Are Repats Who Leave Latin America Losers?

As part of a Telegram chat for foreigners living in Latin America…

Some odd months ago, the group got talking about folks who left Latin America due to the whole covid situation.

With lockdowns being put in place and all the other warning signs…

People were freaking out I suppose and planning their exit back to their home countries.

Shit, even my own family was freaking out!

With my sister calling me up warning me to come back home…

And we ended up getting into an argument and we didn’t talk again for maybe 9 months or some shit.

Granted, we don’t talk much anyway since we tend to live separate lives but still…

Either way, some in the chat were like “oh, how weak they are! If you can’t stand living here during Covid, you couldn’t handle life down here long enough anyway.”

Or something like that – the sentiment was the same.

That you have to be weak if you couldn’t stand living down here during Covid times…

And also a hint of a belief that sees repats or those who leave Latin America as “failures.”

Which, to be honest, is a sentiment I have heard from a few others.

Not too many people though…

I don’t get talking with other gringos about this topic ever…

Especially as I don’t know too many to begin with.

But there is a sentiment out there that sees repats as failures.

Because they weren’t “tough” enough to make it in Latin America?

Not sophisticated enough to know how to make it work down here?

Something along those lines…

I got thinking about this subject just now and I figured I might as well throw down all of my thoughts on the subject below.

Failures or Life Changes?

I have a friend of mine named Bryan…

Who has been living in Mexico City for as long as I have.

About 4 years almost at this point.

Not a decade for sure but more than a typical tourist.

Anyway, Bryan is a young guy who just wanted 3 things living in Mexico City:

• See a new country
• Learn a new language
• Fuck hot bitches

Did he do all of those things?

Well, he did see a new country and he does speak Spanish…

Fuck hot bitches?

I assume so since he sure liked talking up a good deal about his latest conquests all the time….

“I just fucked a 10 broooooooooo….so hot bro…….”

Anyway, the goals have been achieved!

Did all 3 things.

So he plans on leaving Mexico City someday soon enough and go back to a life in the US.

He also wants to have children someday and couldn’t see himself raising them in the US.

Fair enough.

We all go through life changes.

So I don’t see repats as failures.

Even if you as a repat don’t have a life change that makes you want to go back home…

Be it raise children up in the US…

Or for business reasons….

Or because you want to take care of your aging parents or at least spend more time with them before they die…

Whatever the reason!

I feel a lot of people who say this are too immature usually to realize the life changes that can happen to you.

Which would make you move back someday.

I had an old Aunt and Uncle who lived most of their lives abroad…

In specifically the Soviet Union and Saudi Arabia.

They moved back to Iowa in the last decade or so of their lives because they had gotten old and wanted to be with family basically in their final years.

Suffice to say, Uncle William wasn’t interested in “fucking the bitches” like Bryan was.

Different life stage perhaps?

Because ultimately, for most of us, there is life beyond sex and travel.

I’ll admit that I’ve had similar thoughts when it comes to my life abroad.

In that the more time I spend down here…

The less time I have with my parents in my life.

I know there will come a day when they die.

And I know damn well I will wish they were still in my life.

My mom does.

She visits the grave of her dad every so often from what I know.

Just something to think about.

Maybe you want to spend more time with family before they pass away…

Or perhaps you want to raise family up there with kids and all.

Or for business or financial reasons or whatever.

Life ain’t just fucking chicks and partying.

And so I don’t see repats as “weak” or “failures” because the life stage that the expat was in when he started was likely very different from the life stage he is in after becoming a repat.

On top of that, let’s say the life stage is the same.

Like Bryan.

He’s still fairly young…

Only 4 years older since he started life down here.

Even if you straight up never changed whatsoever in your time down here…

But you still decide you want to move back home because you had your fun and got tired of it…

No major life changes or nothing…

That’s cool!

Nothing wrong with that.

You ain’t a failure.

So it’s all a bit retarded to say they are.

It’s just people talking shit to talk shit.

The Badge

Second, I feel some people say this shit about repats being a failure in part because of the whole “badge” thing.

Like some expats will trip over themselves over how much time and experience they have here versus others.

Like a seniority thing or some shit.

Sometimes I wonder if expats trip over themselves regarding this because they need some justification to tell themselves for why they continue to live down here…

So it’s like “oh, well, I achieved some shit because I lived in a place most people back home consider to be a shit hole for such a longer period than most!!”

And if you leave and go back home…

“Man, you some beta ass loser type shit!”

Or whatever their logic is.

In part, I feel this comes into their calculations at times.

This is a bit similar to the next thing that comes to mind….

Insecurity

Like I said, I feel some don’t have a real reason for why they live down here.

Outside of maybe cheaper prostitutes…

And just a general “getting used to life down here” that you don’t feel like shaking the boat and relocating up north.

Which is cool and everything if you are simply comfortable here and don’t feel like going back home.

But you do have some gringos who have insecurities about their own lives back home when they left…

Where basically they left because “American women suck” or whatever else…

Because Jessica wouldn’t fuck him or whoever…

And so to see a gringo expat become a repat…

Is to say to them “actually, you are wrong, life back home is better and I’m going back.”

Which, to those who were so insecure about life back home that they relocated down south of the border…

That must be like a slap to the face.

Like maybe evidence that life back home isn’t so bad if you have people going back?

“Was I wrong in my life decision to make the expat life here in Latin America?”

“No, no, those who become repats…they were weak! I’m strong! Now, now….Karla mi amor….cuanto cuesta el servicio de sexo?”

Anyway, that’s just a theory I have after observing some folks making this criticisms of repats and trying to get where they come from.

The Reverse

It’s funny.

You got folks talking shit about expats who just made the move south of the border.

“Oh, they are losers! They couldn’t make it in the US! So they left to live in Colombia!”

It’s like shit how do we win here?

We losers if we move south and we losers if we move north.

Well fuck you all I do what I want!

Just funny to think how expats say the same shit about repats when they are insecure about locals and folks back home saying the same shit about them.

Final Verdict: Losers?

So are repats failures?

Nah, they cool.

The title of this article is just meant to be provocative.

It don’t mean nothing.

Repats are as cool as expats.

So no issue.

Anyway, if you got any comments or questions relevant to the topic, drop them below in the comment section.

And follow my Twitter here.

Thanks for reading.

Best regards,

Matt