ITP - 40: Teaching Overseas with a Family

Kent: Hey, welcome to the International Teacher Podcast. I’m Kent, the cat guy, and tonight I’m here with Greg.

Greg: I’m Greg, the single guy. It’s good to be back, Kent. I can’t wait for the audience to hear this next guest. We have a very special guest tonight.

Kent: We’re going to call her Sue. She’s special because she is the mom of one of our former guests—our first TCK guest, Julia. Sue and her husband Grant live in Geneva right now. She’s on the show to talk about family overseas, especially from a Canadian perspective, since she’s Canadian and currently living in Switzerland. Hi, Sue. How are you?

Sue: Hi. Thanks so much for having me. I’ve really enjoyed all of your podcasts so far. I’m feeling a bit nervous because I don’t think I’m going to meet the grade—you’ve had so many fantastic guests—but it’s so great to be here. Thanks for having me.

Greg: Our listeners should know that Sue and I have history. She and her husband taught with me in Egypt.

Sue: That’s right.

Greg: We used to wait for the school bus together in the morning. There were about six of us waiting around in Maadi to go to the American school in Cairo. That was back in 2004 and 2005.

Sue: Yes, exactly. I was there in 2004 to 2005, and you were there a little bit longer if I remember correctly.

Greg: Do you remember the number of our bus?

Sue: Oh my gosh… I don’t remember.

Greg: It was 72. A lot of us even had a nickname for that bus.

Kent: Was that a public bus, or just teachers?

Sue: It was provided by the school. Depending on where we lived in Cairo, the bus would come and collect all the teachers. We were all together on the bus in the morning, and at the end of the day we all went home on the same bus.

Greg: We assumed our children could ride the bus with us.

Sue: Yes, we did—but no children were allowed on the school bus. We found that out pretty quickly.

Greg: I even tried talking to the superintendent about it.

Sue: In the beginning, the kids did ride with us sometimes, but eventually they had their own school bus.

Greg: It’s funny looking back. It was such a long bus ride.

Sue: Over an hour.

Greg: What was the worst part of the bus rides for you?

Sue: The car accidents. We would pass horrific accidents all the time. I remember covering my daughters’ eyes because the driving was so intense.

Greg: There were basically no traffic rules. If there were stoplights, they were often ignored.

Sue: And the speed bumps—those massive bumps that would throw you up if you weren’t ready.

Greg: You couldn’t even read or grade papers on the bus.

Sue: No chance. Some people tried, but it wasn’t possible. I would just listen to music or have conversations. And honestly, we were often too drained to do much anyway.

Greg: None of us really had cars either.

Sue: Very few people did, and I would never have wanted to drive there anyway.

Greg: I remember renting a car once to go to the Red Sea. Nobody used headlights at night because they thought it would drain the battery.

Sue: Yes. So you had to drive during the day. At night, it was terrifying.

Greg: Speaking of Cairo, I heard a story that Grant once fell out of a taxi.

Sue: Yes. We relied on taxis for transportation, and they were not exactly in great condition. Sometimes you could see the road through the floor.

We were taking a corner—Greg was there too—and suddenly Grant was halfway out the door because it had swung open. The handle didn’t work properly, and he was just hanging on as we turned.

Greg: Those taxis were wild. Some ran on natural gas. I remember one being started with a screwdriver.

Sue: And sometimes there would be a bare lightbulb hanging from the ceiling instead of a proper light.

Greg: And the drivers didn’t always know where they were going, but they would still say yes.

Sue: Exactly. They would always say yes, even if they had no idea where you wanted to go.

Greg: So going back to family life—you moved from a town of about 4,000 people in Canada to Cairo, which has millions.

Sue: Yes, it was a huge change. We came from a small mountain town and suddenly found ourselves in one of the biggest cities in the world.

Greg: What made you decide to leave Canada and go to Egypt?

Sue: We left Canada with a six-year-old and an eight-year-old. We had been teaching there and had a very comfortable life—a house, a dog, a cat, everything.

But we felt like we needed to do something different. When our dog passed away, it kind of became the moment where we said, “Okay, let’s make a change.”

We went to the Iowa job fair, looked at each other, and thought it would be amazing to live in Cairo. So we took the job.

Greg: What was that conversation like with your kids?

Sue: We sat them down and told them we were moving to Egypt. But at that age, it didn’t really mean anything to them. We could have said we were moving down the street, and they would have reacted the same way—just excited.

Greg: Did you ever arrive and think, “What have we done?”

Sue: I didn’t, but Grant definitely did. He went for a walk shortly after we arrived and came back thinking, “What have we done?” It was overwhelming at first.

But looking back, we wouldn’t change a thing.

Greg: So after Egypt, things didn’t exactly go as planned. You were there about a year and a half, right?

Sue: Yes. We were part of a group of schools, and after about a year and a half, they asked us to move to another location in the Middle East. That wasn’t the right fit for us, and eventually that school shut down, so we found ourselves without jobs.

Greg: So now you’ve got two young kids, you’re overseas, and suddenly you’re out of work. What do you do?

Sue: We were really lucky because we could have gone back to Canada. Our school district had given us a two-year leave of absence, which was unusual but amazing.

Grant had worked there for 19 years, and I had worked for seven, so we had a solid base to return to if needed.

Greg: But you didn’t go back right away.

Sue: No, we didn’t. Even though it was a tough situation, we had really enjoyed being overseas. We knew the Bangkok job fair was coming up, and we had already planned to attend.

So instead of going straight back to Canada permanently, we decided to keep going.

Greg: That’s a big decision.

Sue: It was. We went back to Canada briefly, regrouped, and then headed to Singapore before the Bangkok fair because we had a friend there who was teaching.

We visited schools, got a feel for the place, and then went to the fair.

Greg: Did your kids go with you to Asia?

Sue: No, they stayed with their grandparents while we traveled to Singapore and then Bangkok.

Greg: And then you found jobs mid-year?

Sue: Yes, we were incredibly lucky. A position opened up in Singapore because someone had to leave mid-year. I got the job first, and then due to an increase in student numbers, they created a position for Grant as well.

Greg: That’s amazing timing.

Sue: It really was. We had a very quick turnaround—we went back to Canada, packed up, and then moved straight to Singapore.

Greg: That must have been hectic.

Sue: It was. We basically landed back in Canada, packed everything up, grabbed the girls, and got back on a plane. I started work almost immediately, and Grant started shortly after.

Greg: And Singapore ended up being a long-term home for you.

Sue: Yes, we stayed there for almost 15 years.

Greg: So your kids basically grew up there.

Sue: They did. They went through most of their schooling there and graduated from high school in Singapore.

Greg: That’s incredible.

Greg: Let’s take a quick break to remind listeners how to reach out to us. You can find us on Instagram and Twitter at ITPexpats, or email us at [internationalteacherpodcast@gmail.com](mailto:internationalteacherpodcast@gmail.com). You can also visit our website.

Greg: All right, back to the show.

Greg: I actually visited you in Singapore once. I remember calling you up and saying, “Hey, I’m coming to Singapore,” and you said, “We’re not going to be here.”

Sue: Yes, I remember that. We were traveling.

Greg: You let me stay in your apartment for two weeks, which was amazing. I had such a great time. Singapore is an incredible place—beautiful, but expensive.

Sue: It is expensive, but it’s also a fantastic place to live.

Greg: That experience really highlights one of the best parts of international teaching—you build a network of friends all over the world. You can visit almost any country and know someone there.

Sue: Exactly. That’s one of the biggest benefits. You stay connected to this global community, and it makes travel so much richer.

Kent: After 15 years in Singapore, what made you decide to move on?

Sue: It was a combination of things. Our daughters were now in university in Canada, and our parents were getting older. We were about 30-plus hours of travel away from them, and that started to feel like a lot.

So we decided it was time to move closer to Canada.

Greg: So you were planning to go back to Canada?

Sue: Yes, that was the plan. We had everything arranged, our shipment was already on its way, and we were preparing to return.

Greg: And then something unexpected happened.

Sue: Yes. We saw a last-minute job posting in Switzerland. In Switzerland, you only need to give two months’ notice, so jobs can come up at unusual times.

Grant decided to apply for an athletic director position. He went for the interview and got the job.

Greg: So just like that, Canada turned into Switzerland.

Sue: Exactly. We had to change everything at the last minute. Our belongings were already in transit to Canada, so we had to redirect the shipment to Switzerland.

Greg: That sounds like a logistical nightmare.

Sue: It was definitely complicated, but it worked out. You just have to be flexible in this lifestyle.

Greg: That’s a perfect example of how unpredictable international teaching can be.

Sue: Yes, and that’s something we’ve learned over the years—you just go with it.

Greg: That’s why we wanted to have you on the show. It’s important for listeners to hear from experienced teaching couples who have navigated all these changes.

Sue: Things don’t always go according to plan, but that’s part of the experience.

Greg: And sometimes you wake up in a completely different country with a new job.

Sue: That’s very true.

Greg: Do you think your kids enjoyed that lifestyle overall?

Sue: I think so, but it also came with challenges. When we left Singapore, which they considered home, it was difficult for them because they didn’t really get closure.

We made the decision as parents, and while they came back to say goodbye, it was still a quick transition.

Greg: That must have been tough.

Sue: Yes, but they’re very resilient. That’s something international kids develop over time.

Greg: Let’s talk about going back to Canada for a second. Did your daughters feel Canadian when they returned?

Sue: That’s a really interesting question. When they went back to Canada for university, it was actually quite difficult. They had Canadian passports, but they didn’t really feel Canadian.

Greg: That’s the TCK experience.

Sue: Exactly. I remember when Julia was filling out university applications, there was actually a box that said “TCK.” She was so excited—she said, “There’s a box for me.”

Greg: That’s amazing.

Sue: It really helped her identify who she was. It’s not about labeling in a negative way—it’s about understanding your experience and where you fit.

Greg: And that identity is complex.

Sue: Very much so. It’s shaped by your passport country, your host country, and your family background. All of those come together.

Greg: One thing we haven’t talked about yet is travel. You mentioned earlier that you didn’t always go back to Canada during holidays.

Sue: Yes, it was just too far and too expensive to go back every year, especially in the early days.

Instead, we traveled around Southeast Asia. Singapore is a great hub for travel, so we were able to visit many different countries with our kids.

Greg: That’s a huge benefit.

Sue: It really is. A lot of people wait until retirement to travel, but we were able to do it with our children while they were growing up.

Greg: And that must have had a big impact on them.

Sue: Absolutely. It’s one of the things we value most about our experience. They’ve seen so many different cultures, and I think it’s made them more open-minded and adaptable.

Kent: That’s something Greg and I can’t really speak to, but it’s a huge advantage for kids.

Sue: Yes, it really shapes how they see the world.

Greg: Let’s switch gears a bit. We always ask our guests—do you have a police or customs story?

Sue: I knew that question was coming. I don’t have anything dramatic, but your earlier story about guards reminded me of something.

In Cairo, there were guards stationed all over the place, often sitting in small huts. One of them used to fall asleep regularly, and Grant went over to talk to him about his gun.

The guard admitted there were no bullets in it.

Greg: That sounds about right.

Sue: It was reassuring and concerning at the same time.

Greg: That’s Egypt in a nutshell.

Kent: That’s a great story.

Greg: Before we wrap up, what advice would you give to families thinking about going overseas?

Sue: Do it. It really is one of the best decisions we ever made.

Having a strong teaching background helped us a lot—we were well prepared before we went overseas.

But beyond that, you need to be flexible, resilient, and have a sense of humor. Things won’t always go as planned, but that’s part of the experience.

Greg: That’s great advice.

Sue: And if people are thinking about going overseas with kids, we’re always happy to talk about that. It’s something we don’t see as often, but it can be an incredible experience.

Greg: That’s fantastic. We’ll definitely pass along any questions to you.

Sue: That sounds great.

Greg: Sue, thank you so much for joining us. This has been a great conversation.

Sue: Thank you so much for having me. It’s been really fun.

Kent: And for everyone listening, we’ll see you next time on the International Teacher Podcast.

Greg: Last stop—Bus 72.