...and to speak to what I have alluded to obliquely a couple of times...

[herveus]

I wonder how being a subject of the King of the West differs from Atlantia.

I might have an opportunity to be a landed baron by right of <something other than arms>. After all, the Barony of the Far West is palatine, and the Stronghold of Warriors Gate is part of it. That's the Republic of Korea, for those following on a map.

Yep. I'm actively investigating the possibility of a job with my company in Korea. I expect it would be a three year committment. Much needs to be sorted out, including the existence of a position to fill. More to be said as the process wends it's way.

If anyone has constructive comments on why Korea would be a Good Idea or a Bad Idea, I'm open to input.

If this goes through, Megan would still do Pennsic, and you can bet that there would be silk in the product mix.

Comments

[kass-rants.livejournal.com]

Well cool! Good luck with it!

[weatherman2111.livejournal.com]

We would all miss the whole Houghton clan quite a bit, and we'd certainly have to rearrange the weekly meeting night a bit. I am assuming that Dan and Matt would stay at the house, but that's a big asumption.

If you think Korea would be good for you, far be it for me to stand in the way, but I would miss having you and Megan around.

[pedropadrao.livejournal.com]

I thought, when you first broached the subject, that it would be pretty nifty for you guys. You seemed to like your trip to Korea quite a lot.

[luscious-purple.livejournal.com]

Wow, I guess I'd better start attending Wednesday nights a little more frequently....

Well, we have a former Baron of the far East in Ponte Alto

[jurgenzuvols.livejournal.com]

Sir Guy has been Baron of the Far East, and could give you a really good idea of what that Barony is really like. The West Kingdom has lots of small differences from Atlantia, but I could only tell you about West Kingdom continental (West Coast) culture.

-Jurgen

Re: Well, we have a former Baron of the far East in Ponte Alto

[moirinknits.livejournal.com]

Perrin and I actually had the pleasure of meeting him while we lived in Japan. One of the big differences is that the membership draws very heavily from the military, which has its good and bad points. Also, events are far less frequent, and can be much further/expensive to get to.

Re: Well, we have a former Baron of the far East in Ponte Alto

[jurgenzuvols.livejournal.com]

Perrin & you? Oh, say Hello to Perrin for me, and I still have oodles of thanks to send his way for encouraging me and helping me get into armor back in 1999. I'm still a very active fighter. Are you guys ever coming back to the D.C. area?

-Jurgen

[melaniesuzanne.livejournal.com]

What a fantastic opportunity for you! I hope this works out the way you'd like.

[moirinknits.livejournal.com]

So it sounds like Megan's interested huh?

Okay, good points:
Silk :)
Living in another country/culture can be pretty cool & amazing
Opportunities to travel to other really cool places (you'd love Japan)
Samgyapsal & Kimchi
Financial incentives
The Korean medical system, especially dental is excellent, with many english speaking docs.

Not so good points:
Living in another country/culture can really suck big hairy chunks
Being far away from friends and family
sense of isolation
Three years is a *really* long time to commit to for your first expat experience... I'd suggest negotiating for 2 years with the option to expend. Also, if you/Megan get here, and hate it, what's your exit strategy (Perrin's contribution to the discussion).

If you're seriously consider it, pick up the book The Expert Expatriate on Amazon. Don't become an expat without reading this one. Especially since you're doing a company move.