Relationships

The thing which excites me most about working with expats is that so much of it is to do with human relationships. The way expats relate to a new culture and the way native inhabitants respond to them is often fascinating. Sometimes the relationship which grows is a positive one, at other times it's one characterised by suspicion or prejudice. In my experience moving abroad often brings out the very best or the very worst in people (both those moving abroad and those who are locals in the destination country) and it's that polarisation which can lead to either long lasting friendship or deep seated enmity. Our ability to form real friendships with locals once abroad is often a key factor in determining our relationship with their culture on a broader scale. Most of the time, we find they're just like us, warts and all.