Expats, Geopats, Etc : staying grounded abroad

Stephanie Fuccio | Serial Expat Communications Specialist
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Places & Travel
  • Updated Semiweekly

Join me, Stephanie Fuccio, someone who has lived abroad for 20+ years, to explore nuances of expats, internationals, geopats and others who are a few steps after starting off abroad around the world. Through candid identity abroad conversations with fellow internationals sometimes well into their overseas life and sometimes even knee deep in reverse culture shock back home, we explore what keeps us grounded once we've got one foot here and there culturally. Beyond culture shock, we look at the books, online communities, language moments and more that help us feel good even on wonky days. 

  1. 08/25/2022

    From a German American Household to Life Abroad in China and Thailand: S11E3

    Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered why your immigrant parent(s) didn't prepare you for being a global citizen?  Chelsea thought this when she was struggling in her first expat place. Over time she began to understand the distinct difference between her mother's immigrant experience and her expat one. In this conversation, we unpack the lasting impression that Chelsea's mom had on her expat life and which influences she kept and discarded.  Original publication date: August 27, 2022 00:00 – Growing Up With Immigrant Parents 02:25 – Moving Abroad During the Pandemic 04:50 – Leaving China for Thailand 07:15 – Stability, Jobs, and Expat Life 09:40 – Becoming a Pandemic Parent Abroad 12:05 – First Expat Experience in China 14:30 – Teaching Abroad After University 16:55 – Why Staying Abroad Makes Sense 19:20 – American Work Culture vs Expat Life 21:45 – Having a German Mother in America 24:10 – Language Loss and Assimilation 26:35 – Immigrant Parents and Identity 29:00 – Raising a Third Culture Child 31:25 – Seeing Immigration Through Expat Life 33:50 – When Everything Comes Full Circle More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    38 min

  2. 08/18/2022

    From a Chilean American Household to Life Abroad in Thailand, the Czech Republic, and Mexico: S11E2

    Send us Fan Mail How much do our immigrant parents impact our adult expat experiences? This is what we're exploring in this conversation with return guest Alison.  Alison and I dig into growing up with two unequal cultures in one household,  the racial struggles she's seen in many countries during her years living outside of her passport country of the U.S. and her coming to terms with the differences between her mother's immigrant experience and her own expat life.  Original publication date: August 26, 2022 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    44 min

  3. 08/11/2022

    From Immigrant Roots to Expat Life: Growing Up with Immigrant Parents and Living Abroad: S11E4

    Send us Fan Mail Questions about family can be triggering if the experience was not ideal. This is one of the reasons that Steph's talked about her family in tiny drips here and there but not in depth. But it felt disingenuous to ask other expats to open up about their early family life growing up with immigrant parents without diving into these experiences herself. So to help with this tabled turned interview, Melissa was kind enough to hop in and guide the conversation. Melissa's podcast: Tired In My Twenties: https://tiredtwenties.substack.com/ Original publication date: August 29, 2022 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    42 min

  4. 08/04/2022

    From Montreal to Shanghai: A Greek Canadian Expat Story: S11E1

    Send us Fan Mail Have your immigrant parents ever visited you in any of your expat places? Georges' parents have and it shifted how he understood their struggles moving from Greece to Canada. We cover a lot more ground on his parents' immigrant story and how it has both positively and negatively influenced his own expat experience.  Original publication date: July 28, 2022 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    46 min

  5. 02/10/2022

    Damon Castillo on Making Music, Letting Go, and Creating for Others: S10E5

    Send us Fan Mail This episode is really special for me. Last month for NaPodPoMo I had the extreme pleasure of chatting with Damon Castillo for this episode. Yes, THE Damon Castillo of the Mess of Me album that we've been using for the past 2 years in all of the Geopats Podcast Network shows. We talk about the longevity of the Damon Castillo Band, his geopatness, my favorite song on the Mess of Me Album (Saint Cecilia), his recording studio in San Luis Obispo, what music he listens to and some creative struggles. In short, we cover the elements that make up the language of music, lovely, lovely music.  Original publication date: December 24, 2020 Damon Castillo: https://www.damoncastillo.com/ More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    34 min

  6. 01/27/2022

    What It Feels Like to Return to Japan as a Japanese American: S10E4

    Send us Fan Mail Ken Hirano was born in Japan but his family moved to the U.S. before he started school. He returned to Japan to live a few times in his life, and now is one of them. He moved back to Tokyo about a year ago and recently (wrote a post on LinkedIn) on this geographic anniversary about his cultural and language identity. And that is what we are digging into today.  This identity path took us through how he feels in different languages, why he feels more simple and defenseless in Japanese than English, how Japanese locals versus expats in Japan treat his Japanese & Americanness and where he is the most comfortable. Spoiler: none of these issues have a clearly defined answer and that is what made this nuanced discussion with Ken so interesting to have.   Original publication date: September 28, 2020 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    42 min

  7. 01/13/2022

    From California to Prague: Building an Online Life Across Countries: S10E3

    Send us Fan Mail Alison Maciejewski made me think long and hard about food photos in our shifting expat lives. How does our wanderlust come through online?  But the conversation is not all serious, we have some fun comparing emoji options on Line (in Thailand) and WeChat (in China), what and where “ugly delicious food” is, and how using teen dramas are a good way to learn the Thai language. original publication date: December 13, 2018 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    1h 17m

  8. 12/30/2021

    A Welsh Expat in Denmark: The Album That Helped Him Settle In: S10E2

    Send us Fan Mail Has a song ever carried you through a rough time in your life? That's exactly what happened to British international Karl when he moved to Denmark.  original publication date: November 12, 2018 More: https://linktr.ee/stephfuccio

    1h 10m
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About

Join me, Stephanie Fuccio, someone who has lived abroad for 20+ years, to explore nuances of expats, internationals, geopats and others who are a few steps after starting off abroad around the world. Through candid identity abroad conversations with fellow internationals sometimes well into their overseas life and sometimes even knee deep in reverse culture shock back home, we explore what keeps us grounded once we've got one foot here and there culturally. Beyond culture shock, we look at the books, online communities, language moments and more that help us feel good even on wonky days. 

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