Africans and mostly Nigerians have this feeling that life is better and easier lving abroad, parents wants there wards to school abroad and to make matters worst,after doing dubious businesses abroad,our people return and spend money extravangantly,portraing the fact that "Life is Better Abroad".

Whats your opinion on this and what do you feel or think,have you been abroad or do you wish to travell out someday, this might be a usefull tip for you.I have my own experience which i think was a eye opener to me and i want to know others.I travelled because of my studies,though i'm not from a very rich family but my parents struggles and my faith brought me to this level.

Tupac once described being rich and famous as being at the greatest party in the world but the ones you want to party with can't get in.

It seems to me that living abroad must in some way be similar to leaving the Ghetto for financial gain but then missing everything and body you loved in the Ghetto.

People returning from abroad, extravagantly spending money is not an exclusively Nigerian thing. It happens everywhere where people leave their poor home country for a rich country. They do it because they must convince everybody including themselves that it was worth it. The stories about life abroad they will tell will also be often exaggerated. It is often the case that in their new country they are relatively poor and not respected and they want to compensate for it when they come home and are relatively rich there. I do not say that it's not worth it, I'm just saying that you should be careful with believing in everything said by somebody who is showing off his money on a visit home.

As for your question, it depends, like everything. It doesn't pay to go abroad if you will be poor there. It's better to be poor at home in this case, with your friends and family around. I've seen these desperate guys sharing a flat with 10 other people, too exhausted to be able to enjoy themselves after work, suffering from loneliness. This is no life and if someone wants to go as an illegal and do lowest-paid jobs, it is better to stay at home, as long as you are not dying from hunger.

It can make sense to go if you have skills and education (and visa status) that will allow to earn decent money in the new place. But then you must think about your own attitude and open-mindedness. Are you able to embrace a new culture, mix with the local people, fight your way through the stereotypes and find joy in different things than at home? For some people it is easy and they gain new strength from such an experience and find it exciting, others will suffer and no matter how high their standard of living will be, they won't be happy.

So think what kind of person you are and remember that the most important thing is being happy. If you can't be happy when far from home, no amount of money is worth staying unhappy. If you can be happy abroad, good for you. It doesn't hurt to go for a short time to try how you feel, everybody should see other countries because this has educational value.

thanks blonde for your wise and educative words, sure people with doubts can benefit from your suggestions, anyway,are you in naija or you out of the country, ?

blow11,

I'm not a Nigerian and I've never been to Nigeria. I'm from a country from which people are migrating a lot, too (and so did I - I live in New Zealand, I also spent some time in two Western European countries). I'm happy, but I have met many migrants from Africa and other places, who were not happy. The reasons why they were not happy were as I said: loneliness, lack of respect they experienced, the fact that their dreams about riches were not fulfilled and longing for their family, for the food they were used to and for the way people behave and live in they home country. I've met happy people too. Going abroad is not a good idea for everybody, but is also not a bad idea for everybody.

The problem is, in some places "going abroad" is seen like "being saved": the ultimate goal, achieving which solves all problems. People are even ready to risk lives for it! What happens is that when someone makes it, when all his family invested in giving him this happiness and he does not feel happy, he is not able to admit it. First, such people do not want to disappoint their family who often made sacrifices to send them abroad. Second, their pride won't allow them to return because if the streets of USA or UK are paved with gold, like some people at home believe, they must have been a failure if they aren't happy. So they lie to people at home about how happy they are. O, I've seen people crying and complaining when they talked to me and then I've seen them on the phone telling their family how good things are.

Anybody considering going abroad: let this not happen to you, be honest with yourself, make a promise that if you'll feel bad abroad, you will return and not make your life one big lie.

And what are your experiences and thoughts, emmablow11?

blonde,my experiences are vast and im ready to share with you,i left Nigeria last year,12nov to be precise with full hope on living a fullfilled life compared to the type i lived in naija.My parents where so happy cos they had this feeling that i will strive on this streets, i did survive and thank be to God who has always and will always be with me.

I was astonished and suprised when i saw other africans depending on there parents to survive here,while i never did that,i was only calling to tell them how beautiful and cool this place was, though i came with my fees and e very lil amount of money but ever since God has been substainimg me.the agent that arranged my travelling promised i will get a job while schooling but everything he said were lies, he did that just to make money from my parents, but i thank God im out though cos the university system is incomparable with that in naija.

I have been surviving here,paying rents,feeding and also getting clothes,all these i buy from the proceeds of lil business did, i am very creative and this made me popular and connected.i organised the first real afro show in my department which brought me into limelight and also bropught food to my table,

I can go on and on but let me know if you want to hear more , everyday is an experience so i can go on and on till seun get me out, where are you from and whats you name,

@ topic

not really because in the end you will wish you were home again.

am on the verge of doing this,but can anyone from Canada please advise on the status of coming there with a tempoary visitor visa and any chance there if you consider staying back there too, thanks.

underscore

It is and sometimes it isn't; depending on your status and how well equiped you are in terms of education or training or what you are able to do to earn a living. The moment you are living your country you know you're definitely going to miss a lot of people so you're prepared for lonely times.What still baffles me is that people back home wont believe me when i tell them it's not all milk and honey here. They believe that once you're here, you are automatically rich and that's why guys would do anything to come over .I have an outrageous long list of people's needs here; friends, relations even people who are not really close to me when I'm home, everybody wants something.I've met some needs, and make them understand I have no means of meeting some needs for now but they wont ever believe.It is painful; but right now, I've decided to do away with all distractions and concentrate on moving my life forward to make my living here justified.

Blonde1

PLease i will like to ask you a few question,if you dont mind.What's your e-mail address? or u can mail me and i will respond back with this mailing address, greenabba@yahoo.com

The admin moved this thread and he was right about it, but it took me some time to notice that it is here now.

emmablow11: sorry, I won't tell where I am from, for now, because I'm afraid some people in the house may have prejudice against my nationality. After I hang around for a while and people get to know me and won't judge me by stereotypes I'll tell it, so ask me again in a few weeks.

GBGHOSTBOY: it's ok for me if you ask your questions here.

Blonde1

It’s a personal question; I don’t need to expose my question in a forum before you will be willing to respond. I don’t see anything wrong in asking you privately. Well it up to you, no force and besides both of us got nothing to lose. I hope you will respond.
greenabba@yahoo.com

Till then

Travelling they say is part of education,life in Abroad is Somehow worth depending on where you base oversea.As for me life here is really interesting in the sense that Euro & African people re living their country to come here just because of "US DOLLAR" The Only Africa Country that use The "US DOLLAR" _{if i'm not making a mistake}

We all have experience to share but b4 i conclude i suggest that We use these thread as a media to know ourselve very well we can help ourselve u know.despite the fact that i'm oversea i want to still travel to other country.

Hope u guy understand the simplicity of these content.

The exposure you get from life outside is just right.No comparisons.
However, there is hardly a place like home.(depends on what home means 2 u)

GBGHOSTBOY, sorry - I'm married and I do not exchange emails with unknown guys who want to ask personal questions. Please take no offence.

I searched for your previous posts and I see that you are going to come to New Zealand, so I guess the questions you want to ask are about life here. Feel free to ask them here (or create a new topic), it may be of use to others too, although this is not a popular African destination. I will be happy to answer any questions you have.

Well, there is no big deal regarding the question I wanted to ask. Thanks

1. Wellington and Auckland which one is far better when it comes to migrant?
2. Are you a Filipino?
3. How is life out there in general?

thanks

GBGHOSTBOY:

Well, there is no big deal regarding the question I wanted to ask. Thanks

1. Wellington and Auckland which one is far better when it comes to migrant?
2. Are you a Filipino?
3. How is life out there in general?

thanks

1. I'd say Auckland is better because it's bigger and there's a bigger migrant community here, you can meet people from all the world and in Auckland it is nothing special to be an immigrant. It is also easier to buy different types of ethnic food here thanks to this big migrant community and last but not least, the weather is better. That's my opinion, but you should also ask somebody who lives in Wellington. I live in Auckland.
2. No.
3. That's too general. There are so many things to write about. I personally love the big spaces here and the nature - Europe is a bit claustrophobic. The weather can be quite cold though, so bring warm clothes with you. The lifestyle is much slower and more relaxed than in Europe and America, no rat race. Anything else you want to know?

Thanks. A good friend of mine lives in Wellington and he said a lot about Wellington. I will be studying in Wellington and I will be there soon. Actually I’m just few hours away from Auckland, presently I’m in Asia.

Yeah I know its pretty cold out there. I’ve adjusted to such weather cos it gets really cold here too.

A kiwi friend told me that they are fewer opportunities over there and the jobs out there don’t pay well. How true is that? I heard NZ got a low rate of employment but the pay aint much.

Yeah, you are right things are pretty slow there, but I think it’s nice over there cos of the space and nature.

Kindly give me a little bit details about opportunities in NZ cos most migrant tends to move to Australia after a while in NZ.

@blonde1

Sorry for intefering into ur discussion have never been in Euro B4 plz can you tell me how is NZ Like?plzzzzzzzzzz

Travelling broadens one's mind, but overall, home is where the heart is. For me, it is Nigeria!

GBGHOSTBOY,

It is true that wages are low in NZ compared to Australia, Western Europe and the USA, but the cost of living is also much lower, so you can live quite comfortably here. It is all right if you plan to stay here, but if you want to move elsewhere later, your savings may be not worth so much in a richer country.

Unemployment is very low, companies are in fact fighting for employees, the problem for a new migrant is that many businesses require "New Zealand experience" and won't honour experience from another country, but getting a decent job is easy nevertheless, at least in Auckland.

Wages are good in technical occupations, like software developers, engineers or doctors, there's a serious shortage of them here. But if your degree is in marketing or other area of business, it is harder to find a satisfying job because most big companies in this region have their headquarters in Australia and here they have only a local office.

It is also very easy and cheap to set up a company here and people who have their own successful businesses can earn a lot. In fact, most successful migrants I've met were employed for a few years and then started their own business investing their savings from these years, because that was the only way for them to earn more than average.

As for moving to Australia, Australia is richer but also more racist, whereas New Zealand is the least racist country I've seen. It is thanks to their immigration policy - people arriving here are students or skilled migrants and their standards are high, so if people see somebody from a very exotic country, they actually assume that this person must be very smart and educated if he or she got here. (This does not apply to some ethnic groups like the Pacific Islanders, who have other criteria of entry, but that's not our problem).

Life is slow, as I said, but it is a good thing for me. You can really relax here, it feels like a big village sometimes. Many people are leaving for better opportunities in Australia, but many people from rich countries migrate here, willing to earn less in exchange for this relaxed lifestyle and beautiful surroundings. It is a matter of priorities and what you seek - a fast pace career in a busy environment or a relaxed life in which entertainment and family are important and you have time for them.

Blonde1

Thanks a lot for the details. I fully appreciate your time and effort.

My friend in Wellington and I are also planning to set up a business in NZ…importing goods into the country and selling. I’m glad you touched that topic in your reply.

What is the possibility of converting a student visa into a business visa? Does it cost much to set up one? I do same business over here and I will like to continue it out there.

Yeah I read a lot about the demand of IT professionals. I studied computer science and I’m also going to study computer related course in NZ.

Ausee’s are racist, I know that. My close friend back in the days is from Australia and he told me a lot about Ausee and racist stuff that goes on there.


I prefer NZ cos I like a simple and relaxed lifestyle. I don’t think I have a problem with that.

Nz ladies are they brother friendly? I think they are. My ex girlfriend was from Christchurch. She told me a lot about the Maori and their lifestyle.

What can you say about their ladies? Are they lovely?

My kiwi friend said Kiwi’s lives a lay back lifestyle.

GHOSTBOY,

I can't help you much with student and business visas, because the way I got here was that I married an NZ resident whom I met during studies in Europe, so I got a resident visa straight away when he decided to go back to where his family is.

I know that after you complete studies here, you have six months to find permanent employment and if you find it, you get another visa that allows you to stay, but I do not know if this is temporary or permanent. As for business visas, I've heard that they are for people who have a significant amount of money to invest here and you've got to be quite rich to get it. Maybe you are, I don't know. You probably know the website immigration.govt.nz, it's the official NZ government website and they have requirements for all kinds of visas listed there.

Good that you mentioned the Maori. They are great people and although you won't meet many Africans here, Maori can make you feel at home. When I arrived, the Kiwis were very polite and nice to me, but they did not understand how it is to be in a new place. The Maori noticed me, understood it and did a lot to make me feel good here. Try to make friends with them and your NZ experience will be much better.

About ladies, are they lovely? Eh, ask a brother about that, how should I know? They look same as the British, and there are also many Asians here. People are very friendly and warm, girls too, but I have an impression that this place is more conservative than Europe.

What is the business you have, if that's not a secret?

Blonde1

It’s almost 1am over there if I’m not mistaken. I appreciate the time and strength; I know it’s pretty late over there. Its 8.54pm over here.

My course is a short term course and I’m not planning to seek for employment over there, I just love to further and achieve extra knowledge to add to the one I have to widen my business and things I do. I will be studying in one of the prestigious schools over there.


Thanks for the website, I always visit that website, I got most information from there. The reason why I asked you about the business requirement was because there isn’t any fixed amount of setting up a business, it was just written “one most have a substantial amount” in order to be eligible to establish a business over there.

Well I will have to discover about the ladies by myself. Just kidding…, Thanks.

There is no secret in my business cos it genuine, I run different business most with different partners. Such as traveling agency, but not in Africa, I mean Asia and I also import different types of wears to European countries and around Asia, and also ausse cos I got a good friend over there so we deal on any sellable product. We are also trying to export wines from Ausee to somewhere profitable. I will look into that when I move to NZ,cos NZ got some nice wine.

Well that a nutshell of things I can mention out here in the forum.

What do u do for a living?

GBGHOSTBOY,

Saturday night is a time when we phone all our friends in other timezones, so I go to sleep very late on this day and then sleep most of the day on Sunday

The time difference is a bit of a problem here, it's night in Europe when there's day here and my family and friends are all in Europe.

I'm currently employed in a financial company, but I begin thinking about doing some business too.

Blonde1

Yeah, time difference. I feel you.

It’s a good idea that you are about to establish a business. Who knows, we can’t tell what will happen in the future may be that why we met here. As you can see this is the only topic I commented something and also the topic I posted previously. I visit nairaland everyday to see the new trend on the business forum, to acquire knowledge and information about stock market.

During the period of visitation, I have met some hardworking and great people on this site by personal writing to them and get to know each other. We do communicate always and have one or two things we try to run together.

It’s a small world. No one can tell the future, who will be ones happy helper.

I will like to keep in touch. Feel free to e-mail me if you think we deserve to further this conversation and know each other better.

blonde,sorry i just paid for my internet connection which was down for 1week now,yeap , i see that this topic has generated ideas from you and this has benefited ghstboy.
I wish i could come to NZ and see things myself,i believe racism exists evrywhere cos i have had my own share here in vancouver but i got over it.
making money abroad isnt quite easy but with time you make it if you re determined and persisitent.

@ blond 1
hi blond 1 ,i was reading ur discussion wih gbghostboy and i found it very educative .
I have the intent of immigrating to Nz and have started filling the expression of interest online for skilled immigrant but as you said in one of ur post to ghostboy ,is it compulsory that an intended immigrant must have a NZ work experience because i have no Nz experience and i have never been to Nz.
Please reply asap cos thats the only thing holding the completion of my expression of interest b4 i submit ,also any information on how i can fill the form or about skilled immigration to Nz would be very much welcome.
Thanks

OKEYZ,

I’m not trying to discourage you, but migrating to NZ takes a lot of process, evaluation, verification and other core procedures. I will advice you to apply through an agent to make is easier for you only if you have the money to pay the agent, so that they can advice you on every step you have to pass through.NZ got a lot of migrating agent, so search for one.

Blonde1 will not be able to give you the whole package because she so not a migrant lawyer or an agent that works in that field. She will only give you a nut shell about what she knows which can also help you to a certain level.

Nz requires you to know the system and the ways things work out there. For instance if you want to be a teacher there, you have to under go a year training. Migrant comes in and educate them selves to fit into the system.

You can be accepted pretty fast only if your field of specialization is one of the professions needed so urgently.

I have friends over there and they do lament all this stuffs to me when we talk, cos I also run an agency in Asia.

Good luck Man….remember its pretty far from home…, end of the world…just kidding…do you thing.

okeyz,

It's not that immigrating requires previous NZ work experience (would make no sense), but many employers require it and finding your first job after arrival may be difficult, it gets easy later.

GBGHOSTBOY is right that I am not the right person to give immigration advice. However, I know a lot of people who went through it without the help of agents (me too, but I wasn't applying as a skilled migrant), the official website mentioned in one previous post has all the information and even if reading it all requires time, there's nothing there that a "skilled migrant" (=an educated person) would not understand. Agents often overcharge for their services, so I encourage you to at least read it all yourself before you decide to use an agent.

I know that the requirements for skilled migrant include professional qualifications and not all overseas qualifications are accepted - it depends on when and how you got them.

GBGHOSTBOY, when exactly will you come to New Zealand? I'll contact you then.

Blonde1

My initial plan was to be there before JULY 6, that when my intake will commence, but I cant meet up cos of other project at hand which I have to place in a good shape before embarking on this journey. Therefore I shifted my intake. Hopefully I will be there on or before December. I want to visit home as well.

Okeyz

Blonde1 is right, not all credentials or oversea qualification are accepted, you must pass through a decent and acceptable educational system. If yours is from naija I hope they accept it. Well give it a try, all fingers are not the same but I know its pretty hard to accept it,cos of my friends experience but you got your luck bro.


That site contains everything you need to know, agent can also help if you don’t have time to do your research cos a lot of people don’t like to research stuff, they just want to hear from someone and then go into it.