Living Abroad: The Woes, the Benefits, the Journey

In September of 2008, I made a big decision and an even bigger move. I packed my suitcases from the cozy interior of my brand new apartment, handing over the keys of my brand new car and left my brand new job as a reporter to move to Asia (South Korea, to be exact). That's right, I sacrificed my personal possessions, my current job and my social life to live in a country where I didn't know the language, didn't understand the customs and definitely didn't fit in.

I quickly became the minority, something that most white people never experience. With that said, I have gained more than I ever dreamed. My sacrifices were well worth it and now I am a stronger, more well-rounded and more considerate individual. In the past 3 to 4 months I've struggled my share, cried in Starbucks (smells can really bring you back home...), been frustrated by language barriers and disgusted by eating rituals (dog will never be my thing, nor will silkworm larvae).

Despite this, however, I feel as though moving to Seoul, South Korea has been an incredible benefit to me. In addition, I honestly believe that my experience is an experience that all people should have. One of my favorite quotes is by Mark Twain and it goes like this, "Travel is fatal to narrow mindedness. Charitable views of humans and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the Earth all one's lifetime."

You see, traveling is one of my biggest passions. As I say on my website, wendygould.com, "It all began in January back in 2006 when I made a trip to Cairo, Egypt. I visited ancient temples (including Karnak), walked around the real tomb of King Tut(ankamun) and climbed Mt. Sinai to watch the sunrise from atop (it took 5 hours)! It was there where I realized that there are millions of other people living completely different lives at the exact same time as me. When I returned back home, they would go about their (dramatically different) ways and I my own. Of course I knew that this was so, but the journey made it much more realistic for me- I couldn't wait to experience other cultures. For me, traveling is a necessary part of living."

In addition to broadening your horizons (you try new food, open your eyes to see that there is more out there than what you find in your corner of the world), living abroad also has other benefits. Professionally speaking, it looks great on a resume. To say that you lived abroad, even for a short amount of time, shows that you know how to roll with the punches, work well with others and adapt to difficult situations. And if you can score work abroad in your field, all the better. I looked high and low for journalism opportunities here in South Korea and have been fortunate enough to make it work out. For example, I produced a student newspaper (all in English) and taught my more advanced students elements of journalism and reporting.

If you do decide to move away (a life changing, necessary experience in my opinion), remember that if it becomes to difficult for you to maintain this new lifestyle, you can always move back home. With that said, I think it's necessary to roll with the punches and adapt to your new way of life. That's part of the fun of living abroad.