A Sideways Life: The honest guide to living & working abroad

Welcome to day 4 of Podmas!! (25 days of podcasts in December). We’re going to bring you an episode a day in December right through to Christmas Day... The first few episodes are themed around, 'Things We Wish We Knew Before We Moved Abroad'. Today we talk about being a Digital Nomad with a Dog. We give you all the tips we've learnt about living and working abroad with a dog. From hairy caterpilla...

Welcome to day 3 of Podmas!! (25 days of podcasts in December). We’re going to bring you an episode a day in December right through to Christmas Day... The first few episodes are themed around, 'Things We Wish We Knew Before We Moved Abroad'. Today we talk about how to make Christmas great, if you're away from your home country. We're not quite as 'ginned up' as we were yesterday. Not sure if that...

Welcome to day 2 of Podmas!! (25 days of podcasts in December). We’re going to bring you an episode a day in December right through to Christmas Day... The first few episodes are themed around, 'Things We Wish We Knew Before We Moved Abroad'. Today we hear from Melissa Paul , the very first Digital Nomad in Croatia. She tells us what she wished she knew before she moved from the USA to Croatia. Tu...

Welcome to day 1 of Podmas!! (25 days of podcasts in December). We’re going to bring you an episode a day in December right through to Christmas Day... The first few episodes are themed around, 'Things We Wish We Knew Before We Moved Abroad'. NOTE: I messed up the recording of Leanne on this episode, so she doesn't sound as lovely as she does in real life - totally my fault. I've bought a Rode Pro...

If you want to travel, and up until now, have had doubts, then this is the episode for you. Meet Luke Morris , a 24-year-old from North Wales who set out in the Summer of 2022 on his very first travel adventure. Listen as Luke tells stories about: Travelling via train (and why you should always screenshot your ticket) Why he refused to stay in hostels How to avoid having to sleep on night trains W...

What an episode! You clearly want to live abroad (or why are you here?!), but the biggest question we get is, 'How do I make money whilst living abroad?' Our fantastic guest today is Cepee Tabibian, the co-founder of She Hit Refresh , who talks about: What visa might you need? What are the top skills you need to work remotely? Which companies are actively recruiting digital nomads? What is the new...

Fancy living in Croatia... and paying zero tax? Course you do! Today we talk about one of the most popular Digital Nomad visa right now, and we are joined by an expert guest who organises visas like this for people just like you. We cover: Who is eligible? Can YOU get a visa? Tax - is it really 0%? Paperwork - how do you manage this? The restrictions - What's the catch? So if you're considering li...

Paying tax as a nomad/ex-pat..? Some of the most often asked questions we get are around tax and travelling. Today we have one of the world's experts on money talking about: Flag theory - what it is, how it works and how it can help you save huge amounts on tax Travelling full-time vs nomad - which is better? Paying tax as a nomad - how do we manage this? Where do we pay it? Can we get away with p...

You what really gets on our collective t*ts? When people say, 'You're so lucky to have this life!". FFS... In this honest episode, we talk about all the ways we've been UNLUCKY, but how almost every single one of them turned out to be lucky in the long run. So if you're considering this life, or you're balls-deep in this life, and you are worried about bad things happening, this is the episode for...

New listeners Tom & Mai got in touch and asked us an important question: What are the cultural norms, things to avoid, and things that surprised you when living in Spain? So over the last 2 episodes, we talk about everything that caught us out in Spain, from culture to food & drink, to travel and finally weather & language. Other episodes mentioned: Episode 80 is part 1 of this two part series Epi...

New listeners Tom & Mai got in touch and asked us an important question: What are the cultural norms, things to avoid, and things that surprised you when living in Spain? So over the next 2 episodes, we talk about everything that caught us out in Spain, from culture to food & drink, to travel and finally weather & language. Look out for part 2 coming next week! -- NOTE: This is following our new f...

If you've ever wanted to live and work in Spain before, then you'll know it's tough if you're non-EU. However, Spain seems to be following in the footsteps of Portugal, Greece & Croatia and introducing a Digital Nomad visa to allow anyone who is a 'third country' native to live & work in Spain. In typical Spanish style, the launch date is 'mañana', but in this episode we speak to the Spanish visa...

As you may have seen on Instagram, this week we unpacked our storage unit after 5 years, and out of 30+ boxes and loads of furniture... we kept one small box. So, join us as we set the scene and then explain how we felt unpacking all of our sh*t. NOTE: This is following our new format of podcast episodes that are either about: WHY you want to live & work abroad HOW to live and work abroad WHERE to...

Want to live like a local in Spain? We've spent almost 6 years living in Spain, and today we identify 13 things that tourists do, that the Spanish would never! As ever, we focus mainly on bars and restaurants, and we'll show you the 13 things we've learnt that will instantly identify you as a tourist in Spain.  Hope you enjoy this one! NOTE: This is following our new format of podcast episodes tha...

In this episode, we meet Julianne Bosch (pronounced 'Bosk') who has travelled the world as a wife (to a fancy jet-setting, Spanish-speaking businessman) and mother (to 3 cool kids who speak loads of languages). Regular listeners will know that we don't have (nor do we want!) kids, so we always jump at the chance of sharing travel stories from people who do.  You can find out more about Julianne on...

We've had a short break, as we both went back to the UK for 3 weeks. We hadn't seen some of our friends or family for 2 and half years, so although it was brilliant, we did learn 7 important lessons. I think it underlined WHY we still want to live and work abroad. Enjoy! NOTE: This is following our new format of podcast episodes that are either about: WHY you want to live & work abroad (this week)...

In this episode, we talk about our last 7 weeks where we've been living and working in Split, Croatia. We talk about the areas we liked (and those we didn't), the general cost of things (including rent), and Lea brings back the Factoids segment with some facts about Split. NOTE: This is following our new format of podcast episodes that are either about: WHY you want to live & work abroad (last wee...

In this episode, we reflect on how we've lived & worked together as a couple for almost 10 years, without having (too many) arguments. We outline the 7 principles and hacks that ensure we stay sane and happy. NOTE: This is following our new format of podcast episodes that are either about: WHY you want to live & work abroad (last week) HOW to live and work abroad (this one) WHERE to live & work ab...

In this episode we talk to the amazing Mayaan & Gal from Smoozitive who specialise in helping people take that first scary step from comfortable home-life to a strange, exciting and brand new world as a Nomad or Ex-pat. Join as we talk about belonging, making friends, reverse ex-patting (where you go back to your home country) and the 'Fire Game' (Not as dangerous as it sounds). You can find Gal &...

We've recently fucked up a bit.  We normally do quite a bit of research on the area we're going to live before committing to a longer (3 weeks or more) rental, but this time we did not, and it's bitten us in the arse (quite literally for our poor dog peanut who was attacked this week by another neighbourhood dog). So, in this episode, we give you the top 7 mistakes that most ex-pats or nomads (and...

In this episode, we reveal our brand new roadmap for anyone wanting to live and work abroad. In addition, we actually go through the 9 questions ourselves. You see, last week we left our lovely house in Istria, and are spending the final 5 weeks of our visa in Split (Croatia), before heading off to test Portugal as a potential place to live. So you'll see exactly how the roadmap can guide you thro...

You might have noticed that we've been missing for 3 weeks... That's 'cos we went away for 4 days and ended up staying away for almost 4 weeks. In this episode, we look at why we ran away, what we learnt and how this could be useful if you're considering living and working abroad.   --- Get in touch on Instagram ( @asidewayslife ) or email asidewayslife@gmail.com . We genuinely would be thrilled t...

Welcome to the shitshow. Listen as we try (and fail) to record an episode on the road, using nothing more than Al’s iPhone and Leanne ‘singing’ our theme tune. Yep, it’s exactly as you’re imagining.

This episode is the final part of the 3 questions you MUST ask before living & working abroad. The three questions are: Episode 65: Why do you want to live and work abroad? (Released 2 weeks ago) Episode 66: How do you live and work abroad? (Released last week) Episode 67: Where in the world can you work and live abroad? (This one!) HINT: If you’ve not listened to episode 65 or 66 yet, go back and...

This episode is part 2 of 3 of the 3 questions you MUST ask before living & working abroad. The three questions are: Episode 65: Why do you want to live and work abroad? (Released last week) Episode 66: How do you live and work abroad? (This episode) Episode 67: Where in the world can you work and live abroad? (Coming next week) HINT: If you’ve not listened to episode 65 yet, go back and listen to...