4 ms·
Stay out for a year or so and you will likely want to mingle with some westerners. Or maybe not! Everybody's different.
by weeksie 9y ago
Stay out for a year or so and you will likely want to mingle with some westerners. Or maybe not! Everybody's different.
- kaybe 9y agoThe expat pockets around the world have their own culture going on. Suddenly you're hanging out with the embassy staff, some UN people, some interns and backpackers and other random people. I'd say it's very interesting in itself to experience and not the same as meeting people back home.
- weeksie 9y agoThat's precisely my point. Except that SE Asian expats are boring af on average. There are exceptions to be sure (I made several good friends while traveling) but on average they're shockingly boring, but they're as good as you're gonna get for that Western fix. Maybe that's what I should have been more clear about. You'll end up hanging out with boring people because you miss home after a bit. Before I went traveling I would have expected that community to be a lot more interesting than they were.
- JoshMnem 9y agoGet off the beaten track to find interesting travelers. The locals tend to be friendlier too.
- weeksie 9y agoSigh. That's the most obvious of knee jerk responses and the most naive. I hear stuff like that a ton from people who are chasing that old illusion of authenticity. 16 months on the road through the backwaters of SE Asia and India as well as the expat nests is plenty of time to get the "authentic" experience and mingle with locals. rolling eyes emoji
- JoshMnem 9y agoI was on the road on and off for over 10 years. I still wanted to hang out with foreigners even after getting back.