Living abroad
I read the blog of PeonyJenny about Ramadan in UEA and all the people who commenting its blog, I see, what an interesting topic to discuss about....Many people, called expatriates, who LIVE (not holiday) in middle east countries, complaining about the local rules and mocking the local culture. But never I heard they complaining about the standard salary they get or mocking the quality of life they have.
I lived in Switzerland for decade, lived in Oman several years and few other countries, understand and enjoy any place I lived in. Even though, there is nothing much better but live in MY OWN COUNTRY.
Imagine if you have relatives who live with us and they don't like the way we rule our home, will you be happy abou it? The choice is they follow our rules and live or move out.
The question is the same : what is the main purpose for you to decide live in new country (new language, new habit, new culture, new time zone, etc) ? Even it is your company or organization who assign you to work in foreign country, still the answer is the same which is "to have SOMETHING BETTER" and this SOMETHING can be anything. If you move to foreign country and you get the same or even less than what you already have, then either you stupid or you already rich.
Like it is said, the heaven on earth is when we have middle east salary, live in europe with asian price....
And as for Oman... It is one of heaven on earth. A country who leaded by the wisest Sultan in the world. Not as advance as Dubai but it has higher value of life, especially for those who has children.
However, good or not good our life in foreign country, one thing for sure is that we get priceless experience.
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It's been an eye opener for me to meet different cultures..and made many good friends. I even feel embarrassed at times to be British.
When it comes to salaries we westerners are very privileged and since I manage 45 staff and know their salaries I'm astounded at What they get...but its not me who sets them..it's the owner's..Arabs.
It's all relative to where your from..but there are Indians and filipinos that could do the job just as good as us...yet they earn a fraction of What we do.
In a word,I wouldn't of wanted to miss this experience for anything.
look, arent they still beautiful eventhough they fully covered.
My indonesian friend who has american passport get american standard salary in PDO which is 3x higher than his indonesian passport friend.
I only believe that they are just a normal human being. For me middle-east people are nation without evolution.
and the lower...a bit old already.
I would interested to know your comment on the topic as well...
In europe, everything run by laws and it apply with no boundaries. You may be the princess or president but once you againts the laws, you guaranteed facing court and end up in jail.
In asian countries, there is laws and culture. In india, people more obey culture than laws as staying in prison is easier to handle than judged by the community.
In any case, we can't mock other culture or other country. Everything has plus and minus point of life.
I do so in this country but there are countries no matter how good the salary, I wouldn't want to live there.
Agree with some of blogger who already comment in here, when you live in an other country must be you'll face much of different from where you're born or lived before (your home land country).
Each of them will have different rules beside those culture, habbit etc. While you enjoy being live at there then enjoy it if you can't face with the rule at there then don't live there.
I had some experience by travel some of country & live in europe. For me if there is different then I make it something that we have to respect cos when we just see how much different then we can't see there is a common that we human being who need money yo survive of live to pay, eat ect, no matter you live. Religion put it as each people believe without bother why they rule this or that cos when we talk about that then we have to see in some of view not just base one person experience.
Happy ramadhan
The 'Fast' of Ramadan is to me a calling of a rose a daisy. Eat at night only is not, to me, a Fast. Don't eat for a week would be a Fast. To me, anything that simply says change your eating schedule isn't much of a Fast, not if you still get to eat.
This blog is not talking about local people in foreign country. We are talking about expats who live in foreign
country but mocking or complaining about the local culture or religion and so on. I hope our discussion can be back in track.
When I live in North Africa, the local people behavior is quite arrogant. When we, expat, complained, they said "it's my country, I do what I want. You don't like it, you can move back to your country!" BANG! I speechless didn't know what to respond. Since then, I always let the local ahead to avoid crisis and totally cutting them off.... I couldn't help myself not to complain abt its behavior.