Expat Confessions, The

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The expatriate -- or expat, for short -- is a relatively unknown breed. Young, old, male, female, financier, artist, they all have chosen to leave the countries they were born in to find a home somewhere else. Ted Botha and Jenni Baxter, who live on opposite sides of the world (New York and the Gold Coast, Australia) tracked down 500 expats from their own country, South Africa, to find out where they had chosen to go and why. How easy was the change? What did each of them think of their new home, whether it was Taipei or Cyprus, Christchurch or Los Angeles, Paris or Rio? Did they miss the old country, and how hard was it fitting into the new country? How weird was the experience? Could they buy the products they were used to? How did the language change? The expats in this book share their deepest horrors and fears and joys. They might have started out from the same country, South Africa, but they tell the story of the common expat experience, which can be grateful, sad, nostalgic, funny, and often inspiring. The Expat Confessions is a fascinating and fun read.