Expat/Repat/Repeat

Since childhood, I’ve burned with a desire to travel the world.  The urge surged at age eight, when I saw the Hollywood classic, Now Voyager, starring Bette Davis.  Unapologetically traveling alone, Bette sails to Brazil aboard a luxury cruise ship, and meets the love of her life. I longed to accompany her, dressing elegantly for dinner, reading on deck, chatting with refined fellow travelers over cocktails, and touring the spectacle that is Rio de Janeiro. I was hooked and determined to travel as far as possible, as often as possible. The long stay has become my favorite.  A mere weeklong vacation in an exotic location is a tease and only serves to fuel my wanderlust.

I was thrilled to follow my career in the burgeoning beauty industry, allowing me endless travel opportunities. Based in Manhattan, as a young executive for the superstar designer Halston, travel became an essential element of my career, and I was thrilled to travel nearly every week.  It was the exuberant 1980’s and I was delighted to tour America as a celebrity make-up artist and brand ambassador for Halston. Throughout the decade, big hair and big shoulder pads were all the rage, and I was happy to provide the ultra-dramatic makeup that completed the look and made the clients very happy disco divas.

Throughout my decade at Halston, I began to take my first international vacations, to Europe, the Caribbean or Mexico.  These early trips did not take me too far away and never lasted more than a week or two.  During my early international vacations, for the first time, I began to hear the word expatriate or expat for short.  I wondered, what was the difference between expatriates and foreigners? While both terms describe people living in a country other than their own, expatriate has connotations of a professional move, with a higher socio-economic status. The word derives from the Latin term ex ‘out of’ and the Greek term patria ‘native country’ or ‘fatherland’.  It would mean relocating out of the United States for an extended period, an adventurous idea that I instantly adored. I daydreamed about my flat in London or my chic pied-a-terre in Paris. I became obsessed with the idea of immersion into cultures other than my own. My mission became clear: to travel abroad, with lengthy sojourns wherever I went. I dreamed of hobnobbing with friendly locals that would become my international friends. I loved the idea of being an “expat”, the foreigner in a foreign land.  I pictured myself drinking and dining with them, savoring their music, culture, and language. My long stays have generally lasted no less than one month, longer if I desired. My long-stay record was Thailand, where I lingered for seven wonderful years. (More about that phenomenal experience, in my BANG BANG BANGKOK blog.)

My very first long stay experience was Hong Kong. Like many others, my beautiful career had abruptly tanked following The World Financial Crisis of 2008. The collapse of the investment bank Lehman Brothers sent shockwaves throughout America, and globally.  The situation had become bleak in New York City; restaurants and retail shops were closing down, and people were losing their jobs at an alarming rate.  My beloved Manhattan, magnet to the entire world, suddenly seemed like an oppressive place that made one want to flee. And so, flee I did. Remembering my previous wonderful, albeit short business trips to Asia, I set my sights on Hong Kong. I had visited HK many times before on business and remembered fondly the superb gastronomy and vibrant nightlife. The financial crisis did not seem to impact Asia, and Hong Kong beckoned with a still vibrant economy, large expat community and boundless opportunities. After all, Hong Kong has the highest number of ultra-wealthy people in the world, superb gastronomy, and a vibrant nightlife. It seemed like the ideal pIace to make a new start. I never looked back, put most of my worldly possessions into storage and boarded a non-stop Cathay Pacific jumbo jet, with a one-way ticket and 2 large suitcases. I had no idea how long I would stay, but a job referral quickly turned into a one-year consulting contract with a large Japanese pharmaceutical company. I had attended several international beauty & spa shows in Hong Kong and was fortunate to have made a lasting friendship with the beauty director of Harvey Nichols HK. We had met and become friends in Bologna, Italy at the annual Cosmoprof shows. She was thrilled that I was moving to Hong Kong and became an excellent source for local information and advice. She suggested I look for apartments in Sheung Wan, a desirable and convenient location adjacent to Central, the bustling business district. Crowded with restaurants, shops, and galleries, I discovered the magic of Hollywood Road.  The rents were exorbitant, on par with New York City.  Consulting contract in hand, I signed a month-to-month lease agreement with Domus Residence for a furnished and fully serviced apartment on the 12th floor, with panoramic views of the green hills surrounding Hong Kong. I was ecstatic over this fortunate opportunity to long-stay in an amazing city that I loved for its beauty, diversity, and sophistication.  I threw myself vigorously into my marketing consultancy and set about to create an innovative new range of luxury skincare products. Expressly designed for gentlemen, we would call the brand Hommage. Our target client was the 5-star hotel and the affluent men who sought relaxation and rejuvenation in these sumptuous spas, across Asia.  The timing was perfect, grooming products for men reached an all-time sales peak and showed no sign of slowing. It became my mission to find the perfect hotel partner in every viable market across Pan-Asia.  I quickly focused on Macau, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Melbourne and Saigon, all strong markets for luxury goods. I would visit each of these markets, absorbing local trends and preferences that would assist me in fine-tuning our grooming collection. That first, very busy year passed quickly, and I rejoiced when my consulting agreement was renewed, year after year. I loved my new life as an expat in Hong Kong and enjoyed all that this glittering city had to offer. Incredibly diverse dining and cultural experiences, alongside my thriving new brand development project, kept me busy, traveling constantly and making new friendships along the way.

During my 7th year in Hong Kong, the political atmosphere was beginning to change. Britain had officially transferred authority over Hong Kong to China, ending 150 years of British rule, known world-wide as the “handover”. Immediately, the atmosphere began to change; it appeared the days of free speech and liberty were coming to an end. I began to consider new horizons. My friend from Harvey Nichols suggested I visit Bangkok, so I booked the 2 hour and forty-five-minute flight into Suvarnabhumi International Airport. The airport, like the city itself, was visually dramatic and sprawling. It was past midnight, so I easily summoned a GRAB ride and, within twenty minutes, found myself at the legendary Oriental Hotel. Opened in 1887, it is one of Bangkok’s proudest and most iconic landmarks. It would become my base for the next week while I searched for my new abode in this raucous, fascinating metropolis.  Bangkok is huge, similar in size and population to Los Angeles, with over sixteen million residents in the metropolitan area. Like LA, Bangkok is notorious for some of the world’s worst gridlocked traffic jams. I quickly learned that it was imperative to time one’s transits, avoiding rush hours at all costs. In my search for more permanent accommodations, I discovered that the cost of living is astonishingly low, and quality of life is exceedingly high.  Decorator furnished apartments are the norm in Bangkok and I soon discovered an amazing 2 bedroom/2bath, newly constructed building with full amenities, roof-top swimming pool and wonderful, eager-to-please staff.  The cost was $1,500 monthly, roughly half what I was paying for a studio in Hong Kong. Comfortably ensconced high above Silom Road, I lived, loved, and thrived professionally in Thailand for over 7 years. In fact, Bangkok proved to be one of my favorite cities on the planet and my best long-stay experience, to date.