Jen's Den of Iniquity is a fascinating blog about one woman's experiences as an American expat in London. I interviewed to Jen to find out more...
What dreams did you have for yourself as a child and are you living them out?I did actually dream of living in London one day, back when I was a little girl reading Mary Poppins books. And I dreamt of traveling the world, so I guess I can tick that box too. I also dreamt of being a bus driver - that never materialized. ;-)
What was your impetus for becoming an expat and did you put a lot of thought/planning before moving?
I had just turned 30, recently divorced, feeling adrift and needing to take charge of my life. I was looking for something to turn my world upside-down. London was a thought that had always been in the back of my head, until I realized that if I was ever going to do it, the time was now. It took me about 4 months to get my plans together - getting rid of a house full of stuff, getting a visa, and getting over here. I think if I'd stopped to think about it for more than a nanosecond, I would have chickened out - but as it turned out, jumping in with both feet was the best thing I could have done, because it forced me to rely on myself. It was far from a smooth experience, but it gave me such incredible confidence to be able to make it happen.
You recently completed a trip around the world with stops along the way that included Beijing, Fiji, Australia and San Jose. Did you ever have any apprehension about long term travel and how did you get past it?
I was only nervous about not knowing what to expect. But once I got off the plane in Beijing, suddenly I was *doing it*, and the nervousness was gone. You're too busy trying to figure things out to be nervous! And after a month or so, you just find yourself living day to day, completely in the moment...and you never want it to end. Thinking back on my initial nervousness makes me laugh.
What qualities do you find that people around the world share?
99% of people around the world are good people, just trying to do the best they can. We all want the same things - peace, security, a better future for our families. There is much more that unites us than divides us.
What are our major differences?
Just opinions on how to best achieve peace, security and a better future for our families. That's all, really.
What brings you comfort and joy?
Confidence in myself, the love of family and friends, the smell in the air on the first sunny day of spring, watching my cat sleep with his paw over his nose. What more can you want out of life?
So I finally decided to stop waiting for the right circumstances to present itself and just do it. I'm in Kyoto! I'm getting by on ohayo (roughly good morning), kinichiwa (good afternoon), hai (yes) and arrigato (thank you). The people are very friendly for the most part and try really hard to communicate and point you in the right direction. I got lost today and couldn't find my hotel and the 2 really great people walked with me until I found it! I think that rarely happens in NYC :) The bathtubs are really deep like a swimming pool which is fun. I'm pretty good with the currency which I thought I'd have a harder time with. The pics I'm taking are just things that I think of as quintessentially Japanese. Even the bars are cute and ornate! Their temperature is about on track with ours. It's really interesting to see just how much American culture gets infused into other countries. They really do watch what we do (like a younger sibling). They play our music, wear fashions similar to ours, know our catch phrases - completely bizarre! I'm trying to think what we know about them... I don't know any of their popstars or music, forget about economic status. Their prices aren't much different from ours which is to say that it's just as easy to wonder where your money goes when you've just bought basics (food and transportation). I'm hoping to run into someone who speaks English well enough to tell me a little bit about their political and economic status.
