I'm Moving to Kuala Lumpur

We live in a crazy age with countries fighting, power-hungry leaders, extreme weather events, money troubles, and protests all over the news. It’s exciting yet deeply worrisome. Even with so much uncertainty, I’m personally OK to die today (thanks to Stoicism and Buddhism philosophies—anything can happen anytime, and we all will die). But as a new father with two tiny humans depending on me, it’s not just about me anymore. Sure, they’ll die too someday (again, anything can happen anytime), but I want them to have a long, fun, and healthy life—and I’ll do my best to make that happen. So, over the past two years, I’ve spent countless late nights thinking about where we should plant our roots for the next decade.

I could live in the USA or Taiwan since I’m a dual citizen, or even Japan where I’ve lived before and loved. But my engineer brain keeps calculating risks: East Asia conflicts, earthquakes/tsunamis, mass shootings, or AI taking everyone’s jobs overnight (leading to chaos). Even a non-zero chance of catastrophic outcome (-∞) is still -∞ in my calculations. I don’t like the odds. And this isn’t just another lifestyle choice—it could literally be a life-saving decision. My brain kept yelling at me that I needed a new option entirely. Hence the search for a new home began…

My Criteria

• Safety: Low war risk, minimal natural disasters, no guns (sigh)
• Health: Clean air, clean water, green spaces, walkable areas
• Affordability: Cost-effective (I’m cheap, self-employed, and need to preserve runway)
• Quality of Life: Home ownership possible, good schools, low-stress environment
• Wife Approval: The most important factor (she has high standards)

Why Malaysia Won

After exploring the USA, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, Portugal, Spain, New Zealand, Canada, and Thailand, and falling down countless Reddit rabbit holes, here’s why Malaysia—specifically Kuala Lumpur—came out on top:

1. Far from trouble. It stays neutral in world politics and is comfortably away from places where conflicts happen.
2. No earthquakes or tsunamis. Unlike many other beautiful places in Southeast Asia, I don’t have to worry about the ground shaking or giant waves.
3. Self-sufficient country. Malaysia has abundant land, water, and agriculture—critical if global supply chains get disrupted.
4. Luxury living on a budget. Nearly every apartment has pools and fitness facilities surrounded by greenery. The price is around 1/3 of what I’d pay in Taiwan. Just imagining the possibility of swimming or hitting a nice gym every day at home makes me happy—whether I’ll actually do it is another question.
5. Decent and affordable healthcare. Quality medical insurance costs higher than Taiwan but still a fraction of what I’d pay in the USA. I heard that most doctors were trained in Europe or Australia.
6. Tons of international schools. Kuala Lumpur has more than 80 international schools. My kids can get a global education and develop native English accents—unlike their poor dad who hated English and now relies on AI to write blog posts.
7. Consistent nice weather. There are only two seasons: Indoors and Outdoors. This removes so many decision fatiques for me.
8. Friendly people. Malaysians are super chill and friendly. There’s something about tropical climates that seems to produce genuinely friendly people. It’s also wonderful to see different races living together in harmony.
9. Everyone speaks my languages. Both English and Mandarin are widely used. English is an official language (alongside Malay), making daily life easier for me and visiting relatives.
10. Convenience. There’s incredible cuisine diversity—some call it a food paradise. While I find many options too oily, with so many choices, it’s never an issue. Plus, 90% of my familiar brands are there. Most importantly, there’s Uniqlo. I’m good.
11. Long-term visa option. There’s a visa program called MM2H (Malaysia My Second Home) that’s within my budget. Since I’m planning to buy property anyway, meeting that requirement isn’t an issue for me. I don’t need to “all in” like what’s necessary for a EU citizenship.
12. I can get my life back. I can reclaim my time and freedom by hiring an affordable domestic helper and using services that make family life easier.

The Tradeoffs

Nothing’s perfect. Kuala Lumpur has its traffic issues and isn’t as walkable as I’d like. There are too many malls and not enough activities compared to Taiwan. And sadly, no Costco :(

Government policies keep changing, and I’ve already been bitten by this several times during my visa application. Another downside is that there’s no way to become a permanent resident. But I’m planning for 10 years, not 30, so I can live with that.

Life is about tradeoffs. For each downside, I asked: “Is this a dealbreaker for my family?” Most weren’t.

Decision-Making When You Don’t Know Everything

We live in uncertain times. The hardest part was accepting I’ll never have all the information I need. At some point, you have to make the call with what you know now.

Will Malaysia be the right choice in 10 years? I can’t know. But it feels right today, and I’ve built flexibility into our lives to adapt if things change.

Next Chapter

So here we are, preparing for our move. It’s always exciting for me to start from zero. As if all my problems will just magically be solved. I’ll hopefully be able to reclaim time to write my apps, swim with my kids, take daily walks, explore a new culture, and make new friends. But, thats unrealistic. I love the saying, “Wherever you go, there you are”, I will also bring my problems with me and I will continue to solve them.

Probably no one will read this, but if you do, do you worry about current affairs? Where are you settling? What are you doing to prepare for any likely catastrophe? I’d love to hear your thoughts.