Hello to all...
I only found the Bali Travel Forum a few weeks ago and have been enjoying reading all the positive experiences that everyone has been having in Bali. It has become a nightly must read...
My wife, 18 month old son and I are even more excited about our coming move to Bali to live and work. At the moment we are just waiting for the finalisation of both our KITAS documents and are busily packing, selling and preparing for the move. As soon as all the paperwork is through, we will be on the first available flight to get over there...
We have just come back from the travel doctor with our arms full of vaccines so should be right to go..
I will apologise ahead of time for the many questions that I have, but it is a big move for us and ANY positive help will be greatly appreciated..
In order to get settled asap, especially with the toddler, I am looking to gain from the experiences of others that have made the move. We are staying with friends, who will help and support us greatly when we get there, but of course we want to get our own house organised asap
Housing:
We plan to live in a rented house (Indonesian style) for the first year and will be looking for a 3 bedroom place in the Jimbaran, Taman Griya, Nusa Dua area. We will borrow a car and drive around the neighbourhoods and look for the rental signs on the houses, but does anyone know of any good cafes / shops etc in these areas that we should check on their noticeboards?
Also does anyone know where you can find the large Aussie style BBQ's in Bali? I am sure I will prefer to be cooking outside rather than on the small cookers inside.
Insurance:
So far we are considering purchasing the plane tickets using my MasterCard, which then provides a 12 month travel/medical insurance free for everyone. This seems ideal as every 12 months we would have to do the visa run and can repeat this process. I would like to hear from anyone that has used this type of insurance and whether they have had any problems with claims? We are still looking for the best medical coverage, considering we have our young son who will no doubt be seeing a doctor often, as active young boys do...
Internet:
Can anyone recommend an Internet Service Provider (ISP) that is both fast and reliable for home use?
Banking:
I get the feeling that the Commonwealth Bank is the choice that people are making because they have branches here in Aus and also a couple in Bali. Is this a good choice for easy transfer of money back to Aus with low fees, or are there better options?
The move is a great opportunity for us to get rid of some of the clutter that builds up in your life so we are busily packing / selling / throwing out anything and everything, but is there anything anyone has regretted not bringing or buying in Aus before moving to bali? Eg for the kitchen / medicines / baby needs.
What experiences has anyone had good or bad with their removal companies in Aus? Any recommendations of who to use or any tricks to watch out for?? We will be moving from Adelaide, hopefully mid July.
Thanks again if you can help with any part of this post.
We look forward to running into some of you in Bali sometime very soon.