South African Embassy Friends – Over here we live like kings! …
We were based among the rolling lush green hills and mountains of South Korea. My friend from church was from South Africa and taught at a local village Hogwon English school while I was teaching at the local university in a nearby city. She said, “Well let’s get on with it … how about skip down with us to Seoul for a visit. We can stay at my friend’s house from the South African Embassy. So my wife and I said sure and off we went. Seoul is a large metropolis of 10 or so million folks. It is an ultra modern city covered with towering glassy apartments that are quite expensive. But our embassy friend, one of zillions we would meet overseas, lived in a sprawling small mansion with a zillion rooms to spare. It was a fun visit. And she said to us, “Over here we live like kings, but back home we live just like everyone else!” I marvelled at the remark, but it pretty much sums up my life over here overseas.
I thought of entitling this blog, “How I became a multi-millionaire?” But … :), By CPO, From the Far Side of the Planet
I thought of entitling this blog, “How I became a multi-millionaire?” But thought that maybe too precocious? Then thought of a more pragmatic title, “Financial Independence? How to build a nest egg as an international expat living overseas? Frugal necessity helps!” Hmm perhaps both titles are okay seeing there is an element of truth in both headings.
Student Debt – Climbing Out of the Pit
When I first came overseas, I had just finished a Master Degree and had a mountainous student loan. My parents had helped me out with student living costs and I did a lot of side jobs along the way from camp counselor for youths with disabilities to tutoring foreign students learning English, but I still had a sizable debt of around $20,000. I didn’t even have a song to my name …
(What if I said you could get a ticket to virtually ANY OF THE 195 COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD by becoming a CPO … – … And it  is relatively easy … ??? Well that is what this website endeavors to help you to do.)
I remember it well …. getting off the plane in a run-down airport, masses of bicycles swarming the streets, meandering dark ally-ed village like ancient streets and housing, maze like labyrinths of convoluted byways with wafting smells and odours from refuse, cooking or outhouses, coal burning heaters and cookers with smokey haze rising … scenting and coating everything with coal dust … strange foods that surprised with delight and street food with food poisoning … it was a different world for me …
What if I said you could get a ticket to virtually ANY OF THE 195 COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD by becoming a CPO … – … And it  is relatively easy … ??? Well that is what this website endeavors to help you to do.)
I Have a Dream … to the Moon? …
I have always been a bit of a dreamer … when I was 5 years it was like be a garbage-man because they are cool … and they have a cool truck. Hmmm then it was like be an Apollo astronaut ’cause they can go to the moon … I collected all these NASA pictures, made rockets out of toilette paper roles and dreamed of blasting off to other worlds.
Next it was like start a billion dollar business with real estate, stocks and oil …. I had it all planned out meticulously on paper.
(What if I said you could get a ticket to virtually ANY OF THE 195 COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD by becoming a CPO … – … And it  is relatively easy … ??? Well that is what this website endeavors to help you to do.)
By CPO – From the the Far Side of the Planet – Live the Dream, Live the Adventure – Live and Work Internationally – Retire Early, Become Financially Independent and/or Buy an International Holiday House – Be a Light All Over the World