i have now been in london for 5 years (since yesterday actually).
i left france telling my parents i wanted to travel a bit, i didnt tell them much actually, probably that i wanted to get a job or something... i was kinda vague. i didnt really know myself. i think somehow my mum knew i wouldn't be back though. i didn't know. didn't know anyone in london, didn't know the city. i had no clue. my friends were quite impressed, they thought i was "brave", thats the word they used. but to me it was a necessary move. i was bored . my life was becoming suffocating.
it felt pretty exciting booking a single eurostar ticket... discovering london, exhilarating. i did all kinds of jobs when i first arrived, mainly the kinds that pay peanuts but i always remember my first few months in london with fondness.
today london is where my life is. 5 years being a fifth of my age; does that make me a fifth british?!?
5 comments:
maybe 1/5 londoner. londoner doesn't equal british.
i've been in nyc for almost 5 years. people say it takes 10 years to be a new yorker, so i am half a new yorker, but i'm not (will never truly be) an american.
you're right. i could not live anywhere outside london. i don't know if i can call myself a londonner (yet) but i know i will never feel remotely british.
bonne chance a toi kazu, le plus difficile c'est souvent le premier pas...
Your friends were right...You ARE brave.
Would you do it differently if you had another chance?
i still dont consider myself as brave. its something that i wanted to do and it felt right/obvious. also i felt stuck and i couldnt imagine my future there back then, i still cant! maybe i was also a bit naive?
i would do exactly the same if i had another chance. maybe im a bit stupid? no seriously, i dont regret it, i go through phases obviously but overall im happy here.
i think i should take the "i will never feel remotely british" bit back. to be fair i identify with some british traits. ok just a few... and i guess it helps that 'britishness' doesnt really mean anything...
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