How to successfully adjust to your new home overseas! (excerpt taken from Emigration Guide)

It is only natural to feel strange and a little alienated initially. If you have children you will have a distinct advantage: you can volunteer to help at school, offer lifts to your child’s classmates, take children to activities and get into conversation with other parents at the school gates. If you are able to find work, even if it’s just part-time, you’ll find adjusting to your new environment and making friends far easier.

Joining a club – tennis, golf, bird-watching or whatever takes your fancy – is a wonderful option and you’re likely to meet like-minded people if you follow your hobbies and interests.

Here’s an example of the kind of activities on offer to help you settle into your new home, courtesy of one of our readers in Cyprus, although it could apply to expats in any destination:

“If you like dancing, there’s ballroom and Latin, rock ’n’ roll, line dancing and country to name but a few – and of course, karate, judo, tap dancing, jazzercise … the list goes on. Football is the country’s favourite sport and rugby is available too. You can also learn to sing by joining one of several choirs, or maybe even learn how to build a traditional stone wall. If you don’t want to join a club, then it’s worth putting your time to use as a volunteer - anything from helping in a charity shop to assisting with building a new playground for children at the general hospital, or taking disabled people shopping.”

I love the enthusiasm shown by this reader – I can only believe that she has made a whole group of new friends with an attitude like that.

Sources of information and support

Check out the Embassy, Consulate or official website of your new country before leaving the UK.

Make contact with the UK Embassy when you arrive in your new country. They sometimes plan get-togethers for expats at various times, such as to celebrate the Queen’s birthday.

Try to meet other expats from the UK who will be able to give you the low-down on the local area and help you avoid the pitfalls they ran into when they first moved.

A few more ideas to help you settle in

Access to a telephone is a must. Just to hear a friend or family member’s voice from back in the UK makes such a difference. Mobiles are all very well for local calls, but become expensive when making calls abroad, so do check when you rent or buy that there is an existing land line. This is also essential for internet access.

You should also try to create a comfortable home as soon as possible, with all your familiar bits and pieces around you, plus familiar possessions for your children, if you have them.

If you’re not moving to an English-speaking country, learning the language and familiarising yourself with the culture can go a long way to making you feel at home. Indeed, taking language lessons is a great way to meet new people. It’s best to make a conscious effort to be laid back and tolerant of people’s differences. You may find when you move that things are done differently, so remember that you are the visitor.

It’s worth paying a courtesy call to your new neighbours – they will appreciate it and it is essential to be on friendly terms with them if you want to be part of the community. You also never know when you may need their help. Don’t hesitate to ask them for guidance. People are usually only too pleased to help and thrilled to be asked. But remember small rural communities can be slow to welcome “outsiders”.

Try to have fun and keep busy. Find activities such as sports clubs, dance classes, Rotary, volunteering, music clubs or bands. Alternatively, take an online degree, write a novel, take up photography, paint, find an amateur dramatics society or join a gym.

And finally, if you can, take some time off when you first arrive in your new country before starting a new job. Spending a few days unpacking and discovering your local shops and amenities with the whole family is more fun than going straight into work or leaving one partner to do it all alone.

With any luck, before you know it, you will look round and realise you feel completely at home!

Kim Brown
The Overseas Guides Company
Have you been to the main website yet? http://www.Emigrationguide.com