Destination Heathrow — A journey to Penang #1

Summary

The author describes their journey towards obtaining a Malaysian My Second Home (MM2H) visa and the challenges faced due to the global pandemic, ultimately succeeding in relocating to Penang.

Abstract

The narrative begins with the author's usual disinterest in inflight magazines, which changed when an article about the MM2H program caught their eye during a flight in 2015. This program allows non-Malaysians to reside in Malaysia on a renewable ten-year visa, subject to certain financial and lifestyle commitments. Intrigued by the prospect of a warm, relaxed lifestyle away from the hustle of commuting, the author and their partner began researching, visiting Penang, and eventually applying for the MM2H visa. Despite the excitement of planning their move to Georgetown, the pandemic, referred to euphemistically as "You Know What" or "The C Word," disrupted their plans. After a year of uncertainty, they decided to proceed with their relocation plans, selling their house, packing their belongings, and waiting for permission to enter Malaysia. The story concludes with their successful move to Penang amidst the global chaos.

Opinions

The author typically browses inflight magazines without deep engagement but was genuinely intrigued by the MM2H program.
There is a sense of allure and aspiration associated with the luxurious lifestyle depicted in inflight magazine advertisements, albeit with an acknowledgment of their unattainability.
The MM2H program is seen as a tempting opportunity for a more relaxed and warm lifestyle, aligning with the author's desires for a change from their current routine.
The author expresses frustration with the unforeseen obstacles caused by the pandemic, which led to a stressful period of uncertainty and waiting.
Despite the challenges, the author considers themselves lucky to have maintained employment and the ability to pursue personal interests, such as horse riding, during the pandemic.
The decision to move forward with the relocation during the pandemic is portrayed as a bold and proactive choice, indicative of the author's determination to embrace a new life.

Destination Heathrow — A journey to Penang #1

Town Hall, Georgetown Penang. Photo by author.

I don’t often read inflight magazines. I mean, like, really read them.

Invariably stuffed with enticing images of places you absolutely should visit and delicious ads for watches, jewellery, cars and crazy-spectacular villas in far flung parts of the world, they’re good for browsing through while making promises to yourself to go back and read this or that article once you get airborne and have eaten your breakfast/dinner/lunch.

In reality, all I end up doing is skimming the stories and allowing myself to dream of owning whatever’s being advertised. The ads come without a price tag in sight of course and I’m not naïve enough to believe I can actually afford the stuff so it all kind of stalls at the dreaming stage. Nothing wrong with dreaming.

But in 2015, returning from a trip to Victoria, Australia to Siem Reap and Langkawi on Malaysian Airlines, an article really did catch my attention and I discovered the existence of Malaysia My Second Home.

Known as MM2H, this is a programme that enables non-Malaysians to reside in the country on a ten-year renewable visa. There are conditions and rules of course, as well as a financial commitment, but after doing the research back home in England it became a tempting mirage on the horizon. We’ve travelled extensively in South East Asia, we were interested in finding somewhere warm to live, we wanted a more relaxed lifestyle away from the commuter treadmill — why not give it a go?

Which part of ‘I don’t HAVE an umbrella’ don’t you get? Photo by author.

Two visits to Penang Island over the next few years served to establish contacts and do the groundwork and we applied for the visa and got accepted in 2018. We enjoyed planning how the move was going to go and how we were going to settle in Georgetown. We spoke to our contacts and got excited. And we were all set to migrate towards the end of 2020. Great, huh?

No go.

Image designed and created by author.

All of a sudden there was this obstacle that appeared out of nowhere.

You Know What. The C Word. I’m sorry but, rightly or wrongly, doing a kind of ‘He Who Must Not Be Named’ exercise helps me to cope better with this world-gone-mad in which all common sense has ceased to exist. I know I’m not alone in this — stress levels have been sent off the charts and livelihoods have been trashed.

We were lucky though. We were able to carry on working and I lived a close to normal existence, able to hang onto my pursuit of riding and caring for horses. Still, after a year of dithering, we decided to bite the bullet and take the first steps to move to a new life amidst the chaos. We sold the house and rented another, had 80% of the contents packed up in a container, and then just waited and waited. Although we’d been given permission to live in Malaysia we weren’t allowed to enter. But finally, after months of living in limbo wondering if I was putting my whole life on hold for something that might never happen, we made it. We got to travel to the other side of the world again.

Hanging pitcher plants at Ferringhi Garden restaurant, Penang. Photo by author.