Expat Life: how weird are the locals?

I am pie · 23-10-2013 02:45PM

Over here. Drink less, eat more beef. Talk funnny.

I want to know how that guy ended up in Southern Hungary! ....has to be a woman?

stefan idiot jones · 23-10-2013 02:49PM

I've lived away from Wales since 1998 in Scotland, Ireland and now Australia, I'm trying to live in all the countries that loathe the English.

This barefoot nonsense here in Brisbane is something I cannot understand. It's warm here for twelve months of the year so flip flops (thongs) are the norm. Is it too much trouble to slip them on rather than having manky, leathery soles ?

Saying that, the wierd thing is about the locals here is that they're all working and cheerful.

Savoir.Faire · 23-10-2013 02:52PM

I had the utter misfortune of having to live in Australia for 9 months. Well, I didn't have to live there, but I was thinking with my penis rather than my brain.

I didn't find the Australians overly weird, apart from their utterly misguided belief that their mass-produced beer was somehow palatable. I did find them uncouth, vulgar and ignorant though.

Legs.Eleven · 23-10-2013 03:04PM

Wouldn't the weird stuff in foreign countries make sense in the context of the country?

Bog Standard User · 23-10-2013 03:08PM

Alun wrote: »

Pretty weird, I'm English living here in Ireland

GET OUT!!!!

just kidding the more the merrier

Hoop66 · 23-10-2013 03:25PM

I'm Scottish by birth, but grew up in England, with various diversions to far-away-places on the way.

Been living here in Ireland for the last 13 years. More than a quarter of my life, which is just weird.

The locals? They're alright. I've become a moderate drinker since I came to Ireland.

I don't drink any less, it just seems that way...

Realt Dearg Sec · 23-10-2013 03:29PM

I am pie wrote: »

Over here. Drink less, eat more beef. Talk funnny.

I want to know how that guy ended up in Southern Hungary! ....has to be a woman?

Well, not A WOMAN, but certainly WOMEN probably had something to do with my thinking...I had a bit of a fascination with Hungarian language (just because it's completely weird), and with Budapest, and with Hungarian women of course, so I packed my bags. Hadn't intended winding up in some obscure spot in the sticks, but it was just the way the chips fell when I got over there and was offered a job.

I had wanted to live in Budapest, which is completely unlike the rest of the country in a lot of ways, but fundamentally all Hungarians just think they are completely unique in Europe, feel very isolated, are not terribly exposed to other cultures, think that the rest of the continent is very concerned with their daily to-ings and fro-ings as a country, and have a very inflated sense of their importance in the grand scheme of things.

So in that regard it was easy enough to fit in, coming from where I had...

Matt_Trakker · 23-10-2013 03:31PM

Legs.Eleven wrote: »

What's the difference between an ex-pat and immigrant?

And ex-pat moves country coz the company he works for offer him a job in the new place.
And immigrant...well y'know what that is.

lufties · 23-10-2013 03:32PM

Alun wrote: »

Pretty weird, I'm English living here in Ireland

Jaysus that made me burst my arse laughing:D

lufties · 23-10-2013 03:38PM

Here in Hong kong, the chinese are a bit annoying/strange, they can't make decisions on anything, hence everything is black and white with no logical thinking..In big companies,the gwailos(white foreigners) seem to be in positions where they run the show and won't rock the boat with the chinese so they can collect their fat salaries.

lufties · 23-10-2013 03:41PM

Savoir.Faire wrote: »

I had the utter misfortune of having to live in Australia for 9 months. Well, I didn't have to live there, but I was thinking with my penis rather than my brain.

I didn't find the Australians overly weird, apart from their utterly misguided belief that their mass-produced beer was somehow palatable. I did find them uncouth, vulgar and ignorant though.

I spent a year and a half there, they'd drive you bananas.

I Heart Internet · 23-10-2013 03:44PM

keeponhurling wrote: »

British people fake laugh a lot, not sure why

When living amongst the British (English to be precise) I noticed that they would laugh at really odd, unfunny, rather predictable jokes/events. The people I worked with, certainly, would find even the most mundane of things hilarious....a bit of the fake laugh about it too tbh.

This is despite them, as a nation, having a pretty advanced sense of humour and many talented comics.

I just found the people I worked with very dull middle-aged people who would laugh at their colleagues bad jokes. I was in my mid-twenties in an office with an average age of 50 tbf.

Plazaman · 23-10-2013 03:47PM

bodice ripper wrote: »

Maar echt, jonguh.

Yes I lived with Klingons once myself for a long weekend. Ka'ploch.

Although it could have just been a weekend on the beer watching the entire seven seasons of Star Trek. Still goes to show, you can be a ex pat in your own home.

cloud493 · 23-10-2013 03:48PM

Alun wrote: »

Pretty weird, I'm English living here in Ireland

Yeah English people

bodice ripper · 23-10-2013 04:00PM

Legs.Eleven wrote: »

Wouldn't the weird stuff in foreign countries make sense in the context of the country?

Yes, but since I am asking the opinion of expats, it would be in the context of their lives. ..

cloud493 · 23-10-2013 04:04PM

In serious terms... I dunno. In some Ireland is a lot different to England, other ways it ain't. Same language, same basic food, same chain stores etc. But then there's other things that completely throw me for a loop, and I've been here 4 years :P

Grandeeod · 23-10-2013 04:07PM

Where I live the locals are great! Its the expats that are the problem.:D

Wompa1 · 23-10-2013 04:11PM

I'm probably the wierd one but anyways.

Been living in Arizona for almost 2 years now. The people are very very friendly...some times annoyingly friendly. People are overly positive. It's infectous but when you are in a bad mood, it's the worst place to be.

Socialism is seen as a great evil. Even worse than that is that people seem to be against things which would help those worse off who do work. People protesting to raise the minimum wage get mocked on radio, tv and by people for working 'teenagers' jobs.

I haven't heard any man or woman on the street boast about freedom here but you do hear it every once in a while on tv. Seems like a very outdated ethos..like propaganda. Luckily, the majority don't seem to buy into it.

canadianwoman · 23-10-2013 04:12PM

jester77 wrote: »

Have you tasted a creme egg since you've been away?

I used to love them when I was living in Ireland, can't get them here. Most Cadburys products are not so sold as they have too much vegetable oil, so stuck with the local, Belgian and Swiss chocolate. As a result I no longer enjoy eating creme eggs, it's like eating a mouthful of pure sugar. Or maybe the recipe has changed.

Have you tried Ritter Sport? I bloody love that chocolate.

osarusan · 23-10-2013 04:13PM

In Tokyo...nothing too weird. Reserved but polite (have to be in such crowded places), good sense of humour when you get to know them. 24 hour places, great trains and clean streets...easy to live here.

To veer into generalisations, they are quite a conservative people, and the fact that they are self-sufficient in many ways means that they aren't always that up to speed on the rest of the world.

MadsL · 23-10-2013 04:16PM

People are not infected with a pathological need to take you down a peg or two if you 'get above yourself'. Weird.

They are however as Wompa points out, relentlessly positive. Everything is possible if you make it happen is the attitude. It does get a bit tiresome if you are a lifelong underachiever.

MadsL · 23-10-2013 04:18PM

osarusan wrote: »

In Tokyo...nothing too weird.

I find this hard to believe. You've gone native.

mikom · 23-10-2013 04:18PM

MadsL wrote: »

People are not infected with a pathological need to take you down a peg or two if you 'get above yourself'. Weird.

Take you down with a bullet?

jester77 · 23-10-2013 04:18PM

canadianwoman wrote: »

Have you tried Ritter Sport? I bloody love that chocolate.

It's good

Feodora would be my favourite.

Muise... · 23-10-2013 04:23PM

mikom wrote: »

Take you down with a bullet?

feck it, I lolled; I'm going to hell in a handcart. :pac:

MadsL · 23-10-2013 04:25PM

mikom wrote: »

Take you down with a bullet?

It's a quicker death than the cuts by biting sarcasm slagging.

ceadaoin. · 23-10-2013 04:26PM

Wompa1 wrote: »

I'm probably the wierd one but anyways.

Been living in Arizona for almost 2 years now. The people are very very friendly...some times annoyingly friendly. People are overly positive. It's infectous but when you are in a bad mood, it's the worst place to be.

Socialism is seen as a great evil. Even worse than that is that people seem to be against things which would help those worse off who do work. People protesting to raise the minimum wage get mocked on radio, tv and by people for working 'teenagers' jobs.

I haven't heard any man or woman on the street boast about freedom here but you do hear it every once in a while on tv. Seems like a very outdated ethos..like propaganda. Luckily, the majority don't seem to buy into it.

I've just moved to Las Vegas and I've been quite surprised by how friendly people are. Lots of people have come over to us when out to say hello to my almost 2 year old.

Only been here a week so haven't noticed any of the other stuff yet!

Napper Hawkins · 23-10-2013 04:29PM

Stingerbar wrote: »

Well after almost a decade living abroad in various places, it's not so much how weird the locals are but a realisation how damn weird we are in comparison

We have to stay till closing time and get plastered.. foreigners don't feel as compelled (on the continent)

We eat gallons of greasy food in comparison.

Foreigners love big long dinners, they all want to cook, partake, not just grab a burger and get to nearest pub

-They can all cook, all of them

The trust, a beer machine on an Irish street would last 5 seconds before there was a riot, over here in foreigner land, normal

Less macho, dudes kiss other dudes on the cheek, very touchy feely altogether - we need to keep people at arms length at least

Slim, slim women everywhere.. (sorry but it's true)

Street parties, at 3am, with kids and families, all having a great time

All sorts of stuff is legal and sold over the counter, knives, air rifles, fireworks, bangers and the place isn't like Beirut (Bray-rut)

Theme parks aren't swarming with knackers, in fact, very few knackers at all

Local publican generally closes up about 5am to 8am or whenever last person leaves

but creme eggs are rare, can't get taytos and no chance of a supermacs, so I guess it evens out

You've pretty much described the part of France I lived in for a while.
If I can someday manage to properly nail the language then I could see myself permanently moving there. Hopefully sooner rather than later. But Ireland's grand for now, despite all the bull**** in recent years..

Electric Sheep · 23-10-2013 04:29PM

MadsL wrote: »

It's a quicker death than the cuts by biting sarcasm slagging.

While the slagger pretends it's all "craic" and "banter".

mikom · 23-10-2013 04:31PM

MadsL wrote: »

It's a quicker death than the cuts by biting sarcasm slagging.

♫ Come back Paddy Reilly to Ballyjamesduff...........

Expat Life: how weird are the locals?

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