Similarities & differences between Thais and Indonesians

[Elizway]

Anyone live/stay in both countries ling enough (10 months+) to get a good grasp on the nature of the people of the land. 

 

Can you share your observations? 

[Destiny1990]

I don't like the majority muslim presence in Indonesia.

Bali its okey.

Thailand better infrastructure more modern.

i rather be with Buddhist people then with muslims.

[Elizway]

15 minutes ago, Destiny1990 said:

I don't like the majority muslim presence in Indonesia.

Bali its okey.

Thailand better infrastructure more modern.

i rather be with Buddhist people then with muslims.

 How long have you lived in Indonesia?

[Destiny1990]

6 minutes ago, Elizway said:

 How long have you lived in Indonesia?

Longer than 12 months.

Jakarta selatan near Pondok Indah Mall.

[Elizway]

6 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Longer than 12 months.

Jakarta selatan near Pondok Indah Mall.

That's a nice area. What don't you like about Muslim Indonesians? 

[madmen]

3 minutes ago, Elizway said:

That's a nice area. What don't you like about Muslim Indonesians? 

88 killed and a mate of mine lost his leg. They targeted westerners only ..https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/bali-bombings

 

muslims are never to be trusted

[Destiny1990]

1 hour ago, Elizway said:

That's a nice area. What don't you like about Muslim Indonesians? 

Yes its nice location lots of big villas..They think that if you’re not a religious person than you have to be a communist?

Their culture its not my thing nowadays I don’t feel comfortable anymore living in a mostly muslim dominated Country.

In General Indonesians are very nice and their food is  good too but i don't want to live there again there are better places such as Thailand Vietnam Phillipines.

[Enki]

1 hour ago, madmen said:

88 killed and a mate of mine lost his leg. They targeted westerners only ..https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/bali-bombings

 

muslims are never to be trusted

Says a guy called "madmen" .... ooops.

[connda]

Canggu, Bali if you like surf and sand.  However, like others, nice place to visit but not a place I'd want to live.
I've got a friend who is married to a Christian Indonesian and an acquaintance from work who was there on extended company business.  The latter had a 'The Year of Living Dangerously' moment in 1998 while attempting to get his family out of the country.  Both have some rather disturbing stories about living there.  Not my cup of tea.

[hansnl]

On 6/9/2019 at 1:25 AM, Destiny1990 said:

Yes its nice location lots of big villas..They think that if you’re not a religious person than you have to be a communist?

Their culture its not my thing nowadays I don’t feel comfortable anymore living in a mostly muslim dominated Country.

In General Indonesians are very nice and their food is  good too but i don't want to live there again there are better places such as Thailand Vietnam Phillipines.

Also, don't forget as most do, democracy in Indonesia is just a very thin layer of make believe.

The country is run, still, by the army in favour of the Suharto clan.

Besides all areas that are non muslim are slowly inundated by Javanese muslims, like the Moluccans, Bali, Papua, all are Islamised slowly.

[Rod the Sod]

I have lived and worked in Thailand and Indonesia since 2003 (also HK and Singapore). My wife is Muslim Indonesian and I am UK Christian (slightly converted for a day to get married having paid the Imam a bribe to dispense with the necessities). I was staying in the Marriott when they blew it up and was opposite the Australian Embassy when they blew that up. I own properties in Jakarta, Solo and Bangkok. I have built big businesses in Indonesia. Those are my credentials ????

 

My wife loves Thailand because here everything is accepted. There is no-one looking at the length of your skirt, or questioning whether you wear a head scarf, whether you are 30 years younger than your husband or whether you are gay. Basically she sees Thailand as a place where anyone can live their way of living and the attitude of Thai and ex-pat residents is largely "live and let live". Remember the Indonesian Government has declared that they have no gay people in Indonesia because there is no such thing as gay - hence they can't have any. You can't teach stupid.

 

On top of that Thailand has the food, people (generally), shopping, BTS/MRT etc. We are lucky and own our own apartment so life is fairly easy for us I have to admit.

 

She dislikes Indonesia for many reasons but is also very loyal to her country and wishes so much it could be more like Thailand in the kind of ways I have described. She dislikes the corrupt politicians, civil servants and business people. She dislikes the fact that Indonesians are kept mentally brain dead through the garbage fed to them everyday on the TV (that way they accept their lot rather than aspire for more). She is frustrated that the infrastructure is crap because those in a position to do so steal all the funding. She deplores the lack of education for the many. In fact, what she hates so much could be said about Thailand too. It is just she doesn't see it as a resident in a nice Condo in Lower Suk right next to some of the best places to eat and shop in the world! Thats the difference between a part-time resident who loves being in her home and close by, and a full time inhabitant who has to face the frustrations every day. This is why it is good to make any one place just a part-time home if you can. Keep moving, that way they can't catch you ;-))

 

From my perspective, I refuse to live in our home in Jakarta (that is her base for her family) although I do visit sometimes. Why? - Islamic influences in the things that I value, like a nice glass of wine or a G&T. Cost of a drink is stupid now if that is important to you. Traffic - makes Thailand look like a German Autobahn on a Sunday morning. The general influence of hard line extreme Islamic folk who for political reasons under the guise of religious reasons, who lock away the one good man that has ever run the Jakarta Administration. The millions who demo because a politician has given them a free bus ride into Jakarta and a free lunch to support his cause, when they cannot read or write, let alone understand what the hell the Politician even stands for. Indonesia could be a leading nation, but it is dragged back by it's own people stealing from the ordinary folk for their own greed (yes, I know what you re going to say..). I really could go on for hours.

 

In Jakarta a trip to the supermarket is an all-day affair. I live 4 kms from a lovely supermarket. Hit the traffic at the wrong time, and it is a 2 hour drive. 45 minutes to find a parking lot. Finish your shopping and it is an hour long queue to get out of the car park. It is better to catch a movie and have dinner before heading home at 11.30pm in the hope that the traffic has calmed down. And the idiots on motorbikes.....give me a new thread!

 

The people of Indonesia in the main are nice, kindly and caring. Same as the good folk of Thailand. Each has its problem groups of course, but if I had to make a decision of where to live, it would be Thailand every single time. My wife would agree with that. Sometimes amongst all the moaning and complaining we forget just how good Thailand is today, even if it isn't the great place that many Readers would like it still to be.

[Johnnyngai]

I was in Jakarta for 3 weeks for 3 times for my cheap skate sexcation.  

I found  Rod the Sod  accurate as reported.   

I go to Jakarta because it is cheaper then Bangkok. 

[dastott]

Have travelled extensively (but not lived) in both Indonesia or Thailand over the past 20 years. Indonesia is a much warmer country in terms of human interaction than Thailand but would never consider living there. My wife has lived in both East Java and Bali (she is not Indonesian or Thai) and loved it. For me, Indonesia is great to visit but not to live.

[Elizway]

Thanks all, for your inputs. 

 

I was more asking about the character, cultural, behavioral similarities and differences between Thais and Indonesians...not the counties per se. 

 

Things like who similes more, who's friendlier, lazier...interacting with both, how are they like? Things of that sort. 

[TTSIssues]

I am a white Christian (sort of) Caucasian married to an Indonesian Muslim (sort of!) lady. We own property in thailand and Indonesia and split our time between the two. I agree with comments about corruption but I have to say thailand is just as bad, if not worse.

 

So to answer about friendlier / lazier etc, although I find the infrastructure / convenience etc far easier in thailand, I find the people in Indonesia far more friendly and more welcoming than those in thailand. Less educated for sure, but there is a key difference for me.

 

thai culture is based around “face” and what’s you say, rather than what you do; Indonesia is far less like this. In thailand I always have the feeling that the locals try and screw visitors out of whatever they can: dual pricing, rip off taxis, wives and girlfriends that take daft foreigners for every penny they have, and the general way of life that telling lies to save face is perfectly acceptable, whether in government, schools, business or relationships. 

 

I juat dont see that in indonesia, certainly not to the same level as I do in thailand.

 

that to me is a huge difference in favour of Indonesia. Much as I love thailand and find the women sexy, I would never marry one - simply can’t trust them.

[Elizway]

Thanks TTSIssues! Exactly the info I was looking for.