Which Indonesian city near Jakarta has the best quality of living for fam.w/teenagers

**Septiale** · 20-10-12, 23:29

Due to all the issues of Jakarta ( pollution of air, pollution of land, pollution of water, pollution of sound, traffic, stress, risk of accidents while driving, etc...) is there a city where my family could live with great high schools and for me to commute back and forth into Jakarta for work?
is anyone doing this? Family living outside of Jakarta in a paradise of modern world services, yet husband is working in Jakarta?
seriously shocked about Jakarta's crazy/crowded and potential health issues.
thanks

**tihzho** · 21-10-12, 00:45

You've never been to China, yes? hahaha I'd take Jakarta over Shanghai any day of the week.

Where are you coming from that Jakarta is such an assault on the senses?

**Bumblebee** · 21-10-12, 08:35

Agree with Tihzho,Shanghai more polluted and feel grey day everyday.Septiale,do you mean Jakarta's suburb or the city out of Jakarta like Bandung or Bogor like that?for the suburb with cleaner air and good school with easy traffic,BSD(Serpong) and Bintaro area I would prefer.Sentul also good perhaps,I don't know much this area

**DanInAceh** · 21-10-12, 08:39

I don't personally like Jakarta, but I don't think it's quite as bad as you believe. It is all of the things you've mentioned, but I think that most Indonesian cities have some/all of those elements. As Tihzho noted earlier, if you're coming from the United States this country is technically safer than back home in terms of violence. That article about the abduction is definitely not the norm.

From what you're looking for, I think you should make your request also in the Teacher subforum so you can ask about locations near the big international schools. Those schools are the best in the country, and I think you're placing a heavy emphasis on quality education. As I understand it, they're located near/in expat enclaves, essentially a microcosm of the countries we've left behind.

But yeah, I'd easily live in the worst parts of Jakarta over living in the decaying ruins of most cities in my own country. Just don't drink the tap water here and avoid driving on the highways until you're confident (Jakarta traffic is usually too slow to be fatal).

**waarmstrong** · 21-10-12, 09:16

Don't believe everything you read in the papers. Jakarta certainly has a lot of problems, maybe more that most big cities due to chronically poor governance. Its not uniformly bad, though; there are neighborhoods close-in that are quite livable, if you can afford them. Opting for one of the suburbs mentioned, relegates the one commuting into the city for work to a god-awful, tiring, boring commute that will consume an inordinate amount of family time -- unless, that is, you are in the bracket that commutes by helicopter.

As with many new arrivals with similar concerns, the best advise is to first pick a school (see the index to the "Living in Indonesia" link above to begin researching schools) and then research neighborhoods within a reasonable commute to both work and school. Once you have narrowed your search to several neighborhood options, come back to the Forum with specific questions.

Good luck.

**El_Goretto** · 21-10-12, 09:18

I second BSD city. It depends where your husband will be working in Jakarta though. Access to South Jakarta is fairly easy via the toll road. Access to the center is also OK via the train line.

In terms of schools, it has Sinarmas World Academy which is an International High School and for younger children it has the Froggy Edutography about to open soon. I believe there are also some Montessori schools nearby.

It has decent hospitals nearby, plenty of shopping centres and is not nearly as polluted as Jakarta, especially if you live in one of the very green housing complexes.

There's even a German pub as well as many restaurants (Flavour Bliss in Alam Sutera for instance).

**ricky_id** · 21-10-12, 15:16

If the workplace is rather on the western side of Jakarta, Alam Sutera or Gading Serpong. BSD is rather suitable for them who, say, work in the south or in some factories around Serpong. I've once tried the train line El_Goretto mentioned. It's airconned, but not necessarily particularly comfy but that was in 2011, not sure how it looks now.