10 Years since the adventure began...

Today its 10 years since myself, and my family made the massive move from our tiny village in Wiltshire, to a town in Zuid- Holland.  I cannot believe how quickly the time has flown.  Overall we spent a little over 6 years living abroad, and lived in 4 different countries in that time.



 

When people hear that we've lived abroad, they always ask the same question, "Where was your favourite place to live?" Every person in the family has a different answer, but mine, always, without hesitation, is The Netherlands.

 

I always think of this time of year so fondly, there was a lot of laughter just within the first few days in our new home.  For example our removal truck was so big it didn't fit down our street, and they had to rent a smaller truck to shuttle it from the street behind to our house!

Our new home.

Moving to The Netherlands, for me, I believe, was a true life saver, at my school in the UK, I'd become lazy, knew how to make trouble/ how much I could get away with.  I had a bad attitude and was basically just obnoxious.  Having to move my entire life, and start a new school, knocked me down a peg or two, and a soon found 'the old me' again.

The Street where we lived.

My sister and I started at our new schools on May 1st.  I've always been a very shy person, and for me, day 1 at my new school gave me a panic attack, I was terrified I wouldn't make any friends/ wouldn't fit in.  I'm not going to pretend I made friends right away, as always when I was given a 'Buddy' to show me around, I soon found out I was paired with someone with very different ideas/interests to me.  It took me until after the summer holidays to make the friends and I still keep in touch with them today.
Given the chance, I'd do the whole experience again. We are now back living in our tiny Wiltshire village, and having spent 6 Years away, you soon come to realise how narrow minded some people are, and how much of the world there is to see, I'm fortunate enough to have not only travelled to different countries, but also to have lived in them.