Life Abroad in SE Asia

This is the start of a new series that I'll take a general look into living in regions around the world.

The idea for this month’s theme came from the comments section of last week’s post. A reader was asking what it’s like living in SE Asia and what resources I have on living there. While you can always search the site this way (for example, here’s Asia’s page), I realize I’ve never taken a step back to talk about more general areas.

So, that’s exactly what I’ll do this month.

Note that I won’t write about regions I’ve never lived in but only those I have. This one is obviously on Southeast Asia but later in the month I’ll cover South America, Europe, and East Asia.

Truthfully, I’m going to have to be very general in my descriptors here. I’m going to focus on my personal experiences only and rely on comparisons to build examples. Every region is home to immense diversity so instead of assuming every single place in an area is the same, take this as a gentle understanding. This is a rough guide, not an exact science.

My goal here is that this series will help you narrow down you focus on where in the world could be good for you but also to get your mindset right before a move if you’re already heading in one of these directions.

Enough of the preamble, here’s a general look into life abroad in SE Asia.

The General Vibe

Most commonly, these countries are considered part of SE Asia:

• Brunei

• Cambodia

• Indonesia

• Laos

• Malaysia

• Myanmar

• Philippines

• Singapore

• Thailand

• Timor-Leste

• Vietnam

My experience comes mainly from Vietnam, having lived there for 3 years (2018-2021). Before moving to Vietnam, we traveled through Thailand for a few months. We also took a number of trips around the region between 2018 and 2019 before borders closed.

Generally speaking, SE Asia is laidback, vibrant, humid, and a lot of fun.

It’s a weird juxtaposition between relaxation and absolute chaos. There’s a saying in Vietnamese, "Không sao," which translates to “it’s OK” or “it doesn’t matter.” This is the first thing you’ll want to learn as you’ll hear it often and use it just as much.

It’s fine, you’ll be alright, no stress here. That’s the Vietnamese mantra.

And then you hit the streets and chaos reigns. Motorbikes buzz wildly, street vendors take over any leftover sidewalk space, and litter and rats scatter about.

From my travel experience, while I don’t know the local mantra, the vibes are similar.

Personally, I found this fascinating and a fantastic way to live your life, just maybe with less litter and rats, ideally. The way of the road never bothered me, if anything, I loved the motorcycle culture, especially once you realized there really is a method to the madness.

Since we lived here during peak Covid, we were able to glimpse into another aspect of culture: the sense of community. We felt this from the beginning but it really became apparent once the pandemic hit.

People truly give a shit about their neighbors. In the US, we’re individualistic, in Latin America it’s all about the family, but in SE Asia, it’s communal.

I really love this mindset and it’s something I would recommend you’re aware of when you move in. Think of the community at large, not just yourself or your friend group, and you’ll settle in easier.

The General Job Market/Internet Access

For those that want to teach English, this region should be one of your top contenders. While you can get better paying jobs in East Asia (more on that another week), jobs are abundant here. And the requirements to get hired aren’t so strict.

If you’re a native English speaker with some experience and a TEFL certificate, you should have your pick of jobs but even if you’re lacking a qualification or English isn’t your native language, you can likely find something.

My only note here is that make sure you actually want to teach, that you’ll put some effort in, and your English is good enough to do so. I met too many people who were taking advantage of this system and while I don’t ask that you’re the most passionate educator out there, your students deserve someone that at least wants to be there.

If you don’t want to teach, jobs will be more limited. The best options would be working in hospitality (but you’ll either need to have a lot of experience, speak the local language, or both), working for an international company that transfers you here, or working remotely.

With a few exceptions, most people I know who have lived (or are currently living) in SE Asia are either English teachers or remote workers.

While you might have to deal with some power cuts from time to time, the internet is pretty solid. Of course, the exception being if you choose to base yourself somewhere far flung. In cities you should be set though.

The General Visa Routes

Generally, most foreigners are either on a work visa or are taking advantage of tourist visas and doing border runs every few months.

Just a note, most often, if you don’t meet all the “true” requirements to teach English, even if you have a job, they likely won’t give you a work visa. That’s simply because the requirements I highlighted above are government mandated to qualify for a visa. If you have these, you certainly should advocate for a visa. I’d take it as a red flag if the school wanting to hire you isn’t willing to do this for you.

Most who are either working under the table or working online will end up doing border runs. This means you’re entering in the country on a tourist visa and hoping over the nearest border the day it expires and coming back in with a new one. While I’d consider it a “grey zone,” the idea is so common that many countries have offer numerous companies that literally take you across the border and back.

Now that countries are starting to catch on to just how many us work remotely, more and more digital nomad visas are starting to pop up. Truthfully, there aren’t too many to choose from in SE Asia yet but you do have some options. Mainly, the DE Rantau Nomad Pass in Malaysia and Digital Nomad Visa in Thailand.

The General Cost of Living

Generally, SE Asia is considered affordable. Of course, a city or popular tourist town will always be more expensive than the rest of the country, so choose wisely if budget is a key factor for you.

Buying international groceries and trying to replicate your life from home here will also raise your monthly expenses exponentially.

That said, generally, it is a really good region if you’re hoping to save as much as possible. If you shop and eat locally and skip the high end apartment complexes, you can keep your expenses lower than in most other parts of the world.

I have said this before and I’ll continue to say it but please, please don’t only move abroad because of the promise of a lower cost of living. While this can certainly be a perk, you’ll need some other motivators - like genuine curiosity and an eagerness to live in said culture - than just how it’ll affect your bank account.

Anything Else to Add?

Like I said, this is a general look, based on my 1st hand experience of living in SE Asia. While I could talk for hours about the food, landscapes, and day-to-day life, that’d defeat the purpose of making this general and not so honed in to a specific place. If interested in Vietnam, here’s all of the articles I’ve written about this lovely country.

If you’ve lived anywhere in SE Asia and have something to add, drop it in the comments!