What Made Me Want to Live in Different Countries?
Confessions of Country Hopping Expat
My name is Silvia and I come from Slovakia (I just realized it rhymes). If you ask yourself where Slovakia is, well I was taught that geographically it should be Central Europe, but we are usually told we are Eastern Europeans, sometimes Russians! And yes, it used to be Czechoslovakia before but now we have been separated already for some time — Czech Republic and Slovakia. I have stopped correcting people or minding it at all, too much energy spent with no result.
I was born in a small town in the eastern part of Slovakia, surrounded by nature, forests, lakes, rivers, mountains and castles. Fairytale! There are around 50 000 people living in my hometown. My childhood was great but the older I was the more I started to realize I needed much more than this. Although it is a nice place with fresh air and kind people but lack of social activities, events and job opportunities has been causing migration of young, ambitious adults chasing their own dreams. And this brings me to my story.
Prague — Czech Republic
Choosing university was easy. I knew I wanted to leave Slovakia and study in Prague, a capital city of Czech Republic.
Motivation
Let’s be honest. Although education system in Slovakia has been getting better recently but in many cases practice and theory don’t go hand in hand. After some research done, I have decided to leave my hometown, move to Prague and study international relations and languages.
Getting Ready
Except packing all my things into few suitcases, I was not preparing myself for anything special. At the end, it is just a neighboring country, right? So, I bought a train ticket and started a life that became packable in 2 suitcases.
Student Life in Prague
As Slovakia and Czech Republic used to be one country, I had friends and there was theoretically no language barrier — Slovak and Czech language are almost the same (for those who are interested in knowing more, you can find some information here), the culture shock was not present. I just sometimes couldn’t get rid of the feeling that we were so similar yet so different. Many times, I faced people who didn’t understand me and asked me to speak slowly, repeat it a few more times or use Czech words instead. I remember that I asked myself: “If we speak almost identical languages and we still have troubles to understand each other, how is it going to be in a foreign country?” Sure enough, I would come to find out very soon.
Forges-les-Eaux — France
I started to learn French since I was in primary school. I was a student of a bilingual class so English and French became a part of my everyday life. It has always fascinated me to see how languages and culture exchange can (dis)connect individuals. As my university allowed students to take their exams before official exam period and to start following semester later, I took this chance. After my first year I decided to go to France and live with a French family as an au pair (young person who stays with a host family, looks after kids and gets free boarding and pocket money in return). I thought it was an amazing idea!
Motivation
I was a 19 years old girl with a naïve view of life wearing pink glasses and I knew world out there is not so perfect as I imagined it could be. I wanted to become more open and step out of my comfort zone, travel, improve my language skills and challenge myself.
Getting ready
I chose to stay 6 months and I felt more excited than worried about going to live with strangers. I was trying to review all my French, buy some presents for them and that was pretty much it. Aurevoir Slovakia!
Vive la France
It was hard. It was so hard that I was crying first three weeks almost every day. Literally crying my heart out at nights. I felt bad, lonely, not being understood, isolated, overwhelmed. The host kid didn’t want to accept me, her moods were changing like the weather, I struggled to understand their French and they struggled to understand me. They ate too late and so much that I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t wear tights because that was not “in” in their town, drinking a hot tea in summer was so unusual for them that they made a lot of comments about it. I didn’t have any days off and I didn’t get to know a single young person whom I could call a “friend” for the whole stay.
One day I woke up and I knew that if I didn’t change my attitude, I would not survive there. So, I changed. I embraced the fact that I didn’t understand some words, that host kid was a bit spoilt, that they laughed at my accent. I accepted their habits. Step by step I had started to discover that they were nice and wanted to make me feel better. My French improved thanks to their patience and kid got to love me at the end.
After I came back from France I already started to think about where I could go the following year. Hello USA!
Salt Lake City — Utah, USA
When I heard about work and travel program in USA, I just had to apply for it. Working in USA for few months and then getting an extra month for traveling? Who wouldn’t go?
Motivation
It was clear — travel and meet new people. Explore new things. And have fun, lots of fun!
Getting ready
I was studying hard so that I could pass all my university exams before the official exam period started and could leave for the best couple of months in my life. Visa, flight tickets, light suitcase ready for all those clothes I would buy. See you later alligator!
Living My American Dream
My 3 friends joined this program with me and we shared one apartment. Working in an amusement park food stand was harder than I expected. 14 hours shifts, standing the whole day and preparing burgers in that Utah summer heat with just few fans above was exhausting. But I enjoyed every single moment of it, visited so many amazing places and met interesting people that I am still in touch with. Culture shock was present but in a good way. Perfect houses with perfect backyards, super clean streets, smiling people with perfect white teeth willing to help you. When I got back to Prague, I was not able to get back to my student life for few months. Everything was so depressing with grumpy people. I knew I wouldn’t have stayed long at the same place.
Shanghai — China
One part of my master studies in Prague was to choose a minor specialization which could be anything that was taught at my university. They had just opened “Chinese Studies” and it immediately got my attention. “Asia! I haven’t been there yet! Yes, let’s do this after I graduate from university!”
Motivation
Chinese! I wanted to learn Chinese, stay 1 year and go back to Europe. Well, my plans changed.
Getting ready
This time I was scared and nervous. I tried to gain as much knowledge and information about China as I could. I talked to my classmates and teachers who lived in China for some time. I had started to learn how to read pinyin, I was aware of a huge culture difference and I still remember those butterflies in my stomach when I proceeded to the immigration at the airport.
Love and Hate Relationship
I theoretically knew a lot about China, Chinese people and culture but the reality still hit me…
I was studying Chinese at ECNU in Shanghai during my first year and my classmates became my family in China. We laughed and cried together, missed our countries and worked hard on our Chinese which was improving rapidly.
Now it has been 3 years since I arrived in Shanghai and I love it and hate it at the same time (probably more love as I am still here). Those who ever lived in China might know what I am talking about.
One day, I wake up admiring Shanghai beauty and its variety, smiling at old grandmas and grandpas practicing tai chi in the parks, not minding millions of people and their different habits. And then, one day, I wake up not able to inhale deeply because of heavy air pollution, feeling furious about ignorance and careless behavior, surrounded by hundreds of people but still feeling so empty as none of them has a second in their busy lives, to show you that you are welcome here.
Living in different countries has changed me. I have faced the situations that I would not be able to deal with before, but I am mastering them now. I meet amazing people that have shaped who I am today. It made me stronger, braver and happier.
At the end, I have just one thing to say — Don’t be scared to go and see things with your own eyes. Learn foreign languages, talk to people, travel, share and accept. You will get to know others but also connect with yourself and find out what you want from life.
Namaste!
Silvia
I am a young passionate professional living in Shanghai and working for a language learning app.
