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Alyssa O Writes

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culture clash

Life Abroad Tips, The Expat Files
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November 11, 2018

Impressions Of A Swiss To Scotland Transplant

It's been two months since I washed ashore in Edinburgh. Eight weeks of letting go and digging in. Discovering both the new outside of me and the things forgotten on the inside. I feel like I'm expanding rapidly-- The proverbial glass of spilt milk running across the table in all directions. My life[...]

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Life Abroad Tips, The Expat Files
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September 22, 2015

Lessons Learned: The Top 3 Ways Living Abroad Has Changed Me (For the Better!)

How living abroad can make you a stronger person.

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  • This is what I've always wanted for myself. PSA: When your kid is ready for their first show at Edinburgh Fringe or their first slice of real Italian pizza in Rome, send 'em my way. (But please send your credit card with them because auntie A hasn't gotten her big break yet!) One of the beautiful things about being child free that people don't always talk about is that sometimes, you get to be there for young people in a way that their parents aren't able to. You don't have to participate in raising kids to have purpose in society. But if you enjoy having children around, it can be such an amazing privilege to introduce them to things they might not otherwise get to explore. Things like arts, travel, languages, culture...or maybe just the idea that if you don't fit in where you grew up, there are places out there where you will find your people. I've said it before and I'll say it again, there are a million ways to be happy and having kids is only one of them. I always dreamed of being a child free world traveller, now I am one. *this reel was inspired by @shesatripblog! Go check her out! ° ° ° #childfreebychoice #childfreelifestyle #childfreetravel #travelaunt #lifeabroad #womenabroad #worldtraveller #wanderwomen #womenwhoexplore #findyourself #findyourpeople
  • Meet me by the pool, darling... ⛱️ Another cool thing about Jupiter Artland? You can actually book a paddling session in 'Gateway' by Joanna Vasconcelos. Yes, that's right, for £10 you can have 30 minutes of splashing around plus some time in the geodesic dome of a changing hut. It's too bad I didn't bring my bikini and flip flops, but this just gives me another excuse to go back. Jupiter Artland is one of my fav day trips from Edinburgh so far, and honestly, it's one of the weirdest places I've been in Scotland. How do I top this one? ° ° ° #Edinburghdaytrip #Edinburghscotland #explorescotland #artgalleries #contemporaryart #visitscotland #poolparty #travelblogger #travelwriter #travelphotography #scotlandphotographer #experiencescotland #weirdexperiences #swimming #scottishmuseums #scottishart #scottishtravel
  • When I found out I qualify for Italian citizenship I was shocked! 🇮🇹 I grew up thinking my wicked Italian American family was exaggerating about how freaking Italian we are... but nope! It turns out Italy has one of the most generous citizenship by decent policies in Europe. You don't need speak the language or  have parents or grandparents who were born there to qualify. All you need to do to get started is find out if you can prove an unbroken line between you and a direct Italian ancestor born after the unification of Italy in 1861. I began my Italian citizenship journey this year and I'm excited to begin sharing more of my path with you. So class, is this something you're interested in learning more about? ° ° ° #expatlife #lifeabroad #italianamerican #wickedboston #bostonitalian #italianimmigrants #americansinitaly #expatsinitaly #italiancitizenship #italiancitozenshipbydescent #ladolcevida
  • Another year to set boundaries and push my own, to take risks, explore and make mistakes, find dead ends and winding trails I never knew existed, to feel tiny beneath a big starry sky, to throw myself into the unknown, to splash around in the Forth, to listen to music that's so beautiful it hurts, to write and rewrite and write some more, to feel confused and useless and utterly at a loss as to how to get from A to B, to laugh until I'm sore, to explore abandoned Islands, to book launches and new babies and cast tarot cards and cleanse and banish and sprinkle dried herbs and hear my grandmother's chuckle in the corners of a kitchen in a country she's never been to, to remember that London is the center of the universe no I hate London no I love London no, to sit in a theater and feel vivid feelings in the dark with strangers to give up and start over and manifest and cry and feel my heart torn in two every time I get on a plane, to know its still the right thing even when its hard and scary, to dance with my eyes closed on a beach, on a sprung floor, in a softly glowing room with strangers, another year older and wiser and weirder, another year, another year, Another ° ° ° #womanabroad #lifeinscotland #lifeabroad #expatlife #aging #birthdays #writersofinstagram #writelife #deardiary
  • Has dating in another country changed you? It changed me! Now I feel so much more comfortable being clear about what I want. At first I was taken aback at how blunt Swiss people are (compared to Americans). But then it set me free! When I went back into the dating pool in the US and UK, I was disappointed at how everyone seems to dance around what they want in an effort to be polite. Why not just say what you need? Everyone wins and I get to order truffle fries! Are people more direct or more indirect where you are currently dating and does that work for you? ° ° ° #datingabroad #expatdating #americanabroad #expatlife #cultureshock #lifeabroad #americanabroad #culturaldifferences #lifeintheuk #lifeinswitzerland #expathumor
  • Crawling into the weekend like... 'Firmament' is a giant outdoor sculpture created by thousands of steel rods. You can check it out at Jupiter Artland, an absolutely massive sculpture park, about 30 min outside of Edinburgh. I love visiting art galleries when I travel, and I've been to so many amazing and truly unusual ones. Jupiter Artland is probably the largest outdoor art park I've ever been to, though. At over 100 acres, it's truly massive. Do you love to check out outdoor art parks and other unusual types of museums when you travel? What are some of your favorite unconventional arts spaces? ° ° ° #artpark #artgallery #artinstallation #scottishart #sculpturepark #scottishmuseums #edinburghdaytrip #edinburgharts

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