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Opinions please: Jakarta or Semarang???

 
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Jakarta or Semarang is better to live in?
Jakarta
80%
 80%  [ 4 ]
Semarang
0%
 0%  [ 0 ]
Neither
20%
 20%  [ 1 ]
Total Votes : 5

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new2travel



Joined: 22 May 2003
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Mon Jun 09, 2003 8:52 pm    Post subject: Opinions please: Jakarta or Semarang??? Reply with quote

Hello Everyone!

Thank you for your advice in the past!

Just want your opinions on which contract sounds the best:

1. EF school in Jakarta. 6.8millionR (first 3 months), then 7.7 millionR (after probabtionary period) minus 500,000 accommodation and taxes. Flight paid on successful competion, as well as medical insurance and visa costs. Upto 22 days leave (school assigned). or,

2. Studyworld in Semarang. 4millionR. Accommodation included, minus 100,000 utilities, minus tax. Flight reimbursed 1/2 after 3 month and 1/2 after year fulfillment. Medical insurance, visa costs and Indo-holidays plus 20 extra.

Basically, I can't seem to decide if the substantial decrease in salary is worth the non-Jakartan location. Can anyone offer insight?

Also, if anyone has a good or bad recommendation for either EF Pondok Indah or StudyWorld, that would be great!

Thanks again! Best wishes in your endeavours!
Crystal
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Winmar



Joined: 11 Feb 2003
Posts: 125
Location: Melbourne

PostPosted: Tue Jun 10, 2003 1:45 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I really wish I could be helpful on this one! I don't think I've ever been to Semarang, so I can't even tell you what the place is like. I dunno what the cost of living is like there, but it's bound to be a lot lower than in Jakarta. Is Semarang a nice place, anyone??!!
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Link H



Joined: 26 Jun 2003
Posts: 14

PostPosted: Thu Jun 26, 2003 12:38 pm    Post subject: I've never been there but Reply with quote

My wife has been to Semarang. She says it's a nice place. I asked her to compare it to Medan and Bandfung, and she said it was like Bandung. (Bandung is supposedly the 'Paris' of Indonesia. Some parts offered nice mountain views, but it wasn't that impressive.)

I don't know if they have a lot of western restaurants in Semarang, and stores to buy 'expat food.' If you eat out all the time and don't mind eating Indonesian food constantly, a non-Jakarta location may be fine for you. I got to the point where I couldn't stand to eat rice, and nearly felt the same way about chicken after 3 years of Jakarta, and about 2 of eating in my school's 'kantin.' It's rough travelling out of the big cities if you get sick of the local food like that.

I don't know if Semarang is polluted, but the air can't be as bad as Jakarta.

I keep thinking Bogor would be a nice place to go. I think they have a KFC there and a few other places like that in the mall, but if you have a car, it's about 45 minutes by car to Jakarta. But then, there are no decent malls on the side of town you come in on near UKIjust one small one. and you have to fight the UKI there,
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Joachim



Joined: 01 Oct 2003
Posts: 311
Location: Brighton, UK

PostPosted: Fri Oct 03, 2003 7:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Please do yourself a favour and stay away from Study World!!.

Not only is the company operating illegally, with owners who care nothing for their staff, not a single native speaker has lasted a twelve onth contract there yet, the Indonesian teachers there are all miserable, but bullied into staying, and when I and a colleague of mine decided to leave they resorted to fraud in order to attempt to deceive us.

Also, Semarang is dirty, polluted, badly organised, boring and inaccessible. It has all the negative aspects of a typical Asian city, but none of the positives. There are very few entertainment or sporting facilities (unless you love karaoke) and you will be treated as an oddity if you are not Asian, and let me tel you that gets tired very fast!

Go to Jakarta!
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ls650



Joined: 10 May 2003
Posts: 3484
Location: British Columbia

PostPosted: Sun Oct 05, 2003 9:51 am    Post subject: Re: Opinions please: Jakarta or Semarang??? Reply with quote

new2travel wrote:

1. EF school in Jakarta. 6.8millionR (first 3 months), then 7.7 millionR (after probabtionary period) minus 500,000 accommodation and taxes. Flight paid on successful competion, as well as medical insurance and visa costs. Upto 22 days leave (school assigned). or,


Only 6.8 juta? When I started to work for an EF school in Jakarta I was offered 7.25....
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Tiger Beer



Joined: 08 Feb 2003
Posts: 778
Location: Hong Kong

PostPosted: Sun Nov 16, 2003 9:00 pm    Post subject: Re: I've never been there but Reply with quote

Link H wrote:
(Bandung is supposedly the 'Paris' of Indonesia. Some parts offered nice mountain views, but it wasn't that impressive.)

I agree. Too many travel books and Indonesian locals give Bandung this romantic image. Its very torn-down and ragged and depressive as much anywhere else in any major Indonesian city. The true beauty of Indonesia seldom exists in the cities, but moreso in the countryside. I'll never really understand why Bandung is compared to Paris or anywhere else really that actually is a beautiful city.

Indonesian cities are all kind of grotty, grimy and depressing overall. That being said, they are still manageable.. so not to totally rip on Indonesian cities.. but by world standards, none of them are beautiful cities by any measure whatsoever. Strange when I often hear Indonesians compare yet another grotty depressing (yet somewhat cool city) like Bandung with Paris. Its nothing like it on any measure in any way whatsoever.

Regarding the original poster with Jakarta vs. Semerang. I can't answer that either. But a few years ago I went down to check out some of the major cities (Malang, Jogja, Bandung, Bogor, and Jakarta). I found I liked Jakarta the best just because it had the most options and choices available to me for all things. I can't say what Semerang would be like. Actually I was trying to make the choice between Bandung and Jakarta.. and if I'd followed through with staying.. I decided after seeing both cities that Jakarta offered me more all the way around. I don't know Semerang however.. and each city did seem significantly different with a totally different feel and attitutude in it.. so maybe Semerang would be something on some level or another that you are looking for.. hard to say.
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Winmar



Joined: 11 Feb 2003
Posts: 125
Location: Melbourne

PostPosted: Mon Dec 08, 2003 1:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Parijs van Java thing (however you spell it) is very old, from the Dutch period. Nobody's really saying Bandung's really the Paris of Java now!

Having said that, there are still some really nice aspects to it. I guess you don't fully appreciate them until you live there. Downtown Bandung certainly isn't pretty, but then the only reason to go there is to go shopping anyway. It's much better to the north.
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