Urban or Rural Area

* OR *

I've been living in heart of KL,capital of Malaysia for more than 6 years.It takes 15 minutes walking to chow kit, 10 minutes to tasik titiwangsa & 40-45 minutes to kotaraya.But if u take bus or lrt,it's faster.My family & friends wonder how can i live in a big city, far from my workplace?They imagined the hustle-bustle & cost of living.They thought the cost of living in KL is very high.Actually not entirely true.I used to live there,so i know the real situation.From my experience,living in urban area is much saved & cheaper compare to rural area.
It's true,things sold in the city are expensive but not all of them.Actually it depends on the place u buy it & the brand u chose.If u shop at exclusive place,like sogo or tangs or pavilion or times square or klcc, even generic brand items can be really expensive.But if u buy branded item at 'unexclusive' place, u'll amaze how cheap u can get.For instant, Maggi chilli sauce costs rm2.50 at sogo but u can buy the same product with the same brand & qty at rm1.90 - rm2.00 at mydin.So,it all depends on the place u go.Even u can buy generic brand chilli sauce at cheaper price if u don't mind the brand.
Like me, i bought groceries at shop/shopping center which offer cheap & competitive price such as , , or or better than that .I chose things based on the price, not the brand or the place bcoz' for me chilli sauce is still a chilli sauce no matter where u buy.I can at least save my money for other things.But there is a friend of mine who won't buy things at certain place bcoz' it's not exclusive & sophisticated place.I don't care bcoz' i know my financial status.
I bought household groceries at the wet market like chow kit market since it's very near my house at that time.MAy be some people won't go to wet market bcoz' of the surroundings;noisy,dirty,wet,humid,hot & crowded.They prefer shop at supermarket bcoz' it's more comfortable,clean & dry.But actually u can save a lot if u go to wet market bcoz' the price is cheaper, the vege/fish/chicken/seafood/fruit are fresher with a lot of choices.U even can bargain the price.
Even it's not that too expensive to eat out in kl but with one condition;u know where to eat.There're a lot of eating places in kl;restaurant,food stall,mamak stall/restaurant, even hotel.There was a restaurant near my previous house.Even though it has no air-cond but it's quite comfortable & clean, & most important things is the price was very cheap & it haven't change since 6 years ago.The food are good & tasty.
It's easy to buy anything in kl bcoz' shopping complexes,shops,restaurants & markets are nearby.Public transports are easy to get.U name it;bus,taxi,lrt,monorel.So u can go anywhere to buy things.
But when i move to my current house, i start to feel the difficulties.It's a rural area.Everything is expensive.Even things at the wet marker are more expensive & less freash.U can't get anything u want from one shop.Shopping complexes are far away.There are only small shop.& public transports are hard to get.I've to take bus & lrt to reach kl.I even have to wait for the bus for hours.So,i went to kl to buy groceries once a month to save the fares & time.
The pasar mlm/night market is near but frankly speaking it's much cheaper at my previous house.U can still buy a cup of cold drink or 10 pieces 'keropok' at rm1 there.But here the drinks cost me rm1.50 & i can only get 5 - 6 pieces of 'keropok' at the same price.1kg chicken costs rm6 in kl but here,it costs me more.
Eating out is no no.I'm not going to eat out anymore after the last incident."Ikan kembong masak 3 rasa" costed rm10.Even a plate of fried rice costs rm3.50 - rm4.00 here but in kl,i can get chicken fried rice at only rm3.Even it's tastier & in a large portion.But if i still want to eat out,i go to mamak stall/restaurant to have roti canai & hot coffee-o bcoz' the price is almost the same at every mamak stall/restaurant.
But in terms of house rental,i must admit that it is much cheaper here.I can rent an apartment for rm400 here.The atmosphere is very peaceful,far from vehicle noise.But in kl,an apartment can cost me at least rm700.Room's rental can reach rm300/month.Even it's hard to get a parking space & lot of noise.
If u don't own a transport,it's better to live in urban area bcoz' there're a lot of public transports to move around.If u live in rural area,sometimes only one bus serves one place.So either u have to wait too long to get the bus or u have to pack in a crowded bus.
In terms of living cost, i'd prefer living in kl/urban area bcoz' i can get a lot of accomodation & the price are cheaper.But in terms of comfortability, i have to chose rural area.It's really peaceful.No headache.No traffic jam.
May be some people thought i prefer urban area bcoz' it has lots of entertainment/night life compare to rural area.U can find night life in kl until early morning but in rural area,it turns into a dead city after 10.00pm.But it doesn't affect me as i'm a home type of person.After work, i stay at home watching tv.The night life is not my priority.Even i hate noisy & crowded places like disco & pub.But if i still want a night life,there are a few 24 hours mamak restaurant here.I still can 'lepak' till the next morning but in a more relaxing way.