Happier Abroad Forum Community

Ten more actual days in America until I leave to begin to permanently live abroad. Whether I succeed or not in getting what I want is unknown but considering my life in America has always been misery and I have been happier while abroad, I know I must be happier abroad even it means I am happier alone abroad but I know I will succeed because the only element holding me back for my life has been the American element.

Day 11 is the day I leave and spend traveling. It is going to be more than 24 hours of non-stop traveling and waiting and travel so I know when I get to my destination that combined with the time zone different I'll probably be out for 12 or 16 hours which happens when I pull the equivalent of an all-nighter unless I manage to get some sleep on the airplane which I hope I do because it will be nighttime for my flight and if the Covid-19 restrictions mean social distancing and seats not available, that means it should be quieter and better.

I hope everything goes well for me because with my luck there is always something that might go wrong. I don't mean going well after arrival because not much can go wrong after arrival at a destination, I mean boarding the flight and managing to make the other flight in time, and not having lost or delayed luggage, or whatever else could go wrong.

I know most of relatives in America will be unhappily surprised or upset but they're part of the American Matrix.

This isn't like my dramatic posts and I was intending to surprise everyone on the forum too, that I was moving abroad, after I had done it, but with all the events that happened I pre-released the news.

Like I mentioned in one of my more dramatic posts, this year and next will be the Chapter or Story Arc in life dubbed...
" The Rise of Tsar! "


....I....
...Am..
...Tsar..

Good luck with your life....

Tsar wrote: ↑

October 31st, 2020, 1:51 pm

Ten more actual days in America until I leave to begin to permanently live abroad. Whether I succeed or not in getting what I want is unknown but considering my life in America has always been misery and I have been happier while abroad, I know I must be happier abroad even it means I am happier alone abroad but I know I will succeed because the only element holding me back for my life has been the American element.

Day 11 is the day I leave and spend traveling. It is going to be more than 24 hours of non-stop traveling and waiting and travel so I know when I get to my destination that combined with the time zone different I'll probably be out for 12 or 16 hours which happens when I pull the equivalent of an all-nighter unless I manage to get some sleep on the airplane which I hope I do because it will be nighttime for my flight and if the Covid-19 restrictions mean social distancing and seats not available, that means it should be quieter and better.

I hope everything goes well for me because with my luck there is always something that might go wrong. I don't mean going well after arrival because not much can go wrong after arrival at a destination, I mean boarding the flight and managing to make the other flight in time, and not having lost or delayed luggage, or whatever else could go wrong.

I know most of relatives in America will be unhappily surprised or upset but they're part of the American Matrix.

This isn't like my dramatic posts and I was intending to surprise everyone on the forum too, that I was moving abroad, after I had done it, but with all the events that happened I pre-released the news.

Like I mentioned in one of my more dramatic posts, this year and next will be the Chapter or Story Arc in life dubbed...
" The Rise of Tsar! "


....I....
...Am..
...Tsar..

It's about time....like the name of SWV's debut 1992 album!

4 more days until my flight. I am excited to finally be moving abroad permanently. I would be lying if I said I was not a little anxious . I can honestly say that I am not afraid. I will be working to get my CELTA or TEFL, and I will be meeting with realtors to try to work out a lease agreement somewhere with a grocery store nearby, a mall, and maybe a bank if possible. Once I get it then I will hopefully get a job teaching English somewhere.

Tsar wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 3:20 pm

4 more days until my flight. I am excited to finally be moving abroad permanently. I would be lying if I said I was not a little anxious . I can honestly say that I am not afraid. I will be working to get my CELTA or TEFL, and I will be meeting with realtors to try to work out a lease agreement somewhere with a grocery store nearby, a mall, and maybe a bank if possible. Once I get it then I will hopefully get a job teaching English somewhere.

Congratulations! Italy, then?

hypermak wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 7:42 pm

Tsar wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 3:20 pm

4 more days until my flight. I am excited to finally be moving abroad permanently. I would be lying if I said I was not a little anxious . I can honestly say that I am not afraid. I will be working to get my CELTA or TEFL, and I will be meeting with realtors to try to work out a lease agreement somewhere with a grocery store nearby, a mall, and maybe a bank if possible. Once I get it then I will hopefully get a job teaching English somewhere.

Congratulations! Italy, then?

Tsar is going to Bulgaria.

gsjackson wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 9:17 pm

Tsar is going to Bulgaria.

Even better

Is this your first trip abroad Tsar? I remember you went to Russia before?

Will u be using a tourist visa and renewing it regularly or do u have a work or resident visa?

How can u move to bulgaria now? Is it part of the EU? Is the EU allowing tourists now?

I can't wait to get back to Europe. Europe has better people. Yesterday afternoon I had another experience with another rotten American. He was an African American and he sarcastically "Enjoying the show" because I was looking in his direction and waiting for him to get done. He was blocking the entire door and taking his time slowly picking up objects. I was too tired to say anything in response since I have been busy non-stop trying to get everything I need to completed before leaving but if I wasn't tired I would have given him a response something like "No, I was waiting for you to stop blocking the door but now that you started to put on a show by acting like a f***ing clown, maybe I am because you're making a fool of yourself." Why is it that most Americans are the most rotten, angry, and miserable people in the world? Why do many people in America have no common sense and no courtesy? Why do many African Americans always have a chip on their shoulder? I am happy to be leaving this rotten nation filled with rotten people! I truly hope it will be permanent and it will be everything works out because I hate this place and I have for a very longtime.

Winston wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 10:24 pm

Is this your first trip abroad Tsar? I remember you went to Russia before?

Will u be using a tourist visa and renewing it regularly or do u have a work or resident visa?

How can u move to bulgaria now? Is it part of the EU? Is the EU allowing tourists now?

No, it is not my first trip abroad. My first trip abroad was Italy. I experienced true human kindness from people who owed me nothing, people weren't miserable like Americans, and there wasn't the negative vibe or negative energy that exists in America (especially with people). People had decency and respect for others. I could walk into a grocery food and the food was real and tasted real. It wasn't artificial and it wasn't bioengineered like most food in America has become. I received more acceptance in almost one month in Italy compared to all my life in America. Italy was a beautiful place and the only time in my life with happy memories not tainted by sorrow or the cruelty I experienced all my life in America.

This is technically not a trip but hopefully a permanent relocation. I will be entering on my European passport which would make me a tourist but working on getting the permanent resident so I can stay beyond the 90 out of 180 limit that any tourist has including European passport holders. Citizenship in the European Union doesn't automatically give permanent residency but it makes the process easier, less requirements, and faster for Europeans. It has an ideal geographic spot and from what I read a great cost of living to give me my best chance to make it in the European Union. I never was able to get to Russia yet because of other priorities like Italy. Bulgaria is part of the EU and I can enter the EU because my first trip abroad was so I could acquire the right to live and work in Europe by becoming a citizen of my ancestral homeland.

I was planning on Russia for the after I moved to Bulgaria but with Covid-19 having made it so the Russian Government likely won't open up to Italian citizens until 2021, Ukraine or Belarus will be the first former Soviet nation I visit. If Covid-19 wasn't around I may have decided to study Russia in Russian so I could both be able to live in Russia and learn the language to give me a better ability to communicate with the girls but once again, Covid-19. Being European, once Covid-19 ends and Russia lifts the travel restrictions I can get visa-free travel for something like 7, 10 or 14 days to some areas or maybe all Russia as a tourist. Something Americans do not have the ability to do.

That is why becoming European was a higher priority than finding a (youthful virgin) girl and now that I am European I can hopefully teach English in the EU (and maybe eventually Russia) and I can truly be able to focus on finding a girl. Some things need to be done in a sequence and take time. Now I will not be separated by time and distance from the quality European girls, and even Asia is closer to Europe and more affordable because I also like Asian girls.

America is the most isolated place in the world with two large oceans and a neighbor to the North who has another Anglosphere culture quite similar to America. Americans are also the most isolated people in the world.

Tsar wrote: ↑

November 6th, 2020, 3:20 pm

4 more days until my flight. I am excited to finally be moving abroad permanently. I would be lying if I said I was not a little anxious . I can honestly say that I am not afraid. I will be working to get my CELTA or TEFL, and I will be meeting with realtors to try to work out a lease agreement somewhere with a grocery store nearby, a mall, and maybe a bank if possible. Once I get it then I will hopefully get a job teaching English somewhere.

I hope it all works out for you and the rest of your life treats you well. You are definitely leaving America at the right time. I say smart man and also good luck in the future and hope you find that special person.....

@hypermak

How do u explain this? How come u never say such things about Italy?

viewtopic.php?style=1&p=348919#p348919

"My first trip abroad was Italy. I experienced true human kindness from people who owed me nothing, people weren't miserable like Americans, and there wasn't the negative vibe or negative energy that exists in America (especially with people). People had decency and respect for others. I could walk into a grocery food and the food was real and tasted real. It wasn't artificial and it wasn't bioengineered like most food in America has become. I received more acceptance in almost one month in Italy compared to all my life in America. Italy was a beautiful place and the only time in my life with happy memories not tainted by sorrow or the cruelty I experienced all my life in America."

I asked Alex the same question. His reply:

[11/8, 12:37 PM] Alex From Venice: that's a biased experience due to the fact that he was a tourist. it's usually a much better experience to be tourist than to live where you born and grow up.
In your homeland you are an invisible Mr nobody, when you are a tourist, especially in countries where you can spend more than the average locals, you are seen and treated as "Mr Someone"
[11/8, 12:39 PM] Alex From Venice: Italians have the very same experience when they go as tourists in other countries, especially south American, east European, east Asia
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Alex From Venice: but if you have born and grow up and you live in Italy, you are too a Mr. Nobody in Italy.
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Alex From Venice: the food is for sure better in Italy than everywhere else though

[11/8, 12:40 PM] Winston Wu: Do italians have such experiences when they go to America?
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Winston Wu: What do italians say when they go to America usually?
[11/8, 12:42 PM] Alex From Venice: some have pretty much good experiences... but it's far to be heaven I think

Winston wrote: ↑

November 7th, 2020, 8:41 pm

@hypermak

How do u explain this? How come u never say such things about Italy?

viewtopic.php?style=1&p=348919#p348919

"My first trip abroad was Italy. I experienced true human kindness from people who owed me nothing, people weren't miserable like Americans, and there wasn't the negative vibe or negative energy that exists in America (especially with people). People had decency and respect for others. I could walk into a grocery food and the food was real and tasted real. It wasn't artificial and it wasn't bioengineered like most food in America has become. I received more acceptance in almost one month in Italy compared to all my life in America. Italy was a beautiful place and the only time in my life with happy memories not tainted by sorrow or the cruelty I experienced all my life in America."

I asked Alex the same question. His reply:

[11/8, 12:37 PM] Alex From Venice: that's a biased experience due to the fact that he was a tourist. it's usually a much better experience to be tourist than to live where you born and grow up.
In your homeland you are an invisible Mr nobody, when you are a tourist, especially in countries where you can spend more than the average locals, you are seen and treated as "Mr Someone"
[11/8, 12:39 PM] Alex From Venice: Italians have the very same experience when they go as tourists in other countries, especially south American, east European, east Asia
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Alex From Venice: but if you have born and grow up and you live in Italy, you are too a Mr. Nobody in Italy.
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Alex From Venice: the food is for sure better in Italy than everywhere else though

[11/8, 12:40 PM] Winston Wu: Do italians have such experiences when they go to America?
[11/8, 12:40 PM] Winston Wu: What do italians say when they go to America usually?
[11/8, 12:42 PM] Alex From Venice: some have pretty much good experiences... but it's far to be heaven I think

I think you got the answer from Alex, and you would have gotten a very similar answer from me.

I have never said that Italians are unfriendly, unkind and unable to express solidarity towards a new resident who doesn't speak the language and will probably have a few months of culture clash.

As Alex says, the impression of a tourist who spends a few days is not necessarily the same as someone who is planning to settle. Like I said to you a trillion times, as soon as you plan to live a lifestyle that is not that of a happy-go-lucky backpacker, you will have to deal with a much more mundane, if boring, life routine.

You will probably continue to receive smiles and small acts of kindness from people around you, especially the adults and elderly who still know and appreciate courtesy. You will also be more exposed to occasional "accidents" where someone acts rudely, or even "cruelly", to you.

I have only been to the US a couple of times, and only for a few days, so I wasn't able to experience the negativity and distance of American people that much. About the food, I can definitely say that you have a massive "quantity over quality" culture over there. There are plenty of restaurants and even entire food movements that express incredible culinary experiences, but these tend to be quite pricey and concentrated in the bigger cities, like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago etc.

And yes, I did notice a worrying number of overweight and borderline obese people walking down the street, on the buses and eating at establishments.

But hypermak,
Italy also has more soul and authenticity too right?

Im sure if Tsar was in Italy longer, even a year, he would still like Italy better than the US even if the novelty wore off. Right? Thats the bottom line.

Btw in Italy do they call Asian people "chink" or "chino" like they do in Mexico? Do they make racial slurs or stretch their heads to make slanty eyes while making fun of asians?

Winston wrote: ↑

November 7th, 2020, 9:16 pm

But hypermak,
Italy also has more soul and authenticity too right?

Yes, but that is a blanket statement that can apply to any community that has managed to preserves its core values against modernity, globalisation, etc.

You could say that Hong Kong has more soul and is more authentic than Singapore because it has more of its original Chinese culture and none of the Malay and Indian components. You could say that mainland China has more soul and authenticity than Hong Kong because it was almost untouched by colonialism.

For all of your criticism towards Taiwan, I could say that Taiwan managed to create its own unique authentic culture, based on some of the best elements of the Chinese and Japanese cultures and ways of life. For the few days I spent there, I actually like Taiwan almost as much as I liked Japan, perhaps even more considering I had an exceptional host friend.

Then you could say Bulgaria (where Tsar is going) is more authentic than Italy because its post-Sovietic economy has been exposed less to globalisation and soft power from the US, and so on.

I think the question any expat has to ask themselves, especially when planning to settle in another country, is: are the good things this country has to offer of any value to me? Italy still has an extraordinary culture of food and conviviality but if you're a loner and don't attach much value to good food, like many Brits for example, than that quality of Italy isn't going to affect your quality of life much.

If you like meeting random people and spend until the wee hours talking about deep, philosophical topics, over wine and cigarettes, nothing beats Spain (remaining in Europe). Yet, in Spain few people are fluent in English so, to do that, you would have to couple your passion for those kinds of discussion with fluency in Spanish.

And so on. I am sure you get my point.

Winston wrote: ↑

November 7th, 2020, 9:16 pm

Im sure if Tsar was in Italy longer, even a year, he would still like Italy better than the US even if the novelty wore off. Right? Thats the bottom line.

I don't know what environment Tsar grew up in. Perhaps he has been living a small suburban community where, unless you go to school and you're one of the rich/popular kids, you don't get much of a social circle. The fact that he has some Italian ancestry is cute but not that relevant, in terms of his ability to settle in Italy, or Bulgaria, successfully. I can't speak for Bulgaria but almost anybody can (and will!) enjoy a few day in Italy. Not as many will be able to see the beauty and the advantage of living in Italy after, say, 6 months or a year of residence.

Winston wrote: ↑

November 7th, 2020, 9:16 pm

Btw in Italy do they call Asian people "chink" or "chino" like they do in Mexico? Do they make racial slurs or stretch their heads to make slanty eyes while making fun of asians?

We Italians are not as accustomed to foreigners as, say, the British and the French. There are still lots of people who don't know how to act politically correct towards an African or Asian member of their community, even if they are second-generation, so fully Italian citizens who speak Italian with the local accent, go to local schools etc.

Much of the discontent and racial (or racist) criticism may come from perceiving certain minorities as more prone to crime and illegal activities, or less able to integrate and be productive. Asians are usually perceived far better than people of african and middle eastern origin, again not because of their skin colour, but because they generally work harder and cause no trouble. Case in point, up north where I come from there is a general mistrust of Albanian and Romanian men, who are caucasian and slavic, so "whites" like us.

That's because, unfortunately, a lot of less than decent people from those two countries migrated to Italy to cause trouble: they were gipsies or burglars, the types who pimped their gfs/wives and even daughters to make some quick cash. Of course there are a lot of Romanians who are great, hard working people, they study and find jobs. Yet, the rotten apples ended up giving the whole basket a bad name.

And take Filipinos, for example. Everybody has the stereotype in Italy, that Filipinos are domestic helpers, maids, nannies, professional cleaners at best. We don't even have the stereotype of the Filipino nurse as they have in Britain and the US because we already have plenty of Italian nurses and doctors, in fact too many. Despite the stereotype, nobody would ever talk about a Filipina as a criminal, a troublemaker or a bad person because the experience of decades of Filipinos coming and working in Italy (mostly illegally) has been overwhelmingly positive.

The only thing I find relatively annoying about Italians is their stubborness in wanting to call everbody who looks Asian, a "Chinese". When working in Italy, many times I heard other kitchen staff including my sous or head referring to Asian patrons as "the Chinese". In some cases I would give them a quick glimpse and realise that they were much more likely to be Japanese, Korean or Thai.

I know it takes some time to get accustomed to the details of different Asian races look like and I know that, sometimes, it's hard to actually tell the nationality from their facial or body features. Yet, I don't like when people are lazy and don't make an effort.