Plus ça change

“Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” –French proverb (“The more things change, the more they stay the same”)

As I looked at the February calendar, I kept having that nagging feeling I forgot something. Birthday? No. Wedding anniversary? No. Valentine’s day? Covered. Then I realized we passed our second anniversary as expats on February 1st. Last year I did a fairly long post about the aspects of expat life in Mexico which might dissuade someone from trying it. This year I’ll look at things in general that might encourage you to try the expat life.

Tops on my list of reasons to be an expat: excitement. As an expat, you have no reason to be bored…ever. There is an entire new culture with which to become familiar, a new language to learn, new cuisines to eat, different lifestyles to consider, new friends to make, and exotic places to visit (as a local). Depending on where you choose to live, this excitement level can vary from mild (in a community with many expats and a familiar culture) to extreme (truly on your own in a place not known for accommodating foreigners).

Closely related is reason number two: freedom. Folks from NOB consider themselves quite free, thank you very much, but expat life moves one from being free to living free. As an expat, you literally choose outside the lines (we call them borders) and consciously decide to live…wherever. It’s not where you or your parents were born, or where your job is. As with all true freedom, great responsibility abides. Once you become an expat, you can hardly blame anyone else if your new home disappoints: either you weren’t prepared, or you chose poorly, or, well, it’s all on you.

Reason number three is education. Everyone who travels internationally quickly learns at least something about different cultures, but expat life is an advanced degree in comparative cultures. I traveled all over the world for work, and I lived overseas (in Germany) for three years. Yet I never understood how overwhelming the consumer culture of the States was until I lived for (now) two years in a developing nation. Sure, I had heard about “keeping up with the Joneses”, but that was for superficial people. When you are bombarded with advertising, chided to work harder and longer to earn more for your comfort, your safety, your family’s well-being, you become inured to another point of view. Now when I visit the States, I marvel at how well consumerism has manipulated people to believe in it at all costs.

Speaking of costs, expat life might be a way to stretch your resources. If you check out YouTube, Instagram, Patreon, et cetera, you’ll see an a modern take on a old phenomenon: the young vagabond. Those of a certain age recall the “Europe on $5 a day” books which enticed young travelers to see the world on a shoestring budget. Nowadays, some young people cut all ties to a “normal life” and travel around just sharing their experiences, supported by those on social media who “click on” their sites. Likewise for expat retirees, there are places where most of the main costs of living (food, housing, transport) are much cheaper, and living well on something like a Social Security check is possible.

Finally, I would add that expat life is a challenge. We all need challenges: it’s why Edmund Hillary climbed Everest, why Willie Sutton robbed banks, why Tom Brady keeps playing football. Of course there are many ways to find a new challenge without leaving your home country, but living somewhere else presents a unique one.

Expat life is not for everyone, and not for all times. As I have noted before, it has its ups and downs. On balance, it’s an option more could consider, if they better understood all their options.