Our family of four were blessed to spend 12 months in tropical Vanuatu in 2015-16.
These are our favourite day trips, holiday adventures, eating spots and memories. There is space below for yours too!
Should We Stay or Go – 5 things to consider before quitting a location
No matter how good a new location sounds initially, settling there won’t always go to plan.
Deciding when to call it quits is the hard bit.
I’ve talked before about what I call the Relocation Rollercoaster – the emotional ride of relocating and resettling in a new location, with recurring ups and downs that usually become smoother and ‘higher’ as the months pass.
As has almost everybody I’ve interviewed for Relocation Recap.
It takes time to settle in, at least six months, often more than a year.
Hence our personal guideline of ‘give it a year’.
Our year is just about up, here in Vanuatu, and we are very close to making the decision to leave.
Expat Hair
Oh, so sorry.
Not the words you want to hear on the very first snip, having requested a trim, as you watch many centimetres of hair fall to the ground.
Perhaps I should have known better. I’d already had a win.
Earlier this year I had finally braced myself for a salon haircut, after two years of just letting it grow, rather than find a hairdresser who could handle my fine, thin, straight hair – rather different to the South Pacific mass of tight curls.
There had been one exception in that two years, when I asked my husband to trim the split ends. Yes, he did have to continue working upwards until achieving an almost straight line, but no split ends remained.
Then, in January this year, feeling adventurous, I dropped into a salon for a simple trim, requesting a straight cut along the ends of my now quite long hair.
I’m Not Happy: what to do if this realisation hits you too
I live on a tropical island. I have two healthy girls and husband. I enjoy my work. We have income sufficient for what we need. We have people around the world and nearby who we love, and who love us.
Yet I’m still not happy.
What! Why?
I know. I’m sounding like a selfish b**ch.
Yet I know I’m not alone in feeling this way.
Simply observing clients, friends, social media posts and magazine articles ensures I don’t fall down the rabbit hole of comparisonitis and self-doubt.
Most people, as far as I can tell, are okay at best.
How are you?
Fine thanks.
Do you remember when you last had someone respond with ‘Awesome!’ or ‘I simply couldn’t be better’.
Are we all just holding it together?
Purely surviving. Not thriving?
Not happy?
Expat Health – my relocation experience and top tips (TV interview)
15 major moves.
6 countries.
Every decade of my life.
Not all have been healthy. I get better at moving in a healthy and happy way with each relocation.
And it makes all the difference to the overall success of the move!
Eating Out in Port Vila: gluten free / dairy free / vegetarian / paleo
Breathe. Yes, you will be able to find gluten free / dairy free / vegetarian / paleo meals and snacks in some Port Vila restaurants, cafes, markets and supermarkets.
You might need to explain what this way of eating means.
There may not be helpful GF, DF, V or P symbols on your menu or container.
However, there are abundant fresh food combinations to enjoy and restaurants to try in Port Vila, Vanuatu.
This article will help you find them.
Tips for Driving on the ‘Wrong Side of the Road’
As an Australian, I learned to drive a car on the left side of the road.
Just like half the world does.
The other half drive on the right side. The ‘wrong side of the road’ as far as my instinct is concerned.
In my twenties, I solved this the easy way during our many months in Europe, my partner did most the driving.
In my thirties, wanting to cross Canada by car with a friend, I crossed to the ‘other side’. It really wasn’t that hard. Although I did switch on the windscreen wipers many a sunny day.
I then returned to Australia and had the problem of both sides feeling ‘right’.
Now, in my forties, I’m once again driving on the other side of the road in Vanuatu. This is what I’ve discovered.
10 Tips for Returning to Your Host Country or State after a Trip Home (for expats and interstaters)
Each year the kids and I head to Australia for about three weeks during their end-of-year school holidays to enjoy time with family and friends. People are what we miss most when living overseas, so we embrace living close enough to head home – well, our ‘other home’ really – once a year. Then returning home to our host country, currently Vanuatu.
Which means we get to experience culture shock twice in a short period of time.
Yes, culture shock is not reserved for new locations. Returning to your home country can be just as unsettling, sometimes more so as it is less anticipated, earning the term reverse culture shock.
Living in Vanuatu: 7 Things to Know Before You Go
Four months ago, as a new arrival, I wrote about Moving to Vanuatu: a fresh perspective.
Here are 7 things I’ve discovered since. All good to know before you go.
Tips for Gluten Free Success (even if you live in the land of croissants)
It’s been three years since I went gluten free.
That’s a lot of pizzas, pastas, crusty rolls and cakes to abstain from.
Moving to Vanuatu two months ago refreshed the challenge. Think French influence – baguettes, vanilla slice, almond croissants, pain de chocolat.
Boy it’s tough. I have broken my self-imposed rule a few times. [Read more…]
