[Closed] ex-pats...

You still in India Zed?

No not one bit, haven't been back for a couple of years, each time I had intended to as the time got closer I decided it wasn't worth the effort.

Not really, miss silly things like a newspaper on a Sunday morning, meeting up with family/friends on a whim,but can't think of any other reason to head back to 'Blighty'.

Back offshore fella? Where this time? One of the girls from my work has just started another six week stint. At least you're getting better weather than us. You ought to try out some of the cycling there, it's entertaining!

Miss family much more than I miss UK as an entity. Rotating to somewhere (probably offshore) for 6 weeks and then back again is very different from being an ex-pat though. Done the former; now doing the later.

Not really. Might have missed HP sauce and Fish+Chips for a bit, but got used to that. Go back for a few days each year, but that's all.

interesting we just bought a Freehold holiday bungalow in Alicante with 320 days guaranteed sunshine.
This was for the odd weekend away and not main holiday use.

But now we are looking at this in a different light now
Great healthcare better life style and cheap.
Total Taxes and water plus Electric costs average 600 € per year.

its only a 2hr25min flight and 25 mins from Alicante Airport
So we can always pop back over

About to become an ex-pat. Can't say I expect to miss the UK. Few people here I'll miss but the place, not so much.

About to ex-pat myself in a move to Oz. Other than family, and my dog, I think I will miss a decent curry and Joe's Iced Cream. Probably worth the swap for sunshine and perfect surf.

Not really, sometimes I miss decent beer, pub quizzes and the sense of humour.

being adhoc working abroad is a **** at times , all the bad things about being an expat and all the bad things about not actually being a resident where your working.....

how ever ive had some great times !

i dont miss the uk .... i miss my home , my family and my friends .... i could live without the uk.....

I'm coming up on my first anniversary of moving to the U.S and it has been tough at times, but i'm fortunate that i didn't make the move alone... Miss my friends and family a lot though...

I miss family and friends, missing out on my 1 y.o. nephew growing up especially. Skype really helps in that regard.

The only other thing I particularly miss is the UK countryside and riding. Apart from that I can't say I miss the UK at all.

Part time ex-patriot here, spending far too much time on the road at the moment. (US this week, Spain next, then Australia and Singapore...)

Ben has it right there. The things I miss most are family and friends. And then hedgerows, beautiful, beautiful hedgerows amongst the lovely countryside

Oh, and in some countries, the food and TV. American REALLY cannot do food. Luckily, I've found a really good Japanese noodle place just down the road from my hotel, so the week is not all lost on a bland-o-rama dullfest of American "cuisine". Also, please can they just have a channel showing BBC Bristol stuff among the 60+ channels of rubbish?

moved away 3 years ago, came 'home' for the 1st time during the Summer, made us realise its not home anymore and have no intention of coming back

hedgerows, beautiful, beautiful hedgerows

this... especially on your way to work when there is a strong, cold easterly blowing across the baren fields... it does however mean that come snowfall i'm off skitting about with my kites and board.

strangely i don't miss my family overly much, other than my uncle. besides, it's only a 90 minute flight back home and a few hundred euros in an emergnecy if needs be.

i miss cosy pubs and a decent, flavousome pint. don't get me wrong... germans can make descent beer, but i often long for a pint of IPA or Abbotts.

i miss the general humor and random banter with shop assistants, bus drivers and people in general, but i think that has a lot to do with being in the fatherland where gruff service is the norm and the bus driver stares at you blankly if you thank him as you depart the bus. the occasional thank you, please and excuse me would be nice too, but you learn to deal with it... generally by throwing the door back on their heels if they ignore your having held the door open for them. or saying loudly "YOU'RE WELOME" (in german of course) so as to embarress them. admittedly it doesn't alwyas instantly sink in.... but, still it makes me smile.

i miss the vibe of london.

i miss shopping for bargins... clothing here is so expensive compared to the UK.

i miss the (relatively) un-complicated tax system in the UK for the self-employed .

i miss "proper" oriental food... i have to travel all the way across Munich in order to find a decent chinese or indian. fortunately the GF's dad cooks awesome persian food.

i miss universal health care. here in germany i pay a lot more than i would do in the UK for the same treatment, yet i need to pay €10 each quarter if i visit a doctor and the first €1000 of any hospital treatment. i was paying ~20 quid NI subs each month, here i pay €130 (and that is considered cheap... in the government scheme i'd be paying €600+). if i fall off my bike in the hills i'd better hope that i can get myself down to an accessible point... heli rescue isn't free. in fact, that goes for most european countries.

i don't miss having to look over my shoulder when walking through town late at night.

i don't miss the lack of cycle paths.

i don't miss shody trains... i was reminded last time i was in the UK how loud the trains are. the expense is similar to germany, but there are ways around this if you know how to use the system.

i don't miss the lack of substaintial hills... the Alps does have something over Danbury and Thorndon... although they are each fun in their own right.

i'll ba back over christmas... not because of christmas itself, but because it's the only quiet time of year. i'll take a wander over to the Wheatsheaf most days and lose myself in a paper and a pint, or take a walk into town and go shopping for clothes.....

Been in India for coming up to 2 years now, 3 weeks until I'm home for all of December 🙂

Cheers, Rich

American REALLY cannot do food.

You're visiting the wrong places

Interesting reading all this. We moved around ex-pat loads when we were younger for my dads job. We lived in the states, czech republic, germany etc. They haven recently just moved back to the UK for good now and they are both much happier than I have seen them in a long time.

I used to miss things about being in the UK (especially family friends and british telly when i was a kid). Not too say I didnt have some great experiences where we lived.

My girlfriend now asks me all the time if I was offered it now with my job would I take it. I more inclined to say no that yes I think. The thing I feel I missed out on is the chance of having a proper base and a proper home in one place rather than moving every 3 years or so.

Oh when I was 10 and living in Prague the main thing I missed was Walkers Crisps!! 😆

I'm still in India - just at the very end of another long stint.

I'm dog tired and have just had enough. Missing family and friends loads and can't wait to be stepping on the plane tomorrow morning.

i felt quite guilty that I found a cockney barber near my gaff, and won't go anywhere else for a cut. I've found that when I really focus on immersing myself in Finnish 'life', I'm a lot happier as I'm not distracted by the UK. So finding all these little pockets of the UK in Helsinki is not helping me in the longterm and I really should stop it.

Rather annoyingly, i miss fish and chips, stanage edge saltpath, bamford clough, going to the pub after a ride and facial expressions.

Lived in France for 3 years. I don't really see myself as an expat, apart from when working away from home, like now in Azerbaijan. We have, IMO a fully french life, Mrs Mugsy is french, but was in UK for 15 years. All our friends here are french apart from an english family who are 'getting to know you' level friends, but that's it. We don't hang out in ex pat haunts, do the ex pat thing at all really.

Miss the Peak, miss the English taking the mickey out of themselves type easy going humour. Miss night riding (all the french we know who ride can't see the point), miss the greeness. LOTS of things we don't miss though: the stress, the contiunual unpsoken one upmanship between even friends etc.

My client is my ex employer in the UK, but I work mostly form home, or overseas.

17 years abroad here, moved from Germany to Scotland. I refer to the two places as 'Germany-home' and 'home'. In Germany I have my roots, my family, my memories and might even want to retire there ... it's what in German is called 'Heimat'. In Scotland I have my partner, our house, our 3 cats, our friends, the right to roam oh and work. I miss German butchers and bakers, German directness, and the weather, especially decent seasons. I miss the ability to vote in national elections. I miss the Black Forest (my folks backyard) and the closeness to the alps and Europe main land.
I don't miss Rules. Or bad stand-up comedy.

Zed...i'm doing the India thing, as you know from past posts. However i'm here for 3 years permanent, currently 8 months in. My exception is that I have the family with me so it softens the blow.
Do I miss the UK, in some ways yes, I miss family and friends, biking with the lads talking bollocks etc. I miss the seasons, especially Autumn, cosy nights in front of the woodburner etc but I don't miss the rain (none here now until June).
But in some ways I don't like India either, the hassle of getting anything done, the politics and endless paperwork just to get a sim card etc.
Not been able to just walk down the street because my blonde 3 year old boy becomes like a freak side show with everyone grabbing hold of him. I think my wife is affected most by being here, as I have a lot of my time taken up by work, she feels trapped sometimes.
Saying that there is things I love, the food, the people (the majority are very friendly and happy to talk and help), there is always something to see as you go down the road. They are a happy nation, always ready to party and celebrate. I have also made good friends here both Indian and expat.
Will I stay here after 3 years...no...will I stay as an expat and try somewhere else...yes I think so. However it will maybe need to be somewhere that does not have such an extreme difference in culture / lifestyle or at least be easier to integrate.
I think after India we could live anywhere! 🙂

9 years in China.

Yeah there are some things I miss,

Life, and places are what you want them to be. There is good and bad in everything, you just need to look on the bright side of life.

My brother lives in France and has done for the last 4 and a bit years, apart from the normal stuff like food, real beer and friends, what he really misses is my parents, even more so when my mum died; as suddenly he realised, that he missed the last years of her life and he would never get that time back, and his son would never know who his grandmother was ........