A lot of the same boring questions - Moving to Singapore

[scottishsteve]

Hi Folks,

My family and I may have the oppertunity to move to Singapore in the next few months and would like to get some confirmation on a couple of questions that we have.

1. We have two daughters of 6 and 4, and they obvously need to go to school, is there any ones that you would reccomend? (I am still awaiting confirmaiton if the company that I would be working for would pay for the schooling, if not we would have a monthly income of $8,500 (approx) how much of this would go on a good School. (British education system would be best)

2. Areas to live in, (i.e I guess this depends on the School and tranport links? Suggestions needed please. (the company are paying for a fully furnished flat)

3. If we do come over my wife and kids would be left on there own in Singapore quite a lot (I would be traveling to China / Vietnam etc) is there plenty for my wife to do during the day? (what do other expat wive's / girlfriends do with there time?

My wife is still unsure of the move, so please include any positives / negatives about staying / living / working in Singapore.


Thanks in advance for your responses. (Sorry If its similar quesitons that I have asked) but as you understand each case is always slightly different.


Regards

Steve P

[another expat]

is there plenty for my wife to do during the day? (what do other expat wive's / girlfriends do with there time?

My wife is still unsure of the move, so please include any positives / negatives about staying / living / working in Singapore.

You know there's no definite answer, really depend how open your wife is. She always can find some courses somewhere (e.g. dance, language, pottery, yoga...), cafes & malls everywhere. If lucky enough you have nice neighbors and turn to be your friends.

I took a part-time job and knew a lot of local people, they could be tons of fun esp if you enjoy going to pubs or clubs.

For the negative side... most people still judge you by skin colour, TV is boring, and the weather... do I need to say anything?

[jpatokal]

You and your kids are likely to do fine (culture shock's not much a problem at a young age, things get much harder with teenagers), but how well your wife will fare is entirely up to her -- young kids will keep her pretty busy (esp. if you don't get a maid), but she'll probably need to get out and find something to do to retain her sanity.

Tell us where you'll be working and pick a school, then we can suggest areas to live... and naturally the staff on the board will be more than happy to hunt down suitable digs for you.
S$8500 salary plus housing allowance (how much?) is quite good and means that you can live pretty much anywhere you want to.

For the negative side... most people still judge you by skin colour, TV is boring, and the weather... do I need to say anything?

I suspect most people would gladly choose Singaporean weather over Scottish weather

[jivintan]

I'm a local but studied in Glasgow for 2 years. 2 main things that I miss in Glasgow - people there are very friendly and nice and the weather there is cooling throughout the year (hardly sweat) - very shiok

[scottishsteve]

Thanks,

Im not sure of the exact area (I will be covering two or three companies in Singapore.

A compamny car is included in the deal so traveling won't be a problem, really looking for somewhere that is best for the wife and kids.

Regards

STeve

[Pal]

With your budget and requirements, should get a place near town. Maybe somewhere around Orchard Road will be great for your wife and kids, shopping and schooling will be convenient for them.

Anyway, just give us a buzz when you are ready to view suitable properties. We are experienced enough to give good recommendations.

For a rough idea on the pricing of the properties around Orchard, goto our page at http://www.singaporeexpats.com/housing- ... operty.htm ... search for district 9.