Advice on living and working in a non-English speaking country?

[tangaroa]

I moved to Thailand three years ago with no more language then than 'hello' and 'thank-you'. My only ambition was to be able to speak Thai passably well (figuring the alien alphabet would be beyond me). Now, without actually trying that hard, I speak Thai pretty fluently and can read and write surprisingly well. It'll amaze you what you can accomplish if you have the motivation. Best of luck!

 

[Blue Maverick]

If you fancy Germany you could always try and get a Job working for the NAAFI in Germany.
You will be in a foreign Country in an ALL english Tax free wage and perks & accomodation Environment and still be able to learn the German lingo and integrate if you wish outside of the camp.


http://www.naafi.co.uk/current-vacancies

Vacancy Details
Bond International - Vacancy Details
Reference No 1726
Job Title Leisure Supervisor Paderborn
Type Permanent
Salary Range Euro 22,204.30pa
Location Paderborn
Category Retail / Leisure / Catering
Closing Date 16/10/2015

That's weird I tbought the NAFFI was no more after this year, unless it's just the brand and someone else is taking over

 

[leithblue]

I've lived in Helsinki for five years, Finnish is notoriously difficult to learn and its easy not to bother as anything official is done in English as well as Finnish and Swedish and everyone speaks English very well so it's a challenge to even practice as people politely reply in English. That said, as much out of politeness and not looking a dick we have learned enough to have a conversation albeit also rely on others helping us out. Although my boys picked it up much easier.

One bonus is that I need to concentrate when listening so I do pay more attention to things. Also, it means I can zone out on buses etc so don't need to listen to the dull conversations folk have. Its noticeable when in the UK just how fecking boring folks' chat is when you get stuck behind them in a queue or on a train.

 

[Tricky Dickys Right Foot Shot]

I'm currently about to try and teach myself Japanese, not a European country I know but on first glance I've come to the conclusion visiting is probably as far as I'll go because as a language to learn I've probably picked the one that's easily in the top 3 of most difficult to learn.

 

[KnaresboroughBlue]

I lived abroad for over 25 years in Europe and Asia. Choose a city/country that suits your lifestyle (or desired lifestyle). Choose one that has a useful language (as one your reasons for going seems to be for you daughter to be able to speak another language fluently. It would make sense if that language would be of some benefit for her future. I speak quite a few languages fluently but not many of them are of much use outside that country.

Learn the language as best you can as that will open many new doors both socially and work wise.

 

[smudgedj]

I moved to Thailand three years ago with no more language then than 'hello' and 'thank-you'. My only ambition was to be able to speak Thai passably well (figuring the alien alphabet would be beyond me). Now, without actually trying that hard, I speak Thai pretty fluently and can read and write surprisingly well. It'll amaze you what you can accomplish if you have the motivation. Best of luck!

That's impressive. In any language.

 

[Blue Smarties]

A heck of a lot of this depends on where you are gravitating towards moving.

Where do you have in mind? i can give advice on Amsterdam and Holland to an extent.
The main hassle i found was sorting getting in a doctors and such, i think this is a universal issue abroad though in general terms.
In Germany and nordic countries for example you will be ok moving before learning the language, towards eastern Europe though i think this changes.

I always get a Silk Road vibe from you, it has to be said.

 

[york away to this!]

simply S P E A K V E R Y L O U D L Y and V E R Y S L O W L Y, Johnny foreigners will soon understand what it is you want. Either that or converse with ex-pats only...

 

[Zuriblue]

I moved to Thailand three years ago with no more language then than 'hello' and 'thank-you'. My only ambition was to be able to speak Thai passably well (figuring the alien alphabet would be beyond me). Now, without actually trying that hard, I speak Thai pretty fluently and can read and write surprisingly well. It'll amaze you what you can accomplish if you have the motivation. Best of luck!

That is well impressive. Thai is very difficult (like any Asian tonal language).

My advice: Do your homework. You need to research where you're going, many countries have expat forums which can help a lot.
Depending on where you work the local language can be crucial but it might not be. I work for a major multinational in the electrics field (since I live in CH I'm sure the CH expats like Gelson's Dad can work out which one - it's in Baden) and they relocated me over here. That's the best way as they dealt with a lot of the bureaucratic BS (and CH is pretty bureaucratic) In my department we have about 20 different nationalities so English is pretty much the standard language. Many Swiss do speak good English which can be frustrating - going down to the Coop and talking to the check-out girl in MancDeutsch to receive a reply in perfect English. Not very helpful if you're paying a fair amount for language lessons.

Do try to speak the language as much as you can. Normally people won't laugh, they will appreciate that you're trying to speak it.

If there are a lot of expats it's easy to just get pulled into the expat scene and not have much in the way of interaction with the locals. You should try to resist this if possible otherwise you'll end up with a small group of folks who don't do anything but grouse about the locals in English.

 

[I'm With Stupid]

Learning enough of a language to get by and have simple conversations isn't too much of a challenge. But to get to the next level of dealing with the sort of complex situations you might have when doing things like renting a house takes quite a long time. And even longer to get to the stage where you can have genuine deep friendships with people. I'm in Vietnam, and I don't know anyone who has a proper friendship with a Vietnamese person, unless the Vietnamese person is fluent in English. It's very easy in most countries to not bother, because language learning takes a lot of time and dedication, and the motivation simply isn't there if you can do everything in English. And it's especially not there if whenever you try to practice your language, the person responds in English, which happens a lot.