Tag Archives : expat life

Diane Lee - An expat in the time of coronavirus

An Expat in the Time of Coronavirus


An expat tells why being a foreigner in a foreign land wasn’t a good thing in the midst of a global pandemic I’ve been based in Hanoi, Vietnam for almost four years, and as an expat, I’ve neither seen nor experienced anything like the xenophobia among the local Vietnamese — towards foreigners — that has occurred as a result of the coronavirus. For one…

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Expat depression and anxiety

On expat anxiety and depression


An honest conversation about expat anxiety Let’s have an honest conversation about expat anxiety and depression. When you live alone in a foreign country with no family support, things can get tough. I experienced no anxiety or depression before moving to Hanoi in 2016. Well, that’s not exactly true. I’ve had a few anxious moments — sometimes days and weeks…

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Travelling Homenbody - Three Stages of Being an Expat

3 stages of being an expat in Vietnam


I have a confession to make. At 53 years of age, I had never lived outside Australia. I’d raised my daughter as a single parent and, well, had neither the time, money or inclination to move overseas. Hell, I didn’t even start travelling internationally until I was 47. The first country I visited? Vietnam. When I was in my twenties,…

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Lunar New Year in Luang Prabang

Laid back Lunar New Year in Luang Prabang, Laos


Why did I visit Luang Prabang? Hanoi has not been kind to me for a while. For more than a week I’d been battling a slight cold (sneezing and ticklish throat) that morphed into a super shitty virus. No, it wasn’t the Novel Coronavirus, but someone did cough without covering their mouth as they walked past me at the gym…

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View across West Lake, Hanoi at sunset

Hanoi: an insider’s guide – Part 1


Friends and friends of friends who travel to Hanoi often ask me what they should do in this wonderful, vibrant city. Hanoi is more than the Old Quarter (which is interesting in and of itself), more than traffic (which is not as bad as Saigon), more than the pho (which is awesome). So to save time, energy and repetition on…

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Travelling Homebody is living in Hanoi. Find out what the first three weeks have been like!

My first three weeks living in Hanoi


I have been living in Hanoi for just over three weeks, and it’s been crazy-amazing and challenging. I’ve found out things about myself that I didn’t think would apply here, because, well, I’m not in Australia. But I am me whether I am in Australia or Vietnam or the Antarctic—who knew?! Here’s what I’ve been up to (and not) since my…

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Travelling Homebody toured Ninh Binh aka Halong Bay on Land

My first week in Hanoi, Vietnam


I’m here in Vietnam for at least 3 months, volunteering for KOTO. For those of you who don’t know the story, when I was in Vietnam in 2010, as part of the tour I was on we visited KOTO Restaurant in Hanoi for lunch. KOTO (which stands for Know One, Teach One) was started by an Australian, Jimmy Pham, who—while…

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