Remember that no matter what a country or city, it does not make you who you are. You do! So, if you are feeling odd (which, yes, can occur on occasion when somewhere new) why not bring some of your old life back into where you are now?
Missing Food?
See if you can find a restaurant
Going to Europe from the US my Junior/Senior year of College (it’s so complicated to say which one, because I graduated within 3 years), I was dearly missing Mexican food (technically TexMex). Luckily in my town we had two Mexican places, which weren’t very good, but also while travelling I was able to go visit Chipotle in Paris! Mmmm. (One my boyfriend’s birthday surprises!)
Look for the specialty section in your grocery store
I grew up with two cultures, so often I would crave something my grandmother (or in German, Oma) would make that I couldn’t normally get my hands on. Having a German background in the US is common, however finding food is difficult. Some stores have speciality “World” sections where you can find things that might be popular in that country as well. But if this doesn’t work, you could stumble upon a few things while shopping elsewhere. For me, this meant going with my parents to Polish stores to find those few European things that they stocked. (To be clear; Polish and German are separate cultures, but sometimes they may have similar food or traditions. Lucky for me!)
Look for it!
Over time, my friends and I made a tradition of trying new foods, and part of that was visiting Asian supermarkets. And while going to restaurants and finding food in specialty sections of our normal grocery stores definitely gave me a taste of what I was missing (Bubble Tea), I really wanted to find somewhere where I could go to find what I wanted. With a quick google search, yay!, I found a Japanese/Korean supermarket, a similar idea to the Polish market above, and plan to go very soon! 🙂
Missing Something? See if it can be sent!
Sometimes you might not be able to find something, it might be because it’s not popular where you are, or it might have trade restrictions. (Yes! Now we’re talking technicalities!) Tell your parents and/or friends about what you might be missing and you might one day find it on your doorstep. Surprise! Or if you’re lucky your loved ones, or crazies ;), might just have a sneaky suspicion that something might be missing from your life and/or diet.
Also, don’t forget to ask around!
This is one of the best ways to not only learn something, but also chat with some people… because, yeah, sometimes we’d rather avoid doing so… but you never know. You might make a new friend, or learn about a cool English Strore. (Hello Marks and Spencers! You’re like my Trader Joes away from home!
Is there something you did that you don’t do now? Teach, do, live it.
Push yourself
I was really into a health kick before my semester in Germany, so I wanted to take ample advantage of the Natural food stores. One day I finally decided to go into the mom and pop stores and buy Chia seeds, which my best friend had gotten me into about a year before. Yes, it was pretty expensive. (It was newer in Germany) But two years later I still have it… because I like to use it sparingly… and it calms me, makes me think of one of my best friends (Hi Rach!), and sometimes gets me in the mood to work out.
Introduce it to your friends!
Really miss watching movies with your friends, or even having tea parties? (I know I’m weird.) See who you know might be interested and start a new thing with them, I can’t say it will be super easy, but I can say you’re definitely going to become closer to the people around you! I can’t say how happy I was to go get sushi with the girls in my German marketing course. Not only had I missed going out with friends, but I was also so happy to get the time to chat with them! They became such amazing friends, even though we only saw each other once a week in class. I will also always be forever grateful to them for including me!
Go out and see what’s around you.
Maybe you haven’t realized what all there is around you! Walk around on your own, find something you might be into, get lost in a shop, or even just see what resources exist where you are. Get a tandem partner if you’re in a foreign country!
Get a Schedule
Finally go outside, start your day with tea, hot cocoa, or even a coffee, make a list of what you need to do, or clean (No!!! This is so not for me :/). It might finally get you out of your rut!
I’d love to hear your comments, experiences, and add ons. Plus let me know what you’d be interested in next or ask me something! Don’t forget, we’re also on Facebook!
Great tips. I’ll be moving away from home so I could definitely use some of this advice
Hi Samantha, thank you. If you ever need advice or want me to add anything let me know. Glad to help!
I think the time it takes to make you feel at home in a certain place is not as fast as you wish it to be. However, I reckon the food and the companies would make it ease your homesickness. Like myself, I always start with cooking my own food which makes me feel home, and then make new friends. The process would normally take more than 1 month for me but once you start having friends, you will start feeling more home at where you are.
Angela, I completely agree!
It’s not always easy when you go somewhere different, but the food route is always an easy way to go if you can’t really control your surroundings or haven’t found many friends when you first arrive.
Love the advice – definitely solid. You could add “don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself”!. I ended up meeting my best friend abroad by randomly going up to her and saying very awkwardly, “I have no friends. You seem nice. Can I give you my number?” And she actually called!
Hey you know what they say, you never know unless you try!
And if you miss desserts, there’s always buzzfeed and tasty 😉. Jokes aside, really great start to your blog, looking forward to learning more through your travel experiences and adventures.
Oh definitely! I love getting recipes. Let me know if there is anything you like or want me to go further into. Glad to share!