A loaded question! But one that you should ask yourself, whether or not other people ask you.

Moving away from a good job and “on the right track” life in New York, Liz was asked this question constantly in her 20’s when she chose a new path. Moving from South Africa to Europe, nobody asked Ryan what he was running away from, but he asked himself.

We have all tried to run away from our problems at one point or another, and moving to another country seems like such a shiny way to start fresh. Unfortunately, your problems are yours and they’ll stay stuck to you wherever you go.

That said, there are always going to be good things AND bad things about every place. The key is finding balance and being able to see both the good and the bad when you’re choosing where to live. Seeing only the bad or only the good is a sure way to make yourself miserable, and we’ve seen plenty of that in expats and immigrants from our own countries!

So how do you find that balance? And how do you run toward what you want instead of running away from what you don’t? Ryan and Liz have so much to talk about this week!

Plus, now that we’ve got real listeners, our new segment where we hear from YOU and have some real expats chime in on what they say when asked what they’re running away from. This week we’ve got Massimo from Italy living in Canada, Anca from Romania living in Portugal, and Ian from South Africa living in the United Kingdom.

Do you want to be featured in a future episode? Send us a DM on Instagram @expatslisten and we’ll send you the question! 🙂

When you live abroad, how do you balance your vacation days? You want to visit your friends and family but you also want to rest or explore somewhere new. Doing one means less time to do the other, so it's tricky!

Liz feels guilty that she left and bends over backwards to create an intricate schedule to see everyone she can while she's back in New York. Ryan feels like he came all the way back to South Africa so his friends and family can put a little effort in to see him while he's there. What about you? Join the conversation on Instagram and tell us what you think! @expatslisten

This week's would you rather is two true vacation destinations, Iceland and the Seychelles.

#vacationmode #visitinghome #expatlife #holidays

Expats Listen is thrilled to announce our first interview! We are joined by another South African named Ryan, but with a very different story. After a gap year in Taiwan, Ryan Brock's partner got a job offer she couldn't refuse in London and together they made the move. What they thought would be maybe 2 or 3 years turned into 8 and counting! While Brock wasn't the most prepared for the move (he only brought one pair of shorts because he never expected to see the sun), the South African community fully took his family under their wings and created a soft landing in a new place.

#expatlife #movetolondon #southafrica #london #interview

Thinking of making the move to Portugal? You're not alone! So many folks have recently made the move or are planning it now. Stop reading articles that tell you how idyllic and perfect your life will be here. There are phenomenal things about living in Portugal, but you also need to hear some of the hard truths of what you need to accept if you want to live here. So let's get going. Don't move to Portugal unless.......

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#expatlife #Portugal #movetoeurope

We know these can be loaded words! Ryan and Liz talk through what it means to be an expat, and what it means to be an immigrant, both in theory and in practice. We share some stories of how we 🇿🇦🇺🇸 are labeled and treated, and Psychologist Ryan talks through how difficult it can be to be shoved into a box that might not feel like you fit into. Our show is called Expats Listen, but we identify as both, and we are most definitely here for the Immigrants just as much as the Expats!

Hosts Ryan and Liz met in an airport. Yep, really. Hear the whole story of how we met in the airport in Muscat, Oman. A listener question is answered about intercultural relationships. We wrap it up with our first ever "Would you rather?" with the choices of South Africa versus the USA.

Our first episode! Meet hosts Ryan 🙋🏾‍♂️🇿🇦 and Liz 💁🏼‍♀️🇺🇸 and see what we have in store for this podcast, a place to be real about the ups and downs of living abroad for expats and immigrants.