Hi everyone, I was wondering if I could live in a small village in Asia and if yes, where is the safest place. I want to learn their culture and work. I'd like a small village, where they are mostly agricultural or things like that.
thx a million
michael

honestly that's going to be difficult. one of the best ways to live/work in asia is to be an english teacher. both Japan and S. Korea have tons of opportunities, and some other countries, including i believe china, have occasional ones. there are also things like history or anthropology jobs you can do, if you're in that line of work.

the problem arises in that a small, agricultural village would likely not have the money (and possibly motivation) to support either of those. so, what would you do there? you could TRY being a farmhand, but that would be nigh-impossible to find, and even if you did (in, for example, china, vietnam, etc) -- do you really think you can live on 20c an hour (and in many cases, that's GENEROUS); plus, why would they hire a foreigner who doesn't even speak the local language and (i assume) has never done professional farming before, when they can hire a local for the same (or cheaper) price? also, i doubt China/vietnam/probably any of the other asian countries is going to give you a work visa for farming...

my suggestion would be to get a job teaching english in japan or s. korea (or china if you can swing it), in an area like Gifu, where you *could* live outside the city and commute, if you didn't mind riding the train for maybe 30 mins-2 hrs each way 5-6 days a week. OR just live in the city and travel out to the country every weekend. either that or just work back here, save some money, and live off of it in china; i would guess you could probably get enough money to live in a rural village in china for 6-12 mo with 1 mo of working a retail job back home. of course, that doesnt solve the language problem (rural, agricultural areas are less likely to speak english), or the problem with getting a long-term chinese visa.

as far as SAFEST, assuming you mean S.E. Asia, Japan is by far. Japan is one of the safest countries in the world. after that... it depends. you can break it down into street crime and governmental threat. ie, in the PRC, you will have a low threat of street crime, but a high governmental threat, whereas in Taiwan you'd have a low governmental threat, but a high chance of street crime. in places like vietnam you also have inherent threats, like landmines and the local flora/fauna. GENERALLY speaking, it'd be "safe" to live in practically any S.E.A country you can get into (no Burma lol), if "safe" is equated to roughly the safety of the US. but a lot of that depends on who you are and how you act. you move into Vietnam spouting stuff about how great the US is and how Iraq is better than Vietnam cuz they're LETTING us help them... well, you may hit a landmine pretty quick. on the other hand, if you study chinese language and culture, are polite, and respect the locals, you could nearly fit in as a native in China. it's all relative.

this list may also help you: http://www.travelersdigest.com/safe_destinations.htm

heh i like what he says about singapore. new tag line? "It's like Disneyland, but with capital punishment" -- i knew it was missing something last time i went.

You can do it in Laos or Thailand but you will have to leave the country every thirty days to renew your visa. Your other option is to get a longer term visa if you can. A sponsor is usually needed to do that for either country. You could go there and make contacts with people that have farms where they have westerners come and work and then work on the visa situation.

There is a mulberry farm in Laos near Vang Vieng that accepts volunteers for labor. You will not get paid and it has been somewhat overrun with people trying to work there thanks in part to Lonely Planet mentioning that you could work there if you show up.

As far as safety goes both countries are very safe as long as you are polite and respect their cultures. The language barrier in Laos is much more prevalent but shouldn't hold you back from trying to do something like this there.

Good luck and safe travels.

thx a million guys, and i was wondering for the english teaching thing you probably need a degree or something like that here to do that overthere. any information. and also, when you talk about living over there for 6 mo with 1 mo here. what is the living cost over there.
thx again

Maybe a bit more clarification is needed. What do you mean "Asia"? Asia consists of everything from Japan to Singapore to Israel to Russia to Kazakhstan.

Degrees are essential for teaching English in Korea or Japan for sure. Probably elsewhere also. They are extremely helpful where they aren't mandatory in other countries. Plus, if you aren't interested in teaching, maybe it's not a good field to go into just to do SOMETHING abroad. People pay good money to study English. They should have a teacher who wants to TEACH. Check out the "living abroad" and other forums for more ideas.

The cost of living is TOTALLY different, depending where you mean in "Asia" so you might find more information once you have a better idea of where you're interested in.

Fill us in on more of the details and maybe people can give some more substantial direction.

thats why I'm here im looking. What I really want is place where I can work live and learn their culture and I want to learn their languages and everything. Enriching myself with their culture and their way of living. I want a place where I will get deculturize like they say. Mostly south east asia; Laos, Vietnam, places like that.
thx again for the good replies
Michael

generally speaking, yes you need a 4-year degree (though the degree can be in ANYTHING). SOME companies don't require it, especially the daycare/teaching type companies, though you will generally be dealing with smaller kids there so if you dont like that then thats out.

living costs... vary widely, as bideshi said -- not only from country to country, but place to place in the same country. anywhere from 150-250% of US living costs for japan to 5% or less of the US living costs some places. see http://www.allcountries.org/china_statistics/employment_and_wages.html for stats about china, but to give you an idea, in 2002 the *average* person working in "farming, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery" -- ie agriculture in general -- made just under 6400 yuan, which translates to 930 USD at the current exchange rate. so, *IF* you're willing to live like a farmer, ~1000 USD/yr is a reasonable rough estimate. do, however, note that chinese costs AND wages have been rapidly inflating (more than 50% a year in some urban places).

personally i'd suggest thailand/malaysia/cambodia/laos. both china and vietnam are likely to 1) pose problems with visas, etc, and 2) pose problems when you get back home. working in china for a year definately raises some red flags...

Okay, I'll answer your questions the best I can, and then share a few moderately unrelated thoughts. Here you go: If you want to learn a language that might be useful and offer something probably almost as valuable as a degree, head to rural China, do your thing, and study Chinese. But the visa situation is something you'll really need to look into. China doesn't like westerners just dropping by and staying for an indeterminate amount of time. Those type of folks tend to be a bit left-leaning and might spread some radical ideas about human rights or believe in Tibet or other such hippie nonsense. China likes package tourists, with itineraries and guides. Vietnam, like it was mentioned before, is also a harder place just to "hang out" in. If you were to arrange some sort of formal schooling, it might be easier to work those places out. Hanging out for an extended time in SE Asia would be easier. Especially Thailand. Also might want to consider Bangladesh. That one’s a bit closer to “the deep end” but you seem to want to shake things up in your world.

Now, I don't want to completely "poo-poo" your idea, but keep in mind that anywhere NEAR SE Asia, you’ll be surrounded by other backpackers trying to have a "unique experience"... just like everybody else. And keep in mind that the locals might just as well not care too much to let yet another rich backpacker from the west come to their small town and try to be like them. If I were them I’d find that insulting. Like being in a zoo in their own homes, like what the hill tribes around Chiang Mai have become. These parts of the world are heavily touristed, and have the scars to prove it. I’m not going to assume your race, but I’m a white guy. When I was in all these places, I was just another white guy with a backpack. Even where people were kind and genuine, they didn’t care whether I was from Europe, Africa, or North America. We’re tourists. We belong there for a short time and then we’re supposed to leave. They don't really want to get to know you, and they have no reason to let you get to know them. You're not entitled to be invited into their culture just because you can afford a plane ticket (which will cost more than most of them earn in a year) and want to learn some words in their language. We should be polite, responsible, and respectful, and learn a few things about the world and ourselves on the way. I think it's good to APPRECIATE others' cultures and learn about the world, but if we’re going to stay in order to "join" their culture, then we damn sure had better have something worthwhile to offer in return for crashing in on their lives. And unfortunately discovering OURSELVES doesn’t really help people put food on THEIR table or enrich THEIR lives. Just something to think about.


I don’t know what you mean by “deculturalize.” And neither does my spell check. But I'm curious.

Hey, thanks again for the great reply. I'll consider everything that is said here. What I mean by "deculturized" is everywhere someone has grew up to gets culturized or socialized. He is like everybody else, but in our way. I have been living in an urban city all my life, and I am like everybody else, a normal white guy either going to school or working. We grew up a way, and they(asian) grew differently. They don't have the same thinking has us and they don't live the same way we do. I just want to see and live for a bit the way they grrew up to see all the differences we have. For a bit I am not talking about a year, just a couple months because I want to travel. I just wanna see and fully appreciate my adventure when I come back.
thanks again
michael

Before you pull up stakes and move all the way to Asia why not visit for a while and check out the situation a little. After you stay in some "rural village" you may not really like using squat toilets, having no air conditioning, cold water showers, cockroaches everywhere, strange foods that at times can really smell to high heavens, etc! Look before you leap!

Besides, you just can't park yourself in another country without some official permission! None of these countries wants you to take a job away from one of their citizens. You have to have a skill that is in demand. Teaching is a possibility but you have to get some special training and actually be able to do it. Some people can't handle a class or have the smarts to even plan or work from a curriculum.

Some countries will be cheaper to live in than others. Read up on these places before you move anywhere. More than likely you will not be making big money working in one of these places unless you work for an international company. Parking yourself in a small village somewhere eating fishheads and rice might be nice for a while but most people realize they miss a lot of things that a city provides!

Google up TESL or "teaching overseas requirements." Have you already sent off for your passport? Have you got the money saved to see you through several months without income? None of these countries wants a charity case from another country! Each of these countries have different visa requirements, make sure you know your limits. If you are retired and have a fixed retirement check you may have an advantage in some countries where the cost of living is quite a bit less than back home. They check police records if you work with children to screen out perverts. (About time!)

Do your homework! Visit first and see what you like. Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and even the Philippines will be cheaper than Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore or Japan.

Good luck.