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Expats fall for Ipoh’s charms

Addtime:2017年04月05日 Hit:

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The lack of tower blocks in the town centre makes Ipoh more attractive to tourists.

 

There was a time when Ipoh folk would have been offended if they had been told that their city was a sleepy hollow fit only for retirees.

 

Although the city, with a population of more than 600,000, now has been developed, albeit at a snail's pace, in the last decade, it is still largely seen by outsiders as a peaceful and quiet place for folk to live out their twilight years.

 

But attitudes may change soon, with the latest international endorsement claiming that Ipoh as one of the nine most affordable places to retire to in the world.

 

Live and Invest Overseas publishing group founder Kathleen Peddicord placed Ipoh third on her list, saying one needed a monthly budget of US897 (RM2,900) to live comfortably here.

 

Peddicord's article, published in money.usnews.com on April 16, said Ipoh was becoming an increasingly popular retirement haven for Malaysians as well as expatriates.

 



Streets spoke to two expatriates who call Ipoh their home.

 

In an email response from Australia where he was on a business trip, Datuk Richard Small, 67, said Ipoh has many things that made the city an ideal place to live, work, and to retire.

 

Small, who helped set up the Ipoh Learning and Training Institute, which provides courses in English, said the price, quality and variety of food added to his joy of living in here.

 

"What I also found most agreeable was the way expatriates and Malaysians mixed and became firm friends. I feel totally at home among my Malaysian friends.

 

He said Ipoh is "nice" because it is not too busy. Small, who became a Datuk in 2010 and obtained his PR status in 1999, said the city was not beset by hordes of tourists.

 

"And, getting stuck in your car for five minutes constitutes a serious traffic jam in a city which can seem to move a bit slowly."

 

He said people still smiled and wanted nothing in return.

 

"I can't think of a better place to spend the years after finishing a busy working life. Ipoh is truly the best place," he said.

 



Retired navy commander Ian Anderson, 75, well-known for his work in conserving Ipoh's heritage, agreed that the low cost of living was one of the primary reasons he and his wife, a local, decided to live here.

 

"The property prices in Kuala Lumpur and Penang are ridiculously expensive. The property I bought here is a fraction of what I would have had to pay in those two places.

 

"Besides that, the cost of living is generally lower. Yes, it is an affordable place to live for expatriates. In fact, it is the best place to live on the west coast of the peninsular."

 

Rubbishing the perception that Ipoh is a sleepy hollow, Anderson, who obtained his PR status in 2001 and later wrote Ipoh, My Hometown,   said living in here had its own advantages for an expatriate like him.

 

Resonating Small's observation on the traffic, Anderson said the traffic was unlike Kuala Lumpur and Penang due to the lack of high-rise buildings in the town centre, a point highlighted by Peddicord.

 

He said the state government and the Ipoh City Council must ensure that there were no high-rise buildings in the town centre, which made Ipoh especially attractive to tourists and expatriates.

 

"Life is good here. I tell everyone that. When people say Ipoh is quaint and rustic, I say Ipoh is lovely because of that. I love this place," said Anderson.

 

(Source: New Straits Times)