So, here we go again, perhaps. I have had the Asian carrot dangled in front of me once more, and was seriously considering the prospect of grabbing it. A role managing a contract polymetallic mining operation in Vietnam is on offer, with exceptional financial benefits, plus housing. The rest is a bit of an unknown at this point, although it would appear that most costs of living over there are very cheap by comparison to here in Australia.
The pros and cons of this decision are one thing. But what this coming up did make me think of was the changing face of being an expat in SEA over the years. If I had accepted this job, it would be the third iteration for me. This is what I'm on about;
1st Generation Expat - Well it was actually my dad who was the expat here, back in the late 70's and 1980's, when we lived in both Hong Kong and Singapore. He was working on the new underground rail systems, and generally keen on for his knowledge of coffer dams, tunnels, that kind of thing. Our family had a history in construction in Asia, both SEA and mainland China, dating back to the very early 1900's and perhaps even earlier. Being an expat in those days came with a lot of perks, at least in British colonies or ex-colonies. I don't know how Dad's salary compared, but we also got housing, school paid for, and club membership paid for. As was the case when Dad was a kid himself or when he was there with my siblings in the 60's, our club was the KCC, the Kowloon Cricket Club. It has been an institution for a century and is still going strong, but oh boy you would need to be wealthy to join these days. I visited again with my brother in 2002, and was fortunate enough to be able to visit. It really is a relic from a bygone era, with it's long bar and billiards room, which I believe in the past was off-limits to women. It had a formal restaurant, where kids were not allowed and a tie was the dress code. It had a wonderful buffet, that I still remember to this day - well at least the black bean mussels, which I remember devouring like nobody's business. It is an interesting memory, because I don't like mussels these days and generally avoid them wherever possible.
Thanks to www.living.hongkonghomes.com for that superb shot of the grounds of the KCC. So in my expat kid years in HK from 1979 to 1985, it was a good life. I believe my parents were able to save a fair bit, and I had some great schooling at KJS and then KGV. Apart from the club membership, what really stood out was the fact that in HK, at least in the professional sectors, generally all senior positions were held by Caucasians. Not 100%, but very much the majority of them. As one of that ilk, my dad was held in high regard and really was treated like an upper-class member of society. What grounded my dad and made him very popular with the locals was the fact that he spoke Cantonese. His workforce reacted with equal amounts of mirth and admiration whenever Dad admonished them using the local vernacular, particularly the expletives.
2nd Generation Expat - In 1985, Dad received an offer from one of the partners who had built the MTR in Hong Kong, Nishimatsu, a Japanese construction company, to help them do the same in Singapore. For whatever reason, this new venture was called the MRT rather than MTR. In the Singapore version it stands for Mass Rapid Transit, whereas in HK it is Mass Transit Railway. Semantics, as I believe it is actually the same global company, just with different local versions. There are now actually a number of them all over Asia I believe.
We stayed in Singapore until 1988, when Dad was faced with another decision, either to move to the Philippines to work on the next project, or finish up, as his part of the project was done. He chose retirement, which in hindsight I feel was a bit premature, as he was only 58. Hey that is being a bit hypocritical I know, because the way I feel these days, I would retire immediately if I was financially secure enough. Dad had a bung hip, a couple of other health conditions, and not a lot of ambition to keep going. So he was ok choosing the retirement option. I wonder if he ever regretted that decision, as he was a bit of a maniac in retirement - he was never settled, often bored and seemed to have no hobbies other than doing a bit in the garden. I shouldn't criticise, but work really was his second love (Mum always being his first), so perhaps he shouldn't have given it away too easily. Anyway, that is history, and as I always say, I have no problem with anything in the past, because it has all led me here, and here is a place I am very happy with. I don't mean Mitchell St in Echuca, I mean a life where I have my lovely wife and three amazing kids, a challenging and well-paying job, and a pretty bright future. So despite what I have just written, thanks Dad for choosing the path you did, as those choices were a pretty big part of me ending up here.
Anyway I digress, this post is supposed to be about expat life. Still, the background is all very relevant, and this is my story after all, so bugger it! Expat life in the late 80's was a bit different to the 70's and early 80's, as in it was not so privileged. No club memberships as part of the deal this time around. Maybe that was because it was a Japanese employer rather than a British one, but even so, the culture overall was different too. In Singapore there was a far greater diversity of nationalities, races and religions represented in Dad's workforce. Dad worked with people from the UK, Japan, India and also some local Singaporeans. I believe this represented the first real shift from the old school mentality, and demonstrated one of the first (in my experience) environments where skilled, qualified and experienced professionals were able to compete with Caucasians for employment.
Even so the really luxurious perks like club membership were off the menu when it came to expat contracts in the late 80's, it was still very lucrative and privileged. They paid for my school for one, which at UWC was in the order of 20 grand per year if I am not mistaken - a whopping amount, especially in those days. Plus we lived in a pretty deluxe place, Clementi Park condominium. It was a huge high-rise apartment and really lovely. Below is a photo of the clubhouse and pool, which was simply awesome to spend time in.
Now those who are reading this may well be expecting me to jump to third generation expats when it is time to reference my first foray into working and living as an expat myself, but this is not the case. In fact when I went to Malaysia in 2008, I think the culture, and packages were much the same as they were in Singapore in the late 80's. This may be due to it being Malaysia, which was kind of next can off the rank if you like. Don't get me wrong, there was still a whole lot of expats in Sing - in fact they make up more than half the population I believe - but only the very top level executives get privilege these days - it is still well paid, but not really much more than a local professional. In Malaysia though, expat life was still wonderful. Housing, car, maid, allowance for this, that and everything, decent pay and flights home. I didn't need schooling then, but that was included too for those who did. I loved this time in Malaysia, and apart from a bit of a zig-zag briefly in 2013, spent about nine years there. I have blogged about favourite homes I have had before, and a couple of the places I lived in KL feature. Link below:
My Favourite Homes
After Malaysia came another shortish stint back in Oz, then I was over to Indonesia this time. The expat perks there were along the same lines, although it was becoming more and more obvious that expat roles in Indonesia, much like Malaysia, were becoming less frequent. This was partially due to driving down costs but mainly due to these countries, much like HK and Sing before them, developing internally and producing professional locals, who could do the same job, but without the expat price-tag. This means that unless there is another boom in these countries, it is unlikely I will ever land another role like those I have had there in the past. A sad but true fact. Frankly, this is the inevitable outcome, as one of our key responsibilities as expats is always to train the locals, in order to eventually replace ourselves with them. It is not always as simple as that, but over time, that is the outcome.
3rd Generation Expat - Vietnam, Laos etc. - This leads us to today, and what I call the third generation expat. As mentioned at the start of the post, I have recently been approached to go work in Vietnam. I have since turned them down, on the basis that while it was a reasonable commute roster, the 3-4 nights per week away from home it would entail, compared to the 1-2 I do now, is not acceptable. I am simply not willing to forgo watching my kids grow up and being a close, daily part of this family. Not for all the money in the world. So despite the incredible offer on the table, I had to say no. I toyed with the idea of local schooling, but none of it is done in English, and this would simply be too large a hurdle for my kids at this stage.
The interesting thing though, is that some years ago, when I was doing the Malaysia / Indo thing, Vietnam and Laos were not really on the table. There were roles there yes, but burgeoning ones, in new projects. These countries, while having a history of colonialism, are new to expats in my industry. So I call them third gen, as they are the new happy hunting ground for expats. Of course there have always been roles in Africa, and likely always will be, but that's a bridge I am unwilling to cross. It is good to know though, that as poorer countries develop, the generation or two, or three, of expat opportunities this creates, provide an ever-changing scene in our industry. Should I be willing to take that ride, I could continue with it. And who knows, if the right residential role comes up in the right place, with the right schooling, I would certainly consider it. Just on Friday I got a call from old John Reeve, regarding ASN and its status. He has been paying lip service to this project for years, and the likes of Ib and myself had essentially given up. But it may not be over quite yet. Should the funding arrive, an offer may land on the table for me really, really quickly. Malaysia? As I said before I thought expat roles were over there, but there are always exceptions to every rule. And it is my dream location to finish my career, raise my kids and journey into retirement. Let's see how it pans out...
