Vietnam-lovin' VoIP man's 50-nation tally couldn't hold him back In this instalment of The eXpat Files, we meet Joshua Puckett – a native of Maryland, USA – who, at 23, has managed to work in 50 countries, with extended stays in Switzerland and Hungary. How did this half-man-half-Boeing pull it off? Read on to learn about his very mobile lifestyle, the best bars in the world and how to blag …
He's 23! Most Americans graduate with a bachelors degree at age 22, sometimes 21. Or maybe he dropped out? Anyway, in somewhere between one and three years I guess, he's spent time in 50 countries? That makes an average (mean) of 20 days in each. Long stays in Hungary and Switzerland? What would that be, 30 days?
Ex pat? I wouldn't say he's ever been in any place long enough to be considered a true expat.
He talks about being 19 and abroad. I don't think he bothered with acquiring debt going to college. He's had at least 4 years. I agree not what you'd usually call an expat but given this is a slightly humorous online series of articles on working overseas, I don't think pedantry is really called for.
Having worked in 30 or so countries myself I'd say there's a huge difference between being there for a few months and living there for a couple of years.
I'm not saying that it somehow "doesn't count" but it's not the same thing. I've certainly enjoyed being in a new country for a few weeks or months, as long as that time wasn't simply spent going from the hotel to work each day.
However, spending a year or more there and living more like a local is a vastly different experience and reveals a lot more about the country and the people.
On the other hand I've seen some, mostly Americans for some reason, who get moved by their firm and live in a kind of bubble only really interacting with other expats with the firm organising everything for them. I find it hard to see that you'd gain a lot from living abroad in those kind of circumstances.
Definitely a good place to work for a while, although anecdotal experience suggests that one may be more likely as a contractor to end up being scammed there than elsewhere - think Swiss secrecy laws gone large should you have a billing issue, or a contractual intermediary partner who fails to fulfil.
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