| 2008 |
Archived Articles |
| September |
Asia isn't Babel: The Lack of Communication is Cultural, Not Linguistic
Of course it's hard to communicate in Asia if you can't speak the local language. But what if you can? According to longtime Asia hand Antonio Graceffo, many people across the region seem to assume it's impossible to exchange information with a Westerner, no matter what he says or does. Don't miss Antonio's delightfully exasperated Covered Wagons article, reporting on hilarious encounters in the Philippines, Thailand and China.
|
| February |
Starting Somewhere:
A first step into the expat community in Singapore
Living in Singapore and working at home, Australian writer Patricia Tan felt increasingly isolated and lonely. Yet the first steps toward friendship seemed daunting too -- "Keep breathing," she told herself, as she set off for her first gathering of YCFE (Young Childless Female Expats). Don't miss her honest and personal Covered Wagons essay about reaching out to a group of strangers in a foreign land.
|
| 2007 |
Archived Articles |
| August |
No More Pork Chops: My Ghana Experience
What's it like to be a 10-year-old American in Accra, Ghana? For Magdalena Travis, everyday life included things like fresh-cut coconuts, dancing at an Ashanti festival, a stinky outhouse on the beach -- and most memorably, working with a multicultural group of kids and adults on a community theater performance.
|
| May |
Your Mouth Is
Too Big: Food and Conversation in Morocco
In Morocco, it's desirable to be slim -- but you're also expected to enjoy the generous helpings of delicious traditional foods and sweet tea offered to you, as Christina Oulamine, an American writer with a Moroccan husband, discovered. Don't miss her humorous, enlightening -- and appetite-stimulating -- look at this dilemma.
|
| May |
Ich Spreche
Kein Deutsch
Living in a country where you don't know the language takes you back to early childhood: signs and billboards are only scribbles, and social encounters are reduced to gestures and pointing. If you've been there -- or might be in the future -- be sure to join author Nichole Martinson for a funny and insightful look at the frustrations and small triumphs of on-the-ground language learning.
|
| February |
From Swaziland to Seattle: Sky and Mimi Join the Pet Jet Set
After adopting Sky the dog and Mimi the cat in Swaziland, Melinda Tsuchiya
resolved to keep the entire "family" together when they relocated to the
U.S. Although she'd expected red tape and paperwork, the process turned out
to be quite a bit more troublesome than she'd imagined. If you've ever
thought of moving a pet internationally -- or just love a good animal story
-- don't miss Melinda's humorous and enlightening report on Sky and Mimi's
convoluted journey.
|
| 2006 |
Archived Articles |
| November |
Confessions
of an Expatriate Library Lover
While living in Asia, Africa and Europe, Grace Delobel has always sought out books in her native language (sometimes to her peril, as she notes: "Borrow a dusty book about a woman who slowly loses her mind on a lonely African plain while you actually are living on a lonely African plain and you better have some kind of backup plan"). In a new Covered Wagons essay, she offers eloquent reflections inspired by her favorite English-language collection in southern France.
|
| July |
Mademoiselle! Mademoiselle! American writer Jan Roberts is a divorcée in her forties,
so why do the market vendors call her "Mademoiselle" instead of "Madame"?
Might it be her beautiful figure and complexion? Or do all female customers,
regardless of age, enjoy the same treatment? One day at the market, Jan sets
out to discover the answer - but her experience is not at all what she'd
expected.
|
| 2005 |
Archived Articles |
| December |
Bittersweet Switzerland Stressed-out American teacher Aimée Skidmore longed to give her family the overseas experiences she'd enjoyed as a child. A move to Switzerland finally gave her kids the chance to "toughen up their soft American hides" — but Aimée also found herself unexpectedly challenged by her new roles of at-home parent, struggling French student and foreigner.
|
| August |
Adjusting In previous articles, Kelly Garriott Waite shared her blunders in a foreign supermarket Comparison Shopping in Canada, and the emotional upheaval of leaving the country News of the Transfer. Now
back in the U.S., she candidly describes the challenges of reentry, especially to a different region. Join her family for the final phase of their expatriate journey -- something we often avoid thinking about!
|
| August |
Karma
Chameleon Growing up in the Philippines, Argentina, Pakistan,
Indonesia, the U.S. and New Zealand, Diahann Reyes learned to adjust
to the cultural expectations around her. But this skill came at a
price: as a college student, she found herself avoiding long-term
relationships and changing her opinions to match her surroundings.
If you were an internationally-mobile child -- or have one at home!
-- don't miss Diahann's fascinating tale of lost and found identity. |
| July |
From
the South American Plains to Australia Moving to Australia with
her husband, children and $2000 in savings, Argentine native Silvana
Liguori found herself bewildered in the bathroom, wandering the empty
streets in loneliness -- and dressed up in pearls, carrying a plate
of oysters, while others wore flip-flops and munched hamburgers out
of McDonald's bags. |
| June |
Sí
Soy Vegetariana: Yes, I'm a Vegetarian Nichole Martinson faced
numerous challenges in her pursuit of a meatless lifestyle in Madrid,
including restaurants with pork legs dangling from the ceiling, ham-flavored
potato chips, and questions from strangers about how she gets her
protein. Yet she managed to find countless animal-free culinary delights
- as well as new friends who learned to appreciate her cooking. |
| March |
News
of the Transfer We last heard from Kelly Garriott Waite as a new
arrival in Canada, blundering through a supermarket (see Comparison
Shopping in Canada). Just a year and a half later, the family
found out they'd be moving again. Kelly describes the emotional pre-departure
period, including her feeling of being "a traitor to the women who
took a risk in befriending me" and her sorrow at leaving her family's
everyday world behind. |
| January |
A Baby
Carriage on Charles Bridge It's hard having your first baby no
matter where you are, but being pregnant and alone in a foreign country
is even more daunting. Catherine Jones bravely shares the details
of her experience giving birth in the Czech Republic -- including
a doctor's eagerness for her editing services, a strange rubber-doughnut
device, and cloth diapers hung in a drafty attic. |
| January |
The Great
Game: Flying with Kids, or Taking Control of Central Asia (Whichever
is Easiest) As an American living in France, Grace Delobel has
taken dozens of long flights with her three small children. She's
found that the experience reminds her of (you won't expect this):
the Great Game, the 19th-century struggle between the British and
Russian empires. |
| 2004 |
Archived Articles |
| October |
Simon's
Bridge American Sylvana Hutabarat was hoping for an authentic
cross-cultural experience when she was (finally!) invited into a Japanese
home -- but when she found more of the mundane than the exotic, she
reached a profound conclusion about human nature. |
| June |
Comparison
Shopping in Canada. by Kelly Garriott Waite. It wasn't a big one,
as international moves go: her family drove north from their U.S.
for an assignment in Toronto, Canada. Yet even without a language
barrier, Kelly was unable to escape that classic expat experience:
feeling like a helpless idiot in the supermarket. Don't miss Kelly's
first encounter with milk bags and specialized beer-selling institutions,
described in her short, humorous Covered
Wagons essay. |
| March |
Another
Time, Another Place by Ginger Wyler. Living in Israel during the
first Gulf War, American expatriate Ginger Wyler learned how to tape
up her bedroom windows and use a gas mask. Read her vivid and thoughtful
essay on the experience. |
| March |
Le
bas? The Art of the Moroccan Greeting by Leslie Gross Wyrtzen.
American expatriate Leslie Gross Wyrtzen found that in Morocco, a
simple greeting -- even to a salesman while buying cheese --involves
issues such as peace, family and religion. |
| February |
Everyday
Life: An American in Britain by Michael Harling. Expat life can
seem like an ongoing barrage of little annoyances, from uncooperative
bathroom fixtures to daily schedules that don't mesh with yours. Find
out why American expatriate Michael Harling found himself sitting
unshaven in a pub at midday instead of buying groceries, in his funny
and insightful article. |
| 2003 |
Archived Articles |
| August |
Disrupting
Family Dynamics: The Case of the Cereal Bowls by Dr. Anne P. Copeland.
Oddly-shaped cereal bowls set off a cascade of changes in family routines
at Dr. Anne P. Copeland's house. And if cereal bowls can do that,
imagine what an international move can do. Dr. Copeland explores this
interesting question in Disrupting Family Dynamics. |
| August |
Dislocation,
Dislocation, Dislocation by Peg Clement. All I have is a cat and
a daughter — no home, no car, no schedule, no workout, no e-mail,
no friends, no housekeeper, no identity even. Who cares?" You'll care,
as you read the honest, funny diary of development worker and single
mother Peg Clement, bravely documenting her first few weeks of confusion
and frustration in Harare, Zimbabwe. |
| June |
Filming
the Foreigners by Wendy Jones Nakanishi. Expatriates know a lot
about being stared at in public. But very few expats have had a local
camera crew film them in the privacy of their homes. Wendy Jones Nakanishi,
whose Japanese Diary wowed our readers last year, returns with her
tale of "reality TV," Japanese style. |
| May |
Paradise
Lost? by Ingerlene Voosen Embry. They say there's a honeymoon
period right after you move to a new country --- but suddenly getting
hauled off to jail can end the honeymoon pretty quickly. Writer Ingerlene
Embry talks about whether it's possible to recapture the magic. |
| March |
The
Plaza vs. the Sala: Public and Private Life in Oaxaca
by Aimee Day. "How would I survive a year in a place so foreign that
I could accidentally cast an evil spell on a baby?" Aimee Day, living
in Oaxaca with her Mexican fiancé, not only survived the year but
emerged with new insights into both American and Mexican culture.
|
| January |
Getting
the Gist by Jennifer Hutchins. Do Americans really refuse to learn
other languages? Jennifer Hutchins set out to refute this stereotype
... in Denmark, a country where the local lingo is notoriously difficult,
and practically everyone speaks fluent English. Read about her adventures
in Getting the Gist (link), her contribution to our Road Less Traveled
section. |
| 2002 |
Archived Articles |
| December |
Japanese
Journal by Wendy Jones Nakanishi. It's not every English literature
professor who marries a Japanese farmer and settles on a rural island
in Japan. Wendy Jones Nakanishi has kept a unique and evocative account
of her impressions while living this experience, a diary that is sure
to touch anyone who has ever considered leaving home and country for
love. |
| October |
Big Noses
in Beijing by Sally Grattidge. Sally Grattidge has a big nose,
and so does her entire family. At least, that's the way the Chinese
often describe foreigners. And that's the title of Ms. Grattidge's
new book, too: Big Noses in Beijing. It's the engaging story of one
family learning to live and love China and her people, including the
fabulous Mr. Wu. |
| April |
Reentry
by Peg Clement. Moving back home anytime soon? Peg went through the
dreaded "reentry" experience this past year, and bravely
shares with us her tales of relatives with dangly Santa earrings,
"choice overload" in the cat products aisle, and confusion
about which side of her car the steering wheel is on. |
| February |
The Grüezi
Graben by Elisabeth Wilding. Since the time of Early Man, language
has not only been used to communicate, but to define who you are and
where you come from. Things aren't much different today in parts of
Switzerland. See how one word speaks volumes in this telling article.
|
| January |
Homesick
by Lori Alexander. A Californian in Dublin struggles to adjust to
a "deceptively similar culture," offers tea to her visitors just a
moment too late, and wonders what country her children will consider
their own. |
| 2001 |
Archived Articles |
| December |
About Face
by Beth Fowler. The mysterious (for Westerners) concept of "face."
A perceptive, funny and non-P.C. take on the subject. |
| November |
The
Czech Checkup by Elena Juris. A university lecturer in Prague
comes down with a fever and finds herself embarking on a linguistic
and medical adventure. |
| May |
Are You
Ready for Repatriation? Can you really go home again? Yes, but
proceed with caution. Expat expert Robin Pascoe explains how to do
it right. |
| |
|
| 2000 |
Archived Articles |
| November |
The World is Our Oyster and Pearls
Grow Accordingly by Linda Bell. Parents living overseas often
worry about how their kids will adapt. Linda Bell, author of Hidden
Immigrants: Legacies of Growing Up Abroad (Cross Cultural Press,
1997), reassures parents in a knowing essay. |
| September |
Deliver de Letter
by Beth Fowler. A simple task like mailing a letter can turn into
an adventure when you're living in a foreign country. Beth Fowler,
author of the new travel book, Half Baked in Taiwan, captures
the experience in this cleverly funny piece. |
| September |
In Three Minds by Rebecca
Bilbao. You've surely felt you were in danger of losing your mind
while moving overseas. Well, the author of this piece has found it
-- in fact three of them: Ghost, Lizard and Monkey Mind.
|
| August |
And His Lips Never Moved
by Alex Johnson. Film dubbing reduces actors to "puppets."
Should we only watch movies in their original languages? Here's Alex
Johnson's reluctant conclusion.
|
| August |
Trimming the Fat by Joan
Ochi. Before an international move, many people go into "serious
purge mode." In this humorous piece, Joan Ochi extols the benefits
of a streamlined lifestyle.
|
| July |
And This is my Hubby by Alex
Johnson. "Trailing males" abroad are on the increase, but
still often misunderstood. Alex Johnson explains why this status requires
strength of character, but can be a "liberating experience." |
| May |
A Home of my Own
by Margaret Bender. After 15 years abroad, the author describes the
joys of having her very own house and garden. |
