In this episode, Clare is in conversation with Grant, who is an international secondary school teacher. He is a serial mover from the UK who got his masters in Poland. He left the UK in 2007 and has lived in France, Saudi Arabia, China and now lives in Malaysia.

Grant comes from Newcastle in the north of England. After London University and the now defunct Webber Douglas drama school, he spent the first ten years of his career as a jobbing actor. Grant then took himself off to film school and did a masters at the Polish National Film School in Lodz. He always wanted to do something with film studies, so after an introduction to international school teaching in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, he found a job teaching film studies at a school in Chengdu in western China. He has been teaching English and film studies in China and more recently in Malaysia for the last 15 years.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• International schools provide students with an extraordinary outlook on life.
• Malaysia´s national identity is being a melting pot, which means that outsiders are quickly embraced.
• Malaysia has strong religious groups, but people are still strongly integrated with each other.
• Grant lived in different parts of China and enjoyed some places more than others. He talks about the pros and cons of each area.
• Grant travelled to some remote places in China, which is now far more difficult, and had some interesting, in some cases, dangerous experiences. He shares a few in the episode.
• Bear in mind that the immigration rules change regularly. This is especially the case in Malaysia.
• When moving abroad you have to be realistic about your chances of being able to stay there when you are older and can no longer work or fall sick.
• Learning a bit of the language gets you a long way.
• Spending most of your free time with ex-pats is a bit of a cul de sac. It is easy to completely miss out on enjoying the local culture.

BEST MOMENTS

‘People have their gripes and grumbles in Malaysia, but … people are quite happy to be here. ´

‘They do a bilingual international diploma.’

‘You weren´t really sure what you had got yourself into.’

ABOUT THE HOST – CLARE KAY

Clare has moved countries many times throughout her life, from China to Taiwan, Nigeria, Zambia, and the USA. She has also travelled the world for various businesses and now wishes to impart her advice to others to save them time, money, and energy. 

Clare follows three principles central to her endeavours. First, she looks outward internationally, working with people overseas or of different nationalities. Second, she is obsessed with communication, having learned French, German and Mandarin Chinese. She also teaches English and works as an editor for others’ work. Clare is passionate about making a difference through her coaching in the world of personal development. 

CONTACT METHOD

www.kayproofreading.com 

www.linkedin.com/in/clarekay  

https://www.facebook.com/KayProofreading

Podcast Description

When you move for a new job, to live with someone after a long-distance relationship or to explore the benefits of a new lifestyle, moving countries occurs as an opportunity, but it still might be a bumpy ride. Moving Countries 101 presents a paradox of moving to a new destination, but it being all about the journey: the ongoing experience of having moved countries. 

Clare and her guests share the human stories of an ancient undertaking in modern times. Moving countries prompts change, and change provokes being unsettled emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually. On all these fronts, moving countries promotes observation, opportunity, and discovery.