Living Abroad: Lessons From 4 Years Overseas

First Impressions of Melbourne

It was June 2019, I was sat on a one way flight to Melbourne Australia, armed with nothing but a suitcase, a backpack, and my guitar. Whilst riding in the taxi from the airport to the Airbnb, I vividly remember seeing the Melbourne skyline in the distance as we drove down the highway. I was surprised to see the skyscrapers and skyline similarly resembled London, but then again big cities, are big cities.

The weather in June was fresh with a cold wind that would give you chills. So if you’re coming to Australia expecting tropical weather and white sandy beaches, Melbourne probably isn’t the place for you, not in the winter anyway. If you’re looking for that, your best bet is to fly a few hours north to Queensland. I ended up having a great time in Melbourne, and love the European style cafe culture, the performing arts, and the lush green parks. There always seemed to be something going on throughout the city.

First Job and Driving in Melbourne

My first job in Australia was selling educational books to schools and kindergartens around Melbourne and it’s sprawling suburbs. I loved the job as it offered lots of freedom to get out and explore. But I quickly discovered that driving in Melbourne was a very different experience to what I was used to back home. Whether it’s the confusing road designs that require a civil engineering degree to navigate, multiple speed changes on a 2km stretch of road which can lead to fines if you don’t pay close attention, confusing signs that require superman like vision to see, or drivers who beep at you and cut you off for little to no reason.

During my second week on the job, I parked in what seemed like a perfectly legal spot at 5:50pm. I came back 15 minutes later to find my car had been towed away because it turns into a tow zone after 6pm. $469 later and a call with a very concerned manager that the company car had been impounded, the car was finally released the next day. When planning a trip to Australia or any other foreign country, it’s essential to invest time in thorough research of the local road laws, especially if you intend to drive during your stay.

Australia 2019 Bushfires & 2022 Floods

During the summer of 2019, Australia had some of the worst bushfires they’ve had in years. It had been a very dry previous few years with little to no rain, so the hot summer created the perfect storm for fires. The area worst affected was Gippsland in the Victoria hinterland, but it spread throughout many other regions across the country. Many people lost their homes and businesses because the fires were uncontrollably burning through the bushland surrounding the communities and moving too fast to contain.

In 2022 there were massive floods in Northern NSW. Heavy rain had caused rivers to burst their banks and in many cases completely submerged houses underwater. Some areas close to flood zones can’t be insured due to being in ‘high risk’ flood zones, so the houses affected by flood damage weren’t able to receive any compensation. Neighbours from all across the region made a large effort ensure everyone was safe, and then salvage what they could in a clean up effort lasting weeks.

In many parts of the world natural disasters like these are common occurrences. Seeing first hand the effects this had on communities was a big eye opener to how devastating a large fire or flood can be. So if you are thinking of moving overseas, being aware of potential natural disasters is definitely something you should consider depending on where you are moving to.

Adapting To Extreme Climates

Where you grow up in the world will likely play a big part in the type of climate you find most comfortable. It’s a bit like eating spicy food. If you’re a Thai person who grew up eating food containing lots of chilli, your tolerance to spice will be higher than someone from Ireland who grew up eating a more savoury diet.

The idea of the sun shining every day and 35 degree temperatures may sound like an endless vacation, but it’s worth considering that getting acclimatised to the heat may be a shock to your system. During the Queensland summer in Australia, the experience of stepping into your car for lunch can feel like entering a sauna, with a steering wheel so scorching that driving becomes a challenge. And during a trip to Hanoi in Vietnam, I could barely leave my air conditioned apartment during the day because the heat was too intense to walk around in.

After being exposed to such extreme temperatures, I realised that the UK climate which is notoriously cold and grey, was actually the most comfortable climate for me because it was what I had grown accustomed to. This highlighted the importance of considering weather extremes when moving overseas, as what might seem like an exciting change could significantly impact your daily comfort and well-being.

Australia 88 Days & Work Conditions

7 months into my first year in Australia, I decided to extend my visa and get a 2nd year. In order to do this I had to complete the ‘88 days’, which usually involves some kind of agricultural work. I found a job on a farm about 2 hours from Melbourne in a place called Shepparton. I was promised accomodation, but when I arrived the ‘house’ as described was more like a makeshift shelter. It looked like it had been uninhabited for years, was filthy, had no hot water, and the electricity was running in from a single extension cable. One morning whilst having breakfast at 4am before work, I found a family of high venomous red back spiders living under the kitchen table.

Day one of work, we were picked up at 4:30am and brought to the farm. It was in the middle of the Australian summer, by 10am it was 40 degrees outside, and we were climbing up and down ladders picking fruit for 9 hours a day. The people running the farm had little respect for the workers, and it was full of illegal migrants and working holiday makers trying to sign off their 88 days. Two days into the work I decided to start looking for a different job, as the living and working conditions were so poor.

Luckily I found a family run farm up in the mountains of regional Victoria looking for workers, about 30 minutes from a ski resort. Yes you read that correctly, Australia has ski resorts. The conditions were much better as we had proper accomodation in a holiday park, and we were working inside, protected from the heat. During my time there, I was working with a group of other working holiday makers from various parts of the world.

We would work on the farm until the afternoon, then we would go fishing down by the river, mountain biking in the hills or take the motorbike out for a ride around the mountain. In the evenings we’d socialise with the group at the campsite. Being surrounded by friends made it a great experience, and one I won’t forget. And being so far from the city life and just working out in nature every day gave me a profound sense of peace which I hadn’t experienced in years.

Each country has its own set of labor laws, regulations, and cultural norms that dictate how the workforce operates. So before agreeing to any kind of work, make sure you research labor laws, cultural norms, review contractual agreements, and seek advise wherever possible to make sure you’re treated fairly.

Beauty is Perception

During my 2nd year in Australia I ended up moving to the Gold Coast in Queensland. Because of the lack of tourism during the pandemic, many hotels were renting out apartments long term. A friend found a beautiful vacant apartment on the 27th floor looking right over the beach, and shortly after we moved in.

When we first moved, I was so in awe of the views that I would sit and have breakfast on the balcony every morning, it was the best way to start the day. However, as the weeks slipped by, the initial novelty gradually faded. In fact I stopped paying much attention to the colour of the sky or the sound of the ocean I had previously admired so much. Somewhere along the line, the demands of my work grew so relentless that I lost touch with the very reason of why I chose this location.

We often think that if we move to some exotic location, find a certain type of partner, or hit an income goal our lives are going to get so much better. Travelling helped me realised that the place your in, isn’t as important as the people your with, the work you do, or the goals your trying to accomplish.

Global Cultural Differences

Whilst travelling across Australia and Asia and meeting people from different cultures, it became evident that each culture possesses its own distinctive way of navigating life.

• In Japan, people don’t speak loud or play music whilst on public transport, whereas in London this is very normal.
• Certain foods in Thailand are considered delicacies yet in the UK or Australia people would retch at the idea of putting a cricket or scorpion in their mouth.
• In many parts of Asia, bowing is a sign of respect or used to greet people, whereas in the UK handshakes or fist bumps are more common.
• In Asia there is a strong sense of a collective, where community and family are encouraged, whereas in the UK individual achievement is more prominent.
• The sense of humour in Asia is more subtle, relying on wordplay and cultural references, whereas in the UK and Australia, sarcasm and self deprecating humour is often appreciated.
• And in Australia, people don’t bat an eyelid if someone is walking down the high street totally barefoot, however in the UK you would definitely get some weird looks.

Gaining an understanding of how people operate in different ways really helps broaden my perspective that no-ones truth is the ultimate truth.

I spent the last 4 years living across 7 countries and visited over 20 different cities and towns, all mostly through a global pandemic. During this time, I experienced some of the highest highs and lowest lows. But the people I met along the way and the places I visited are now a part of me forever. Zero regrets.

Thanks for reading and have a great day,

— Sam Horton