My husband Rick and I are retired professionals and US Citizens. Smudge is our, also retired, domestic (now international) kitty. In May of 2020, the three of us packed up and departed from our “forever” home in the idyllic Southwestern corner of Utah for our next and last (?) “forever” home, a “penthouse” condo on Grand Cayman in The Cayman Islands. Apparently, even though we are now in the latter half of our 60s, we still aspire to the concept of YOLO — so go for it!
Our adventure started with a 10-day road trip across the United States with a cat, a topic you can read more about from Smudge’s perspective . . . to an anticipated short term stay in Florida while our new home was being completed. With COVID and construction delays, our time in Florida extended to nearly a year. That’s when we started to learn the concept of “Cayman Island Time”. Eleven months spent waiting for our new life to begin was too long. During our last chapter in the US, all three of us relied on flexibility, adaptability, and resiliency.
Friends and Family assumed that our “adventure” ended when we finally arrived in “paradise” on Grand Cayman May 2, 2021 – however it had truly just begun. It became clear that it was time to open the eyes of others to our lives as expatriates by sharing our experiences through “The Expatriate Baker”.
This site is mostly about the challenges and pleasures of transitioning and adapting to permanent residency, as well as day-to-day life on these Islands as a US Expatriate – retired or not. Smudge has had her challenges and pleasures as well, which she will share. There will be frequent comparisons made between our current life on Grand Cayman to our former life in the US.
Oh, and the “Baker” part is because my life-long passion (well, at least for the past 60 years of it) has been baking, plus Rick and I are dedicated “Foodies” as well as “Wine Enthusiasts.” You will see those topics here as well. Come join our adventure!
