Heartwarming as usual. Relatable in some ways, not so much in others, but there's one thing I'm 100% with you on: migrant life, in all its different forms, is overwhelming.
I struggled in Amsterdam because I didn't have any friends of my own, and I still wasn't allowed to work. My new husband had to support both of us, and contrary to the general belief in Bulgaria, gold wasn't just lying around on the streets.
I wandered the crowded, windy streets of Amsterdam, trying very hard not to get hit by a bike, thinking that I didn't see any familiar faces and that I was a total stranger there. It took me a long time (3 three years) o make my first real Dutch friend, and another three years to make my second. These are two women I will be forever grateful to, and with whom I still have a strong friendship, even though I don't live in the Netherlands anymore.
I never really kept a diary because I was afraid I would be too honest... if that makes any sense. In 2020, I went through a very difficult life crisis and, for a while, wrote a very personal blog (not on Substack) . It was a sort of ranting. But once the skies cleared, I seemed to abandon it.
When I reread some of those early posts, I can see how much pain I was pouring out. And, to be honest, I don't really want to go back to them. My daughter told me that ranting helps, and it clearly did back then. Take care, looking forward for the next post :-)
Heartwarming as usual. Relatable in some ways, not so much in others, but there's one thing I'm 100% with you on: migrant life, in all its different forms, is overwhelming.
I struggled in Amsterdam because I didn't have any friends of my own, and I still wasn't allowed to work. My new husband had to support both of us, and contrary to the general belief in Bulgaria, gold wasn't just lying around on the streets.
I wandered the crowded, windy streets of Amsterdam, trying very hard not to get hit by a bike, thinking that I didn't see any familiar faces and that I was a total stranger there. It took me a long time (3 three years) o make my first real Dutch friend, and another three years to make my second. These are two women I will be forever grateful to, and with whom I still have a strong friendship, even though I don't live in the Netherlands anymore.
Oh how I would have loved to read a story of those initial years from you! Maybe there are some diary entries to translate 😏
I never really kept a diary because I was afraid I would be too honest... if that makes any sense. In 2020, I went through a very difficult life crisis and, for a while, wrote a very personal blog (not on Substack) . It was a sort of ranting. But once the skies cleared, I seemed to abandon it.
When I reread some of those early posts, I can see how much pain I was pouring out. And, to be honest, I don't really want to go back to them. My daughter told me that ranting helps, and it clearly did back then. Take care, looking forward for the next post :-)