Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Cities not to work in

Is Jakarta a bad place to work? Say it ain’t so | The Jakarta Post

Businessweek has ranked the world's worst cities for expats to work in:
The report ranked Jakarta second, just below Lagos in Nigeria and above Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, saying the threat of violence from extremists, in particular, was a serious drawback to living in Jakarta.
But the Jakarta Post notes this quasi-positive spin:
The report said despite problems common to many developing cities such as the risk of disease, poor sanitation and excessive pollution, “Indonesia can be an enticing location”.
Many people in comments are disputing that it should be at such a high ranking. I like this one though:
This is a bum rap. I have worked as a frequent visitor in Jakarta and I have found it to be a pleasant city in many respects. Of course, the traffic can be nightmarish and the air pollution can injure one's respiratory tract.

If you don't have to travel far each day, speak Bahasa and have a modicum of patience, one can thrive there.
Interestingly, more than one commenter cites Malayasia as being the most racist country in the region.

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