• 08
  Jun
  2009

• Managing health while travelling

  
  Filed Under: Blogging
  Author: Anupama
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Staying healthy is a key concern for expatriates and travelers, who face unfamiliar diseases and a different health care system in foreign countries. Taking the right steps to remain in good health abroad can be a significant challenge. Make sure that all your standard vaccinations are up to date. Inquire about additional vaccinations recommended for your host country, such as hepatitis A, hepatitis B, typhoid fever, and yellow fever.
The worst that can happen to you while travelling is to fall ill. But the trick lies in reaching out to the locals and seeking their advice. Don’t they say, “When in Rome do what the Romans do”? For example, locals may use drinking water filters on their kitchen faucets and clean vegetables and fruits with purified water. Expatriates have a great health advantage over short-term travelers. They usually stay in one place for a longer period of time and are able to adapt to the local conditions.
The most common health problems for expatriates are related to the different bacteria found in food and drinking water, often leading to short-term diarrhea and digestive problems. Infections from insect bites, small cuts, and wounds are also quite common. It is best to treat such small injuries with much more care than you would at home.
Another important concern is how to find a trustworthy doctor in case you have a health problem. Your embassy or consulate can often provide a list of local doctors and hospitals, or you can ask other expatriates, friends, or co-workers for recommendations.

• 08
  Jun
  2009

• Adapting to a new country

  
  Filed Under: Blogging
  Author: Anupama
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Although each person’s experience of living in a new country is unique, research has shown that there is a common sequence of phases which are typical in the life of most people adapting to an unfamiliar culture. The process of adapting in a new country can be described in 4 phases:
The Tourist Phase: This is when you feel excited, stimulated and euphoric as you explore your new surroundings whilst noting the differences from your accustomed way of life.
The Disenchantment Phase: This is when the newness wears off and you become weary of the constant need to change your customary patterns to fit into the new way of doing things. Your sense of identity and competence in your own culture may not translate easily into your new setting and you struggle to re-establish yourself in an unfamiliar system. What appeared exciting and modern at first may seem impersonal now.
The Culture Shock Phase: In this phase you might find yourself avoiding contact with the new culture and seeking the company of others from your own country or other expats. You may be highly critical of the host culture and have negative feelings towards the local people. This is a natural response to your need to hold on to your own cultural frame of mind.
The Adjustment and Acceptance Phases: As you reach these phases you begin to function with greater ease in your new surroundings. You regain your sense of humour and begin to accept and enjoy the new culture on its own terms, as different from yours rather than wrong or worse than yours.

• 04
  Jun
  2009

• Expats in India

  
  Filed Under: Blogging
  Author: Anupama
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Over 1,00,000 foreigners work in China and even more in HongKong. However, the charm of India is also growing. 20,000 to 30,000 expats from Europe and America are believed to be in India. With many auto and telecom manufacturers like GM, Hyundai, Motorola, Nokia setting shop in India the expat figures are bound of grow.

On the other hand, there are Indians who had left India a few decades ago, who want to come back as expats, test waters of their motherland and then wonder if they want to get back to their roots at all. The lure of money and life in a developed country has faded and eagerness to make their mark on their soil is growing.

“Working with the Indians has been a rewarding experience,” says Eric Rousseau, director of Alliance Francaise, Bangalore. “The sense of family is very much present here even in the workplace. In France, the individual is supreme even in the work place, but it is totally different here; as the organization comes first,” says Julie, who teaches French at Alliance Francaise.

For some expatriates, like Dr. Jean Letschert Ascharyacharya, artist, philosopher and writer, the journey to India has been deeply spiritual. With a Ph.D. in Sanskrit and an understanding of Indian culture that is so deep as to even embarrass the locals, Ascharyacharya is not a typical westerner. He has lived in India for almost 40 years now, painting and undertaking social work among the under privileged and villagers. Undoubtedly that cultural pull is strong among the expatriates settled in India.

• 03
  Jun
  2009

• Expats choice: Cost of Living over Quality of Living

  
  Filed Under: News
  Author: Anupama
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Expats choice: Cost of Living over Quality of Living

Year on year, France appears right on top on the IL Quality of Life index. This year, as with the past three years, number-crunching, rating, and ranking landed France at the top of the Index. France scores high marks across the board…from its health care (84 points) to its infrastructure (90 points) to its safety rating (100 points). But the main appeal of living in France is arguably its lifestyle (its scores 85 points in the Culture and Leisure category). France’s sensual allure leaves nobody untouched. Spend even a few months here and you will never again regard life in quite the same way is what the French proudly insist.

But is this where all the expats are heading? Quite a few expats struggle a bit during the first few months, years, decades….the language, the culture, cost of living, government policies, make the process of settling in a country like France quite difficult. On the other hand, its poorer cousin in Europe, Bratislava, the Slovakian capital is a much preferred expat destination.

While Paris ranks 12th in the Mercer’s cost of living index, Bratislava ranks 45th.  So what expats seek are countries around the world where you could live cheaper, pay less tax, enjoy better weather and take advantage of opportunities in emerging markets.