Expats, What Do You Miss From Home?

Coal · Wed Nov 18, 2015 12:13 pm

Quoting gemuser (Reply 48):
"Being aware of several current threads where what terms mean depends on where you grew up/live"

Huh? What threads?

But yes, I guess it makes sense that the typical (not stereotypical) Australian immigrant in Asia would not want to be labeled that. Nah, they'll be expats, only hang out with Australians, sneer at anything local, and spend the weekend drinking VB while watching cricket or NRL/AFL.

Quoting JJJ (Reply 47):
But yeah lately any skilled, mostly white worker gets the expat label even if the typical Dubai or Singapore Euro or American worker are actually immigrants.

Quoting gemuser (Reply 48):
Yes and are so called in Australia.

Sure...

Rgds
Coal

BreninTW · Thu Nov 19, 2015 1:11 am

Quoting seat64k (Reply 49):
I had some good meat in Taiwan - will let you know if I'm ever there again.

Oh you can get good meat here ... but it ain't cheap! Or at least, not as inexpensive as in South Africa. Less eye-watering than the cost of meat in the UK though ... so I guess it's all relative.

Sure, drop me a line if you head over here -- always happy to meet up with folks and drag them out to the local spots.

texan · Thu Nov 19, 2015 3:40 am

Quoting 777Jet (Reply 44):
You can say that again!

That's one beer I'd be happy to never try again

Hey now! Let's not get into a 'which place's beer is better competition'--Wellington will win hands down

Can't for the life of me remember what the name of the beer I had in Brisbane was, but it was possibly the most god-awful brew I've ever had. Even worse than Natty Light! Had some great beers in Melbourne, though.

Texan

RyanairGuru · Thu Nov 19, 2015 7:00 pm

I am definitely not a migrant, I am an immigrant, a naturalised citizen, and have no itention of ever returning. I was going to not bother renewing my British passport when it expires, but then realised that I could get out of paying visa fees for Chile and Indonesia, among several others, so will keep it around but that's only because I'm cheap. I don't consider myself to be British in the slightest.

When I first came to Australia I missed Branston Pickle, but I'm over it now.

Quoting Coal (Reply 43):

Let's be clear hear, you have a very warped perspective of the term "expat". Gemuser is spot in, go look it up in a dictionary. There is no racial or class element whatsoever. An expat is any temporary migrant with an intention to return home.

Revelation · Thu Nov 19, 2015 11:13 pm

Quoting jetblueguy22 (Reply 16):
I moved from Connecticut to North Dakota, so not a true expat in the literal term. But there is so much difference, it's almost like I moved to Canada (close enough).

I hear you Pat, my CT expat friend. I am planning to be in the good old Wtby/Naugy area for Xmas and will hit a few of the "old places". Nothings the same, but it's still plenty nostalgic.

Quoting PHX787 (Reply 26):
when i am back in the states i immediately miss how calm things are on the news in Japan.

Things are calm here too if you just don't look at most TV news.

Quoting cgnnrw (Reply 36):
Germans can't produce a decent bagel. There have been attempts but just because it's round with a hole in the middle doesn't make it a bagel!

All my German friends here in the US complain they can't find any good bread, so bagels must be the exception.

Quoting cgnnrw (Reply 36):

There are some comments about "customer service" in the US. To be honest I've experienced really crappy service in many parts of the US while here in Germany I've realized it isn't as bad as Germans themselves think. I'd much rather have "Meister" plumber/painter do repairs than some guy in the states who "knows" how to fix "stuff".

Yes, customer service praise is mostly restaurants and retail outlets but of course there are cases where that service sucks too.

The US is quite bad at teaching anyone to repair anything, from cars to houses to most everything else.

777Jet · Fri Nov 20, 2015 12:11 am

Quoting texan (Reply 52):
Hey now! Let's not get into a 'which place's beer is better competition'--Wellington will win hands down

Okay, but the worst I've ever had was some warm, thick, syrup like beer whilst in London. I had to try it to 'be nice'. When the person I was with went to the toilet, I poured it down the drain. What did I hear upon their return: "Wow! Gone already! You must want another one..." - so I had to drink the nasty stuff in front of them and it was in at least a 1L jug. I wasn't a beer drinker before that and my feelings towards beer after that experience were not that good for some time...

bjorn14 · Fri Nov 20, 2015 8:53 am

Quoting RyanairGuru (Reply 53):

Whew! Glad to know I am not an expat. I hate that term. At this point I have no intention of returning .

Back on topic. I do miss the selection of foods in the US with the ability to get them 24/7. Norway is monopolized by 3 distribution companies. Most grocery stores here are just glorified 7/11s. Also country/chicken fried steak.

Kiwirob · Fri Nov 20, 2015 8:56 am

Quoting bjorn14 (Reply 56):
Norway is monopolized by 3 distribution companies.

And three producer co-operatives, whow get together annually to price fix, I do not understand who this is legal.

Vio · Fri Nov 20, 2015 9:35 am

Quoting BestWestern (Reply 6):
Oh and a more philosophical question. What's the difference between an expat and a migrant worker?

I don't know the official definition, but an "expat" is someone that is leaving a well paying job in a well to do country for an ever better paying job / social status in another country. He or she has every intention to return to his or her native country.

Migrant worker, I would consider someone that is forced to go abroad and work in order to support his or her family at home.

In the end, if you're from India working in construction in Dubai, or if you're English working as an architect in Dubai, you're both ex pats. People just use different terms to describe the same thing. It's a bit condescending though.

csturdiv · Sun Nov 22, 2015 11:48 pm

I just realized another thing that I miss from the US, Thanksgiving. It did not hit me that it is almost Thanksgiving, guess I've been away from home too long and am already forgetting. Just found that the American expat group in Sydney is having a Thanksgiving picnic this coming Saturday. Looking forward to getting out to the park this Saturday with some other Americans and celebrating my favourite holiday. I am going to whip up a dish that my stepmom makes for Thanksgiving and Christmas, chicken and dumplings. If nobody else likes them, then more for me!

jetblueguy22 · Tue Nov 24, 2015 3:10 am

Quoting Revelation (Reply 54):
I hear you Pat, my CT expat friend. I am planning to be in the good old Wtby/Naugy area for Xmas and will hit a few of the "old places". Nothings the same, but it's still plenty nostalgic.

I'm amazed how much changes when I go home. It seems even going away for 6 months everything changes.

My brother is home and has sent me pics of Dominic and Vinnies and Blackies. Jealous doesn't even begin to describe me.
Pat

XAM2175 · Tue Nov 24, 2015 2:40 pm

Quoting Coal (Reply 38):
1Gbps

I still can't imagine that speed being achieved in any form of networking without seeing Cat 6 strewn everywhere. Are we really that bad?

CXfirst · Tue Nov 24, 2015 3:13 pm

As someone living in the heat and humidity of Northern Australia, I miss the snow!

Quoting kiwirob (Reply 24):

It's food, basically food in Norway is of very poor quality and is crazy expensive

Although, in general, I agree with you (I am from a remote area in Northern Norway, so getting quality fresh food was even more difficult), there are some traditional dishes that I do miss.

Although, last time I was back in Norway, we had some Australian friends visit us, and we were invited to a family members barbecue, and it was quite frankly embarrassing!

-CXfirst

Kiwirob · Tue Nov 24, 2015 4:53 pm

Quoting CXfirst (Reply 62):

Although, last time I was back in Norway, we had some Australian friends visit us, and we were invited to a family members barbecue, and it was quite frankly embarrassing!

No steak?

csturdiv · Sat Nov 28, 2015 8:02 am

I just got my short term fix of a taste of home. Just returned from a Sydney Americans expat Thanksgiving picnic. Good food, met some other Americans, drank a little and tossed a football around. Was a fun afternoon and it felt like a nice neighbourhood block party.

VapourTrails · Sun Nov 29, 2015 2:39 am

Have a US expat or dual national family member in-law who has been celebrating Thanksgiving in Australia since living here, the last thirteen years or so. Went to my first Thanksgiving dinner this year now living local, and I do like the tradition; the gathering, fellowship and conversing over a meal, that is always good - food really brings people together! The thing about celebrating in Australia too is that the dinner can be held outside in the evening.

Also read last week that Thanksgiving is gaining popularity mainstream in Australia now, as Halloween has been doing in recent years.

bjorn14 · Sun Nov 29, 2015 1:16 pm

One thing I was not going to miss was Black Friday but virtually every store in Norway had a Black Friday/Weekend event. SMH.

PHX787 · Sun Nov 29, 2015 1:50 pm

Quoting csturdiv (Reply 34):
I'll give you Graeters but the Skyline Chili, nope. My parents live in Cincy and first time I went to visit them after they moved in, I was not impressed at all when they took me there to try it.

It's an acquired taste

Quoting hh65man (Reply 46):
Texas style BBQ

Quoting hh65man (Reply 46):
FREE ROADS, I can't get over (15 years on) being screwed up the bum to travel anywhere here in Sydney....

Good ol' 9% sales tax in AZ that takes care of that! And the fact that most of that sales tax comes from snowbirds and tourists, it's even better

Quoting Revelation (Reply 54):
Things are calm here too if you just don't look at most TV news.

:P I meant ON the news in general lol

Quoting jetblueguy22 (Reply 60):
Pat

I've been gone for too long; how long have u been a head mod?

jetblueguy22 · Sun Nov 29, 2015 7:04 pm

Quoting PHX787 (Reply 67):
I've been gone for too long; how long have u been a head mod?

Has to be about a year now

Pat

CXB77L · Mon Nov 30, 2015 3:03 pm

Quoting BestWestern (Reply 6):
Oh and a more philosophical question. What's the difference between an expat and a migrant worker?

The way I see it, an expat is not necessarily a migrant worker. According to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary, the term "expatriate" broadly refers to "a person who lives outside their native country".

Definitions aside ... as a former Hong Konger, the thing I miss most about HKG is the food. Fresh, live seafood, live chickens at the street markets, Hong Kong's traditional street foods and the traditional dai pai dong ... miss them all. HKG is very much a foodie's paradise. Every time I go back there, I gain a couple of kilos.

gocaps16 · Sun Dec 06, 2015 3:23 am

I miss the interstate driving in the US where you don't have to pay a $60 toll when you drive 200 miles one way going 80 km/hr. I can deal with traffic in Tokyo, where I cannot deal with the traffic and rudeness of the people in DC and NYC. 'Nuff said.

[Edited 2015-12-05 19:24:58]

CPDC10-30 · Sun Dec 06, 2015 6:33 am

This thread just reminded me to change my a.net flag for the 2nd time in almost 16 years, as it's now been a couple of months since I've moved to the USA.

It's too early to know for sure, as I'm still going back and forth between the UK and the USA frequently. However I think I do actually miss the food in the UK as well, mainly the fact that the portions were human-sized! Also grocery shopping is really boring here, stuff is just piled high and cheap. There's not the variety you have in the UK between Aldi & Lidl and M&S and Waitrose. I really miss that.

The weird thing for me is that I have little affection for the country I grew up in - Canada. Other than my relatives there isn't really anything I miss about the place. The UK really became my home in my nine years there, and I know I will miss it a lot.

Boeing717200 · Sun Dec 06, 2015 4:02 pm

Quoting csturdiv (Thread starter):

How many expats are around here and what do you miss from home the most (other than the obvious family and friends)? I'm a US expat living in Australia, been here since September 2014. I have a trip back to the US next month for Christmas and New Years and am looking forward to the food, that is what I miss the most. Already have plans for a Chicago deep dish pizza, eating real bacon (not this bacon stuff here in Australia) and some random fast food places. Other than that I miss some of the US sports, like NHL and MLB. I am kind of converting to NRL from the NFL.

When I was in the military and one long deployments it was a Big Mac, Coke and fries. That crap blows right through you and yes you can get them elsewhere but they don't taste the same. The sauce is different or spices are different and it's not quite the same. Europe was always funny. I had to learn to order a large Coke. They handed me this smaller than kid size Coke the first time and I laughed my ass off. Granted this was in the 1990s, but damn that was funny. It was like a shot glass. Here I was this 20 something carb burner and I get a 6oz Coke with a burger.

seat64k · Sun Dec 06, 2015 5:21 pm

Quoting Coal (Reply 38):
I can get 1Gbps for $50 in Singapore

Quoting XAM2175 (Reply 61):
I still can't imagine that speed being achieved in any form of networking without seeing Cat 6 strewn everywhere. Are we really that bad?

Transit to the premisises is over fibre. I have 1Gbit (thats 1Gbit symmetric) over FTTH. From there a media converter turns it into CAT5e/CAT6 to the router. Happy days. Costs me about $37 USD for an unmetered, unfiltered [1], unshaped, and otherwise unmolested connection. At leat one of the ISPs offer 10Gbit/s FTTH but it's not available in my buidling yet.

The thing about such fast connections is, its no good if all the content you access on the internet can be provided at that speed. Sure, speedtest.net gives me some boast-worthy numbers, Youtube buffers at about 6Mb/s, Apple updates at steady 1.2Mb/s (I would both to be from a local CDN), and anything from the US or Europe is limited by latency anyway. Occasionally I grab a Linux ISO from a local mirror and it comes down in a matter of seconds, but it's seldom that I really feel the speed.

[1] With the sensible exception of port 25.

AM744 · Fri Dec 11, 2015 10:56 pm

Quoting JJJ (Reply 47):
Expat began as a term of people who were sent abroad by their companies

Exactly. Usually in a country with a lower standard of living and covered by the country of origin laws, payed in its currency, kids attend specific schools that follow the country of origin curriculum, etc. All in all, living 'as if' in the country of said employee, otherwise such presumably valuable employees wouldn't accept being deployed to said country.

In that sense, I think the term makes sense. If the African doctor mentioned in the article is working in say, France. He is not payed in CFA Francs, covered by the Social Security of his country of origin, etc. and he probably wouldn't want to. He doesn't want to live as if he was in his country, therefore, he is not an expatriate.

Having said that, a regular run of the mill employee, without the aforementioned benefits wouldn't qualify as one, even if white and originating from a First World country.

zckls04 · Sat Dec 12, 2015 6:38 am

I have a terrible weakness for Pickled Onion Monster Munch.

Redd · Sat Dec 12, 2015 12:58 pm

I miss the cottage country of Ontario, and the nature of Canada in general.

I miss proper camping (which means pitching a tent anywhere on Crown Land, not having to camp with other people in designated campsites)

I miss Maple Syrop

My brother who lives back home (feels strange saying 'back home' after 7 years away) in Toronto, although he comes to visit every year or two.

I miss Chinatown in Toronto, oddly with some of the best Viet & Thai food outside of Vietnam and Thailand.

I miss racing, driving and restoring old American muscle cars. Of which there is almost nothing in Poland or Europe for that matter. Although I do like European cars, there is nothing like the sound of an angry cammed up & carbureted American V8.

Don't really miss any friends oddly enough, but I think that's because of Facebook and being able to keep up with everyone's lives & their current events.

Kiwirob · Sat Dec 12, 2015 5:26 pm

Quoting Redd (Reply 76):
Of which there is almost nothing in Poland or Europe for that matter.

You need to come to Norway, there is a huge Amcar scene here, just about every pisspot hamlet in Norway will have some cowboy boot belt buckle line dancing fool who has a barn full of American cars.

larshjort · Sat Dec 12, 2015 8:29 pm

Quoting KiwiRob (Reply 77):
You need to come to Norway, there is a huge Amcar scene here, just about every pisspot hamlet in Norway will have some cowboy boot belt buckle line dancing fool who has a barn full of American cars.

Quoting Redd (Reply 76):
I miss proper camping (which means pitching a tent anywhere on Crown Land, not having to camp with other people in designated campsites)

Afterwards you can go to Sweden and camp.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_to_roam#Sweden

/Lars

Kiwirob · Sat Dec 12, 2015 8:40 pm

Quoting larshjort (Reply 78):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_to_roam#Sweden

Norway has the same right, it even extends to private land, so long as it's uncultivated or covered in snow.

wingman · Sun Dec 13, 2015 1:10 am

I lived in Spain for 17 years and we used to have an apartment on the Costa del Sol in a tiny little town called La Herradura, now completely overrun I'm sure. They used to have little restaurant shacks on the beach called chiringuitos (completely illegal but no one gave a crap). Anyway, what I miss is that food, the sole and squid and octopus that only Mediterraneans can cook up. And that was also a very brief but incredible period of Spanish history, in transition from Franco to democracy, when just about everyone believed the possibilities were endless.

For those that know what I'm talking about..Verano Azul man..Chanquete!

searpqx · Sun Dec 13, 2015 7:40 am

4.5 years and Amsterdam, and there are still days I would kill for a Safeway. One stop, I can get a good steak, a pound of bacon, good tortillas, good sharp (American style cheddar), and if I'm really desperate, brown sugar cinnamon Poptarts. With M&S back in Amsterdam, I can at least get bacon, and I have a decent butcher for a decent (if small) steak, but the rest remains the province of overpriced ex-pat stores.

Redd · Sun Dec 13, 2015 12:22 pm

Quoting KiwiRob (Reply 77):
You need to come to Norway, there is a huge Amcar scene here, just about every pisspot hamlet in Norway will have some cowboy boot belt buckle line dancing fool who has a barn full of American cars.

Haven't been to Norway but I've noticed this in Sweden.

Quoting larshjort (Reply 78):
Afterwards you can go to Sweden and camp.

Would love to but I don't want to get on a plane or ferry every time I'm in the mood to camp

Although the North of Sweden is amazing.

N1120A · Wed Dec 16, 2015 3:34 am

Back when I was an ex pat, the number one thing I missed was El Pollo Loco.

mad99 · Wed Dec 16, 2015 8:19 am

Quoting wingman (Reply 80):
Verano Azul man

Quoting wingman (Reply 80):
chiringuitos

alive and well my friend

TWA772LR · Wed Dec 16, 2015 8:25 am

I couldn't be an expat. I don't want to leave my Houston Texans, parents, and Mexican food!

Expats, What Do You Miss From Home?

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