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    How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

    The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

    Super Cheap

    • Chitré, Panama
    • Santa Marta, Colombia
    • Phuket, Thailand
    • Dumaguete, The Philippines

    Cheap

    • Medellin, Colombia
    • Boquete, Panama
    • Kyrenia, Cyprus
    • Hua Hin, Thailand
    • The Algarve, Portugal

    Affordable

    • Valencia, Spain
    • Cascais, Portugal
    • Las Terrenas, The DR
    • Pisa, Italy
    • La Rochelle, France
    • Mazatlán, Mexico

    Luxury

    • Ambergris Caye, Belize
    • Kotor, Montenegro
    • The Panama City Beaches
    • Paris, France
  • Resources

    Global Living

    • Living & Retiring Overseas
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    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
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    • Investing

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    Live and Invest Overseas
    • Home
    • Countries

      Top Destinations:

      Whether you’re looking for fun and sun, a peaceful retirement, or the chance to earn some extra income, you’ve got a real world of opportunity open to you… In short, we’ve done our best to narrow down your best options, but only you can decide the right country for you.

      • Spain
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • Colombia
      • Cyprus
      • Mexico
      • France
      • Montenegro
      • Browse All Countries

      Best For:

      • The Best Places To Retire
      • Health Care Abroad
      • Cost Of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Establishing Residency
      • Gun Laws In The World
      • English-Speaking Countries
      • Safest Places For Retirement
      • Best Places In Latin America
    • Budgets

      How Much Will It Cost You To Live Overseas?

      The only honest answer is, we have no idea. And neither does anyone else. The only one who can answer that question is you. Here’s the most important thing to understand about budgeting your new life overseas…

      Super Cheap

      • Chitré, Panama
      • Santa Marta, Colombia
      • Phuket, Thailand
      • Dumaguete, The Philippines

      Cheap

      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Kyrenia, Cyprus
      • Hua Hin, Thailand
      • The Algarve, Portugal

      Affordable

      • Valencia, Spain
      • Cascais, Portugal
      • Las Terrenas, The DR
      • Pisa, Italy
      • La Rochelle, France
      • Mazatlán, Mexico

      Luxury

      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Kotor, Montenegro
      • The Panama City Beaches
      • Paris, France
    • Resources

      Global Living

      • Living & Retiring Overseas
      • Raising A Family Abroad
      • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
      • Offshore & Diversification

      Making Money

      • International Real Estate
      • Banking
      • Employment
      • Investing

      Follow Us:

      • Meet Our Experts
    • Real Estate

      Join our Weekly Newsletter
      Overseas Property Alert

      Sign up for our weekly newsletter to receive expert insights on the best international real estate investment opportunities.






        We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

        Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

        • Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

        Explore Our Latest Posts

        • Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

        Go To The Overseas Property Alert Site

        • How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams
      • Conferences

        Upcoming Events

        • Explore Our Events Site

        Live and Invest In Spain Conference

        Offshore Wealth Summit

        Greece Workshop

        VALENCIA, SPAIN

        Sep. 17-19, 2025

        PANAMA CITY, PANAMA

        Oct. 15-17, 2025

        VIRTUAL

        Nov. 13, 2025

        LEARN MORE
        DISCOUNT
        LEARN MORE
        PRE-REGISTER
        LEARN MORE
        PRE-REGISTER
        • MORE EVENTS

        Contact Our Events Team

        Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
        1 (888) 627 8834
        From Outside North America:
        1 (443) 599 1221
        Working Hours
        Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

        Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

      • Store

        Unlock The World

        • Access Your Library

        Overseas Havens Reports

        • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

        Conference Kits

        • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

        Lahardan Books

        • Titles on living and investing around the world
        • Explore Our Store
        Your passport to a life well-lived abroad

        Services

        overseas living letter offers affordable retirement guidance
        The Simon Letter Wealth Protection Insights
        Global Property Advisor Global Investment Opportunities

        Our Customer Service team is here to assist with any questions or concerns CustomerService@LiveandInvestOverseas.com

      • My Library
      Live and Invest Overseas
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      Home Lifestyle

      The Secret To Making Friends As An Expat

      A Rich, Full Life

      by Kathleen Peddicord
      Apr 01, 2024
      in Lifestyle
      0 0
      ballydowane-beach-waterford-coast-line-waves-ireland-aerial-amazing-scenery-view

      AdobeStock/Cristi

      Ever wonder what is the secret to making friends while living abroad? Twenty-five years ago, Lief and I moved to Ireland. Me from Baltimore, him from Chicago. We brought my daughter and my International Living business with us.

      We settled in Waterford, where we bought an old house.

      Lief and I both were working full-time, leaving for the office early every morning and returning home in time for dinner each evening, leaving little opportunity for socializing.

      Whatever free time we had during our first years in the country we invested in renovating our country home.

      Our first friends were our tradesmen.

      The general contractor for the project, Noel, the crew Noel brought on board to carry out the work, the cabinetmaker John we engaged to build our kitchen and library, the architect David who drafted plans for converting one of the barns into a guesthouse… these people became our closest friends in Waterford.

      We’re in contact with them all still today.

      I like old houses the way that some women like new shoes. They’re my preferred preoccupation. In Noel, John, and David, I found kindred souls. We enjoyed our long days together tearing out walls and building in bookcases.

      How do you like to spend your time?

      Whatever your favorite hobby, you’ll find like-minded enthusiasts in your new home, if you make the effort to seek them out. This is the best way to build a new circle of friends.

      After seven years in Ireland, Lief, Kaitlin, Jackson, who’d been born in Waterford, and I moved to France.

      In Paris, our first local friends were the parents of our children’s classmates at school. Again, we were working full-time and had little time for random hanging out, but we made time for parent-teacher meetings and other school functions.

      As Kaitlin and Jackson made friends, they were invited to birthday parties and playdates and wanted to invite their new playmates over to our apartment. We made friends with the parents of our children’s friends by default and, through them, were introduced to others in our neighborhood.

      When we made our third international move, to Panama, fifteen years ago, we arrived, again, with entrepreneurial agendas.

      Start Your New Life Overseas Today!
      Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on the 10 Best Places To Retire In 2025.
      We Value Your Privacy! We will not share your email address with anyone else, period.

      The Secret To Making Friends While Living Abroad

      Our entire quarter-century overseas, Lief and I have made friends by accident.

      Not so my friend Thom.

      Thom and I met in Baltimore. He was an ardent solo traveler. And he made an art and a science of making friends wherever he went.

      He liked music and played the six-string and carried his guitar with him everywhere. It was slung over his shoulder through airports, train stations, and hotel lobbies all over the world.

      Before arriving in a new town, Thom would research local live music venues. First thing, before checking into his hotel even, he’d stop in at one, sit down at the bar, strike up a conversation with the bartender, and, soon enough, get himself invited to pull out his guitar and play a little.

      My Friend Thom

      Thom kept all these music-lover’s venues and contacts in his cell phone. When he made the acquaintance of a barkeep, a doorman, a club proprietor, or a fellow musician anywhere in the world, he’d ask the fellow (or lady) to type their contact details into his phone.

      Thom coded entries so he could search them by location. Next time he arrived in town, he’d call up his local resources and friends.

      This time when he showed up for open mic night at any of the venues where he’d already introduced himself, he’d be greeted, as he walked through the door, with a hearty, “Hey, Thom! You’re back! Did you bring your guitar?”

      Cards printed with his name and cell phone number. Thom handed them out everywhere he went. Each time he gave someone one of his cards, he’d make a note on the back: “This is Thom, the guy who likes to play guitar,” or “This is Thom, the guy you met in Club Such-and-Such.”

      Thom came to visit us in Ireland often. When I’d accompany him for a night out, I was shamed. He’d push open the door to Geoff’s, our favorite watering hole in Waterford, and everyone in the place, in unison, would call out, “Thom!”

      No one in Geoff’s knew my name. But everyone knew Thom.

      My point is that I encourage you to make a point of making friends and connecting with the community wherever in the world you decide to chase adventure.

      That is the secret to making friends while living abroad and your new life will be far richer as a result.

      Until next time,
      Kathleen Peddicord signature
      Kathleen Peddicord
      Founding Publisher, Overseas Opportunity Letter

      Tags: 'France'Live abroadmake friendsmake friends abroadmaking friendsPanamaParisretire abroad
      Share84Tweet52
      Kathleen Peddicord

      Kathleen Peddicord

      Kathleen Peddicord has reported on opportunities for Americans to live, retire, and do business overseas for 40 years. She has traveled to more than 75 countries, invested in real estate in 24, established businesses in 7, renovated and built properties in 6, and educated her children in 5.

      Kathleen has moved children, staff, enterprises, household goods, and pets from the east coast of the United States to Waterford, Ireland, then to Paris, France, and finally to Panama City, Panama, where she has based her Live And Invest Overseas business. Peddicord and her husband, Lief Simon, now divide their time between Panama and Paris.

      Peddicord was a partner with Agora Publishing’s International Living group for 23 years. She opened, staffed, and operated International Living publishing and real estate marketing offices in Waterford, Ireland; Panama City, Panama; Granada, Nicaragua; Roatan, Honduras; San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; Quito, Ecuador; and Paris, France. Peddicord launched Live And Invest Overseas group in 2008 and has built it into a successful multimillion-dollar business. Today, she shares her firsthand experience of expat life with more than 500,000 readers of her publications, including Overseas Opportunity Letter and Overseas Living Letter.

      Kathleen has been featured often in The New York Times, MSNBC, AARP, CNN, Bloomberg, CNBC, and more and writes monthly about expat matters, international real estate, and offshore diversification for Forbes and U.S. News.

      Kathleen has written several books including the memoirs “At Home In Ireland” and “At Home At Los Islotes” and her latest title “At Home Abroad,” all published by Lahardan Books. Her best-selling "How To Retire Overseas: Everything You Need To Know To Live Well (For Less) Abroad” was published by Penguin Random House in 2018 and her “Buying Real Estate Overseas For Cash Flow (And A Better Life)” was published by Wiley in August 2020.

      Start Your New Life Overseas Today!
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      HOME

      Top Countries

      • Spain
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • Colombia
      • Cyprus
      • Mexico
      • France
      • Montenegro

      Best For:

      • Health Care Abroad
      • Retirement Living
      • Cost Of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Establishing Residency
      • Gun Ownership
      • English Speakers
      • Safety
      BROWSE ALL COUNTRIES

      Budgets

      How Much Will It Cost
      To Live Overseas?

      Super Cheap

      • Chitré, Panama
      • Santa Marta, Colombia
      • Phuket, Thailand
      • Dumaguete, The Philippines

      Cheap

      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Kyrenia, Cyprus
      • Hua Hin, Thailand
      • The Algarve, Portugal

      Affordable

      • Valencia, Spain
      • Cascais, Portugal
      • Las Terrenas, The DR
      • Pisa, Italy
      • La Rochelle, France
      • Mazatlán, Mexico

      Luxury

      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Kotor, Montenegro
      • The Panama City Beaches
      • Paris, France

      Resources

      Global Living

      • Living & Retiring Overseas
      • Raising A Family Abroad
      • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
      • Offshore & Diversification

      Making Money

      • International Real Estate
      • Banking
      • Employment
      • Investing
      Meet Our Experts

      Real Estate

      Overseas Property Alert 

       

      How To Become Independently Wealthy And Fund The Lifestyle Of Your Dreams

      VISIT SITE

      Buying Real Estate For Cashflow

       

      Discover tips and strategies used by global property investing veterans

      READ MORE

      Explore Our Latest Posts

       

      Learn how to invest and purchase property abroad…

      EXPLORE

      Conferences

      Live and Invest In Spain Conference

      VALENCIA, SPAIN Sep. 17-19, 2025
      LEARN MORE
      DISCOUNT

      Offshore Wealth Summit

      PANAMA CITY, PANAMA Oct. 15-17, 2025
      LEARN MORE
      PRE-REGISTER

      GREECE WORKSHOP

      VIRTUAL Nov. 13, 2025
      LEARN MORE
      PRE-REGISTER
      MORE EVENTS

      Contact Our Events Team:

      Toll-Free U.S. and Canada:
      1 (888) 627 8834

      From Outside North America:
      1 (443) 599 1221

      Working Hours
      Monday – Friday 08:00 am – 17:00 pm EST.

      Reach us with your questions by email at: events@liveandinvestoverseas.com

      Store

      Overseas Havens Reports

      • Expats' comprehensive destination guides

      Conference Kits

      • Hours of coverage  from our latests conferences

      Lahardan Books

      • Titles on living and investing around the world

      Services

      • Overseas Living Letter: Affordable Retirement Guidance
      • The Simon Letter: Wealth Protection Insights
      • Global Property Advisor: Global Investment Opportunitites
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      THE 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE IN 2025

      FREE REPORT: The 10 Best Places To retire in 2025

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