Post by dsc on Apr 29, 2009 8:01:14 GMT -5
Just before the time the DGM forum went private, there was a new member who asked a question about where to expat to.
I knew it would be pointless just to give my personal opinion about where I wanted to go, so I spent 2 hrs one night creating the following response.
I think it has a lot of good general advice that enables one to begin the journey about figuring out where is best for you, so I thought I'd copy it across:
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As always, Irlandes has a lot of good advice..
It's very true that this is something that you have to figure out for yourself.
Instead of specific countries for recommendations, what you need is to be pointed to some good resources to read and figure things out for yourself.
Here are two big ones:
www.internationalliving.com
www.liveandinvestoverseas.com/archives.html
Now both of these sites are commercial and profit-driven, so they seek to interest people enough to buy their Ebooks, conferences, and other paid services. It draws a lot of criticism from some in expat forums/circles, but as long as you realize what they are, you can use them for their free info (or paid info, if you wish).
After you read a bit on sites like these, you need to zone in on the specific country/countries you're interested in. This site is an index of a expat forums/blogs. I find it quite excellent:
www.expat-blog.com
Sign up on forums for countries you're interested in.
One can always Google to find more or better ones, of course.
Read to your heart's content. Post any questions. There will always be some helpful people.
Heck, before several travels of mine in the past, I've agreed to meet lots of people whose acquaintance I've made on expat-related forums first. Most love to meet you when you pass through the country. I keep in touch with most everybody like this I've met on past journeys.
Here's another site that writes things from a single man's perspective: www.singleabroad.com
Small charge to access the info ($10) but he has a lot of good info. Side note -- I noticed he mentions India in there too.
Some travel-related sites are good to get basic info about places. Here's two I find handy:
www.virtualtourist.com
www.travelpod.com
The CIA World Factbook has some good info too:
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html
Handy site for population statistics:
www.world-gazetteer.com
Well, that's a bit of info to get you started. It all may seem a little bit daunting at first.
But one reads a little most days and now a few years later I've got 100's of bookmarks for ~ 20-25 different countries.
I've only traveled to 4 of those countries in the past few years. But being there in person was absolutely critical in determining if it was a spot where I could see myself living.
I think I've zoned into one spot that seems the right mix for me on several frontiers.
Now it's just a matter of getting financial affairs in order to make things reality as fast as I can.
Hope this all helps..
I knew it would be pointless just to give my personal opinion about where I wanted to go, so I spent 2 hrs one night creating the following response.
I think it has a lot of good general advice that enables one to begin the journey about figuring out where is best for you, so I thought I'd copy it across:
-------------------------------------------------------------
As always, Irlandes has a lot of good advice..
It's very true that this is something that you have to figure out for yourself.
Instead of specific countries for recommendations, what you need is to be pointed to some good resources to read and figure things out for yourself.
Here are two big ones:
www.internationalliving.com
www.liveandinvestoverseas.com/archives.html
Now both of these sites are commercial and profit-driven, so they seek to interest people enough to buy their Ebooks, conferences, and other paid services. It draws a lot of criticism from some in expat forums/circles, but as long as you realize what they are, you can use them for their free info (or paid info, if you wish).
After you read a bit on sites like these, you need to zone in on the specific country/countries you're interested in. This site is an index of a expat forums/blogs. I find it quite excellent:
www.expat-blog.com
Sign up on forums for countries you're interested in.
One can always Google to find more or better ones, of course.
Read to your heart's content. Post any questions. There will always be some helpful people.
Heck, before several travels of mine in the past, I've agreed to meet lots of people whose acquaintance I've made on expat-related forums first. Most love to meet you when you pass through the country. I keep in touch with most everybody like this I've met on past journeys.
Here's another site that writes things from a single man's perspective: www.singleabroad.com
Small charge to access the info ($10) but he has a lot of good info. Side note -- I noticed he mentions India in there too.
Some travel-related sites are good to get basic info about places. Here's two I find handy:
www.virtualtourist.com
www.travelpod.com
The CIA World Factbook has some good info too:
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html
Handy site for population statistics:
www.world-gazetteer.com
Well, that's a bit of info to get you started. It all may seem a little bit daunting at first.
But one reads a little most days and now a few years later I've got 100's of bookmarks for ~ 20-25 different countries.
I've only traveled to 4 of those countries in the past few years. But being there in person was absolutely critical in determining if it was a spot where I could see myself living.
I think I've zoned into one spot that seems the right mix for me on several frontiers.
Now it's just a matter of getting financial affairs in order to make things reality as fast as I can.
Hope this all helps..