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How many people here have lived overseas

I am curious about people's experiences good and bad about moving to a foreign country

btroje 9 Jan 26
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7

before arriving to live in australia over 16 years ago i did reside in a community on la gomera for a year. born & raised in germany, a comparatively small country with roughly 80 times the population density of australia, this red continent was & is & will always be a revelation to me, including literally. added to that i now have the benefit of a climate that allows me to live outdoors most of the time ... & no more endless grey skies!
culturally i do tend to feel starved though ... which is one reason why i truly appreciate to have found this group - thank you from the core of my heart 🙂

I am always surprised when I read that Germany uses so much solar power

@btroje germany feels like 20 years more "into the future" in some ways as Aussie or New Zealand. I'm in the same boat as Walklightly , I have lived in NZ since 82, but come from Germany. And some of the culture I miss is still like a nagging homesickness.

6

I lived and worked in Holland for about 6 months. I was there for the tulips and flower time. I was also there when they took down the wall in East Germany. I got to visit Germany. A small town called Zoost. It was a Saturday about lunch time. The Germans were playing an umpah band and dancing in the streets. I sat down at a table to watch. I thought, my goodness, I have come home. In America we would be doing all the mow the yard, wash the car, clean etc chores, but they were just enjoying life. Holland, I lived in a small town called Egmund An Zee. My cottage was 2 blocks from the sea. It was a beautiful little tourist town. but when I first arrived, it was end April, so not many tourists. Eventually, the tulips were in field after field. There were all kinds of festivals and parades. They made beautiful pictures out of the flower pieces, They would display them in their yards and have contests. Just awesome. Also, you learn what it is like to live in a country where not everyone knows English. That made for some fun and interesting situations. I got to see lots of historical places and I love history.

what were you doing over there?

6

I lived overseas for a total of sixteen years. In the early 70s, I was a grad student in Berlin. Later on, I taught English language and literature in South Korea, the UAE, and Japan over the course of fifteen years. During that time, I saw much of the rest of Asia and the Middle East, not to mention stops in Europe. Getting past culture shock can be more difficult in some places than others (like being a nonbeliever in a Muslim country, for example), but all in all, I view my time abroad as the best time of my life. On January 21st, 2017, I particularly regretted having returned to the US....

I want to talk to you about ESL sometime

@btroje Fire away!

5

I lived in Berlin, Germany for 2 and 1-2 years. I loved the city. My experiences in the German culture and in the times of the height of the Cold War changed my life in many ways. I am SO glad that I was there.

4

Spent most of the 90s abroad in SE Asia, lived in Thailand, which is where my heart really is. I like not being in Australia, actually. I'd be abroad now if the circumstances allowed it. The future will see. There is such a person as a natural expat, people who like to live outside their home country. I always like meeting and talking to expats. It's a kind of a wavelength thing, I can quite explain it. Living abroad is very good for people. It gets them outside their cultural comfort zone. It did for me. It's easy for people who never live abroad to fall into mindset against "foreigners" and "aliens" (the non space type) Being a foreigner or alien in someone else's country is good for character, builds modesty.

a special breed

4

15 glorious years in the old city of Heidelberg Germany right under the castle. It was a life changing experience.

Prior to that 1 year in the military in a place we called "The sexless society of sunny Sinop by the sea" (Black Sea). It was not like normal military duty (none of my time was) so I got to know the city and culture. Years later the famous resident, 'Diogenes' came back to haunt me.

why do you call it a life changing experience?

@btroje Because they both introduced me to another world and culture. One of my earlier replies I said that learning another language opens so many doors. As big as this country is it is still basically an island with an island mentality.

My ex was stationed in Heidelberg when we met. I spent some time there. And it's funny, I was in Okinawa at Torri Station. The nearby town was Sobe, which we called Sunny Sobe by the Sea.

@HippieChick58 But I bet it wasn't sexless. The military are always making names for the places they are stationed.

So you know Patton Barracks? My coworker was named Sammy Patton. His wife worked at Patton barracks and she would answer the phone "Patton Barracks Mrs. Patton speaking". People thought she was being a smartass.

@JackPedigo Different parts of the Germanic world have very different worldviews. It is said that if a citizen of Hamburg encountered a tough situation, he or she would say, "The situation is impossible" The Berliner would say, "The situation is difficult, but not impossible." The Vienna resident would say, "The situation is impossible -- but, who gives a damn!"

@JackPedigo I have never encountered a sexless military base. I remember Patton Barracks.

It was hardship tour and there was no housing for dependents. It was also way off the beaten path and a Moslem country. Some wives did come for a visit but they didn't stay long. One wife was staying on the third floor of the main hotel and one morning spotted a guy on the balcony looking on her. One GI did get caught with a girl and the Turks could jail him. He got smuggled out on our mail truck. Many, many interesting stories.

@wordywalt Reminds me of the Kennedy story when he first came to Berlin. He said "Ich bin ein Berliner". Berlin residents found that funny because a "Berliner" was a type of doughnut.

Rember, Germany was a loos confederation of states that didn't become unified until the late 19th century. Bavaria came even later mainly because it was a Catholic state.

@JackPedigo That story about Kennedy was NOT true. Berlin residents always referred to themselves as Berliners. It is amazing how such stories crop up.

@wordywalt I heard that from a Berliner while I was visiting Berlin (This was before the wall came down). My uncle was German, spent 4 years as a Panzer Fuhrer on the Eastern front and 5 years in a Siberian Gulag. I was with him at the time and learned a lot of history from him. BTW he wrote a book (unpublished) and I have the only English copy. Words often have double meanings.

@JackPedigo I was there when Kennedy gave his speech. Hundreds of thousands of Berliners turned out to see and hear him. The media -- both newspaper and television never made one mention of the purported doughnut thing. I never heard the story until years later here in the USA.

@wordywalt Maybe they didn't want to make fun at their hero. Who knows but we heard it several times including from a tour guide. We even saw doughnuts called "Berliners'. Certainly you have heard of Berliner Weisse? Lots of things are called by the name of the place they are popular.

@JackPedigo Berliner Weisse is Berlin white beer. There is no equation with the doughnut story.

@wordywalt It is not white but red or green. It was just a comment to show a food connection with a town.

@HippieChick58 My aunt worked there for the Staff Judge Advocate. Visiting her is what got me to Germany and, later I decided to stay.

4

I have..it's awesome!..

where did you go?

4

I live in foreign countries. Every coin has two sides.

what countries have you lived in by choice?

@btroje I do live in US now, I have lived in Burundi, Tanzania, India, South Africa and UAE.

@0752532706 was there a place you liked better than others?

@btroje I want to be honest, I love the US more than anyother country I have lived in. This doesn't mean that it's perfect. It's not but far better. I am happy to be here.

4

I wish I could live in a foreign culture. I would live in New Zealand because there are no snakes🙂

There is a few but they come in human form 😉 About a year ago one tried to escape from Australia and hid in the engine of a car on a container ship. One was also found in the botanical gardens in Wellington. Both were destroyed. A few people flying in from China have been found with snakes on their body trying to enter our country. So I am assuming one or 2 may have made it through.

@Sacha from what I understand everything in Australia is trying to kill you

@btroje Its true!!

3

I've traveled and lived in a couple places. Good experience all-around. The hardest part is learning the subtle and not so subtle cultural traits that can be misunderstood by our own ideas of what they mean. Always spend time abroad whenever you can. It's worth it.

where have you lived and how long?

Seoul 6 months Queensland AU 9 months

3

I married an African from Cameroun she moved to Iowa sharing her ROOTS with me

3

Is all good... I was born and raised Overseas... plus 3 years in Spain, 2 in Germany, 1 in Greece. Is all part of the experience of being a human of the world!!! Not just of your village.

so where did youlike it best and why?

@btroje Greece... in the island of Crete. My job, the island, the women, cost me a divorce, my family was not with me. Scandinavian women start arriving on February until November looking for Brown Eyes. Americans were the exotic. A Puerto Rican was like Double Lotto. They treat you right under the circumstances. There is not enough screen to tell all the stories I got from that island. The 90's, there was a salsa club in Heraklion and I didn't bothered to go and check it out. My hands were full with the "Techno". Paradise ain't free so to me it cost me my marriage. That's life. I could take it and dish it out. Chania Crete, my paradise on earth.

2

I have lived on military bases in Okinawa and Germany. The challenge is the language outside the base. In Okinawa they taught us what the sign looked like for a pharmacy, those were strictly off limits. Apparently there was stuff you could get OTC that the US government considered a restricted substance. I really stuck out in a crowd in Okinawa, I was taller than most of the population and blond. Germany was cool, I was there both single and married. Again the language was a barrier, but I could pass unnoticed in a crowd as my forebears were Germans. Both places I loved to eat at local places, loved to explore. Being young and stupid had advantages, I never realized how crazy I was just taking off and exploring and got back to where I belonged by mostly dumb luck.

dumb and stupid and surviving is part of the fun of life

@btroje I was thankful that there was no way that the folks at home would ever hear about some of the crazy stuff I did. After a highly restrictive home life I went made up for lost time for a while.

@HippieChick58 glad you survived

@btroje Me too, and my kids are too! I have only told them a few of the crazy things I did.

@HippieChick58 , don't let the crazy things get completely lost. Write them down somewhere or something, it is nice for children to learn more about the real person that is their parent.

2

The first 21 years of my spent in my birth country, Brazil. Go back all the time but have to say USA is home now.

what things do you miss about Brazil?

@btroje the warmth of the people....the willingness to share the little they have...the smells

@CeciRosane60 spices?flowers?

@btroje all of it...flowers...fruit...the rain....

2

Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Puerto Rico, Bermuda.

now you have to tell me what took you there

I enlisted in the Navy back in ‘87. I retired in ‘08. @btroje

@Gatovicolo that was a long haul. what did you do in the Navy?

Seabees, construction mechanic, 15 years as a power tech. @btroje

@Gatovicolo very practical

It paid the bills. @btroje

2

Just war zones... it would be fun to live in Scotland and simular countries. Norway Sweden Ireland... so cool.

2

Sadly no. Longest I can come up with was a month in Eritrea, east Africa. Working for US AID and teaching arid land hydrology, spillway hydraulics, and dam design. Had a class of 18 students that worked for their ministry of agriculture. Great experience, We have travelled several times to Europe and Asia, and usually go for 4 to 6 weeks.

2

A semester as an undergrad in Zurich and a year as a prof in Saudi Arabia.

what were you teaching?

@btroje Physics

2

I did...Argentina and Spain.

Arent you from Argentina?

How did you like Spain?

@btroje I am from Argentina...which from USA is overseas....I like Spain OK I lived there only six months.

@DUCHESSA what brought you to the US?

@btroje An airplane...LOL

@DUCHESSA 🙂

2

Belgium, India, Switzerland when I worked for the EEC. Had a kid in each posting so great maternity leave for travelling around! Italy, my favourite. France, not particularly

And Greece. Forgot about Greece, where I met my first husband.

@GoldenDoll what is the EEC? Ignerent here.

@btroje : the European Community in Brussels - what the UK is about to leave!

@GoldenDoll thanks

2

Korea

jeffy Level 7 Jan 26, 2018

You are very lucky 🙂

how was it? My sister worked for the WTO for a while and when she visited south Korea she was very aware of being a foreigner

@btroje Very eye opening to live in another country, especially Korea. The threat of war is ever present, but Koreans just roll with it. The countryside is very beautiful, with very old well manicured mountains and hills. The big cities are and mixture ultra modern and truly ancient, the small towns are timelessly pure Korean practicality. There's no fear of being mugged, everyone is orderly but at the same time they are independent and don't pay attention to the government, although everyone has to pitch in and do military service. It's a very competitive place - everyone has a business it seems. Even advancement through grade school isn't automatic, everyone is expected to make an effort with dire consequences for failure. And through all that, Koreans have a great sense of humor and they party like it's 1999 a lot.

1

Paris , Monte Carlo , Italy , Australia, now Cornwall .

1

I was born overseas... tathad!!!! Pick a country where you speak the language. Your country does banking with. I want peace and quiet now. Almost anywhere can do. Europe will be option one, South America option two. Need no more options unless Australia or New Zealand call me up. Warm bed of a local to keep me from getting lost... Beauty of Nature beyond that dull city skyline. And a waxed dance floor were to Shine my moves.

1

I lived in Italy for six months studying art. At the moment, I can't think of anything negative to say. It was a blast! I worked hard and played hard.
A dear friend who is a musician lives in Norway. We're from the same hometown in Georgia. He loves everything about it and is happy to not live in the land of Trump.

1

I lived in Sydney for a year, 1991-1992. People were great to us! My oldest son was an infant when we went.

would you go back?

Sure, I would love to at least for a long visit. It was a big adventure & I never felt like it was "home", but spending a year was great.

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