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10 Things That Suck About Living Abroad

I’m a lucky girl to be able to live abroad, but I want to be straight with you guys. Some people make out living abroad as a fantasy life, and sometimes it is. But the truth is that with anything in life, nothing is perfect. Living abroad isn’t always a fairytale, in fact, there are some parts about it that really suck. No one really talks about those, so I’m sharing them with you in this video– click the image above to watch it.

Do you live abroad? I’d love to hear your take on this. Or if you’re thinking of living abroad, leave a comment down below letting me know what obstacles you think you’re going to run into.

Head over to my Youtube channel for more travel tips and London advice.

Jessica Dante

Jess is the founder of Love and London, an online travel guide that helps London tourists to visit London like they live there. She's been featured in Refinery29, Forbes, BBC Radio 2, HuffPost, and more. Jess is also a sustainable and ethical travel advocate.

12 Comments

  • Emily says:

    I love hearing comparisons of different places and cultures, and a lot of the things that you’ve brought up here are cultural differences (like the inefficiency in Italy, or how it’s sometimes difficult to be an American in other countries.) I really enjoyed this video šŸ™‚

  • Jaclyn says:

    100% spot on! While living abroad is an incredible adventure, the things you listed are realistic downsides that come with the expat territory. I’m really glad you made this video šŸ™‚

  • Callia says:

    Hi Jess! I personally am glad to see a video like this from you. It gave great insight and you just “told it like it was”. I feel like we also were shown a different part of you. Like getting to know you better! I’m a practical person so hearing the honest truth about living in a different country (as an American and what we are used to)…this was a great post to do. Obviously sometimes it’s not all roses and sunshine! Thumbs up from me!

    • Jess says:

      Hi Callia, thank you so much for your lovely comment, I’m so glad you enjoyed this “different” type of video! I’ll have to do some more “getting to know me” videos šŸ™‚

  • Melissa Griffis says:

    Hey Jess! Video was very spot on, i haven’t been abroad for too long but issues I run into are cultural differences from city to city in europe….whats appropriate to do on public transportation/restaurants/interactions/ect. A lot of things are just “known” in the country however as a foreigner we don’t always know that and sometimes how we normally act comes off as rude and gives us americans a bad rep! Hope all is well!

    • Jess says:

      Exactly, well said Melissa. For example, I once accidentally cut people in line at the grocery store here in London and people were appalled, however, as you know, in Italy, lines don’t really exist and you just have to make your way in as you can šŸ˜‰ Hope all is well too with you!!

  • Jess, THANK YOU! I’m considering a position that would take us abroad for 10-12 months– and while it’s short and we have to come back (my husband is working on his Ph.D.), I still want to know everything there is to know about the expat life.

    • Jess says:

      I’m so glad I can help Daisy. If you want to know anything else, don’t hesitate to ask (and I’m always looking for ideas for new videos). Good luck with it all!

  • Marissa M says:

    Hi Jess, I’m a long-time subscriber to your channel and blog, and I have to say–I think this might be my favorite video of yours!! I’ve been living abroad for 1.5 years and although I generally love it, there are things that I just can’t discuss with people back home (NJ, USA) without sounding like I’m complaining about the fairytale life they expect me to be living. (Perhaps I should direct them here!) Thank you so much for posting this very honest and truthful video!

    • Jess says:

      Hi Marissa, thank you so much for sticking around here for so long šŸ™‚ it’s so great to hear you liked the video, I’ve had so many fellow expats say the same and I’m thrilled it resonated with so many of you guys around the world. You can certainly send those people the video when they don’t get it šŸ˜‰

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