EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: It has been a while since my last post. However, with Covid-19 happening in between it feels like far more time has passed than what the calendar really shows. In this relatively short period, an enormous amount has changed. High School Life in the Last Semester of 2019/2020 One thing that […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Right now, it is summer, and one of the busiest times of the year for town celebrations and events in New Jersey, and elsewhere in the US. As this is being written, it is just one week after the American monster party of the year for the July 4th holiday (Independence […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Probably lots of people around the world outside the USA, have learnt the most about American culture via TV shows and movies. American high school life is no different, with movies regularly released showing high school backdrops and teenager conversations. Some things though are not fully explained in detail through TV, […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Cultural differences. This may be the single hardest challenge to overcome when moving to a new country as an expat. Hard to prepare for but even harder to anticipate. Sure, if you’re moving from Miami to Myanmar, you should be expecting that there’d be significant cultural differences, so you would plan […] Continue reading →
THINGS TO DO IN NEW JERSEY: Just as Australia Day is close to many Australians’ hearts, Independence Day on the Fourth of July is a huge day on the American calendar. It is a national holiday around the USA and marked by a wide array of patriotic displays. If you have been living in a […] Continue reading →
LIVING IN NEW JERSEY: When you think of American High school, there are lots of images that are conjured up from TV shows, movies and news stories that have been shown around the world including in Australia. Shows such as ‘Mean Girls’, ‘High School Musical’, ‘Heathers’ and ‘Clueless’, help to develop biases and pre-conceptions about […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: As much as I have tried to avoid sounding American in my own parochial way, it’s almost impossible. After seven years, there are many routine words from the local’s vocabulary that have crept into my everyday speech. Here are a few examples of common American expressions that I say frequently: Candy A very […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: After six years here, I can say that life as an expat in NJ has been pretty good overall. Once you are settled in, not feeling homesick any more, and your kids adapt to their schools, then life gets a lot easier. In fact, most of the time, it is quite enjoyable. But even living […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: In a recent post on the expat blog section of WSJ, there were some very interesting, although a few squeamish tales of expat food encounters from their overseas countries of residence. Eating out in America cannot of course compare with ant egg burritos or squid on a stick. As a western country with […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE: Unless you were in a coma, you couldn’t fail to notice that the biggest sales day of the year, called Black Friday (Friday after Thanksgiving) has just passed. If you missed this major retail event, it’s tempting to feel like you just missed the last train home for the night. Do not despair! […] Continue reading →
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: It has been a while since my last post. However, with Covid-19 happening in between it feels like far more time has passed than what the calendar really shows. In this relatively short period, an enormous amount has changed. High School Life in the Last Semester of 2019/2020 One thing that […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Right now, it is summer, and one of the busiest times of the year for town celebrations and events in New Jersey, and elsewhere in the US. As this is being written, it is just one week after the American monster party of the year for the July 4th holiday (Independence […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Probably lots of people around the world outside the USA, have learnt the most about American culture via TV shows and movies. American high school life is no different, with movies regularly released showing high school backdrops and teenager conversations. Some things though are not fully explained in detail through TV, […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: Cultural differences. This may be the single hardest challenge to overcome when moving to a new country as an expat. Hard to prepare for but even harder to anticipate. Sure, if you’re moving from Miami to Myanmar, you should be expecting that there’d be significant cultural differences, so you would plan […] Continue reading → 
THINGS TO DO IN NEW JERSEY: Just as Australia Day is close to many Australians’ hearts, Independence Day on the Fourth of July is a huge day on the American calendar. It is a national holiday around the USA and marked by a wide array of patriotic displays. If you have been living in a […] Continue reading → 
LIVING IN NEW JERSEY: When you think of American High school, there are lots of images that are conjured up from TV shows, movies and news stories that have been shown around the world including in Australia. Shows such as ‘Mean Girls’, ‘High School Musical’, ‘Heathers’ and ‘Clueless’, help to develop biases and pre-conceptions about […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: As much as I have tried to avoid sounding American in my own parochial way, it’s almost impossible. After seven years, there are many routine words from the local’s vocabulary that have crept into my everyday speech. Here are a few examples of common American expressions that I say frequently: Candy A very […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: After six years here, I can say that life as an expat in NJ has been pretty good overall. Once you are settled in, not feeling homesick any more, and your kids adapt to their schools, then life gets a lot easier. In fact, most of the time, it is quite enjoyable. But even living […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE IN AMERICA: In a recent post on the expat blog section of WSJ, there were some very interesting, although a few squeamish tales of expat food encounters from their overseas countries of residence. Eating out in America cannot of course compare with ant egg burritos or squid on a stick. As a western country with […] Continue reading → 
EXPAT LIFE: Unless you were in a coma, you couldn’t fail to notice that the biggest sales day of the year, called Black Friday (Friday after Thanksgiving) has just passed. If you missed this major retail event, it’s tempting to feel like you just missed the last train home for the night. Do not despair! […] Continue reading →