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may be going
Joined: 18 May 2004
Posts: 129
Location: australia
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 Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 4:44 am Post subject: world's most expensive city results.... |
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well here it is again. whatever version you like, here's another one posted on by the bbc.
i won't comment too much coz i'm interested to see what others think but i can't help but raise my eyebrows at a couple of things.
firstly, the cost of accommodation. the survey says it's looking at living from the perspective of expats. yet in terms of accommodation, it says a 'luxury 2 bedroom unfurnished apartment costs.......'
how many of your average expats anywhere in the world live in luxury apartments?
and secondly, a quick look at the chart at the bottom seems odd. a coffee in tokyo is �2.33? that's about 600 yen!!! where on earth are they buying coffee?
other comments observations?
link below
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/6761487.stm
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furiousmilksheikali
Joined: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 1660
Location: In a coffee shop, splitting a 30,000 yen tab with Sekiguchi.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 4:58 am Post subject: |
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Yes, I saw this today and came to the conclusion that someone is getting paid an awful lot of money running up expense accounts just to make stuff up.
Otherwise it is being calculated by people sitting in offices in Swindon completely unaware of the realities of living in these places. |
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may be going
Joined: 18 May 2004
Posts: 129
Location: australia
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:03 am Post subject: |
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yes just a quick calculation has the rent quoted in tokyo (2110 pounds) at 515,000 yen.
i live in a 2DK just on the outskirts of tokyo and i pay 67,000. i may be on the low side but 515,000??? hardly a realistic portrayal of things........ |
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canuck
Joined: 11 May 2003
Posts: 1921
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:05 am Post subject: |
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| furiousmilksheikali wrote: |
| Otherwise it is being calculated by people sitting in offices in Swindon completely unaware of the realities of living in these places. |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:38 am Post subject: |
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| As long as they are comparing apples to apples, the rich with the rich. I laugh when people tell me how expensive Japan is, I think other than in certain areas, it is cheaper than Canada and far cheaper than the UK. |
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gaijin4life
Joined: 23 Sep 2006
Posts: 150
Location: Westside of the Eastside, Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:47 am Post subject: Re: world's most expensive city results.... |
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| wrote: |
| a coffee in tokyo is �2.33? that's about 600 yen!!! where on earth are they buying coffee? |
- Starbucks, venti latte, with an extra shot - doesnt everyone drink those ?  |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:51 am Post subject: Re: world's most expensive city results.... |
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| gaijin4life wrote: |
| wrote: |
| a coffee in tokyo is �2.33? that's about 600 yen!!! where on earth are they buying coffee? |
- Starbucks, venti latte, with an extra shot - doesnt everyone drink those ? |
What I like about Japan is that there is almost no difference in price between a latte and a regular coffee, maybe about 20 or 30 yen, not a a dollar or two like in many other countries. |
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Venti
Joined: 19 Oct 2006
Posts: 171
Location: Kanto, Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 6:21 am Post subject: Re: world's most expensive city results.... |
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| gaijin4life wrote: |
| wrote: |
| a coffee in tokyo is �2.33? that's about 600 yen!!! where on earth are they buying coffee? |
- Starbucks, venti latte, with an extra shot - doesnt everyone drink those ? |
Doesn't EVERYONE?!  |
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JimDunlop2
Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Posts: 2286
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 8:17 am Post subject: |
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Ummm, no.
Proof:
BBC claims:
Tokyo Intnl paper: �0.66
HOWEVER:
XE.COM:
Live rates at 2007.06.18 08:06:16 UTC
120.00 JPY = 0.490431 GBP
Therefore:
Q.E.D. |
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JonnyB61
Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 216
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 8:28 am Post subject: |
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| canuck wrote: |
| furiousmilksheikali wrote: |
| Otherwise it is being calculated by people sitting in offices in Swindon completely unaware of the realities of living in these places. |
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Canuck, no hard feelings, Mate, but that's Slough, not Swindon. |
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canuck
Joined: 11 May 2003
Posts: 1921
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:45 am Post subject: |
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| JonnyB61 wrote: |
| Canuck, no hard feelings, Mate, but that's Slough, not Swindon. |
This better?
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JonnyB61
Joined: 30 Oct 2006
Posts: 216
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:59 am Post subject: |
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| canuck wrote: |
| This better? |
Both series of "The Office" were set in Slough. A Swindon branch is spoken about but the camera never goes there.
Sorry!
N.B. Don't go to Slough or Swindon, ever. Promise me! |
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rai
Joined: 19 Jun 2005
Posts: 119
Location: Osaka
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 11:22 am Post subject: |
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Most of these lists tell you the cost of recreating your life from back home in a foreign country. I sometimes go to Rokko Island in Kobe, which is kind of a gaijin enclave. They have shops where you can buy Marmite, Vegemite and your favorite laundry soap from back home (often at outrageous prices).
I understand the concept: Upper-level executive gets posted abroad with his (or her) family, and the home-maker wants access to familiar stuff to take care of their family with (and doesn't want to spend time they don't have figuring out how to prepare the food available in a Japanese supermarket). Most of us on this board are not here on a generous ex-pat package with a foreign company, so we DO figure out how to live like locals, and it's much cheaper.
Last edited by rai on Mon Jun 18, 2007 11:31 am; edited 1 time in total |
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furiousmilksheikali
Joined: 31 Jul 2006
Posts: 1660
Location: In a coffee shop, splitting a 30,000 yen tab with Sekiguchi.
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 11:27 am Post subject: |
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| JimDunlop2 wrote: |
Ummm, no.
Proof:
BBC claims:
Tokyo Intnl paper: �0.66
HOWEVER:
XE.COM:
Live rates at 2007.06.18 08:06:16 UTC
120.00 JPY = 0.490431 GBP
Therefore:
Q.E.D. |
That assumes you consider the Yomiuri to be a proper paper.
The Japan Times is 0.612999 GBP, nearly the same price as quoted on the Beeb. |
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JimDunlop2
Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Posts: 2286
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Jun 18, 2007 12:49 pm Post subject: |
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| furiousmilksheikali wrote: |
That assumes you consider the Yomiuri to be a proper paper.
The Japan Times is 0.612999 GBP, nearly the same price as quoted on the Beeb. |
Yeah, fair enough... But that just goes to show you the extreme degree of latitude in such a report/study. The results, in my opinion, are inconclusive to the point of being completely unusable/useless (except for perhaps as a topic for an adult English conversation class)... |
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