Living in paradise: Take a closer look

Recently I talked to few expats and heard their stories of whatever crisis they were going through. I won’t divulge their identity here or in person, so no worries.

One guy I talked to, told me of how he met a lady, the woman of his dreams. Captivated, he listened to all her stories and fell in love with her. Finally learning she was a hooker, he told her never mind, he would help her turn things around. Of course he learned what the old saying says, ‘you can take the girl out of the bar, but you can’t take the bar out of the girl.’ I’m sure he is not the first guy to be ‘dazzled by the light’.
Another expat I talked to told me of hard times financially. A partier, he coasted for a long time, never having to worry or plan where the next large Bintang was comming from. The economic downturn has nothing to do with this story, it is coincidental. The thing that struck me was that when your economic base falls apart in Bali, as an expat you’d better have something in reserve. Read the Bali Advertiser column called ‘Money Matters’ by Colin Bloodsworth, for the singularly most important advice for anyone planning to be an expat in Bali. You may consider yourself a ‘Bali legend’, but as soon as your flight home leaves, another 10 expat hopefuls are arriving, all eager to make Bali their own.
As the Eagles song ‘New Kid in Town’ says, ‘they will never forget you till somebody new comes along’.