A day in my life

Living an expat life is an entirely different experience from being in the US.  Because this is our first time doing an expat assignment, we've had to adjust to the shock of living in Angola, and adjust to being an expat family.  Angola is such an isolated place, with very few modern conveniences, so it makes the entire experience full of wild contrasts. I've written a lot about how I have to make all of our meals, and often I make a lot of things from scratch. But today, I have a professional chef in my kitchen, making some meals for us! In the US, this would be unheard of - a luxury!  Here, it's not unusual for families to employ a chef several days per week. It's very affordable, and not everyone wants to spend a good chunk of each day in the kitchen. I figure with one day of the chef here, we can get at least three dinners made - and it will cost less than going out to eat ONCE at a nice restaurant in Angola.  But it's still very weird for me to say to people back home, "oh yeah, the chef is here!"

Another odd thing is that the kids are not exposed to all of the commercials and advertisements that are a part of life in America. They have no clue what the latest toys are, what video game just came out, or what clothing is popular. This is a nice thing, because clearly, there's no access to those things anyway. The kids don't ask for toys, and in general, most of the kids here seem very unspoiled. At the same time, you'll hear the kids talking very casually about where they've just gone on holiday, where they're going on the next holiday, and what their chef is making for dinner!  Expat kids are likely to know all the different perks of flying business class vs. economy, and they learn quickly which airlines have the best kid-friendly in flight entertainment. As someone who grew up living in the same small town her entire childhood, these things are just so different (and funny) to hear.

So I guess like anything, there are good and not so good parts about living here.  Some days, it feels like the bad stuff outweighs the good....but it's definitely an experience that our family has gotten a lot out of, and for that, I'm very thankful.  Oh, and I'm also thankful for what our chef has made today! Stuffed chicken with roasted potatoes, lasagna, mini pizzas, couscous salad, marinara sauce with meatballs, banana muffins, and chocolate mousse. YUM!