What it’s really like to move abroad.

Things I miss about the UK: tea, normal adverts (I’ve seen adverts for viagra in the gym before..), the word ‘mum’ rather than ‘mom’, the letter ‘u’ in various words (like colour, favourite, etc.). So here’s a pretty honest, but brief, look at what it was really like to pack up and move across the Atlantic ocean.

I decided to move to the US almost on a bit of a whim. I’d met someone at a saxophone reunion at my old university who had studied for her Master’s degree out here. I was 19, didn’t know what I was going to do when I graduated in a year’s time and thought “why not, I’ll give that a whirl”. I emailed my saxophone teacher the next day and she started to put me into contact with various people.

During my first week (I arrived in late August), all I can remember was that it was hot and I was jet-lagged. I cried quite a lot. It was my second proper trip on a plane, my first time out of Europe, my first time being jet-lagged and it was just plain weird. I spent the first few nights in a hotel room with my dad while we attempted to sort out my room & figure out what was going on. I also had to set up a bank account, a phone and so much more. I was sort of naive going into it, I knew I had some impressive stuff to sort, but I didn’t know quite how much was coming my way! That was probably the most challenging thing about the whole move, to be honest..

My top tips for anyone thinking about moving country..?

Just do it. It might be rough for a bit, but you grow so much as a person. Try not to be unprepared for what is to come too. Right now, I’m looking at moving country again in about a year’s time, but I know what I need to do to make that happen. I’m already researching finances, visa applications and more, and this is something I wish I had done before deciding to try for America.