The Best Expat Blogs to Follow in 2016

Best Blogs

Best Blogs

By the time you guys read this, I'll be somewhere between Vienna and Melbourne, most likely bingeing terrible movies and trying to resist the 7th meal offered by in-flight services.

While I'm off re-connecting with my Aussie roots and eating all of the delicious brunch I can find, I thought I'd share some of my favourite fellow expat bloggers.

Firstly, to fill the gaping hole in your lives while I may be offline, but mostly because I'm pretty sure the wifi in Australia is rubbish and slow, so god knows if I'll be able to post from there! (I'm only half-joking on that one).

Expat blogging is a weird little niche of the travel/lifestyle blog world. We're kind of experts in our specific destinations, we travel a lot, so often write about more than one place, but we have really specific challenges, like loneliness and language and oh-dear-god the red tape of Visas.

We're not as trendy or aspirational as the fabulous solo-female travel bloggers, we didn't necessarily quit our jobs to travel the world like many travel couples seem to be doing these days.

We exist in a very tiny pond of the blogging world, but these other expat bloggers have definitely helped me through some tough times.

They give excellent insights to a particular country or city and generally make me feel like i'm not the only maniac trying to navigate life in a foreign country.Here's my top picks of the best expat blogs to follow in 2016:

Expat Edna

Expat Edna

Expat Edna

Who are they? Expat Edna is one of the blogs I've been following for ages. She left home at 18 and now at 26 has lived in China, Singapore, Paris and Italy. Most of the time while working and sharing her fab recommendations of places to eat and where to find quality beer.

Why follow their stuff? Edna is one of my faves because with all of her writing you know you are getting the real deal. The places she visits are different from the usual tourist trails - even when writing about Paris it feels like you get an insider, locals view. Most of all though, Edna writes in such a way that you feel like you're catching up with an old friend, who happens to know some cool places in cool cities, but is totally down to share with you. Oh, and I can highly recommend following her on Snapchat - she's one of the top rated bloggers on there, and with good reason!

Best Posts:On Expat as IdentityEncountering Racism Abroad

Drive on the Left

Who are they? Drew and Julie are an American couple relocated to London, who write about London life, European travels and oh so much delicious food. Their photography distracts me from work on a very regular basis.

Why follow their stuff? These guys write about a broad range of topics from travel to food & drink and their expat experience. What I really appreciate though is their photography and attention to the little details that make up life in a foreign country. The colours of markets in London, or close-ups of delicious biscuits and fresh cut British tulips. It's a very personal, colourful way of sharing about life in London.

Best Posts: Playing the Expat Waiting Game, Wherever you Go, There you Are

Liv Hambrett

Who are they? Liv is a fellow Aussie who moved overseas and *surprise* fell in love with a German. She now lives in Kiel and writes about expat life with her family.

Why follow their stuff? Liv is the blogger I want to be when I grow up. She shares poetic, heartfelt posts about transitioning between life in two countries, how to survive Northern hemisphere winters (answer? Food and good boots mostly) and the occasional rants about the queuing habits of the Deutschlanders. This was one of the first expat blogs I found when moved to Vienna back in 2012 and it helped me feel less alone at such a crazy time.

Best posts: Hard, What I Love about Germany

Free Candie

Who are they? Candice Walsh is a sassy redhead from Newfoundland who writes about travel and living a free life on your own terms.

Why follow their stuff? Candie (I feel like I should say Candice because we haven't really met, but we're in the blogosphere where it feels like we have, so I can be casual right?) has technically only recently arrived in Berlin as an expat, but I had to include her here.

Her blog is hilarious and full of things I nerd out over too - like good literature and uh, food (I'm starting to see a theme in my favourite blogs here...). The blog has an awesome spread of hilarious rants, musings on life and practical things, like how the hell to take care of lady problems when you're living in a foreign country.

Best Posts: Why I'm Moving to Germany, The honest guide to Eating Alone

Cheeseweb

Who are they? This Canadian couple write about slow travel and expat life, specifically in Belgium. Yes, there is plenty about the fries, waffles and deliciousness!

Why follow their stuff? This is the pro expat bloggers site. A seemingly endless amount of resources, Cheeseweb has been the go-to blog for many an expat arriving in Belgium. Their weekly newsletter updates are like two old friends visiting your inbox and the travels these guys experience are always diverse and covered in-depth. They'll shortly be taking a campervan around Europe which is a secret dream of Stefan and I, so I cannot wait to hear how it goes!

Best posts: A Love Letter to Belgium, Resources for Expats living in Belgium

Hippie in Heels

Who are they? Rachel took the path less followed by quitting her successful career to build a life in Goa, India.

Why follow their stuff? This is a great blog about living in a city and country most often viewed as a tourist destination. I love the focus here on fashion and glamour from local Indian designers. Rachel also does a fantastic series of  'This is India!' which is filled with quirky and hilarious moments of her life in India. Reading everything on here makes me want to run away to India immediately! Mostly though, I always find her posts honest and relatable.

Best Posts: So, you want to travel to find yourself, Love hate relationship with India

Runaway Kiwi

Who are they? Rebecca is another hilarious lady, originally from New Zealand who has relocated to London and writes about her search for the best coffee and how to survive in the big city.

Why follow their stuff? Straight up - Rebecca is hilarious. With a  fun, no bullshit, useful approach she can help you figure out how the bloody hell to navigate your first week in London, or just make you snort-laugh out of your nose from a visit to Downton Abbey.Best posts: How to Survive as an Expat in London, Why You should move to London before you are 31

They are my go-to expat blogs - what are yours? Let me know in the comments. I think I'm definitely lacking in some gentleman expat bloggers so fire away with your recommendations!

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