When I was preparing to move to Serbia, I knew I wanted to approach it with the mindset of complete and total openness. I wanted to feel all of it – the highs and the lows and everything in between. I suppose it was my way of managing the uncertainty of such a major life change. It has only been a year so far, yet living abroad has changed me in such a profound way. Here are some realizations I had living abroad in belgrade:
Homesickness is real
I knew at some point I would get homesick, yet I wasn’t sure what to expect when it finally happened. When it finally happened, I definitely was not lying in bed crying into my pillow. Nooooo, definitely not. Honestly, aside from an occasional cry (who doesn’t feel better after a good cry?), what I missed most were things I never thought twice about before – ranch dressing, Kraft mac & cheese, and Glacier Freeze flavored Gatorade. Thankfully, I have since found places that remind me of home like Billy’s Pizza Tavern, an American style pizza joint that has a few locations in Belgrade. It’s the only place so far I’ve been able to find proper ranch dressing, and I make sure to treat myself to places like these when the homesickness kicks in.
Feeling foreign abroad and at home
Feeling foreign in Serbia was obvious. What caught me by surprise was feeling foreign in my home country. After returning from the US about 8 months after I left, I realized that I had developed another identity. This new identity had formed a new mindset and lifestyle with a new community I now shared my life with. From the lens of this alternate identity, I had also realized I had become an outside viewer rather than a participant of events happening back home. It made me feel guilty for leaving everything behind and guilty for not being more grateful for what I have been given living abroad. Though this mixture of identities can be incredibly confusing and uncomfortable for me, I can’t help but feel that these “hard things” are good. It’s forced me to grow and become a more well-rounded person as a result.
I still think things are expensive
According to the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, the median net salary is about 600 Euros monthly. I should mention that outside of Belgrade, the median is much, much lower. Services and some products tend to be cheaper, however, it’s not straight across the board. The price of butter, for example, is more expensive in Belgrade than it is in most other countries in Europe and places in the US, and if you’re in the market for a pair of Nike running shoes, be ready to pay almost double here. No country is perfect, but I’ve recognized that by being born an American, I was inherently given a level of privilege, access, and convenience that only became more and more apparent in almost everything I did living and traveling abroad.
The art of noticing
As some may know, I was born and raised in California in the heart of the Silicon Valley. It’s home to the largest global companies such as Apple, Google, and Facebook. It’s a fast-paced life and totally normal to knowingly, or unknowingly, spend most of our time putting in long hours at work. We value speed and convenience so that we can get on with the next task of our stressful, busy day. When I lived in the US, it was common to coordinate coffee with friends a month or so out in advance due to our busy schedules. However, my pace of life here is much slower, and it’s forced me to slow down and be more present. I’ve grown into this art of noticing – noticing the crisp air after the rain, the euphoria that comes over people when a classic Serbian song starts to play, and the joy that can come through the simple things, like sipping coffee with a loved one by the Danube River. In a world where we are bombarded by endless sources of information, and the irony of being more connected than ever yet as lonely as ever, I believe that this “art of noticing” has been a way for me to disconnect and live a happier more fulfilled life, grateful for each day and the moments that happen within them.