When you Googled information about the country you’re traveling to, you probably hope for deep insight. Tales of adventure from a seasoned nomad or accurate, insider information about restaurants and locations that are hot right now.
What you probably found were your usual entries from sites like Lonely Planet. 5 Things You MUST Do When in ____. Best Places to Travel in ____. It was probably last updated five years ago and, suspiciously, all the suggestions they give you sound quite expensive.
It’s hard to trust these formerly well-regarded sources of travel information like you used to. How many of these suggestions are based on fact and how many are based on whatever the poorly-paid schmuck who was coerced into writing their blog decided to look up? You get the distinct feeling you’re being sold to – not getting the true inside scoop on the country.
In this piece, I’m not going to tell you everything you need to know before moving to the country of your choice. I’m going to tell you where I go when I want to find that up-to-date information.
The Most Important Thing To Do: Join Expat Forums Online
It’s hard to find this information online, but true travel professionals always join the Facebook expat group for whatever city they are traveling to long before they move. Just type in the city you want to travel to and “expats” into the Facebook search bar and you should find a group.
These groups are treasure troves of important, on the ground information from travelers like you. When I first moved to Buenos Aires, I was in the expat group for a full 6 months prior. By the time I left for Argentina, I was more or less confident about everything I needed to do when I hopped off the plane (even though I could barely speak two words of Spanish).
These groups are great for everything from legal to leisure questions.
In countries with shaky visa laws (and that’s most outside of North America and Europe), these hubs can be especially helpful for navigating immigration. The by-the-book laws you see on most websites rarely are helpful to you.
Facebook Groups also have a nice feature where you can search within the group for specific topics. If the group you’ve joined has been around for a little while, your question has probably been asked dozens of times before.
In my Buenos Aires forum I’ve been able to find everything from quality tailors, to hangout groups, to watch repairmen by filtering the chat.
Not Sure Where to Go or What You’re Doing?
If you’re still trying to figure out exactly where you want to travel to, you may want to join a digital nomad forum or check out popular hubs like NomadList.
We’ve created a special group for nomads called Nomad Helpers on Facebook where you can ask questions about things like:
- How to find remote work
- Which countries are best for remote work
- And whatever else you might need.
Join the club and introduce yourself!
Consume Media
Most people will tell you that you should watch some movies and TV shows to get a grasp of the local culture. I agree with this, but think you should do so with one caveat:
More often than not, the media does not paint an accurate picture of what a culture is like. It most certainly won’t depict how you will experience the culture as a foreigner.
There is literally a term called Paris Syndrome. It’s designed to describe the fits of depression people (typically Eastern Asians) feel when they visit Paris and realize it’s nothing like the movies.
Most films and TV shows show a stylized, overdramatic, or aspirational/romanticized view of what living in the country is like. If you watch Hong Kong mob movies from the 90s, you’d think you’d need to duck under oncoming bullets every day. In reality, you would be hard pressed to find even a small fraction of the violent criminal activity you witness in a country like the US.
That said, media gives you an invaluable view into the mindset of the local population wherever you visit. I still advise all my friends visiting China to go watch Wo BuShi Pan JinLiang.
Find People In Your Community Who’ve Visited
If you live in any decent sized city or town, chances are you have one or two people in your extended network who have at least visited the country you’re looking to see. Buy them a coffee and ask them a bit about what they thought. Specifically, make sure to ask really blunt questions like:
- Are you required to pay bribes?
- Are there common scams for foreigners and what are they?
- How would you recommend finding accommodation?
- How can you get a local SIM card?
- Are there any special VISA rules?
- How do most people travel?
- Where can you get the best rates for currency exchange?
- How do I live by the 21st Century Explorer guiding principles while living abroad?
If not, feel free to reach out personally to people online. From experience, most people who travel are more than willing to help others out.
Again, this is why I created Nomad Helpers. Join that too, if you haven’t already.
Get on Google Maps and See if Your Favorite Activities are There
I’m a man of many sports. They kept me sane in my travels and are a great way to bond with locals despite a language barrier.
Nowadays, whenever I travel I look around for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu gyms and ping pong centers. Both are niche sports with diehard communities so I’ll often choose accomodation near these hubs. Fortunately, all of them are increasingly more common today.
If you notice that the city you intend to visit or live in has a real dearth of activities, then you should not show up expecting a vibrant nightlife scene or easy social connections. This doesn’t need to deter you, but one of the best ways to combat culture shock and burnout is to show up prepared for what’s to come.
I Hope this has been helpful and as usual I’d love to hear any comments you have.