Ex-Pats and Other New Friends

[Ta Ta 1]

I am a naturalized German and don't seek out people from Germany. Whoever I click with is more important than Nationality to me.

I do have a lot African friends that I have a lot in common with though.

The " German " festivals around here just lack authenticity and I don't go to them often.

Same here. Those "German" festivals... LOL.

The whole Lederhosen thing isn't me, never was anyway........lol. I do enjoy speaking German when I bump into another German

and get stares like " I had no clue you are German " from clients etc.

[Flames9_RN 358]

On the internet I tend to track down other canucks as i can normally relate to them. At least have something in common, the like/dislike of Tim Horton's coffee,lol Out in the real world, I'm not a overly social person, but will talk to anyone, but meeting people from the same country, at least one something in common to start a relationship. But coming from another country, most people are interested in it, so that helps strike up a conversation. I know at the hospital, when i talk to my patients and state I'm from Canada, they are very interested and helps break the ice.

[Krikit 1,164]

it's interesting you say that about it being an English-speaking country - on one level, of course you're right, but my experience moving to England was that this can form an expectation of it all being largely the same... and you then get culture shocks that you weren't expecting, always

certainly I think you'd be hard pressed to find two countries with a lot more in common than Australia and England, and yet it IS a completely different culture in many many ways... I think the States is a few more degrees removed again; I think the culture shocks are going to be plentiful

I'm sure things will work out, as you say, but the way there could be slow and rather painful

I agree with this completely. I've noticed huge cultural differences between the US and England, some an improvement, others not. Some just different. Even those colloquial language differences can cause confusion. Same goes for any English-speaking regions outside of your direct experience. Having the same base language does make things simpler though.

Meeting new people is not my sole worry. I'm concerned, as you know, about how educational qualifications transfer, but also how i'm going to get my head around all the beaurocratic differences when applying for anything. When I was originally looking at this whole visa nonsense I got so frustrated by how little I understood the systems and processes. I am an extremely resourceful and independent person, but my lack of experience of American systems and terminology meant I was having to rely on others to interpret them for me.

I'm from Canada (by way of England.. or is it the other way around?) and I agree with what you've said, also. Even though we speak the same language, I've been tripped up many times when trying to interpret American colloquialisms and ways of doing things. The last time was Saturday night after a day of car shopping. (But that's another rant). We stopped by an Applebee's restaurant for dinner and the greeter asked "Is a table okay?" I just kind of stared at him blankly thinking "Don't you kind of require a table when eating dinner?" My husband realized my confusion and said "He means as opposed to a booth." Oh.... okay.

I also find it difficult to throw everything I know about process out the window. I'm used to the way things are done in Canada so it seems I'm always thrown a curve ball when dealing with bureacracy. I also get a lot of people in the service industry making comments about the fact that I don't have my SSN memorized. What is it with always being asked for your SSN here? But I digress. /rant

Anyway, back to your original question. No, I do not go out of my way to seek out ex-pats from my home country(ies). In fact, I have not gone out of my way to "seek" any new friends at all. True friends are hard to come by, and I will cherish them when I do. I live in a really nice neighbourhood where everyone is very friendly so I think, in time, the potential is there to find one or two that I really click with. For now I am busy (and happy) settling into my new home, exploring my surroundings, and adjusting to married life. And learning the language.

Edited October 29, 2007 by Krikit

[Krikit 1,164]

I should add that I still see, and remain in contact with, my old friends quite regularly, so that probably plays a huge part in my not actively seeking out new friends.

[StillThePrettiest 3]

But coming from another country, most people are interested in it, so that helps strike up a conversation.

of course it's lovely when people are interested, but I think this would be the single biggest factor that might make me want to find other Aussies - not being exotic, and not being someone that people are always interested in! I spent a fair bit of time in what was East Germany, in 1991/2, and had SO many people interested in me, as The Australian Visitor; all most people knew about Australia was from TV ... sometimes you just want to be normal, and invisible, and not have to explain yourself to everyone, however well-meaning they may be

[JaEnglishGirl 34]

My husband is from Ireland and here in Queens NY (also in above the bronx in Yonkers) there is a large Irish community.

My husband has many friends and about 35% are Americans (Yanks as they call them) but I must admit the best time he has is when he is having the Craig (pronounced crack) with the Irish boys.

But as he says, you better not tell a cop your are "just having the Craig" or you might get arrested.

it's spelt 'craic'

[Jeraly 4]

But coming from another country, most people are interested in it, so that helps strike up a conversation.

of course it's lovely when people are interested, but I think this would be the single biggest factor that might make me want to find other Aussies - not being exotic, and not being someone that people are always interested in! I spent a fair bit of time in what was East Germany, in 1991/2, and had SO many people interested in me, as The Australian Visitor; all most people knew about Australia was from TV ... sometimes you just want to be normal, and invisible, and not have to explain yourself to everyone, however well-meaning they may be

I can kinda understand that

I think when I get there I am going to want to find a few other Brits if I can purely to talk about "Brit" stuff - I mean who else is going to understand Eurovision other than Europeans!! Actually that is a good point... I will try to drum some up for when it is on Things like food you miss, TV you miss - things that you want to talk about to anyone but who might actually understand where you are coming from. I think it would be a useful support network - it is probably why the regional forums here work so well

I will try and hunt out other Brits in the area but I'm not going to base my whole life around meeting them

[Dr. Obvious 49]

I had little interest in contacting other native English speakers in Germany. I thought it would be a bad idea.

My husband has expressed mild interest, but nothing all that serious.