Archive for category: Interview

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be living in Vietnam, and maybe even considered joining the EuroCircle Trip with Sherry in September 2013, this article is for you. Elliott Price is an American who has been living there for a while. He was born and grew up in rural Missouri in the United States. I would say that is about as different as it can get! He has also lived in Seoul, South Korea for a couple years as well as in Kaohsiung, Taiwan when he felt it was time to move on…

I am personally super interested in Vietnam and Southeast Asia – partly as Vietnamese community became very close to me in NYC when I lived there – and I ate mostly Vietnamese food for years.

Photos for this article are courtesy of An Nguyen, check her awesome Flickr page

You (and your wife/kids?) are living in Hanoi, Vietnam almost 10 years – do you think you will be staying there for the time being?

I’ve been living in Hanoi since 2004 (and in Asia since 2000). I live with my wife and our two children. Our son, Walter, is about to turn four, and our daughter, Evelyn, turns three in a couple months. We consider leaving Hanoi or Vietnam from time to time, but given that my wife is a Hanoian, we’ll always maintain a home here and return regularly. At this point, I’d say we’ll still be in Hanoi for at least a year or two, as much of our work is based here.

So you are now in your early 40s, right? How and when did you decide to live in Vietnam which is probably not the most likely place for an American to live?

I’ve just turned 38, actually. I decided to move to Vietnam while I was living in Taiwan. I was working on a music and art coop that a friend and I started in the city of Kaohsiung. In that sort of environment, you meet a lot of creative and interesting people. In the course of doing so, I met several who had spent some time in Vietnam. When the time came to move on from Taiwan, I’d built up a sense of what some years in Vietnam might be like. Of course, I had no actual idea what it was really all about, but the right characterizations had sufficiently accumulated for me to take the step to head this way. I spent about a month traveling the length of the country to get a sense of which region or city I might want to live in. After about half a day in Hanoi, I knew it was what I was looking for.

Is it hard to get a visa or a working permit in Vietnam – does it make any difference where you are from as far as you know?

While Vietnam has fairly standardized visa and work permit regulations like you might expect from many countries in the region, the enforcement of those policies is actually quite fluid and inconsistent. The result is that many who live here employ an ever changing strategy for staying in the country and working.

At the more professionally oriented end of the expat spectrum, work permits and residency cards are the norm. Responsible companies will handle the majority of the process, and it should be pretty painless. On the other hand, many English teachers, entrepreneurs, and freelancers deal with a very different visa economy where many work on tourist and “business” visas that entail frequent visa runs and inflated renewal fees through indirect channels. Much of it it isn’t strictly legal, but still remains commonplace.

As an American you might have been concerned about medical insurance before you went there or at least when you first arrived – medical costs can be sky-high in the USA. How is Vietnam?

The cost of medical care is one of the primary, practical benefits to leaving the U.S. Access to top notch health care and health insurance can be had at a fraction of the expense of what Americans typically endure. To say that the American health care system is “broken” is a massive understatement. I’m very, very happy to be rid of it.

Generally speaking, Hanoi’s actual health care facilities are adequate, though many expats find it necessary to head to Singapore or Bangkok for more involved procedures. If you speak some Vietnamese and are familiar with the culture of Vietnamese bureaucracies, then the locally available hospitals aren’t necessarily the horror show that some assume they must be. The most local of them don’t make the greatest initial impression, as they are terribly overcrowded and visibly rundown, but many newer, private facilities are opening up that are becoming real options.

Generally speaking, access to affordable, quality health care isn’t one of my greater concerns while living here, and my wife and I have been been through some pretty serious health matters with one of our children. We’ve managed fine.

How do you make your living in Vietnam and coming to stay in Hanoi enhanced your work experience?

I run a social media platform
for English speakers living in Vietnam. It started out a pet project for a friend and I and matured into a much more substantial part of what I do on a day-to-day basis. We work with a local Vietnamese partner. I mostly advise them on the business outreach aspects of those operations and with community building.

There’s no question that my life in Vietnam has enhanced my professional experience, and the work we’ve done on our site is a big part of that. One of the great things about working on it is that it allows us to get involved with so much that goes on in the city. It’s a fabulous point of entry into a range of industries, fields, communities, and activities that I’m just not sure I’d have been exposed to in such an involved way if we hadn’t started and operated our site.

Do you have any other plans for the future (work, business)?

Once you get a foothold in the Hanoian community of Vietnamese and expat small business developers, the opportunities to diversify your participation come quick. Deciding which to get involved with and which to let slide is one of the biggest challenges. If you enjoy entrepreneurship and the problem solving that some comes with it, Hanoi (and Vietnam, in general) is a fabulous place to be.

In addition to my work with the site we’ve developed, I tend to get involved with consultation on small business development, online marketing & brand building, and helping to broker business partnerships around the city.

There’s nothing quite like a city undergoing such a transformative period of economic growth. It’s not all positive. There are a lot of quality of life and ethical challenges the city faces. A culture thousands of years in the making is being forced to adapt to an unprecedented urban scale, and do so now. Unintended consequences are everywhere. Emergent phenomena threaten to overwhelm every form a planning attempted. And yet, if you can keep your head, trying to accomplish simple, definable goals in that sort of setting can be immensely rewarding. It’s part of what has kept me around for so long.

Since your native language is English and many people speak it anywhere in the world have you bothered to learn Vietnamese? Does it make a difference if you do speak the local language?

Of course, any native English speaker is very lucky to be born in a time where the world is making such an effort to learn our own mother tongue. It’s a massive advantage that too many take for granted. There are many, many things that a new arrival can manage to get done without picking up much of the local language.

That said, it would be unrealistic to say that speaking the local language makes no difference. Of course, it can convey massive advantages upon someone who takes the time to develop those skills. Many would tend to focus on the immediate ways it can further participation with those around them or the ability to communicate in ways that dissuades others from taking advantage of you. While those are certainly of value, I personally think the greatest value it confers is in being able to test and falsify assumptions I make about my social environment. It is all too easy to become a creature of habit anywhere, but intellectual habits can be a fatal hindrance when dealing with a new culture or business environment.

Even if I never actually used one bit of Vietnamese language in a formal business setting (and allowed Vietnamese partners to handle the majority of that), the ability to listen to random social interactions and interject passing comments leads to innumerable revisions of what I’ve assumed is going on around me. These may not seem directly related to the work I do, but I’d be crazy to think they don’t inform it in important ways.

We all miss home and family sometimes – how do you deal with those feelings? Vietnam is a long way from your home.

I was just thinking about it the other day, and I’ve very nearly lived in Hanoi for longer than any other single place in the world. Even my “hometown” at this point is about to move into second place on that list. In many ways, Hanoi is home at this point.

I very, very rarely miss my native country in a generic fashion. There are specific people, events, and things I do occasionally notice that I’m sacrificing time with, but all decisions in life involve some sort of sacrifice. I can live with that.

This is an incredibly interconnected era. While it may not be the same as having those random moments together or spending time in one another’s homes, I do manage to keep in close contact with those I miss most.

I also get the wonderful experience of being a tourist in my own native land when I do return. That’s really a fantastic time. There are plenty of things I don’t enjoy about living in the U.S., but I truly adore visiting the place. I did a good job of traveling around it before I went abroad, so I feel informed and able to enjoy three or four week trips when I make it back every few years. Showing my family and friends around is great fun. There’s so much to see and do, and it is so much easier to tolerate the absurdities of the country when you know you’re leaving before long.

How do you (and your wife/family) live – have you bought, or are you renting a home? Do you feel ok to tell us what are the general costs to buy/rent in Hanoi?

We purchased a small house on the outskirts of the city about five years ago. It’s not really the outskirts so much anymore, as the city has more than grown to us. It’s now just a nice quite neighborhood on what was the western side of the city.

At the time, I wasn’t convinced it was such a great idea. It was a very difficult experience trying to find a place that was affordable and remotely livable. Real Estate prices can be extremely high in Hanoi. Many of the places we looked at were hundreds of thousands of dollars (for modest homes), or so tiny and run down we wouldn’t consider it even.

After about six months of looking, we ended up finding a reasonably nice first home for around $65,000 (32m2 of land, with a five story townhouse built straight up on it). To give a sense of how crazy the market was at that time, three years later we were being offered around $175,000 for it. Luckily for anyone looking for a place today, that bubble burst enough to bring things back to earth a bit. Apartments are the main type of unit that have come down in price, so there are a lot of options out there for that. Actual houses with land haven’t come down nearly as much as apartments, but at least they aren’t increasing in value at an entirely unsustainable rate.

One of the hidden values of owning a home in Hanoi was the degree of social acceptability it brought to my wife. Given that my wife is a Hanoian, she is subjected to pressures that I can often only initially appreciate at an abstract level. While I had no qualms with being a renter, her failure to have her own home was a major point of stress. Her standing in the eyes of her family, friends, and peers literally changed overnight. One day, she’s just playing around at being an adult, and the next day (with a property title in hand), she’s considered a real woman. The gravitas of land ownership for a Hanoian is that substantial.

What is the general cost of living in Vietnam compared to other countries you know?

It all depends on how you want or are able to live. Many things are incredibly cheap. Other things are much more expensive than we’re accustomed to.

I know one friend-of-a-friend who decided to take a cafe management position in a small, Vietnamese joint and insisted on doing so at a typical Vietnamese salary. He lived for six months on less than $300 a month. To do so, he had to forgo many of the things a large part of the expat population consider “essential”, but he had a great time doing so.

An average English teacher would probably make $1500-$2000 a month and live very well. They could get their own modest apartment or share one of the large, beautiful houses that litter back alleys throughout city. It’s a common experience for single, teaching/traveling expats to come to Hanoi and make enough to go out frequently, get to know the place, and still save enough to travel internationally for long periods of time.

Equally, though, you’ll find expats spending $4,000-$5,000 on a villa, paying a more than 100% markup on an imported car, and hiring live-in domestic help for their kids who are going to international schools that cost more than $1,000 a month per child.

It’s all down to how you want to live.

What is the most memorable thing that has happened to you in Vietnam?

My children were born here. I don’t think there are many things that can compete with that for life events. In particular, our daughter was born nearly three month premature. Seeing her fight for life and pull through after a four month hospital stay is impossible to forget or even effectively communicate.

What is the most captivating thing about Vietnam – Hanoi for you?

This list could go on forever. For someone who enjoys problem solving and trying to figure out the social dynamics that are going on just beneath the surface, it’s just such a compelling place. However, if I had to pick one key characteristic of the place that I’ve just never found elsewhere and which I’m not sure I’d want to live without at this point, it is this: Hanoi is the only place I’ve ever been where you can be sitting in one simple, solitary spot and be overcome with both the immensity of activity that is going on before you and simultaneously feel that nobody in your immediate vicinity is really in a hurry or expects you to be either.

It’s a very strange contrast, and it took me months to even notice it was there. I had this strange sort of uneasiness that I couldn’t pin down, and it was this duality of street life in Hanoi. I’d called some very laid back places home, and I’d lived in places that were driven by ambition and very public expressions of work ethic. Some of the places I’d lived in had times to relax and times to work. Hanoi? It’s all good any time of the day or night. Want work your ass off? There’s no shortage of things to get involved with and people ready to come along. Want to randomly decide to walk out of the office at 10am and drink coffee for three hours? You won’t be the only one doing so.

I’ve just never encountered a place that is so accommodating to both the manic and the slacker in all of us. I don’t know if I could ever go back to place that expects you to pick a side and behave accordingly. It’s far more fun to make it up as you go each day.

How do you feel about the Vietnamese people – I know they are very different in their demeanor than Americans are?

It’s important to note that Vietnamese people vary a lot from region to region. On top of that, there’s a massive generation gap in the country with a huge portion of the population under 30 years of age. Throw in the rural vs. urban dichotomies and the massive amounts of movement going on around the country, and you can see some of the difficulties involved with characterizing even portions of the Vietnamese population.

On top of that, it’s really Hanoi that I know best. The city is just changing so quickly, but there does (at times) feel like some root sensibility is still present and at work is what you see on the streets each day. It may just be a passing phantom of a past time, but most of the Vietnamese people I know certainly operate under the impression that Hanoians do have a particular character type. They are often thought of as very stubborn and skeptical. While they might come across as initially cold or indifferent to a stranger, they are anything but that to close acquaintances, family, and friends. Get over that initial hump, and in no time you’ll be invited to weddings and holiday parties until you beg for mercy. There’s a distinct sense that you’re either in or your out. Once you’re in, Hanoians can be some of the most loyal and supportive people you’ll ever know. You become like family, and as long as you uphold your responsibilities as a reverent family member, they’ll do the same.

This is also one of the most fascinating parts of living in Hanoi at this time. This is a city of more than seven million people, and it is growing by the day. For most of my time here, we’ve joked that it really feels more like a metro-village than a city, but the pressures of rapid urbanization are taking its toll. Traditionally, Vietnamese people have very different ways of dealing with family, acquaintances, and strangers. All one has to do is think about what a huge shift has taken place in the daily interactions of a Vietnamese person over the last 50 years. Where just some decades ago the vast, vast majority of interactions were family and some acquaintances (and very few strangers), those ratios are getting all turned around. Not only that, they are getting changed a pace that precludes the possibility of the local etiquette having time to catch up and adjust in a comfortable way. Seeing that all play out is remarkable. Most of the Vietnamese people I know are just about as unsure of what it means to be Vietnamese as I am stumbling through this question. The fact is, what is means to be Vietnamese is an open question working itself out on the street every day.

Is there something that annoys you about Hanoi or Vietnam? (the positive vs. negative )

I think any place you feel deeply about or try to accomplish something in will have ways of annoying or disappointing you. Hanoi is certainly no different. The only people I know who haven’t expressed some form of exasperation with Hanoi are those who literally don’t care what happens to them on a day to day basis. My father, for instance, comes out to visit for a month or so at a time, and he just rolls with whatever comes along. He has no specific plan for a day, so nothing can interfere with his enjoyment of it.

Many of us start out in that state, just enjoying the experience of being here. Almost inevitably, that enjoyment leads to a level of attachment and a desire to live a certain way. We start to plan and scheme on ways to exist here that we think will further our romance with the place. For many, this is the beginning of the end. As soon as you dig your feet in and try to get something done, you can really feel what a chaotic swirl of forces are at work in even the simplest things. Many burn out, some love the challenge, but the city never becomes less of a puzzle.

In fact, I think it is fair to say that Hanoi is not the easiest place to get along. The traffic is intense, the weather far from temperate. Some feel targeted by an endless steam of touts and scammers. Even those who deal with English-speaking Vietnamese often find that their approach to communication can be very roundabout or obtuse. Schedules and deadlines are more like formalities than true working parameters. Hanoi is stubborn, but from where I’m sitting? This is a big part of what makes Hanoi great. It smiles politely and does it its own way. Sometimes it doesn’t even bother with the smile. Those who can’t take it, leave quickly.

The proximity of places like Saigon or Bangkok where life, while still interesting and foreign, is much more straight forward is a big draw for those who don’t want to deal with the nuance Hanoi insists on injecting into every transaction. Those who stick around? I’ve found them to be an interesting bunch.

What would you tell a visitor not to miss in Hanoi?

Street Food. Coffee. Middle-of-the-Night Markets.

If you are a queasy sort who doesn’t want to step out of comfort zones when it comes to food, you’ll miss some of what is best about Hanoi. Phở, Bún Chả, and Bún Bò Nam Bộ are some of the most popular ones with expats and you’ll see them written up in a lot of travel guides. However, there are dozens and dozens of other types and countless variations. I recommend doing some homework before you come. Figure out which dishes are prevalent or renowned in which cities, and then plan to seek those out. It can give your city treks a bit of casual purpose. On top of that, just drop in some random places that appear to be popular with the locals and figure it out as you go.

For coffee, I think two essential points must be understood to get in the right frame of mind for the experience:

1) The coffee being drunk by the Vietnamese you see in most cafes isn’t the same sort of bean or roast most coffee afficianados in your home country seek out (nor is it trying to be). Vietnam is a major producer of robusta beans and has been for a long time. It’s adapted its own consumption to that availability and developed some roasts to suit climate and available technologies. It’s strong, bitter coffee typically had with sweetened condensed milk. Go in looking for a new take on your cherished espresso or latte and you’ll be disappointed. Dive in and appreciated it on its own terms, and you may find yourself hooked in short order. Many of us do.

2) Cafes in Vietnam are about far more than coffee. They are the modern day communal houses where all the neighborhood gossip is exchanged, business is conducted, and relationships are forged. They are the archetypal vantage from which one should take in a proper Hanoi street scene. There are a whole range of new styles of cafe popping up all over the city, but I recommend you take in the classics: Cafe Duy Trí, Cafe Mai, Cafe Nhân, Cafe Lâm, Cafe Dinh. Every one of these places has stories, with new ones being made daily. They are social institutions.

For the markets, you can get up yourself and go looking for them or you can get a tour service to help you out. Hanoi tends to be a very safe place, but blindly wandering the streets of any major city after dark has its risks. What’s great about these markets is that this is where all the street markets and vendors you see all day get their supplies. it’s the source. It’s trucked and biked in in the middle of the night and spread out in the most dazzling arrays of produce you’ve seen. This also helps you get a sense of context on what is going on when you wake up every morning. Hanoi is a incredibly early rising city. If you get up at 6am and step outside, you’ll feel late to the party. It’s all already in action. Time things so you can hit these markets in the wee hours, head to a lake and watch the pensioners going through their morning exercise routines, and then get a bowl of Phở just after dawn with the rest of the diehards. You’ll be on the real pulse of the city then.

What is your favorite restaurant/s in Hanoi?

Given that you considering a trip from half way around the world to visit Hanoi, I’ll assume you’re mostly interested in Vietnamese cuisine. On that point, again, you’ll really want to dive into the street food. When it comes to street food, there are certainly places that are good enough to consider as destinations in their own right, but much of the joy found in that type of eating comes with exploring the neighborhood around which you live or work. Your locals are an essential element of your quality of life, so they hold a disproportionately important place in your thinking. You wouldn’t necessarily seek them out on a visit, however.

One thing you can do is check out the Sticky Rice blog. The author of it is a long time resident of Hanoi and does a great job of giving you the lay of the land. His writing is both knowledgeable and accessible, and he also is part of an operation that does street food tours.

For non-street food options, I often take friends out to any number of simple Co’m Bình Dân restaurants. These are really just simple working class restaurants that serve a wide range of food. They are as authentic and everyday as you’re going to get in Hanoi, but often end up feeling like a very impressive display for relatively newbies to the cuisine. They are cheap, hearty, and omnipresent. Any hotel staff member or travel office employee will be able to point you in the direction of one, though they may be surprised that you’re asking for one. They’ll assume you want something with a bit more polish. Stick to your guns, ask them for their favorite one, and you”ll rarely be sorry.

There are many big Vietnamese restaurant operations that tourists are often funneled to (though they are increasingly popular with Vietnamese as well). Quán Ăn Ngon and Sen Tây Hồ would be a pair of examples. I don’t particularly recommend either one. There are not only better places to get all the individual dishes served at these restaurants, but there are also better restaurants basically doing the same sort of thing. One example is 37th Street. It’s in about the last place I ever expected to find a quality Vietnamese restaurant serving up lots of traditional dishes (it’s in a new generic shopping center), but it’s actually very good. It’s basically a large, modern, clean restaurant serving up a couple hundred street food dishes. You wouldn’t say their versions are the best around, but they are consistently above average and all in one place.

When you’re needing a break from Vietnamese food, I often end up recommending places where the local cuisine and a foreign influence have combined in fun ways, such as French restaurants La Badiane and La Verticale or the Czech-style beer halls like Hoa Vien, Goldmalt, or Pragold. The French influence in Hanoi is obvious, but the Eastern European beer making tradition dates back to the Soviet era of involvement in the country (and more importantly, the era when many Vietnamese moved to Europe to find work).

Do you have any tips – or words of wisdom – for our readers about living or travelling in Vietnam?

Don’t take it personally.

Something is going to happen that annoys you or threatens to get you to lose your cool. Just keep it in the back of your mind that the odds are overwhelmingly great that it is just a run of the mill cross-cultural mishap. If you blow your top, you’re likely to find dozens of sets of eyes looking back at your completely unaware of what could possibly warrant such a reaction. Just roll with it, chalk it all up to another Hanoi street experience, and move on. It’s not worth souring a day or afternoon over.

If our readers look for Web sites or blogs about Vietnam for example the upcoming trip in Sept 2013 to Vietnam – what do you suggest and why?

– Sticky Rice: A long time street food blogger who will do more to get you up to speed on the local cuisine than any other online source I know.

– The City That Never Sleeps In: This was one of my favorite blogs on life in Hanoi. The author has moved on from our fair city, but all of her previous posts are there and well worth reading. She had a very healthy and productive take on the city.

– Hanoi Grapevine: This is an excellent site on arts and culture events going on around the city. You can cross reference it with the dates you’ll be in town and find something to attend.

Elliott’s social media platform: http://tnhvietnam.xemzi.com/

I also asked what Elliott thinks his wife thinks of Americans living in Vietnam and he said that his wife and him have both been pretty busy, so he haven’t had any real time to get her in-depth opinion on whether she sees American’s as having any special trouble here. In fact Elliott noted that generally speaking, Vietnamese are very welcoming to Americans. He said that “I’m a thousands times more likely to get some verbal abuse from another expat for my being American than I am from Vietnamese. In nearly nine years of living here, only one (very, very drunk) Vietnamese person has ever even slightly intimated at any animosity toward me for my status as an American”.

 

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be living in Madrid… or Helsinki, Finland, we happened to know someone who moved fairly recently from Helsinki (she was an expat there) and now she is an expat in Madrid. Her name is Vaida Vaitekunaite and she is a lovely young lady from Lithuania.

Tell us about yourself – who are you and what would be the short story of your life – we know you lived in Helsinki for 2 years before moving to Madrid? (where are you from, where did you study, how did you come to Madrid/when etc)

I have always had a travelers spirit, I probably used all possibilities to escape my geographical comfort zone since I was 18. I have lived abroad with programs like Work & Travel, Erasmus, Erasmus Internship, so as soon as I graduated my business degree I felt that I am free to do whatever I want, to go wherever I want and to decide on my own when I want to come back. I have always been career oriented so thought that international experience would contribute to my professional and personal development significantly. Finland in my mind has always been a country with high quality of life, economically strong, organized and systematic with culture that is not so much different from my homeland- Lithuania.

To everybody’s but mine surprise it took me just few weeks until I found my dream job when I got there. I tend to believe that you can always get whatever your mind can create and if you believe in yourself and are determined enough not to give up on the way it will come sooner or later. This job was just what I wanted- I was hired to work in one startup at the stage when there was just an idea of the product that was being planned to build. I didn’t even had a name of position- opportunity to touch it all and to experience it all. It was a chance for me to use all the knowledge that I gained during my university years and get beyond of it when I actually got myself involved entirely in operations of creating a startup. It shaped my understanding of what a job should be- always challenging, always encouraging to learn, where mistakes also mean progress, the one that is open for innovation, flexible and fun!

I spent in Helsinki 2 years until.. it started to feel too comfortable again and a desire for challenge happened to turn my life upside down again- I landed in Spain. I was lucky enough to keep the same job that I love while Spain was being shake by harsh economical crisis. It’s already 438 mornings since I’m waking up with Spanish sun

Do you think living in Helsinki enhanced your work experience – and why did you move to Madrid?

Firstly, I would say that Helsinki is a city open for foreigners. People are very tolerant there and what actually matters there are the skills or potential to gain these skills that you have rather than of what nationality, ethnicity or other external features you possess. Worklife in general is not too stressed, it is not that usual to work until late in the office like I imagine it is the rule rather than exception for example in London or New York. They are really efficient there, I enjoyed doing business with Finns as everything goes without many manoeuvres around, for example you want to talk to a CEO of some company- you just call him and he picks up, if by any chance there is a secretary in between it doesn’t mean her role is to make the CEO look hard to reach. Conversations are facts based so no need to search for anything between the lines. Finland taught me the value of honesty in business relations- agreements there sometimes can be made by word and nobody questions that- as trust and responsibility are thriving values.

Madrid has a completely different business environment but it has always been the place for me which made me feel extremely good. I must admit that the atmosphere here is not that much pushing to grow in a fast pace but it all depends on personal motivation and determination. I find that Madrid can offer a perfect life-work balance.

What is THE thing about Madrid – or Helsinki – captivates you the most?

I love how honest and tolerant are people in Helsinki. Even though it’s not that easy to make friends with Finns, but once you get to that stage- you will be friends for life. I enjoy the beautiful green landscape that Finland is rich of, thousand lakes and summer huts, Finnish saunas that you can find in every building (The part of jumping in the Baltic ice cubes bath is not in my list of favorites though).
It’s not possible to mention all the things that I love about Spain The same as it’s not possible to say what is THE thing about paradise hahaha I love the local food, wine, openness of people and that they live completely enjoying life, laughing a lot, interacting a lot. You need to learn how to ignore certain things here, which is probably called adapting to the local culture, but once you do that you will not want to come back to the Nordic way of life.

If someone asked you what I should NOT miss while in Madrid vs Helsinki, what would reply?

Oh Finnish sauna is a must-do and reindeer meet is a must-taste while in Helsinki. If we talk nationwide- Lapland is place which you cannot miss. It’s where the world’s childhood lives.:) And if you get lucky to see Aurora Borealis- it’s view out of this earth!
In Madrid you should definitely take the most out of its nightlife- it has much to offer for all tastes.

What do you do in Madrid when you feel like you just want to chill out? What did you do in Helsinki in comparison.

Madrid has amazing terraces created exactly for that, not to mention that a swimming pool is possible to find in many apartment buildings so no need to go too far. Invite over couple of friends and you have a perfectly relaxing Spanish day.
Helsinki is full of green spaces, picnics in the park start as soon as it gets bit warmer, so around the mid of July. Kidding.. There are few amazing cafeterias on the coast of the Baltic near the Kaivopuisto park.

Anything truly memorable that has happened to you since you have lived in Madrid – Helsinki?

This definitely comes to the unbelievable people that I have met here and there.
Or can we skip this question? All that comes to my mind is so personal.

What really annoys you about either city– or maybe nothing does/did?

It would be comparing more north and south but I really cannot stand 6 months living with a snow and rather short daylight hours. There are weeks when you go out in the morning still with darkness and when you come back home it’s dark again, even though it’s only 4 PM. It effects on the energy level, on your mood and everything. This is something that is difficult to get used to if you were not born with that. What was also surprising for me when I came to live to Finland was a really strong sense of feminism. When talking to Finnish women – you can forget your gentleman manners. Don’t let her go first through the door, don’t open her the car doors, don’t help her to dress the coat, if you do that- you are under the threat to be slapped to your face. Women always demonstrate how much they are equal with men or even a bit above. (Kaisa’s comment: true with many women. I worked with top level management in Finland and the gentlemen behavior is expected in there. Many of those men have an officer/gentlemen attitude..moi – I loved it)
What I am still trying to get used to is the schedule that Madrileños are accustomed to. To have dinner at 10-12 PM on the weekends and go out at 1-2AM is the time when people in Helsinki are used to come back home after the party. Quite a drastic change for me and not necessarily the one that I like very much.

Do you have a favorite Madrid restaurants and why? Helsinki…

I love the Cheese Bar in Madrid that offers the long list of all possible kinds of cheeses and dishes made of cheese together with great selection of wines. There are lovely brunch places around Madrid as well.
I could hardly call Helsinki the best place to go out, however to enjoy the full experience it’s definitely worth it to visit one of the nearby islands where you can find the restaurant called BoatHouse. Beautiful place!

Do you see there are benefits for someone from abroad to come to Helsinki or Madrid for a few years?

Definitely, I believe both of them can give great experience and both of them have things to offer. It depends of course on what expectations you have but I think all cultures have something great and the experience of living abroad is invaluable as much for professional as for the personal growth.

What do you think about the cost of living in other countries vs Madrid OR Helsinki– and the standard of life and life style?

Not sure about the other countries as one can hardly feel it while visiting for few days and my comparison might be far from reality but if comparing Madrid with Helsinki I would say it’s close to two extremes among European Union countries. To put it more clearly- I think to maintain the same standard of life in Helsinki as you have in Madrid you need almost double more money. In Madrid, the cost of dining out, public transport, clothing and entertainment is really rather affordable and makes living here a lot of fun! However these years the salary levels are far from the ones of other nearby European capitals, this creates one more topic to discuss around the dinner table. Spaniards like to complain but interestingly they are not too stressed about it- stressing out is nowhere close to the national hobbies.

In Helsinki I think the salary level is rather adapted to the cost of living, so most can have a comfortable life. Some things like transportation for example is priced really high for such a small city, however the infrastructure is excellent so you pay for what you get.

World famous education system in Finland, electronic government services, all parts systematic and organised of course gives much credit for the whole picture of Finnish standard of life. While in Spain it’s a constant test of your patience when you need to visit some governmental institutions.
Finns are rather reserved and like to spend much time with families. It is not that usual to go out for drinks after work, while Spanish culture is built on lots of communication, many coffee breaks, after work drinks and late evenings out. Interesting fact – Spanish don’t leave the office before the boss. If boss states till late, the team will hang around as well. How effective is that remains an open question.

What do you miss most from other countries or cities you have lived in before? Favorite city all times.

The truth is that when I moved to Spain I realized why Spaniards are not really big travellers. They have all what you may look for in their country! Wonderful beaches, grand cities, amazing nature, many heritage places- seems like there is something interesting to see in every village you pass by, incredible! So when living here I have all what I need. Family and friends that are left in Lithuania are the ones that I would like to transfer to Madrid if that would be possible.  Oh I quite miss the summer rain as well, never thought will tell this!  While I have lived almost my whole life in a country of rain it seems like it should be enough for a lifetime, but when there is not a single drop during the entire summer or longer, this is when I really start appreciating it and missing it a lot. As much as I love Spain and Madrid, I will always enjoy coming back to Amsterdam or Florence or Dubrovnik or San Francisco, it’s hard to pick one.

In your opinion what is the best time to visit Madrid – or Helsinki?

Madrid is gorgeous in the spring time! The weather is already fantastic, but not too hot, it’s still green while in the summer time the landscape tends to turn yellow from the burning sun.
Helsinki is completely different in winter and in summer so depends what you want to experience. Certainly when visiting during the wintertime you will get to see Finland as you probably have always imagined it- with tons of snow and frost on your eyelashes.

Anything else you feel you’d like to share with us about either city, your job or yourself?

I would like to encourage everybody to get yourself out of the comfort zone and choose a city where you feel cosy to be in and settle down there for some time. The experience is invaluable and nobody told that you necessarily got to live in the country where you have been born. The world is borderless. Take the leap of faith!

By the way, where do you think you like to live most of your life?

I wouldn’t mind to spend several years in US before settling down however, Spain is already in my heart and will be there forever. I can see myself living here for a lifetime.

Vaida at LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/vaidav

Vaida at Twitter: @vVaida

 

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be living in Spain, but not in the BIG city like Barcelona, you’ll enjoy meeting Kai Langel from Finland. Kai lives with his family in Cambrils (maybe 1 h from Barcelona by car), a small fishing town 20km from Tarragona. Everyone’s story is unique, let’s hear HIS story.

Tell us about yourself – who are you and what would be the short story of your life? (where are you from,nationality/ies, where did you study, how did you come to etc)

I’ve always been a bit of an adventurer and traveler, probably partly because my mother works for Finnair and I’m used to traveling all over the place ever since I was a kid. My father is Spanish and I lived here when I was 2 years old and spent all my holidays in Spain with my grandparents when they were still living here. Spain has always felt like a second home country. However, most of my life I’ve spent in Finland, studying and working. In 2003, I got an opportunity to move into the US and lived around Boston with my family for 5 years or so and then returned to Finland. The plan was to settle down in Finland and let the kids finish their school there, but pretty soon we all realized we don’t really feel like we belong there anymore and didn’t want to commit to buying a house etc if we’re not comfortable.

That’s when we got the idea of moving to Spain and luckily my work at the time allowed be to basically live anywhere in Europe so we just went ahead with that plan very quickly. We didn’t know where in Spain we wanted to be, so we started with a 2,5 week road trip checking out various places. Before we started this, we thought that the Alicante area would be ideal, but when we visited, we didn’t like it that much. The whole Costa del Sol was a major turn off and we wanted as far away as possible from the expat communities. In the end, we liked Tarragona most and it was a good balance between being close to the rest of Europe and the right size of a city for us. However, when we moved in July/August, we couldn’t find a place to live and ended up in Cambrils, a small fishing town 20km from Tarragona and after initial disappointment, we’re now extremely happy with the choice. It’s quiet, but still close enough to everything to have good services etc. (note: 2013 they have 2 teenage kids and 5 furry “friends” at home)

What is THE thing about Spain captivates you the most?

Probably the outdoors lifestyle, compared to Finland or even Boston, we now spent so much more time outdoors.

Do you think living in Spain has in any way enhanced your work experience?

Yes / No. I work from home, so I miss some of the social interaction I’m used to previously, but I don’t have to deal with commute, sitting in traffic, etc, which leaves me more time and flexibility to do stuff I like. I also see my family much more than I used to. However, I could not see myself working in a typical Spanish job with siestas and long hours extending late into the evening. I have a good balance with work.

If someone asked you what I should NOT miss while in Spain (this area), what would reply?

Around Costa Dorada, I would advise visitors to go to the mountains nearby. The whole places changes totally when you go 2 km inland and becomes much more authentic. The mountains have rugged beauty that is hard to describe and visiting the small rural villages give you much more insight into the real lives of the Catalan people.

What do you do in Barcelona when you feel like you just want to chill out?

Because I work from home, I often get a little crazy inside the house and need to escape and see some people. For this, visiting one of the local tapas bars works well and this is a Friday tradition. During the weekends, I usually go trail running in the mountains, which is a great way to decompress. I also spend a lot of time at the sea, kayaking, SCUBA diving and swimming.

Anything truly memorable that has happened to you since you have lived in Spain?

Can’t really name any single one thing. There are lots of small ones, like discovering new foods, nature, language, way of life, etc. I’d say the whole experience has been truly memorable.

What really annoys you about Spain – or maybe nothing does?

Of course. Perhaps the customer service in some places, like having to deal with the phone companies. It seems that a lot of the employees don’t really care much about the customers and they’re there just to work. Sometimes the laid back attitude is great, but when you need to get things done, it’s not. Finns are often used to efficiency and things just often don’t work that way. Also the way banks are set up, you often have to deal with the manager at a specific branch where you have your account, whereas in Finland you could just do all that online. It’s nice to get personal service, but it’s not very efficient. Also, it’s surprising how much the individuals can affect things, we’ve had very different experiences dealing with two different managers at the same bank. With one, it was impossible to do anything and with the other one things went really smoothly.
Also, the high tourist season gets pretty annoying with increased traffic and too many people. That’s the time when we sometimes can’t find a table at our favourite restaurant. The very high season lasts surprisingly short time, basically only July and August and after that things get more pleasant and the off season is very quiet and we can almost have the whole place for ourselves. It’s a good balance too to have different tourist seasons, it’s also refreshing to see the crowds come in and the whole place becoming more lively after the quiet time.

Do you have a favorite local restaurants and why?

Yes, we have a couple of long-time favorites. One of them is a very busy Basque tapas bar, which is great as they have a good selection of wines by the glass and lots of different tapas which are good value. This is my standard place to go socialize on Friday’s when I’m half-crazy after having worked home all week. The other favourite place is a restaurant, where the owners know us well and we always get a bit of special service and they also have a good selection of different foods. This is where we often take our visitors as they have food that will suit most tastes.

Do you see there are benefits for someone from abroad to come to Spain for a few years?

Yes, there are many things that are very different and it will show a different perspective to life. For most people here, enjoying life is the first priority and other stuff comes second. Family is also very important. These are good values and I feel that many people would benefit from being reminded about this and not only focus on efficiency and performance.

What do you think about the cost of living in other countries vs Spain and the standard of life and life style?

Compared to Finland, almost everything is cheaper. The only things that might be more expensive are mobile phone and Internet expenses. Eating and drinking out is more affordable and people do it a lot more than in Finland. Standard of living is quite good, but some things like public schools are more basic than in Finland and for example, don’t offer free meals for students. Lifestyle is certainly different, people spend a lot of time out of the house and together with the family. Many people have meals together with their parents / grandparents almost every weekend and are much less independent than in Finland. Of course with the lower cost of things, that also means that salaries are also quite low and taxes are surprisingly high.

What do you miss most in Spain from other countries..,

Being a Finn, I miss the sauna and good Finnish rye bread.

In your opinion what is the best time to visit Spain?

September – November. Also the spring is great, from about April to June. I would avoid July and August, it’s too expensive, crowded and hot. The wintertime has some magical days with +20 degrees and sunshine, which means you can eat out in a t-shirt, but you’ll have to be a bit lucky to be here on the right day.

Anything else you feel you’d like to share with us about Spain or yourself?

It’s quite easy to move here, because the costs are so low, so I encourage everyone to do it. It was very clear to us that we want to try to integrate into the country so we intentionally avoided the expat circles. We expected it to be far easier to learn the language and really get integrated, but it has turned out to be quite difficult. Part of it has to do with working from home, but also the Spanish / Catalan people are actually surprisingly private and it can take a long time to make friends with them and feel like you belong here. It’s probably much easier in bigger cities with lots of expats like Barcelona, where most people speak English and where there are many people in the same situation as you. In Cambrils, we’re the only Finns and almost the only expats too.

My wife’s blog in Finnish: espanjanauringonalla.blogspot.com

If you visit the blog, you’ll find a million pictures about us / from here.

I think this describes Langel family well: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” Mark Twain

“TARRAGONA , located in the northeastern corner of the Iberian Peninsula, is Catalonia’s southernmost capital city.
Thanks to the temperate climate, with an average yearly temperature of 18ºC (25ºC in summer, 12ºC in winter), the clean, sweeping beaches with their fine, golden sand and the singular artistic and architectural patrimony, officially declared a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO, Tarragona is one of the most important tourism hubs in Europe.
Well-connected to Europe and the rest of the Iberian peninsula, it offers easy access to two airports: the first in Reus, just 7 kilometres away, and the second in Barcelona, 82 kilometres away. It also has direct rail links to all major Spanish and European capitals.
What’s more, the city is home to one of the busiest commercial ports in the Mediterranean, as well as Port Tarraco, a stopover for luxury cruise ships.
Tarragona also marks the junction of two major Spanish motorways, the Mediterranean Motorway, which runs from Alicante to France and the rest of Europe, and the Northern Motorway, which begins in Tarragona and runs through to the Basque Country.” Quote from Tarragona’s official tourism site.

If you’ve ever wondered if there is any organized group for Hungarians here in Austin/Central Texas, you’ll enjoy meeting Genevieve Kent. Every group is unique, let’s hear her group’s story.

Who are you and what group do you represent here in Austin??

My name is Genevieve Kent and I am the Founder of Austin Hungarian Association.

What is your role with the group?

Currently I am serving as President on our first elected Board. We are in our 2nd year of operation, and it is a joy to continue to see the group flourish and help it become a community run organization.

What does your group want to accomplish?

The goal of Austin Hungarian Association is to build an easily accessible, inclusive organization which meets regularly and promotes Hungarian culture. We strive to connect native Hungarians, people of Hungarian descent, and people interested in the culture by organizing fun events that highlight some of the great aspects of Hungary – the music, dancing, food, and holiday traditions.

What would make you really happy as an accomplishment with your group?

We are currently operating as a nonprofit under our umbrella group, Austin International Folk Dancers. One of our goals is to get to the point where we have enough funds saved up to apply for our own 501(c)(3), so we are currently planning some really fun events to help raise the funds so we can make that happen.

How do you think it is working out, what are your biggest obstacles and the best surprises that have come along?

Our first year was a smashing success, and it just keeps getting better. One of my major obstacles when I started the group was running it by myself, so it is a relief to now have 5 board members who are as excited about our group as I am. I never would have guessed that we would be hosting the Hungarian Ambassador to the United States during his stay in Austin little over a year since I began the group, and I’m excited about what other opportunities are around the corner.

How many Hungarians are there in Austin area and how is your membership??

Up until I began the group, I really had no sense for how many Hungarians actually reside in Austin. One of the best surprises has been watching the group grow as people find out about it – sometimes Hungarians who have been living here for the last 20 years, sometimes from newcomers just moving or visiting from Hungary who want to make some friends during their stay, or people whose grandparents are Hungarian who want to get back in touch with their heritage.

What kind of activities do you do and how do you fund the groups activities?

We do a variety of get togethers to accommodate our membership. We try to do at least one event per month, like a Happy Hour during the week, a Hungarian movie night at a local cafe, or a picnic for the whole family on a Sunday. Our most recent event was an elaborate traditional Hungarian Easter celebration, which we charged tickets for in order to cover the costs – but in general we like to keep the events at little to no cost to the public. We are fortunate in that our raffles and silent auctions have been a big hit, and featured Hungarian folk art and cookbooks that you can’t find easily around Austin.

What is the most captivating thing about Austin for you?

By far the diversity in people and music. One of my favorite events that we did featured a traditional Hungarian band who was visiting all the way from Budapest who played with several other local Eastern European musical groups. The fact that so many people from different backgrounds enjoyed that event so much (and are still talking about it a year later!) just goes to show that Austin is the perfect place for cultural communities to thrive and share their traditions.

What would you tell a visitor not to miss in Austin?

Come for the live music, stay for the barbecue! Nothing compares to a great night out on the town followed by some good late night barbecue to top the evening off. Austin is a city where you can find tons of different kinds of music every night of the week, and as a native who grew up here, I take it as a challenge to enjoy all that Austin has to offer, and support local musicians as much as I can.Post

Where do you go in Austin to chill out?

One of my favorite new places in Austin is the Russian House – although you won’t find me chilling out there – I love going there to cut a rug to whoever they’ve booked, from a hot 1920’s jazz ensemble to a balkan brass band. It’s impossible to go there and not dance. They also offer an amazing selection of infused vodka and Russian / Eastern European food, not to mention gorgeous decor.

How would someone from abroad benefit by coming to Austin for a few years?

The great thing about Austin is that while it’s in the heart of Texas and still holds on to that wonderful Southern Hospitality, there is so much diversity here that people are much more open to other cultures and ways of life. It is the perfect place to cultivate an open mind and still appreciate all the local customs.

When is the best time to visit?

Definitely March through May – before it gets hot!

Have you connected with the other international groups in Austin?

We love going to events put on by Austin Intercultural Network, and of course, EuroCircle!

Right now, AHA is gearing up to host a Consular Day with the Hungarian Consulate General who will be visiting from L.A. Locals whose parents and/or grandparents were born in Hungary are encouraged to apply for a Hungarian passport. More info here: http://us5.campaign-archive1.com/?u=616a0b8caf5d4996b7d114388&id=be73308c6f

My website, http://austinhungarianassociation.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/322748184423299