Don’t get me wrong. I am so grateful for all the friends who are sticking with me despite my crazy travel schedules. The ones I have back home in Germany whom I can see after a year of digital-only friendship (thank you, Facebook!) and we pick up right where we left without skipping a beat. The ones I can count on even after years of traveling and living in foreign countries to be there when I need them the most. But this month’s Blogger Stammtisch is about locals. As a German expat in Texas, these are all my Texan and American friends. The ones I have met since moving to West Texas. The ones that make life in the South Plains interesting. The ones who forgive my random cultural faux-pas (because even after living here for so long, there are still plenty of things that just come out wrong or don’t quite work here). The ones who allow me to share my German traditions, like drinking Gluehwein in winter and playing a silly round of Schrottwichteln (White Elephant).
Hanging out with other expats is easy. It’s comfortable… for while you might be from different countries or even continents, there often is an instant understanding of your situation. You are both foreigners in the country you (momentarily or not) call home now. I love my foreign friends here, because they make me feel like less of an outsider on the bad days, they understand inherently just a little better why jetting to Germany twice a year is required. I wouldn’t ever give that up. But hanging out with locals is what really gives you an insight into your new home country. The first years here, I never understood what the big deal with Thanksgiving is. I was grateful for the long weekend, but I didn’t get why it’s so special to Americans until I started being invited to Thanksgiving celebrations at my local friends’ houses. Especially when you are a longer-term expat, it can be dangerous to stay within your comfort zone of only hanging out with other foreigners since it can keep you from integrating and learning about your new home’s culture and enjoying the local and regional holidays and traditions. And isn’t that, at least partially, why you started living abroad in the first place?
Go check out what these other expats have to say about interacting with locals:
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I could really relate to this post. I’m more comfortable with my expat friends, but also value having local friends, as you’re right, having local friends is what really helps you understand a culture and traditions.
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It’s funny how expats are more comfortable with other expats despite the fact that said expats could be from a completely different continent. I’ve always wondered if it’s because you’re both foreigners in that moment or if it’s because something in your character makes you more likely to be an expat in the first place and therefore you relate to the character better….