To your friends and family back home, it might seem like you're living an endless vacation. Especially if you only share cool photos on Facebook (I've been guilty of that). But long-term expats know better. The challenges of residing in a foreign country are very real. There was a discussion thread on Quora titled, What...

Travel has reached an all-time high on women’s priority lists. According to a poll by Bing , women listed traveling the world as their highest priority. Numbers 2 & 3 were having a family and living in another country respectively. I propose that we don’t have to choose. Live in another country with your family...

As vagabonders, we love the feeling of "getting into the culture." Where you finally understand how the people think, how their society works. Inc magazine had a fantastic article titled A Constant Feeling of Crisis , about the struggles of entrepreneurs in Argentina. I once talked to Antoni, the New Zealand owner of a gourmet...

Lots of people want to travel, right? Who wouldn't? However, precise numbers are hard to come by. Gallup, a polling organization, spent 2007-2010 asking this question to young people in 148 countries: "If you could move permanently to another country, to which country would you move?" To see their answers, check out this cool infographic:...

Since the glory days of Ernst Hemingway and Gertrude Stein in Paris, there's been a certain glamor about being a writer while living abroad. CNNgo had an article about the expat writer scene in Bangkok . The piece quickly bursts the bubble of starry-eyed dreamers. The writers interviewed were frank about the state of the...

The novelty of being a foreigner can lead to unexpected job opportunities, as this article in The Atlantic explains: Rent a white guy . The shady nature of the job and over-the-top pay could be a symptom of a bubble economy, reminiscent of 90's Japan. Or at least racial stereotyping. CNN did a similar story,...

Before, it used to be that countries had a monopoly on where you live. You used to be stuck wherever you were born. With the advent of globalization and improved travel infrastructure, expats have a wealth of options to choose from. Most publications only talk about living abroad in the context of retirement. Luckily, vagabonders...

Becoming even a part-time expat with a home in a developing country can change your travel style. If you’re in the midst of building, your bags may be stuffed with power tools, hurricane ties and various pieces used to put your home together. If you’re living in a completed structure, your luggage may contain replacement...

The most drastic steps an expat can make is to give up citizenship and take up permanent residency abroad. With tax season just behind us, the media has picked up on the expat connection. This Time magazine article says that growing numbers of Americans are crossing that point of no return: U.S. expat taxes drive...

When most people (outside of Australia) think of Bali, they tend to think of a tropical island paradise, dense with brightly-colored birds and laughing brown faces. Maybe they think of Elizabeth Gilbert's ubiquitous Eat, Pray, Love or Susan Golden Gelman's Tales of a Female Nomad or a destination wedding. In Australia, many people pop over...

Some travelers go to a place that seems wonderful. They think, "Wow, I want to live here." But after they move, they realize that living somewhere is a much different situation than simply passing through as a traveler. As a traveler, you see the wonderful sights. As an expat, you get an up-close look at...

More expats are moving to China, attracted by business opportunities and hopes of advancing their careers. However, working with the locals can be tricky, as illustrated by this New York Times article: For American workers in China, a culture clash . The Chinese have a saying that captures this challenge neatly: "same bed, different dreams."...

In many ways, Jason Bourne is the ultimate vagabond: he has multiple passports, speaks multiple languages and has no permanent address. Some PTs, or permanent travelers, are almost like real-life Jason Bournes. Minus the kung-fu skills and the CIA assassins. One case study to read is the Sovereign Man blog , written by Simon Black...

New York may be the city that never sleeps, but Asia's metropolises never slow down. A new Web site sets out to cover these hip urban machines: CNNGo . It currently covers six cities: Bangkok, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo. CNNGo says they might expand to cover more cities in the future. What's...

The stereotypical Western expat in China is the investment banker in Hong Kong or the executive doing deals in Shanghai. On the other hand, the creative set has also been setting up shop in the Middle Kingdom, according to this New York Times article: For China's Western Expats, Creative Lives of Plenty . Five artists...

I suppose you could call me an expat in training. I’ve dipped my toe in by purchasing property in another country (Honduras) and have even begun to build my island dream home. But I’m years away from actually chucking it all and living there full time. A few weeks ago, Matador Abroad featured an article...