5 THINGS NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT MOVING ABROAD

If you’re anything like me you have a desire in your heart to see the world. But isn’t it hard? That’s the big question isn’t it. The answer is yes, of course it is. Living abroad can look like one big extended holiday and although it comes with plenty of positives, there are challenges too. I myself have lived away from home since I was 19 and spent 3 of those years living and working abroad. It is a massive part of my life, heck I’m writing this post in a completely different country, living and working here every day! Yes it can be one big learning curve but what I can promise you is it’s SO worth it! Here are 5 things that no one told me before I moved abroad, hope they help you if you’re thinking of taking the leap too! 

1. You Will Miss Your Family and Friends; A Lot  

You will get homesick and that’s okay. No matter how good things can be in your new home, it’s completely normal to miss things about home and feel down sometimes. With the internet, it is comforting to know that your family and friends are only a FaceTime away! I have found this tool super helpful with communicating with people back home and sharing updates and pictures. Home is the place where everything is familiar and it is totally normal to crave that sometimes when everything seems so new, and almost foreign to you. It is encouraging to know that when you do finally get to see your family and friends again, you won’t waste a single second. I find it exhausting when I go back home, there are so many people to see, so much to do and so little time. But again I cherish every moment of it. 

2. You Will Feel Dumb A Lot of the Time 

Now even though I have lived and worked in two english speaking countries, and travelled to countries where english was not a first language, I still felt dumb sometimes in both cases. For example, when cars are driving on the other side of the road and I have to cross the street, I still get confused. The money is different, the slang is new, going to the grocery store is a whole other adventure. The most important thing to note here is that you have to understand going into a new country that you won’t know everything. People will have their own ways of doing things and as a culture you won’t understand it but that’s okay. Just ask questions and embrace the differences. After all, we go abroad to experience the new and leave the old behind so may as well soak in as much as we can right?

3. You Will Have to Become More Organised Than Ever

Now coming from a girl who loves her lists and loves keeping a diary, I mean planning your whole life. As soon as you move abroad you are in control of your plans, your job, your finances, all this can be empowering and scary all at once. I love the freedom moving abroad has given me, the feeling of having “no ties”, the ability to pack up and move on to the next thing if I’m not happy. But please be mindful, think things through, plan your journey and budget weekly. One thing I do is keep a notebook for all the “extra stuff”, not a journal but somewhere to keep the information. Budgeting, writing out plans for the month or next few months ahead, keeping all the contact information I can for jobs and important phone numbers. If your phone dies you might not always have a way to charge it so have a back-up notebook, it’s old school but it works. 

4. Making Friends is Hard 

You are stronger than you think! Even for someone who is super extroverted it can still be hard making friends. I did come across loads of people from staying at hostels and working at a new job but it takes time, you have to be patient. Yes have I found some fellow Canadians I clicked with but the majority of my new friendships were with girls and guys from literally all over the world, not just necessarily from my homeI have friends who I can send a message to and have an invite for a space on their couch anytime. It works both ways, they’re welcome to visit me too and that’s the beauty of travelling friendships. At one point your journeys crossed paths and you were lucky enough to meet so when you meet again you pick up where you left off and create this ongoing relationship where you just get each other. 

Another thing that has made a huge difference in my personal relationships mot just wishing for some good friends and hope they come to me, but going after them. A great tool for this is Meetup. It’s literally a platform that allows you to meet up with like minded people and do something social together. Sounds pretty good right?

My last and final suggestion with this is to get out there and just do things. You might form organic friendships in the process. When I first arrived in the UK I had no job and money was tight but that didn’t stop me from joining the local gym (getting a free trial) and trying out a bunch of their classes. Not only did it keep me physically and mentally in check, but I made a friend in the process. Get out there and JUST DO. 

5. You Become Okay with Being Alone 

I’ll say it again, you are stronger than you think! Being social is great but make time to be in solitude with yourself too. Some of my most memorable times travelling were the moments where I was all alone. Sitting at the beach by myself, taking myself on walks, out for coffee, travelling to a new city and being alone in a hostel room. It can get lonely yes. Although, I find I am able to tune into my thoughts, reconnect with myself and revisit my intentions. Being alone can be scary but I tried my best to never let if keep me from doing the things I set out to do when I moved abroad in the first place. After all, you’ve made it this far and doing things alone is just part of the process. 

Yes, living abroad can be challenging. Yes, sometimes you might hate it and want to come home. Yes you might keep some people in your life and lose others along the way, BUT you are stronger than you think. You left every single thing you knew. The culture, the food, the stability and security, your family, your friends, sometimes even your language. Remember if it was easy, everyone would figure out a way to do it. When you move abroad you don’t have to turn your back on where you’re from, that place is a part of you and every new place can also feel like home too. Sometimes it’s not forever, but look how far you’ve come and how much you’ve changed in the process.

I would love to hear about your experiences abroad! Can you relate? What are the things that you found challenging? Leave a comment below!


Julie xx