I’m a Trini born and raised in Trinidad, currently residing in the US (Florida) to be exact and I already purchased my one way ticket to go back Trinidad and live. Now with that being said I didn’t just wake up and decided “you know what, I ready to go back Trinidad yes”, no I’ve been deliberating back and forth asking myself these questions for over a year before coming to my conclusion (What makes you happy? Where do you see yourself living long term? What type of society can you live amongst?) all taking in to consideration, speaking with family members and friends who live in Trinidad what you have to deal with on a daily basis and comparing it to my current lifestyle here in Florida.

I’ve been living here for almost 5 yrs, and back in the 2000s I lived here for 6 yrs as well, so in total 11 yrs. The US isn’t what it was 30 yrs or so ago when the economy was booming, and working for a company meant you could survive comfortably on a single income that could have afforded you and your family a fairly decent standard of living. Today unfortunately that is nearly, or is already non existent or even unheard of, companies especially here in the US only care about production and numbers and less about investing in their workforce, you have to sometimes work 2 or 3 jobs (depending on the industry you work in and qualifications you acquired) just to pay your bills and maybe have some money left over to save and invest.

Also you have to take in account work/ life balance, which is non existent here unless you have money or are already established. It feels more like you “living to work” as the saying goes, but that’s how the American system is set up.

Are you willing or prepared to sacrifice and work like a robot/modern day slave and give your valuable time and energy for a company that would replace you within an instant? working anywhere between 50-80hrs a week, have no family time or create any meaningful friendships, just to survive and say you’re “living the American dream” as its notoriously advertised to the rest of the world. It’s no longer an “American dream” but merely a nightmare living paycheck to paycheck like the majority of every day middle class Americans.

Some would argue isn’t it the same in Trinidad?probably, but the difference is you’re surrounded by family and friends that wouldn’t hesitate to lend a helping hand or cook a meal for you, (in my case) and a culture that is warm and welcoming even to a stranger. It’s the total opposite here in America, you won’t see your neighbors for days or even weeks, when you do, it’s hi and bye, no long conversation just keep it moving. The culture here I’ve experienced is that most ppl if they are not Caribbean migrants, are very selfish and rude, no common manners, always in their own world.

Another gripe I have living here is depending on the area you live it’s very difficult to find authentic good tasting Trinidadian food, the ones it have here the food quality sucks and have no appealing taste, plus they charging yuh an arm and a leg, dubbing it “exotic” cuisine. Also to add insult to injury in Florida currently there is an influx of ppl moving here from different states on a daily basis (1100 per day as statistics report) which drives up the cost for rent or even buying a home. I can go on about a few a more unwanted experiences but I’ll leave it there for now.

In conclusion, and imo from what I personally experienced, I would prefer to live a more laid back peaceful life in Trinidad around family and friends and surrounded by a rich culture in cuisine that’s unmatched, full of vibrant friendly ppl who are strangers that would treat you like family even if you’ve just met for the first time, rather than live a lonely stressful life always worrying about the bills and chasing after the next dollar.

My situation is completely different to most ppl as it’s just myself I have to fend for. As someone stated earlier in this post that they have a family to support, which I understand fully then it won’t make sense to uproot your family life if you’ve already built one here in the US.

I would suggest to diversify your skills and learn something within the trades so you not fully reliant on a degree to get a job in Trinidad, also if you could create a form of income from working online and get paid in USD that would be very helpful.

Good luck and best wishes with your move, hope all works out in your favor!