For those who have ever moved to a new city/country

Pacion

Pacion

New Member
How long did it take for you to "settle down" and for the new city/country to start feeling like home aka as your enjoying the new place?

By my reckoning, it takes about a year. But, as usual, would love to hear about others' experiences. :D
 
It took me a about 6 months to settle in when I moved cross country - but I immediately started volunteering, working, dancing, etc, so that made the whole acclimatizing process go a lot quicker. Plus, I'm a bit reclusive by nature, so meeting people/getting new close friends isn't really an issue.
 
That sounds great It's Wonderful, but what if your work schedule is such that you don't have the spare time for leisure activities?
 
My jobs aren't very demanding (heck, I'm only 188)), so I can't really comment on that. Maybe other people have some experiences they'd like to share?
 
been in Egypt for 4 years.. and it tok me 3 years to get used to it..and now that i got used and felt comfy. i am leaving:rolleyes:
 
I've never lived in another country for any significant length of time, but I had what felt like a similar experience a few years back when, because of my husband's job, we moved from the city to a country village for three years.

I'm a city girl born and bred, and to say it was a culture shock is the understatement of the century! :shock: The gossips, the twitching curtains, the-everyone-knows-everyone-else's business...

Plus you had no choice of cinemas, theatres, shops, galleries etc... I had no car, because my husband needed it for work... and my son was only little at the time, and there were no nurseries nearby...

I never got used to it, over the whole three years.

Glad to say I'm back in the city now! :D

Rosa :)
 
I lived in Russia for a year when I was younger, and I got used to it pretty quickly. I don't know if it was becuase I was younger, or because I knew that I was going back to the US after a year. I did have a great time though.
 
i lived in poland for two years in my 20's - i was in the peace corps.

it did take about a year, i would say. but the transition issues for me were mostly about living in such a small town, rather than living abroad. i think i would've had just as hard a time if they'd plonked me in some tiny place in idaho or whatever.
 
It took me probably just over half a year to feel comfortable in the US, but that's mostly because I had to learn the language.
 
redhead said:
It took me probably just over half a year to feel comfortable in the US, but that's mostly because I had to learn the language.
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Learn the language ? What do you mean ? Learn the *american* english or learning english from scratch ?

It took me about 6 months to get used to living in another country (USA) which included learning *american* english. I was used to speak *british* english.

Some cities i lived in, in the USA, i adjusted within 3 months, others took longer. I felt at home quicker after i started dancing and had to move to a new city. Most of the cities i lived in were decent size cities, except when i lived in delaware. Philly was close by so that was not a problem.

Now, having moved back to south africa, it is a big adjustment again. Have to use the *british* english again. Luckily i have an adventurous spirit.....
 
alemana said:
i lived in poland for two years in my 20's - i was in the peace corps.

.
Click to expand...

I'm curious, did you have to learn polish (at least some) or did you get by with english ?
 
cl5814 said:
Learn the language ? What do you mean ? Learn the *american* english or learning english from scratch ?

It took me about 6 months to get used to living in another country (USA) which included learning *american* english. I was used to speak *british* english.

Some cities i lived in, in the USA, i adjusted within 3 months, others took longer. I felt at home quicker after i started dancing and had to move to a new city. Most of the cities i lived in were decent size cities, except when i lived in delaware. Philly was close by so that was not a problem.

Now, having moved back to south africa, it is a big adjustment again. Have to use the *british* english again. Luckily i have an adventurous spirit.....
Click to expand...

Sometimes i wonder if learning a new "accent" can be as challenging as learning a whole new language. I have a colleague who's from SA and he speaks "british" english all his life (i find the accent in SA is still a bit different from the British "British English") - i had such a hard time understanding his accent b/c he speaks quite fast whereas when i talk to people who's English is not their first language, they tend to speak slower.
 
Yeah, the move from city to small town can be a shock! I'm originally from Los Angeles but have spent long periods in London. That wasn't nearly as much of an adjustment as moving from L.A. to a village of 900 in the Mid-West (US). At the time, I had bright red hair and a wardrobe of pretty colorful clothes. No one else dressed that way. A friend I made there, also from a city, said I looked like a bird-of-paradise in a field of daisies! I only lasted two years before I high-tailed it back to California!
 
redhead said:
It took me probably just over half a year to feel comfortable in the US, but that's mostly because I had to learn the language.
Click to expand...

Me too......eventhough I was young enough at 14, I had only basic English (done as a foreign language subject at school). Not nearly enough for me to resume acting, which was my passion at the time :roll:........
 
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