Season's Greeting...

It is time to thank all readers around the world for their support and contributions to 245 and Counting during the last year and to wish you all, whether at you are at home or on far flung shores...

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays
and a Peaceful & Prosperous New Year

Joyeux Noël, Bonnes Fêtes de Fin d'Année
et Meilleurs Vœux pour 2009!

Support the cause...

Bloggers around the world are uniting to support World Aids Day - use the link for more information and resources to see how you can help...

Defining moment...

Having just been reading reports of Australians repatriating themselves in the face of worsening economic prospects in the UK, and recalling that only a few weeks ago we were discussing Eastern Europeans heading home for now brighter prospects, we are forced back to the definition of the very subject of this blog, the expat.

Should we be differentiating more between the expat who has shifted country purely by choice and the economic migrant who has by definition mainly financial motives? If so, how do we in fact differentiate - and can one person in fact fall into both categories? Well, perhaps those mainly choosing a change of lifestyle will then build in financial considerations in making their final choice of country, and that is quite natural.

However, for those driven to a move by financial necessity, should we expect them to make any further commitment to their host country? They have made their decision on a financial basis and presumably have been welcomed for the skills they bring to the host country without further commitment being required, other than perhaps to learning the language - so can we blame such people for returning home when the financial advantage disappears suddenly?

Do the expats who relocate by choice, for love of culture, environment, etc., make a different sort of commitment to his host country? Are they more likely to remain and weather the storm when times get tough for a while? Probably, I would think, but perhaps only because they can afford the luxury!

In any event, perhaps a level of commitment aside from financial interest becomes part of our definition of an expat...

A question of quality...

It seems to be survey season just now, at least in the world we expats inhabit.

Following our recent reporting of an Alliance & Leicester poll of expats (see the post below), now we see a large survey carried out for HSBC International, based on a huge sample of 2,155 expats in 48 countries, snappily entitled "Offshore Offspring"!

The survey focused on quality of life and cost of living issues relating to family life overseas and included factors such as the cost of raising a family, time spent outdoors, languages learned, study time, and whether parents believed that their children would remain in the country as adults. The summary report covers the 14 countries that yielded enough results to be significant in the survey.

Well, if another survey is of interest, you can see the detailed results by following the link below - but for this British expat in France there were some points of particular interest... while Spain is rated as the cheapest country to raise a family, the UK is the most expensive, at fourteenth position.... for the overall results, rating all factors in the survey, I was pleased to see that France is second only to Spain!

If you are contemplating making a lifestyle leap, you can gorge on statistics, graphs and detailed comments here...

Offshore Offspring

Always a lovely day...

The results of a recent poll of expats makes fascinating reading. The offshore bank Alliance & Leicester International surveyed UK expats specifically, asking them such questions as the reason for moving abroad, why they rate their new country over the UK, what downsides they find, etc.

In terms of why British expats preferred their new country, it is interesting to see the list of top ten factors and that quality of life and a higher standard of living rated second and third positions respectively. So, what is the No. 1 reason for Brits to live elsewhere? Well, the weather of course!

Given the reputation of Brits for always talking about the weather, and the UK having a climate that is the envy of few, I guess it is natural that this would be a major consideration, but perhaps surprising that it is the primary factor. Perhaps we need to be chatting about the weather more on this expat blog!

A safer environment, lower crime rate, slower pace of life, and better food were also rated in the top ten. In fact the report comes up with findings and destination breakdown too extensive to cover fully here, but there were some other interesting snippets...

For example, given that a massive 75% of Brits in France understandably rated the cuisine as a key reason, what about the poor expat souls (9%) who actually admit to missing British food!

Also, going back to the climate issue, in which countries are the 4% of British expats who miss the UK's weather?

Alliance & Leicester International

Who wants to be a millionaire...

During the summer we heard the story of a Brit in Australia who sold his entire expat lifestyle, including home, car, an introduction to his friends, and a chance to take over his job!

Well perhaps expats are becoming more creative. The problem facing many people is that it is not easy to sell a house in these more difficult times but we now hear of a British couple in Spain who have come up with a fascinating idea - to run a competition to win their property. Well, this is not totally unique but in this case the package not only includes their home (which they say is worth £ 1m) but also their business, "The Wild Wild West" tourist attraction, which they value at a further £ 4m - and they are even including their Harley Davison motorcycle!

The attraction of this combination of home and business is that the lucky winner should have both a home and a ready-made income.

In fact, the owners have a target of selling 200,000 tickets - and at £ 25 per ticket, an interesting chance for someone to become very wealthy when the draw is made in early January! Apparently if the target number of tickets is not sold, then the winner will receive the money taken up to that date. Anyone wanting to find out more can see the full details and conditions on their web site...

newyearmillionaire.com

Bloggers unite on November 10th for Refugees United...

The main theme of this blog is expat life and we concern ourselves with insights into the lives of those who choose to relocate to foreign shores, usually to enhance the quality of their lives or careers.

However, only last week we touched upon some who migrated through no choice of their own, in reporting the recent legislation in Spain designed to make good some of the wrongs of the Spanish Civil War - in particular to offer the opportunity of citizenship to the descendants of those who were forced to flee the country at that time.

Well, today we go a step further in joining bloggers internationally in the "Refugees United" campaign, designed to spotlight the plight of those people who have become homeless, and perhaps stateless, as a result of natural disaster, civil unrest or war. Those families deprived, often over night, of many of the basics that we consider essential to normal life... shelter, food, warmth, access to health care, education, employment...

Bloggers around the world are united in raising awareness of refugees on this special day but if you want to make a difference on an on-going basis you can consider supporting one of the international organisations providing essential help and care to those in this desperate plight with a one-off donation or regular contribution. These links will give you an idea of what is possible...

British Red Cross

U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

...and you can make a significant contribution by simply passing on the message...