Why expatriates should stop moaning

Reflections on the not-so-subtle art of living in a foreign country

A vendor sells food for iftar -- the meal that breaks the fast in the evening -- on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at a traditional food market in Jakarta. © Reuters

PALLAVI AIYAR

November 2, 2022 11:00 JST

I have spent much of my life as an expatriate in a smorgasbord of countries, including China, Indonesia and Japan. And the greatest truth I have learned during these years is that it is not skin color, accent or command of a language that gives expats away. It is their propensity to moan about their usually agreeable circumstances.