Because i am now officially no longer a Dad, at least in my own mind, my thoughts are turning further afield.

I lived in Indonesia for 4 years, speak the lingo, like the people etc.

I was astounded to see that a regional Sumatran city is quite inexpensive compared to Cambodia

like 1/2 the price.
see it here or unparsed data below.
special note for engrish teechers---> the pay is high and so is the demand.

http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/co ... ity2=Medan

Indices Difference Info
Consumer Prices in Medan are 50.91% lower than in Phnom Penh
Consumer Prices Including Rent in Medan are 58.18% lower than in Phnom Penh
Rent Prices in Medan are 81.70% lower than in Phnom Penh
Restaurant Prices in Medan are 51.43% lower than in Phnom Penh
Groceries Prices in Medan are 61.40% lower than in Phnom Penh
Local Purchasing Power in Medan is 114.74% higher than in Phnom Penh
Currency: Default Currency Switch to US measurement units
Phnom Penh Medan Difference
Restaurants [Edit] [Edit]
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 3.00 $ 1.22 $ -59.17 %
Meal for 2, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 20.00 $ 6.89 $ -65.55 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 4.00 $ 2.68 $ -33.01 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter draught) 1.00 $ 1.72 $ +72.26 %
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle) 2.25 $ 3.45 $ +53.12 %
Cappuccino (regular) 2.44 $ 0.58 $ -76.13 %
Coke/Pepsi (0.33 liter bottle) 0.71 $ 0.39 $ -45.67 %
Water (0.33 liter bottle) 0.41 $ 0.20 $ -50.48 %

Markets [Edit] [Edit]
Milk (regular), (1 liter) 2.16 $ 1.01 $ -53.09 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (500g) 1.92 $ 0.71 $ -62.72 %
Rice (white), (1kg) 1.18 $ 0.74 $ -37.29 %
Eggs (12) 1.75 $ 0.96 $ -45.09 %
Local Cheese (1kg) 21.20 $ 6.89 $ -67.50 %
Chicken Breasts (Boneless, Skinless), (1kg) 7.48 $ 2.07 $ -72.35 %
Apples (1kg) 4.75 $ 1.11 $ -76.63 %
Oranges (1kg) 3.83 $ 1.05 $ -72.54 %
Tomato (1kg) 1.62 $ 0.36 $ -78.01 %
Potato (1kg) 2.27 $ 0.36 $ -84.24 %
Lettuce (1 head) 0.88 $ 0.27 $ -69.38 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 1.10 $ 0.42 $ -61.72 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 8.00 $ 19.14 $ +139.24 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 1.25 $ 1.53 $ +22.49 %
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle) 1.80 $ 1.53 $ -14.94 %
Pack of Cigarettes (Marlboro) 1.25 $ 1.15 $ -8.13 %

Transportation [Edit] [Edit]
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.00 $ 0.31 $ -84.69 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 25.00 $ 9.95 $ -60.19 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 1.25 $ 0.46 $ -63.25 %
Taxi 1km (Normal Tariff) 0.86 $ 0.27 $ -68.40 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 3.00 $ 1.34 $ -55.34 %
Gasoline (1 liter) 1.28 $ 0.53 $ -58.37 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 37,500.00 $ 23,924.36 $ -36.20 %

Utilities (Monthly) [Edit] [Edit]
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Water, Garbage) for 85m2 Apartment 91.36 $ 17.23 $ -81.15 %
1 min. of Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local (No Discounts or Plans) 0.08 $ 0.07 $ -13.87 %
Internet (6 Mbps, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 39.83 $ 36.46 $ -8.47 %

Sports And Leisure [Edit] [Edit]
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 57.08 $ 66.03 $ +15.68 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 10.00 $ 3.83 $ -61.72 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 3.50 $ 3.45 $ -1.57 %

Clothing And Shoes [Edit] [Edit]
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 11.25 $ 26.99 $ +139.88 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 14.33 $ 13.09 $ -8.66 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes 67.50 $ 47.27 $ -29.96 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Shoes 38.33 $ 31.77 $ -17.12 %

Rent Per Month [Edit] [Edit]
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 516.67 $ 121.22 $ -76.54 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 268.75 $ 54.55 $ -79.70 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 1,300.00 $ 193.95 $ -85.08 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 583.33 $ 118.66 $ -79.66 %

Buy Apartment Price [Edit] [Edit]
Price per Square Meter to Buy Apartment in City Centre 983.33 $ 663.50 $ -32.53 %
Price per Square Meter to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 625.00 $ 312.61 $ -49.98 %

Salaries And Financing [Edit] [Edit]
Average Monthly Disposable Salary (After Tax) 316.67 $ 284.41 $ -10.19 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly 8.50 8.62 +1.47 %

Last update May, 2015 May, 2015
Contributors: 52 26
Data from past: 18 months 18 months
Currency: USD

I seem to recall one Mr Falcon Randwick may live in Medan.

i went thru medan back in the 80's would never ever choose to live there

Lake Toba area on the other hand would be nice

BUT for the life of me cant understand why u dont go to your friend's pace in Northern Thailand

cheaper than Cambodia
better food
more things available
easy visa
close to Burma/laos
beautiful ladies
friendly natives
much less visible poverty

Looking briefly at ur list i see just about everything on it is cheaper here in Phuket than PP ( an the figures they give for phuket are way high)
and up north it would be 35% less than that

hehe- maybe i will!

frank lee bent wrote:Because i am now officially no longer a Dad

Care to share?

I'm always skeptical of figures which include the cost of a monthly travel pass - when no such thing exists. I think all around this region there's cheaper to be had than Cambodia. But so what? Cheap doesn't define everything we need.

There's certainly no easier visa regime on earth than Cambodia's. That's a big bonus.

The thing I like most about Cambodia and least... is the lack of development, once you get a little off the beaten path - you actually feel like the original European explorers must have done. I haven't found that anywhere else in the region.

I'm also sold on the Angkor thing... not just Angkor Wat but every tiny temple remain. And completely fascinated by a history that's so darned opaque over almost every single moment of the last couple of thousands years. I'm not ready to swap that for "cheaper"...