I moved from the UK to a laid-back island in Indonesia at 56. My yearly rent is $2,500.
Sarah Burghard revisited her priorities after the death of her mother last year.
Burghard, a 56-year-old mom, left her old life and moved to Indonesia.
She leads a relaxed existence in a place with a lower cost of living.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sarah Burghard, 56, an interior designer from the UK who lives on the Indonesian island of Lombok. It has been edited for length and clarity.
When my mother died in June 2023, I took some time out for reflection.
Suddenly, I was the oldest generation in the family, and it got me thinking about where and how I wanted to spend the rest of my life.
I booked a flight to Indonesia, where I'd lived in the capital of Jakarta in the early 2000s with my then husband and two sons. I spent a month processing my grief while soaking up the atmosphere on the island of Lombok.
I was struck by the warm smiles of the older local women. There was a joy in their faces. My mom had always been a positive person.
It made me realize how much age is respected on the island compared with where I'm from in the UK. I'd walk into a family-owned grocery store and the elderly matriarch or patriarch would be sitting at the counter, supervising whatever was going on. The younger people would ask — and listen to — their opinions.
I networked on Facebook to meet people
I returned home feeling rejuvenated. It felt like every cell in my body had been refreshed through a combination of sunshine and relaxation.
I told myself that if I could afford it, I'd try to visit Lombok once or twice a year. At 56, I wanted to ease into semi-retirement from my job as an interior designer, which I'd already been doing remotely since COVID.
Early last summer, I joined a Facebook group for people who lived in the small town where I'd vacationed. I asked if any expats or locals wanted to get in touch.
I was looking for social and business connections. To my delight, I heard from members including a real-estate broker, a woman who ran a beach-conservation group, and a bunch of yoga enthusiasts. I was excited to meet them during my follow-up trip to Lombok in August.
They'd already formed a vibrant community. There were meet-ups for activities like horse races when people would socialize and also talk about business and networking.
"What am I waiting for?" I asked myself. I decided to move to Lombok in October — as soon as my real-estate agent found me a home. It's a two-bedroom villa, just an eight-minute walk from the beach.
The cost of living is cheap
Best of all, the rent was $2,500 a year. It was a no-brainer, considering my monthly mortgage in my home city of Bristol was $1,260.
I moved as quickly as I could before the villa was snapped up by somebody else. I paid $250 for a visa that allows me to work from Lombok online and started consultations with my clients.
The cost of living here is incredibly low. You pay $6 for the same kind of massage that would cost $110 back home. I've paid close to $4 for a mango in a British supermarket. Here, they are $0.40.
The weather is always around 85 degrees, and I've embraced the great outdoors. I rent a scooter to get around for $180 a month, and a full tank of gas costs just over $3. I realize that, along with many of the other expats who have settled in Lombok, I'm privileged to be in the position I am.
Some of my friends have told me I'm brave or inspiring for taking the chance of leaving the home that I've always known. But I don't view it that way. I'm embarking on a natural, next-step adventure in my golden years.
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