-Map_hires.jpg[/t] [IMG]http://kusuisland.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/ducktour-map.jpg[/IMG] Yeah, that image is pretty much it, and a bit more scattered around the country, like the Chinatown, Little India, zoo, night safari, Jurong Bird Park, Arab Street and Sentosa. I can only name so much because this country is pretty darn small, so that's quite a few to offer. Travelling around the country is pretty easy, the transports are easy to use, the MRT that we have is rather simple to understand. [B] THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR AS A TOURIST: [/B]1. Never buy stuff from tourist places. More often then not they are fucking overpriced. That same plate of chicken rice could cost you like 10 dollars more at a tourist destination as compared to the local one. And the local one is so much better too. 2. Need help? Ask the locals. But go for the young people, they are more willing to help. And not all of the older people can speak english. In fact, the cab drivers are pretty good at knowing where to go. 3. Alcohol is fucking expensive here, 8 bucks for a pint of beer. So save that money for other shit. 4. Try to eat at local food places known as hawker centres, because that's where they serve the best local food, and its pretty cheap, a meal cost less than 5-6 bucks. 5. Its hot all year round, and much hotter than your country. So be prepared for shades and shit if you can't stand the weather. 6. There's no need to worry about crime, there's barely any. Go out at any time if you want. 7. Try not to go for restaurants, you are more likely to get the same thing in your country. 8. Most food/drink places open late till night. 9. Avoid the Singapore Sling. Its bullshit. 10. Travel during non-peak hours, you won't feel that much pressure from people working. 11. Go for the crabs here, Its fucking good. 12. Yes, There's a shitload of rules in this fucking country, but just follow them. Don't get alarmed at the amount of cameras. 13. There's advertisement with Caucasians everywhere. You get looks from the asians if you are Caucasians. You're probably good looking and they are probably jealous of your looks. Yeah, that's pretty much it, but Anthony Bourdain summed up travelling here pretty nicely. [URL]http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xo2ian_the-layover-s01e01-singapore_travel[/URL] The country could be completed within a week, or less, If you're good with time management. [B]Travel fares: [/B]Taxi- Starts around $3.50, jumps 20 cents or so every 100 or so meters. MRT(Train)- You could get the tourist pass, or the normal pass, which is like 10 cents or so every stop. Expect large crowds during office hours. Bus- Also roughly around the same price as the railway but much cheaper. Also slower than the train system. [B]Food pricing [/B]Local hawker/Food courts-Start as low as $2 till $5-6. Wide variety of local cuisine, portions are quite large. Drinks goes anywhere from $1 for canned drinks to $1.50 for drinks like sugarcane juice. Coconut juice is roughly $3 and above Restaurant food goes from $10 till around $20 and above, depending what you are dining in on. Alcohol goes from $8 and above, so its pretty expensive. But you can take advantage of stuff like Happy Hour where you get 2 drinks for the price of one. [B]Shopping[/B] All you need is probably at Orchard road, the main shopping district in Singapore. Or if you need electronics, go Sim Lim Square, but they like to cheat tourist of money. I mean really, its has nearly everything you need at orchard road, expensive stuff, cheap stuff, shitty china crap, etc. And that wraps up travelling here! If you plan on coming here for a trip or two, I'll gladly be your tour guide. Any other info can be found on: [URL]http://wikitravel.org/en/Singapore[/URL] [B] AS A PERSON MIGRATING HERE [/B] This is the rather big part, but if you plan on coming here to either study or work, there's alot of things you need to look out for. Firstly, the government control of population is getting tight, and if you manage to get here, then welcome on board! [B] THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR PEOPLE PLANNING TO STAY HERE FOR LONG [/B] Number 1. If your company does not provide you with a place to stay or a car, go for the HDB, which is the main public housing estate in Singapore. Its rather expensive, and can be like $1000 or above for rents, and $200 000 or more for people buying. Starts from 1 room to 5 rooms for each flat. So if you plan on staying in one, try to look out for the prices. Public housing or housing in general here is pretty expensive due to limited land. But if you do get a hold of living in one, do try to [B]MIX WITH THE LOCAL PEOPLE[/B]. I can't stress how important this is. Due to the large influx of foreigners, The locals are getting more xenophobic, and the best ways to not get any shit from them is to mix with them. They are more than happy to accept you, aside from some people. Yes, [B]If you are white, the locals favour you more. [/B]Its true, white people here gets treated better than the rest, no matter how much people say. Because of the colonial past, some people still treat white people better and first. So don't be surprised if they give you extra anything. Oh, locals here will also go after expats, because they have the thinking that [B]WHITE = RICH.[/B]​ I'm not bullshitting. People actually think that way. If you are planning to get yourself a car, try not to if you are not being provided one. Its [B]FUCKING EXPENSIVE[/B]. Owning a car is a luxury. It cost $100 000 or more to get a brand new one. And that's not forgetting the tax, the parking fees, the accessories and fuel. You're better off taking the public transport than buying one, and it saves you shitload of money. You're either getting the somewhat good public housing, or the fancy as fuck condominiums, or the even more fancy shit known as bunglows, which are private houses. If your company is nice enough to give them to you, appreciate it, People here fight over em. [IMG]https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRclOsyhqCtPb7CEZerAWnq5SCt7P20T9mTG8I5QSwskY_xix2Vlg[/IMG] The fucking fancy condos, which has security 24/7, swimming pools, gym, clubhouses, saunas, tennis courts, etc. [IMG]https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSNsJBaWsOz64_KoxZvvMK16JENwaOUhjdOZF6LxKj1GW7Nj0fJoA[/IMG] The not so fancy public housing. Not bad for public housing I say. But its getting more expensive. [IMG]https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR0P-1ZeZjR_Utvaj5rEC7dFyjyuMyZTezD_988lkUekqAPncZrcg[/IMG] If you can afford this, your boss is either fucking nice or you're rich. Number 2. Working/studying here. In this fast pace country where business is booming, [B]EVERYONE WORK LIKE DOGS. [/B]Well okay, I exaggerated it, but everyone here works pretty damn hard, and you don't earn as much as some countries. A Basic salary of a new diploma holder starts at $1800 and degree holders at $2500. And you have countless people all fighting to get to higher positions. So if you are not a manager or in a managerial position, you are probably going to work extra, and can go more than 10 hours, depending on your work. The locals also get frustrated that foreigners get jobs and they don't so you'll just have to deal with it and ignore the xenophobic folks. Working hours is normally 8-9 hours, 8-6pm, but do avoid the peak hours if possible, even the public transport. It can waste more than 10 minutes of your time and get you late for work on a bad day. It gets really packed. I mean fucking packed. Oh, and you gotta honour all those normal work rules, people here take getting late and other excuses very seriously. So don't try to bullshit, or say the public transport is too slow. I had been posting all morning, I need some sleep. I update this when I wake up. Sorry! [editline]8th May 2013[/editline] Oh, and I hope you guys can post about your countries as well, that will be nice.
Let's go to mexico I hear juarez is so pretty during summer.
I plan on immigrate to the Democratic Republic of the Congo i heard their summers are just divine. [editline]8th May 2013[/editline] also i want to command my own child army
I'd like to go live in Arstotzka, but I am Kolechian, and they do not allow our kind.
[QUOTE=wallyroberto_2;40567467]I'd like to go live in Arstotzka, but I am Kolechian, and they do not allow our kind.[/QUOTE] OUT!
I spent two weeks in France, with a week staying with a french Family in Montpellier. I would love to go live in France, probably somewhere northern. Even if it's just for a year. However, getting into the EU is harder then getting into Australia as a boat person. Furthermore, the job situation is awful over there and my french is not good enough to comfortably live over there. If some French people wanna weigh in that'd be super.
Australia's a pretty cool place and I'd recommend that all of you who haven't been here before at least go once in your life. - I don't know if some of you are joking about it or are actually serious, but no the wildlife won't kill you. I mean sure, every time I go to the toilet I discover a new species of spider chilling on the wall but you would be more likely to die from frostbite or something. Probably the worst that will happen is if you drive along a country road at nearly 100km/h and a kangaroo jumps in front of your car. Whoops. - I hear a lot of bitching and whining about fast food from other people on this forum, and I don't know if it's my tastes or not but fast food is amazing here. McDonalds is pretty damn good, the $2 McDoubles and $2 Chicken and Mayos are really nice. KFC is always amazing and Hungry Jacks (our Burger King) actually has really good burgers. Go nuts. - Strangers will be friendly to you, if you're at the bus stop or something people won't be shy or anything. At this bus stop once I had this really good talk with this heaps drunk person from the nearby pub, I've had girls flirt with me at the bus stop and hell someone came to the bus stop once and asked for help with getting something off of the back of his ute parked nearby and some people jumped up and gave a hand for free. I don't know if people are like this elsewhere in the world but I've heard Sweden is pretty bad regarding strangers. - If you're a foreigner people will love you, especially chicks. (if you're American or come from Northern Europe you'll get laid for sure). Just don't act like a wanker I guess, but that applies for us all. If you're black or Asian however I would suggest you try to blend in a bit, especially outside the big cities. Racism is still a thing here but it is no where near as bad as what it was decades ago. - If you come don't just stick in the big cities, go to the small towns everywhere about. I live in a small rural town and there is a good history about it and a culture as well. A nearby town was recently rebuilt to be like what is was over a hundred years ago and that's really cool as well. Oh yeah pubs are amazing as well. Hell even the pubs at the universities are pretty cool. - If you like big powerful cars oh boy are you in for a treat. Big engines are still a very popular thing around and about. Tonnes of cars on the roads are V8s, and the two most popular sedans come in V8 form as well (although one hasn't been made with V8s since 2010). Hoons in old 90's Commodores are common especially in the rural areas. I don't know what else to discuss really but if you have any questions then yeah go ahead. Would probably be good for another Australian to comment as well so we can get another perspective.
I've always heard Japan is a collectivist society where discomforting others and standing out is a taboo. I want to see Japan.
[QUOTE=hehe;40567379]I plan on immigrate to the Democratic Republic of the Congo i heard their summers are just divine. [editline]8th May 2013[/editline] also i want to command my own child army[/quote] [highlight]hehe2014[/highlight]
Australia is a fantastic place. I completely agree with him, however, i feel i need to say some downsides. -Unlike the godless hippy liberal paradise that is facepunch, Australia is rather conservative. The major two political parties are two of the same. Most old people are racist to some degree, and Melbourne has had a problem with abuse of Indian students. Legalization of Cannabis is still extremely far away, as at the present time, one state (ACT) has decriminalized it. It is currently a taboo subject. -Things are expensive as fuck. Video games are $100, $110 in store for some major titles. Software, music from iTunes and basic necessities are expensive. However, the recent supermarket price walls have done some good on this front. However, imported products are extremely expensive for obvious reasons, food items from Europe are occasionally banned, or extremely expensive. See: Roquefort cheese. -We have a nanny state, however, i'm sure you'd know that. R rated video games, internet censorship, and our compulsorily voting is a bit silly. Don't let the tone if this post fool you. It may seem negative but Australia is one of the most beautiful, exciting and interesting countries in the world. Despite what some people would say, we aren't full at all. (Unlus ur indin than gtfo) Australian tend to be hugely welcoming, and our strong dollar and high minimum wages tends to blow the minds of Yanks when they decide to visit. Unemployment isn't a problem here either, and people working in specialized professions should have no trouble. Furthermore, Australia has many country towns, some charming, some not so. We have our big capitals of Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Sydney. To only consider these places is a mistake, country towns with reasonable sizes are abound. Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong, are the big towns in Victoria, with roughly 100,000 each! If you don't want to move here, at least give it a shot. I promise you won't regret it.
[QUOTE=The Aussie;40569758]-We have a nanny state, however, i'm sure you'd know that. R rated video games, internet censorship, and our compulsorily voting is a bit silly.[/QUOTE] We do have a R rating now except 1 state iirc
With the to countries talked about, whats with the obsession with americans to the point of "we'll sleep with you"
Anyone been to France I want to know how it is.
[QUOTE=The Aussie;40569758]-We have a nanny state, however, i'm sure you'd know that. R rated video games, internet censorship, and our compulsorily voting is a bit silly.[/QUOTE] But we have an R18+ rating for video games now, and we don't have internet censorship. However the compulsory voting, yeah that is a bit silly. Could hardly call it a right, that would be like saying I have a right to pay taxes haha. [editline]9th May 2013[/editline] [QUOTE=ScoutKing;40575548]With the to countries talked about, whats with the obsession with americans to the point of "we'll sleep with you"[/QUOTE] They are from a different place I guess, and Australia is heaps influenced by the United States today. We watch mostly the same shows that the Americans do, the same movies, play the same games and listen to the same music. While the occasional person will be anti-American chicks will love someone who comes from another place yet is still relatable in ways. If that makes sense. Oh yeah probably because there is also this conception that Americans are rich, but then again you would have to be to come on holiday in Australia given the exchange rates of the two currencies. If you come on holiday, then yeah shit will be real expensive. As said AAA video games on release here cost at least $80, console titles will usually cost a bit extra and I remember when Halo 3 was released EB Games was selling it for $120 (jokes on them though, we got it from Big W for $80). However if you stay to work then things won't be too bad, well at least not as bad as people on this forum say it is. Our minimum wage is actually a bit over double what the federal minimum wage is in the US, and when you consider that most things only cost 1.5x as much as if they were sold in the US and that you can import stuff cheap without paying a GST (only if your order costs less than $1000) then you can actually get a pretty good deal. I'd even go to say we are pretty well off. When I was working in a chicken processing plant of all places I was getting $25 an hour ($600 a week) and I was only 17. After all living expenses were paid for the week I'd still have around $400-$450 left over. My brother works as a car detailer and he gets $20 an hour, and that's from making cars look clean. So yeah the jobs are really good and if you can find a secure one you can get things like brand new cars on loans and be able to pay them off when you're not even in your 20s.
I'm most likely going to be going to Singapore this year, I will have to keep the tips in the OP handy. Also for those wanting to travel to Australia, don't come to Perth. Perth itself is boring as all fuck, outside of the city it can be really nice though, depending on where you go.
[QUOTE=Talatandi;40576044]Anyone been to France I want to know how it is.[/QUOTE] I loved it, i didn't like Paris at all. I spent most of my time in the south. Incredible experience.
Welcome to Malaysia, oh you white man and dont speak the local language? 200% price markup for you. I'll post more about Malaysia later. [QUOTE=U.S.S.R;40569591]I've always heard Japan is a collectivist society where discomforting others and standing out is a taboo. I want to see Japan.[/QUOTE] From my experience this is quite true actually. But I find it hard to explain actually. The children gets common etiquette education in elementary school and taught how to be polite, line up, cross the road properly and stuff. Its really amazing. But if you go to metropolitan area like tokyo the people don't really stand out because the city moves forward so fast that anything new gets accepted into the society.
[QUOTE=adam1172;40578303]Welcome to Malaysia, oh you white man and dont speak the local language? 200% price markup for you. I'll post more about Malaysia later. From my experience this is quite true actually. But I find it hard to explain actually. The children gets common etiquette education in elementary school and taught how to be polite, line up, cross the road properly and stuff. Its really amazing. But if you go to metropolitan area like tokyo the people don't really stand out because the city moves forward so fast that anything new gets accepted into the society.[/QUOTE] I don't care about the xenophobia and housing problems I just need to be in that country now. Don't you need a job opportunity to be able to secure citizenship or a long-stay visa?
If you're a white man in South East Asia, you'll automatically get a job.
[QUOTE=U.S.S.R;40578929]Don't you need a job opportunity to be able to secure citizenship or an immigrant visa?[/QUOTE] There is no immigrant visa. Citizenship through naturalization is available to persons with permanent residency, which in turn can be granted to persons with a documentable history of residency in the country on a variety of other visas. [editline]9th May 2013[/editline] [QUOTE=adam1172;40578303] The children gets common etiquette education in elementary school and taught how to be polite, line up, cross the road properly and stuff. Its really amazing.[/QUOTE] Surely this is not out of the ordinary.
[QUOTE=The Aussie;40569758]Australia is a fantastic place. I completely agree with him, however, i feel i need to say some downsides. -Unlike the godless hippy liberal paradise that is facepunch, Australia is rather conservative. The major two political parties are two of the same. Most old people are racist to some degree, and Melbourne has had a problem with abuse of Indian students. Legalization of Cannabis is still extremely far away, as at the present time, one state (ACT) has decriminalized it. It is currently a taboo subject. -Things are expensive as fuck. Video games are $100, $110 in store for some major titles. Software, music from iTunes and basic necessities are expensive. However, the recent supermarket price walls have done some good on this front. However, imported products are extremely expensive for obvious reasons, food items from Europe are occasionally banned, or extremely expensive. See: Roquefort cheese. -We have a nanny state, however, i'm sure you'd know that. R rated video games, internet censorship, and our compulsorily voting is a bit silly. Don't let the tone if this post fool you. It may seem negative but Australia is one of the most beautiful, exciting and interesting countries in the world. Despite what some people would say, we aren't full at all. (Unlus ur indin than gtfo) Australian tend to be hugely welcoming, and our strong dollar and high minimum wages tends to blow the minds of Yanks when they decide to visit. Unemployment isn't a problem here either, and people working in specialized professions should have no trouble. Furthermore, Australia has many country towns, some charming, some not so. We have our big capitals of Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Sydney. To only consider these places is a mistake, country towns with reasonable sizes are abound. Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong, are the big towns in Victoria, with roughly 100,000 each! If you don't want to move here, at least give it a shot. I promise you won't regret it.[/QUOTE] Quite a lot of your points are false here; 1) Not all old people are racists, you're making a sweeping generalisation. 2) Hate crimes against Indian students are founded on minimal evidence and a media tornado surrounding it. 3) The legalisation of cannibas is in no way a "taboo" subject, it gets brought up frequently and isnt considered a major policy issue. Not to mention the penalties for possession are minuscule. 4) I have no idea where people get this idea that out video games are $100, I have never, ever seen a video game advertised for this much. Unless you're paying for a special edition copy most video games end up at about $75-90. 5) We have a R18+ rating for video games. 6) All forms of internet filters have not gone forward and the last I heard will never go ahead. 7) Voting is only compulsory if you enroll to vote, and seriously? compulsory voting is not a big problem.
[QUOTE=U.S.S.R;40569591]I've always heard Japan is a collectivist society where discomforting others and standing out is a taboo.[/QUOTE] It's ridiculously Americanized and much less collectivist than the myths claim or people like to believe (particularly orientalist anglophones).
[QUOTE=jA_cOp;40579457] [editline]9th May 2013[/editline] Surely this is not out of the ordinary.[/QUOTE] Compared to the education where I come from. Yes.
[QUOTE=hehe;40579470]Quite a lot of your points are false here; 1) Not all old people are racists, you're making a sweeping generalisation. [b]All the Old people i know are. It's not a rule though [/b] 2) Hate crimes against Indian students are founded on minimal evidence and a media tornado surrounding it. [b]Yeah, i guess the media did blow it up[/b] 3) The legalisation of cannabis is in no way a "taboo" subject, it gets brought up frequently and isnt considered a major policy issue. Not to mention the penalties for possession are minuscule. [b] I would argue that it is taboo, not many people want to talk about it in my circles. Therefore, i'm known as a pothead.[/b] 4) I have no idea where people get this idea that out video games are $100, I have never, ever seen a video game advertised for this much. Unless you're paying for a special edition copy most video games end up at about $75-90. [b]EB games, Call of duty on release was roughly $100 at my store[/b] 5) We have a R18+ rating for video games. 6) All forms of internet filters have not gone forward and the last I heard will never go ahead. [b] News to me[/b] 7) Voting is only compulsory if you enroll to vote, and seriously? compulsory voting is not a big problem. [b]I would prefer to have the choice of not voting[/b] [/QUOTE]
What's Scotland like? Thinking of moving there if I ever retire or if I ever get the money to when I'm like 30-40.
I've been thinking of migrating to the US, but with the terrorist and the illegal immigrant scares that sounds pretty goddamn hard/expensive... I have heard that I can go to college there, which would grant me a visa, and after four or five years staying in the country I'd be eligible to apply for citizenship. Can anyone shed some light on that? It does sound interesting, but I have no clue what college I'd go to, and I don't think I can pay for a US college, like, at all, I've heard they're really goddamn expensive. Universities are free here, so the other plan is just study here and move to the US when I have the money to do so, I'm guessing take a few tests to validate my studies, and get a job there.
[QUOTE=latin_geek;40587699]I've been thinking of migrating to the US, but with the terrorist and the illegal immigrant scares that sounds pretty goddamn hard/expensive... I have heard that I can go to college there, which would grant me a visa, and after four or five years staying in the country I'd be eligible to apply for citizenship. Can anyone shed some light on that? It does sound interesting, but I have no clue what college I'd go to, and I don't think I can pay for a US college, like, at all, I've heard they're really goddamn expensive. Universities are free here, so the other plan is just study here and move to the US when I have the money to do so, I'm guessing take a few tests to validate my studies, and get a job there.[/QUOTE] We have tons of indian doctors/veterinarians for example who get in because they came to study and then work. So, probably.
[QUOTE=MShinigaki;40582957]What's Scotland like? Thinking of moving there if I ever retire or if I ever get the money to when I'm like 30-40.[/QUOTE] Stay away from Glasgow, Edinburgh is nice though.
I'm rather confident I'm gonna move to UK in few years when I get all sorts of things worked out. Would be cool to just visit there before I go live there.
I have a Rugby tour to parts of America next year including something called 'Ivy League(I think that's what they said' schools, playing in New York, Boston, a couple other places, then finally in Canada. Happy days.
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