Learning to Walk
Starting over in a new unfamiliar country is a challenge. I love challenges, and usually, I do pretty well. However, I never realized how much I was at an advantage due to being an EU citizen living in another EU-country. Now, I am in Russia – and gone are all those advantages.
Have you ever watched a toddler learn to walk? They try very hard; they fall and get up again, and maybe sometimes there are some tears or they cry, but that is part of life, isn’t it? But then, did you ever need to watch an adult relearn how to walk after an accident or illness? Even with motivation and love in your heart, it is hard to watch. Why is that? The toddler also struggles, the toddler also falls, the toddler also cries, but as I said before, we consider it a normal part of life. Relearning to walk as an adult is another matter. And we can relate to the pain, struggle, and frustration. That is why it hurts.
Starting over, I feel a bit like an adult needing to learn to walk again. It is painful.
Why is Russia different?
Why do I have to learn to walk again – in a figure of speech? Well – let’s talk about the two parts of my life.
Business
As you may or may not know, I am a communication coach for German as a foreign language, and I work online only. This made it possible to bring my work with me to Russia. I was not aware of how different business could be. I had heard about cultural differences influencing business relationships, but I never imagined that book-keeping could be done differently. After all, it is mainly math – or so I thought. The differences, like what a (legal) contract is or how accounting and how banking are done, are surprising and confusing. And you ask yourself: WHY?
Well, because it is another country, with another history and different circumstances.
Still, it surprised me to see such results in different accounting (for example). You know, I hold a degree in business administration and a diploma as a qualified office executive. I have done bookkeeping as an employee – I thought, I know how this “must” work. But how it works in Germany is not a “must” but a local rule. It is annoying and time-consuming to relearn. But it is also very interesting, and bringing my business model and Russian requirements together is challenging but fascinating to see.
Personal Life
I have started over many times. I have been an au-pair in Spain and England, lived in Scotland for a while, been a nomad and settled in Poland – just to name the big ones. To be honest, I am not sure why my current situation feels different – not necessarily harder – than before. Maybe because I want to make it work and therefore put more effort into building a network. And then there is learning the language, which is a challenge in itself.
Maybe because I have not found a place to settle yet – and therefore, I am in an uncomfortable in-between stage.
Or maybe because everything is so BIG – the cities (especially Moscow), the size of the country, the train rides. It seems like the country has no limits – and I feel like Alice, wondering what to do next.
But maybe it is just that I am overwhelmed with the business side of things, including the nightmare with the visa agency, as I approach this side of my new life with force and make it my own.
But I will.
Author
Britta
I have been an au pair, a tourist, an explorer, and a nomad – looking for nice places to visit and the one place I want to stay forever.