Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
will you attend a house of worship? Many of these decisions can be left to
personal preference. Others should be made only after consideration is
given to what impact any of these choices may have on your safety and
that of your family.
Every country in the world has neighborhoods that are considered
to be safer than others. How do you know which neighborhood is the
best and safest choice? You can take several steps in this regard, beginning
with asking the local embassy or consulate in the country you are moving
to. Ask the consular staff for recommendations. Where do most embassy
employees live? In some countries, embassy personnel live in a compound
and not in the local community. Even so, they will be able to provide you
with all the information you need to get started. If at all possible, go on
a house-hunting trip prior to your move. It is a good idea to spend some
time exploring the neighborhoods in the city you will be living in. After
receiving some thoughts from the embassy as well as friends and cowork-
ers already resident in the country, consult a map and judge the area on
more than merely whether you like the neighborhood or not. One of the
most important things to consider is the accessibility of your intended
home while driving. If there is only one way in and out of the neighbor-
hood, look elsewhere. The more desirable situation is to be able to use
several different routes to travel between home and work. Selecting a
residence along a multilane road with traffic flow in both directions is
preferable. We go into this subject in greater detail in Chapter 8.
Drive the route between your place of employment and the various
neighborhoods you are considering moving to. Locate the schools that you
are considering and determine the length of time it will take to get there
from both home and work. Do the same for local hospitals. By the way, as
we all know, not all hospitals are alike. Even here in the United States, the
police officers and firefighters, not to mention doctors and nurses, all
know which hospitals to go to in the event of an emergency. Overseas, this
decision is even more critical. Often there is a big difference between local
hospital care and the facilities that cater to the international community.
Call the embassy and find out which hospitals their personnel use.
Evaluate each neighborhood for its proximity to shopping areas.
Living in a secure neighborhood is certainly important, but if you must
shop for groceries in an unsafe area, consider changing your living plans.
Determine the location of local police stations. In general, even in
countries where there is considerable anti-American sentiment, police sta-
tions are likely to be a place of relative safety in an emergency. In Western
