About us
The Expatypus Story
Over the past six years and through various roles, I’ve helped expatriates and world citizens assimilate into South East Asia. During that time I realised how many were longing to truly connect in and with their new place, often with little or average success.
Strangely, it seems that while the world may be smaller, the distance between cultures has remained the same; and most expatriate associations and organisations focus on re-creating here what one can find back home instead of finding ways to truly bridge one culture to another.
Personally, I enjoy helping people and discovering new cultures. Seeing both an unmet need and an opportunity to have fun, the Expatypus concept came to life. Simply put, Expatypus believes that connecting cultures should be easy and enjoyable.
Expatypus aims to help expatriates and world citizens share their experiences, stories and knowledge. More than a ‘forum’, an ‘information centre’ or a ‘wiki’, Expatypus is a community. And we'd love to hear from you.
You can join the community by clicking here.
Why Expatypus ?
Expatypus is a marriage between the words ‘Expat’ and ‘Platypus’. The ‘Expat’ part is obvious so I will focus on the ‘why’ behind ‘Platypus.’ I’ve always liked the name Platypus – its quirkiness, the way it is spelled...and the more I read about this curious animal, the more I was charmed. Here is an extract from Wikipedia.
The Platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is a semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The bizarre appearance of this egg-laying, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal baffled European naturalists when they first encountered it.
When I decided to launch this website, I started by listing all the usual words associated with expatriates, world citizens and cosmopolitans. None really excited me, until I started imagining what animal an expatriate could be associated to.
The Platypus was a wonderful match. Its particularity reflects perfectly what an expat is to me. We all begin our travels defined by our culture and social habits but then, expatriation changes us. We meet new cultures, learn a new way of life, and in the end, we end up being a very different person. Our culture still defines us, but we also evolve through our travels. We end up being difficult to put in a box.
Like a Platypus.
Written by Jacques - 01/06/2010