Comments on: Why Life as an Expat can be Challenging

By: Charlie on Travel

Charlie on Travel — Wed, 19 Nov 2014 01:20:49 +0000

In reply to John. Thanks, John! Where are you living as an expat currently? Yes, you're right about those cultural differences and how they affect communication. Certainly frustrating, though I think it's also interesting to learn about those subtle differences and expectations too. Thanks for commenting :)

By: John

John — Fri, 14 Nov 2014 03:53:00 +0000

Very nice post. By and large I enjoy my life as an expat but it is true there are issues. One thing is the extent to which culture interferes with communication especially when added on top of language issues. The language issues are straight forward and pretty obvious – you just don’t understand and have to rephrase or give up. But the times when the words convey you understand each other but really you don’t at all is much more common than I would expect. It is frustrating sometimes but not that huge a price to pay for the benefits.

By: Charlie on Travel

Charlie on Travel — Sun, 21 Sep 2014 14:40:21 +0000

In reply to Becca.

Hi Becca, that’s awesome! What school are you working at? What do you like most about LuoDong? Have you eaten at the organic restaurant there? It;s the most delicious place in the whole of Taiwan.

I’m sorry to hear about the friends situ, I had exactly the same problem and mostly was glad to have my partner because of it. We used to write a travel blog when we were living in LuoDong, just a small one and I wrote a post there about the best ways to make friends in Taiwan – http://strangersintaiwan.wordpress.com/2013/11/24/where-to-begin-how-to-make-friends-in-taiwan/

Also, we know a couple who are still living there and they’re masters at having friends and knowing people. They actually moved in with us while we were living there for our last 2 months and are still living in our old apartment in LuoDong.

By: Becca

Becca — Sun, 21 Sep 2014 14:33:23 +0000

Hi Charlie. I’ve been reading through your blog after coming across it when searching for “expat recipes Taiwan”. I was surprised to see you lived in Luodong because that’s where I live now! My story is somewhat similar to yours, my boyfriend and I moved here about two months ago (he’s South African, I’m American). We’re working at schools in Luodong, I’m just working part time. This post resonated with me especially because of the feelings of isolation and loneliness… I’m a very outgoing person but I’ve found it impossible to make friends so far. There are some nice people at the school I work at but I don’t click with them. Do you have any tips for making friends? Thanks :) If you wanna email me I’m becjfranks@gmail.com

By: Shanghaidreamer

Shanghaidreamer — Fri, 05 Sep 2014 01:40:23 +0000

Hi there, such a good read thank you. I am really hoping to become an expat in the next 6 months with my family. I have a husband 2 teens and 2 juniors. We are really keen on a different approach to raising our children through experience and other cultures. We are bilingual as a family and hope to become multilingual over our next 2 years.
Learning a new language as a group, and returning to NZ with Mandarin and the ability to teach it, is open doors for more travel, and further experiences.

I have been teaching going on 6 years now, and the prospect of earning and working whilst providing a cultural exchange for my children seems kind of bucket list – ish! We were considering buying a house and settling down here in New Zealand, but have decided we have an open window to an opportunity of a lifetime.

By: Charlie on Travel

Charlie on Travel — Wed, 21 May 2014 09:13:18 +0000

In reply to Heather.

Hi Heather,

I completely agree with you :) I also enjoy my own company, though am fortunate to have my partner around for those times when you feel a bit lonely.

Yes, that was definitely a big thing for me too. Even more so, I found that missing out on being there to support family in tough times and hardships was even worse.

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 21 May 2014 00:05:22 +0000

I love the queue graphic, it brings back memories from Shanghai :-)

Sure, expat life has its challenges, but I think they are far outweighed by the advantages. You get to fully immerse yourself in another culture, travel, learn and meet all sorts of new people you never would otherwise. As you say, that’s not always a good thing. I’ve definitely met some dolts. But i enjoy my own company and have no problem doing things by myself. The biggest thing for me is missing out on things back home, like weddings and birthdays. But fortunately I can be there in spirit thanks to Facebook and Skype :-)

By: Charlie on Travel

Charlie on Travel — Fri, 09 May 2014 15:20:02 +0000

In reply to Charlie (@worldexplora).

Yes, those first few months can be really tough. Haha, that’s a great story about the coffee!! :) I’m also pretty fussy on my coffee, so I feel your pain.

Oh man – yes! You put your finger on it exactly – that’s the right phrase for it. I constantly feel guilty about being away from home, especially when I chat to my mum and at Christmas as well.

By: Charlie (@worldexplora)

Charlie (@worldexplora) — Thu, 08 May 2014 22:08:58 +0000

Yep, I’ve been there with all the pros and cons. I remember it being so frustrating for the first few months in Montreal when simple tasks were suddenly so complicated. I couldn’t get the hang of pronouncing café régulière, it kept coming out sounding like café au lait so for three months I kept getting given coffees that were more milk than caffeine. Sure, small problem but annoying, and I’m pretty fussy on my coffee. But the hardest for me is more than homesickness, it’s the expat guilt. Every year that passes I felt guilty for not being there for family and friends back home, and not being able to share my life properly with them. But regardless I’m addicted to being an expat, life as an expat is just more interesting!

By: Charlie on Travel

Charlie on Travel — Tue, 06 May 2014 07:19:10 +0000

In reply to agnesstramp.

Thanks, Agness! You’re very sweet :)
I’m pleased that you can relate to it so well. Also glad you never had problems with language barriers – I know what you mean about non-verbal communication but that can feel like an effort sometimes. How long do you think you will stay as an expat in China?