blog everyday in May - Educate

Its day two of blog everyday in May with Story of My Life and today I am meant to educate you on something I know a lot about. Well I know about food but that was too obvious for me to talk about because mainly I know about the eating side and who wants to read about how to eat....I think you all know how to do it. 

So instead I am going to educate you about expat life.

from the beach

to the mountains

and even the view from my balcony isnt bad. 

I left London over 2 years ago and have been through all the ups and downs and filled in all the forms, done the legwork looking for a job in a foreign country and embraced a totally different culture so I thought I would tell you about some of the pitfalls and pleasures of being an expat. 

1. Be prepared. I mean expat life is not for the faint hearted and you should be prepared for some difficult times no matter how strong you are. The day where everything falls apart will be the day that you realise how far from familiar faces you are and those tears will easily fall, momentarily blinding you to the reasons why you became an expat. 

2. Do your research. Where ever you are going, learn about it before you go. Especially if it is somewhere you have never been. Yes expat life is all about the adventure and excitement but if you have a totally unrealistic picture of the country you headed toward you may be in for a shock. Read about the culture, the language, the food, the local areas etc etc. It will also help you settle when you arrive. 

3. Learn the language. Although I didn't really take my own advice on this one, since my Greek speaking after 2 years is somewhat limited. But as soon as I started understanding Greek and learning the basics, I felt a lot more confident with everyday life in a foreign country.

4. Embrace the culture.You don't have to forget where you have come from but enjoying aspects of your new home can really help you settle into life much quicker. In Cyprus that means going for coffee late at night and enjoying huge family feasts on special occasions, something I obviously don't have any issue with.

5. Be open. Open to new ideas, new activities and new people. You were brave enough to make that leap and leave everything behind for a new country, so take what it has to offer with a clear head and talk to everyone. You never know where you will meet your new best friends. And having some good people around you will really support you mentally and emotionally.