Hi my name is Marc and welcome to Srizzil.
Before we get started on this video I wanted to be crystal clear about my intentions behind
it.
Many of us only share the good side of our lives.
That trip to another country, that day at the beach, your child's first steps.
But we don’t like sharing, or to be honest seeing the low lights.
That long layover in the airport where you had to sleep on the floor, the 5 days that
you didn't leave the house or that time that your kid through a tantrum in the store.
I believe this is a big contributor to depression and low self worth.
We're comparing the mundane moments of our lives to the very best moments of out friends
lives.
The Cayman Islands is an amazing place to live, but before you pack your bags here are
a few things the tourism website might not tell you.
Meet mount trashmore, the notorious Grand Cayman dump.
It’s stinky smells can follow you across town and along the most beautiful beaches
in the world.
Nobody can seem to commit to a solid solution to the dump, the consequences of which is
a mountain of trash which continues to grow indefinitely and stink up the central part
of the island.
Finding a job in Cayman is no easy task for expats, Caymanian’s rightfully have first
option to any job if they have the skills, but beyond that the market is really small.
If you’re a neurosurgeon you probably can’t just move to the hospital down the road, if
they need a neurosurgeon they probably already have one.
So you’d have to stay where you are or leave the island.
Accountants for example might have lots of opportunities in audit or fund accounting, but
if you want to do anything else the competition for those jobs is fierce.
And forget trying to change your career, if you don't have experience in something you’re
not going to get hired.
I think this is reason why so many people leave the island, it’s like Survivor here.
Outwit, outlast, outplay.
But the nature of a largely expat population means people are coming and going all the
time.
This is great because new interesting people are coming in from all over the world people who
you can make friends with.
It also means people are leaving on mass too.
Contracts end, people get home sick, and before you know it all your friends are on planes
to different parts of the world.
Again this could be amazing because you have friends all over the world to go and visit.
But seeing them once or twice is never the same as having your friends close by, and
as is the nature of life you lose touch.
This can make people on the island slower to make close friends with new people.
So on this topic there's the very obvious, you miss your family too.
Mosquitoes have been trying to take over Cayman with vigor for many years.
At one point there were so many they were killing the cattle by attacking them on mass.
I even heard a crazy story where a prisoner escaped in the night and then came running
back to the prison because he was being attacked by the mosquitoes.
The solution has been a poison plane.
Basically throw chemicals over the island to try and control the population.
Some conspiracy theorists think this is the cause of cancer in many Caymanians.
Government's been pushing hard into genetically modified mosquito research to try and control
the population that way.
But that’s been met with an outcry because they're trying to play God.
My history with cars on this island has been documented enough, but I can’t make this
video and not mention the nightmare it is to buy a decent car here, never mind to license
it.
I wasn’t sure whether to put this on the good list or the bad, but I think most people
will think this is a downside.
This is a small island, whilst almost everything you need is here, you can’t just run off
to the store to buy a new laptop battery, or some cheap clothes.
My parents had to bring me some clothes from South Africa when they visited, and I had
to do a stopover in Miami to buy clothes too.
Those are the two times I’ve gotten new clothes in two and a half years.
Your clothing items on island are limited and obviously more expensive.
And this is just one example of a common item most people buy.
While you can of course ship things here, you’ll be whacked with a 22% customs duty
as well as shipping costs.
How is this good thing?
Well if you're trying to be frugal and save money then you're not gonna spend $10 on a
T-shirt when the shipping costs are $20 plus 22% customs duty.
Cayman is a small place, you could probably drive around the island in about three hours
and that's only because the speed limits are so low.
Humans love having space to drive out to the country side, or take a hike up the mountains.
There’s not much of that here, and island fever can kick in fast.
If you’re short on cash, or vacation days, you could find yourself going a bit mad.
Personally I think those things are a small price to pay to have the most beautiful beaches
in the world, year round great weather, no income tax, great food and you constantly
get to meet new people from all over the world.
If you like this video give it a thumbs up, hit subscribe and ring that bell, you’ll
be helping a privileged white male from Africa living in paradise and complaining about it.
Do the right thing.