Washington, April 9 (IANS): Canada has been rated the friendliest country in the world for expatriates by Forbes magazine, while the Netherlands and India are rated among the lowest scorers overall.
The US is rated fourth after Canada, Bermuda and South Africa by the US magazine which looked at the results of a recent HSBC Bank International's Expat Explorer survey in four categories. These are the countries where it's easiest to befriend locals, learn the language, fit into the new culture and integrate into the community. India's rank was not given by Forbes.
But "day-to-day life in India is challenging", noted HSBC survey respondent Naomi Hattaway, a homemaker from the US who lives with her family in New Delhi.
"The simple existence is challenging. It is difficult to be so far away from family and friends and frustrating at times to feel as if you're nomads in a country that has adopted you, yet will never quite feel like home."
Still, she was quoted as saying, for the most part, her experience has been pleasant.
Canada was most welcoming for the second year in a row; more than half of survey-takers there said they'd made friends with locals.
In the case of US, the results of the survey suggest that ease of learning the local language and adapting to the local culture are areas in which the US fares well as an expat destination - despite low scores in organising finances and health care.
Canada, Bermuda and South Africa were helped to the top of the list because more than 80 percent of the expats surveyed there say they are native English speakers.
The top ten friendly nations were: Canada, Bermuda, South Africa, US, Australia, Spain, France, Britain, Malaysia and Germany.
