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Hi Adam_K.!

Welcome to ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ!

Armand

Hi Adam ... Welcome to the Forum and In Advance Welcome to Bahrain

The package you offered are quite good and I think you would be able to make a considerable savings out of it.

You can live in Sehla and Jidd Hafs however these are shia areas and they might have some troubles more often; therefore it might be inconvenient for you living there specially if you are looking for peace in mind after a lengthy working day.

Coming to Bahrain for an Interview would be very helpful and would give you an idea of whatÂ’s going on but nevertheless there are other areas nearby Sehla and Jidd Hafs where you can stay peacefully Â… itÂ’s just a matter of a few minutesÂ’ drive.

Hope other members living nearby can enlighten you further in this regard.

Feel free to get back to us in case you have any further concerns.

Hope this helps

Regards,

Hi Adam and welcome to our forum !

Vido Dido is, like always, as accurate as right...
I would simply add: forget about the bicycle!
First it's nowadays already 40 to 45° in the afternoon so cycling isn't as pleasant than in the Polish spring
Second car drivers are just insane here. Bahrainis are wonderful people but give them a steer wheel and they turn into angry crazy people in cars :p

Hope you will enjoy your interview time...

Cheers

Olivier

Thank you VidoDido.
I've never been in the Middle East. I came from peaceful part of Europe without any tensions in ethnic and nationality relations. For sure it will be a little culture shock for me, but I have to go there and check it myself.
Regards

That's sounds a wise decision my Friend ... You won't be shocked, its all part of life excitement.

Wish you Best of Luck

Cheers,

Heck, you could easily save BD2000 and live with BD800.
BD800 is a lot of money, in this country.

As VidoDido said,

It's best to avoid Sehla and Jidd Hafs. It's always a trouble area. I used to pass the area on my way to work and most of the times it's havoc due to road blocks and burning tires. Avoid other very local areas as well. I've had a friend who used to live in such area and the locals would look at him as if he were an alien. He was the exhibition of the neighborhood. And it's not like as if they came up and exchanged greetings to know him.

Thanks everyone!
I'm going to Bahrain for a few days next week. I will do on site research but if you have any more suggestions I appreciate your help.

My workplace would be near Alsahla Hwy. If Sehla and Jidd Hafs would be not the best place to live for white European do you have any suggestion where to live nearby? I'm an architect and probably as other architects all over the world I spend all the day at workplace and often take the work home too. So I really don't need pools, gyms, clubs nor malls and more prefer short commuting time and low rental price.
I know bahrainpropertyworld.com and dubizzle.com. Could you reccomend any other places over the net to find property?

Hi Adam.K
Welcome to the forum ! I feel VidoDido has given you very good information.

As Olivier mentioned, bikes are not really worth having here. They dont have cycle routes like some parts of Europe. More over, the heat would probably roast you Ìý Public transport i feel doesn't really exist here. I mean no trams or trains and the buses, well i've heard are not very frequent! The car seems to be the popular method of transport around this region. Although taxis are used here, they can tend to be expensive if used on a regular basis.
So if you have a full driving license this will work to your advantage. However, you may need to check on your license depending on where you obtained it and its validity in Bahrain.Ìý

Thx
Jaz

My thoughts...,

First of all, Budaiya is a very dense expat populated area. It has many conveniences, supermarkets, restaurants, pharmacies, the post office. However, rent can range from BD 400-to over BD 1000. Compounds, gardens that range from 400 are offered because of the current situation being in close proximity to problem areas, therefore landlords have decreased rent considerably. 600+ to 800, 900 range are compounds that are pretty tucked away from problem areas and have perks like gyms, pool, private pool, etc.
BD 1000+ has the works.

I mention Budaiya because it is the closest to where you would be working and is the most convenient area to live in terms of shopping and eating. However, the only downside is the frequent clashes of rioters and police. Take note that you wouldn't be affected directly because most of them take place in their villages. The inconvenience is that often main roads in that area can be blocked or jammed. It is a nuisance but there are other alternate routes you can take. I say this because I live in Budaiya.

Another area that can be suitable considering reasonable rent would be in Zinj and its vicinity. Mostly flats but there are compounds too. Flats can run 350, 400+ all without the perks of which you don't seem to need. This area is also very accessible to Shaikh Isa bin Salman Hwy which you can take a straightforward drive and get off to "Manama West" on Shaikh Salman Hwy which then joins to Alsahla Hwy to the left.

Crwooch, I know average rental prices from the offers over the internet. My intention of this thread was to ask is there another, less official, less expats-oriented and cheaper rental market.

jazzy851, thanks. I really hate Japanese cars but probably will have to live with Yaris

Hi Adam,

The answer to your question is "Yes" ... There are less official, less expats-oriented and cheaper rental market in Bahrain but you won't be able to find any info in this regard on the internet.

While you are in Bahrain you have to make a quick market research in the areas that might be convenient for you and near by your workplace. You may also need the assistance of some local agents in these areas.

You can also consider unfurnished apartments, as the rental will be much less than the furnished one, this way you can save considerable amount of money.

The PRO of your company in Bahrain will be able to help you a lot in this regard.

Cheers

Hi Adam_K

I am American married to an Egyptian and your offer is quite nice for sure. I would say that if you plan to live like an expat and stay on a compound or in a very full Expat area you are expecting to spend Minimum 400BD. I have seen some listings on Amwaj Island recently that are around 450BD for 1-2BdroomÌý I personally live in Muharraq as I am Muslim and my husband flies constantly and is never home. Plus after living in the Middle East for the past years I have found life is much more simple and better in nice areas where the locals live.Ìý

You could easily save 2000BD a month but living on 800BD is quite difficult I must say We stick to a budget of 600BD a month which is very hard and I do without going out alot because of this.Ìý

Bahrain is beautiful and an amazing place to live but it is also very expensive.Ìý Eating out for one person even at McDonalds is around 3-5bd for one meal. Cooking at home is approximately the same for 1 person.Ìý If you want to go out to lets say Applebees you will spend 8-10bd minimum for a meal.Ìý You can save money but you have to give up luxuries in order to do so.

@crwooch - Welcome to ½ûÂþÌìÌà and the forum.
Thanks for your comments with regards to Budiaya. If any one new on the forum is considering this area, I feel you have covered it well.

Thank you everyone. You make me feel more optimistic.
Generally people from this forum are much more optimistic than bored guys from britishexpats.com

I've got a visa and ticket today and coming to you next week.
See you in Bahrain!

[Moderated]

Adam_K. wrote:

Thank you everyone. You make me feel more optimistic.
Generally people from this forum are much more optimistic than bored guys from britishexpats.com

I've got a visa and ticket today and coming to you next week.
See you in Bahrain!

Have a safe trip.

jazzy851, thanks. I really hate Japanese cars but probably will have to live with Yaris

Well you don't have to choose Japanese cars here. They have quite a range, Mercedes, BMW's, Volkswagens, Fords to name but a few.. take your pick

Enjoy your trip to Bahrain

Jazzy, thanks. It was sarcasm in my words. I have many questions about cars and other things in Bahrain but it's a subject for another thread and first I'll try to look around during my trip.

@Adam_K. - No probs at all, i like some humour on the forum from time to time...so no worries
You may find a previous topic on the Bahrain forum about cars. I found it quite amusing.. Only one thing comes to mind when it comes to driving here....majority of drivers must be Formula 1 fans!!

Have a good trip

Hi Adam,
From my point of view, please try to avoid Sehla & Jid Hafs. They are troubled places & you & your family will not feel comfortable in/out. You can live in Juffair as it's very convinient & has everything.
Plus, if you have a family & kids in school, you need min BHD 800, excluding rent. Life here is cheaper thank Poland. But if you want to live good & have fun, there are enough things to spend your money on.
It's definitely a unique experience, but business in Bahrain isnt that good now.

People are friendly, so you won't feel strange.. I wish you all the best in your near visit & you can contact me for help. I'm in Bahrain for the past 10 years.
Regards,
Lulu

I'm here in Bahrain.
It's hard to breath! Even at night!
I'll try to write some more thoughts soon.

Adam_K. wrote:

I'm here in Bahrain.
It's hard to breath! Even at night!
I'll try to write some more thoughts soon.

Hi Adam K!
WELCOME TO THE KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN
Hot, right? AC is not working? You will get use to our weather and you will love it Ìý

Keep writing...

Have a cool day !

Ciao

Hi Adam and welcome to our archipelago!

It's not really hot... YET !
Wait for the humidity to come next month... When you open your door to go out you will feel like someone just opened a pressure cooker in front of your space :p
That's what I call hot ^^

Go on sharing your experience of the Kingdom

Cheers


Olivier

@ Adam K - Welcome to Bahrain -
As Olivier said "you aint seen nothing yet" - This is just a warm up for things to come - It does get hotter as the months go by, but, by sept the temperature starts dropping.

The good thing here, is that the malls are alot cooler, the cars are air conditioned and apartments come with AC to ease the heat and to make you feel comfortable.

Enjoy your stay in Bahrain

I just wanted to say thank you to all those who commented on this post. Really useful advice. I am moving to Bahrain next month and people like you really help us.