Oasis October 2019

Entertainment & Recreation Culture
Expat Living
Somehow and very often, I find my friends and aquaintances complaining about their life in a foreign country. Yet, I
see no desire of theirs to return to the home country. This seems to be true for all, no matter which part of the world
you come from. I think as an expat or an expat spouse, there is much to be thankful for. For me, it is particularly the
opportunity to connect and bond with people from different parts of the world. I have made everlasting connections
and learned so much from each of them I can say with some experience that this world is truly full of wonderful and
unique individuals.
Expat life opens our doors to truly distinct experiences. Here are a few of my personal favorites, which I share with the
hope that we all start to really cherish the chance to feel like we are residents of the world and not mere nomads with
fancy shelters.
You regain a long lost sense of wonder. As Bill Bryson
puts it, I can't think of anything that excites a greater
sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where
you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are
five years old again. You can't read anything, you have
only the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you
can't even reliably cross a street without endangering
your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of
interesting guesses.
You discover yourself. In the process of discovering an
unknown land, you discover more about yourself. I have
often witnessed expats developing interesting hobbies
and finding renewed passion for existing ones. You will
always find something inspirational about the country
or its people to admire. Witnessing new architecture can
aspire an architect, interior designer, and artist equally.
Stumbling upon unexplored works of new authors can
excite any literary enthusiast. For women who enjoy
organising their house in different styles, the move every
now and then is a boon. They can fulfill their desires
without having their spouse complaining. In short your
creative aspirations come to the fore.
Live life as if there is no tomorrow. This profound saying
as much as it is admired is equally hard to live by. As an
expat, you are compelled to live life as if there is no next
year in the same place. There is always an uncertainty of
the move prevailing. For this reason, you are always on
the look out for the opportunities and experiences you
might miss tomorrow. What could be more enriching
way to live?
Your life is full of funny little incidents. Very often,
one experiences something really amusing. For instance
after moving to the UK, when I first went shopping, I
was greeted by this zealous store owner, “Hello, How
are you today?” I was perplexed thinking about how he
could possibly know that I wasn’t well the previous day?
In Cairo, you must learn to drive looking in front of you,
in the rear view mirror, but more importantly on the
sidewalks. You never know when someone might sprint
to cross the high-speed motorway. It is also not unusual
to find motorists and pedestrians competing with each
other. All of us continue to have experiences that bring
smile to our faces every now and then.
Daily adventures fill your soul. I totally agree with
Reannon Muth when she says “What makes expat life so
addictive is that every boring or mundane activity you
experience at home (like grocery shopping, commuting
to work, or picking up the dry cleaning) is, when you
move to a foreign country, suddenly transformed into
an exciting adventure. Try explaining your problem to a
doctor, or finding mustard oil in a grocery store in Cairo,
or explaining in broken Spanish to the Guatemalan
pharmacy that you need cough drops and you’ll
understand. When abroad, boredom, routine and ‘normal’
cease to exist. And all that’s left is the thrill and challenge
of uncertainty.”
You are inevitably never at a fault. You can make
terrible mistakes and easily get away. “Sorry …. It’s the
Indian thing.” Person looks at you sympathetically ready
to apologise on your behalf. You also often escape the
burden of what happens in your own country. I witnessed
my British friends in the UK, as well as in Egypt at the time,
when Brexit results were declared. Despite having exactly
the same opposition to it, the impact on both was visibly
different. One felt total responsibility and the other felt “If
I was there..”
At the same time, you are also not responsible for what
happens in a foreign country where you live. The thought
often is, we work in the country and are deserving of
the benefits. And one tends to feel hardly any moral
responsibility to do anything for the country. It is only a
matter of choice. Is this thought process really justified?
I think not..
You are always a guest. Even after completing two
years in Egypt, I am still being welcomed by strangers.
Most conversations inevitably end with a “Welcome to
Egypt”. If I could be treated by every country that I live in
with such enthusiasm, I don’t know if I would ever want
to leave! On the other hand, after a while, the natives
start to treat us as one of their own. But in our minds we
are still guests, therefore, we want to be treated as such.
Unfortunately at the same time, we behave as if we own
the place, making a fuss when we are required to renew
the visa and produce legitimate documents. You want to
have best of everything, and in many instances you are
successful.
You are not a refugee. My heart fills with gratitude and
I remind myself very often of what Pico Iyer said in one
of his talks, “Movement, ultimately, only has a meaning if
you have a home to go back to.”
We must not forget thousands of millions of refugees
who are in a foreign land without having a home to go
back to. It is time to count our blessings and do our bit!
After all, home is of course not just the place where you
sleep. It's the place where you stand.
Deepti Rana, Editor & Magazine Supervisor.
October 19 CSA 19