Expat Interviews: Moving Abroad and Embracing Your Expat Life
Dear Alice,
Today I would like to start a new series concerning the expat life, and that is the experience of moving abroad and embracing a new life, a new mentality, new customs and new habits, but still keeping your own original traditions and personality.
Our first interview will be with myself. The next interviews will follow with friends and with acquaintances of mine that also live an expat life. I hope that this sharing of experiences will help you to better dive into the unknown mysteries of the expat life and to help you embrace your expat life in an easier manner. Thank you all for sharing your stories with us!
1. Where are you currently living?
Madalina: I currently live in Graz, a beautiful city located in the southern eastern part of Austria in the region called Styria (in German Steiermark), a city that has a high Austrian character and also a vast influence from the Italian and the Croatian Mediteraneen coast; a city that will impress you not only with its unique scenery and with its friendly people, but also with its wonderful sunny weather almost most time of the year.
2. For how long are you living now in Austria? How did you came here?
Madalina: I am living in Austria since 2006. I first came to Linz in Upper Austria for completing my master studies in the area of computer science. Afterwards I was given the chance to apply to a doctoral scholarship, so I decided to try my luck. After I got the scholarship I continued my doctoral studies in Linz for another 4 years. After my studies were over, I invested some time and energy in postdoctoral research in Berlin, Germany until I realized industry is really what I really wanted to do, so I looked for a job back in Austria (yes Austria had stolen my heart and Germany could not kept up with it), and since Graz had so many excited offers I have decided to take a job in Graz. And here I am 13 years later.
3. Tell us something about Austria: name 3 things you love the most about Austria.
Madalina: 1. The landscape: Austria has a wonderful scenery, I love the Austrian mountains, and the Austrian lakes, the mixture between mountains and lakes is also something that fascinates me, the nature is definitely a gift and you can notice this even more intensely while admiring the Austrian landscapes. 2. The punctuality and the organization: I do believe that most of the people in Austria are very punctual, they do like to be on time and they are very well-organized. You can notice this either in the workplace or simply in the supermarkets or at the doctor office. 3. The preoccupation for always being fit: eating healthy, reducing the sugar quantities in cooking, practicing sport as often as you can, joining that next marathon with your friends, going for a hike during the weekend with the family, there is always a preoccupation about always being fit that I just love.
4. Where are you originally coming from? Where were you born?
Madalina: I am originally coming from Romania. I was born in a beautiful city called Deva, in the middle of the Carpathians Mountains, in the maybe well-known area of Transylvania. We all heard the scary and the fascinating stories about Dracula and the vampires. Yes most of the people I met associate Transylvania with Dracula, vampires and garlic. I find this very flattering I must say, I once met some customers from Indonesia at the workplace and they did not necessarily know much about Romania, but they were familiar with the vampires and the Dracula stories.
5. What can you tell us about Romania? Tell us 3 things you love the most about Romania.
Madalina: 1. The hospitality: Romanians are very friendly people and they try to do their best in any circumstance (even while traveling and even if people cannot talk English everywhere, they will still try to help you as much as they can). 2. The perseverance: Latins people deep down in their heart, Romanians can be quite passionate about every little thing (something I still carry with myself I must say), andeven so they can be very persevere despite the difficult situations or periods they encountered. 3. The food: Romanian dishes are definitely something to enjoy whenever you have the chance to (I will exemplify here for instance some delicious Romanian recipes: “Papanasi”, “Clatite Banatene”. It is good I am still cooking from time to time at home Romanian dishes, which are quite appreciated in our family, the “Clatite Banatene” are one of our favorite in Graz now).
6. Coming now to the next question: how old are you?
Madalina: I was born in 1983, so I should be quite wise at this time by now. To be honest, I must say I definitely like my thirties better than my twenties, by now I have already decided what job I like, I have already taken the responsibility to own a house and to start a family, so this is the best time to dedicate to my family, to my development and in the end to myself.
7. And what is your profession or your current occupation?
Madalina: On my visit card from my workplace it says “Specialist Software Engineer R&D and Scrum Master”. So as a software engineer I am very passionate about working in the technical areas of system development, I love team work and cooperation, along with good communication and solving challenging problems. As a scrum master, I also love to help people develop further and to help them reach their better potential, I do believe that each and any one of us can become a better version of him/herself.
8. What do you enjoy doing the most during your spare time when you are not at work or in the office? Or simpler: name three of your hobbies.
Madalina: 1. Sport, I love swimming, fitness, running, I am definitely a sport addict, practicing sport almost every day on a normal day. Stretching, cardio, push-ups, just name it I am there to give it a try. 2. Spending time with my favorite people and my family. It just recharges my batteries and fills me with that dose of energy and optimism that I always long for. If it is either traveling, celebrating an anniversary, going to the cinema or a movie, any activity that will bring me closer to my family and my friends is my biggest hobby. 3. Cooking: I do enjoy cooking, I love mixing different flavors together to create a unique taste and to always surprise our guests with new aromas. And lately I try to always improve my recipes by transforming them in healthier versions, i.e. using sugar alternatives (or no sugar at all), using butter alternatives, etc.
9. When did you decide to leave your original country and move to Austria?
Madalina: I was a postgraduate student in Romania when I decided to move to Austria. I was studying for my master studies, so I was like 23 years old. At that time I wanted to basically work in cooperation with the institute in Austria for improving my master thesis subject and this was an opportunity I could have not resist. So once I was given the opportunity, I had no doubts about my decision.
10. Why did you decide to move? Was this planned longer in advance or was it a spontaneous decision? (i.e. career development, to explore the world, etc.)
Madalina: As I said it before at that time I wanted to excel in my domain of study for my master thesis, I wanted to really have one of the best master thesis subjects, and due to the research and expertise limitations I could not do this in Romania. My home university had a partnership with the Austrian Insitute in Hagenberg, and they offered me the opportunity to improve the master topic while abroad. I knew this is what I wanted to do. Later on of course as the years had passed and as I continued my doctoral studies I started to already grasps the opportunities and the chances I was given in Austria, so I embraced the new opportunities I got always with opened arms.
11. Did you have any financial support when you left your original country?
Madalina: Yes, in the beginning I had the master thesis study support (like a research scholarship from the Romanian state). Afterwards for the doctoral studies I had a scholarship from the Austrian state and then I was paid as a PhD student worker also from the research institute in Austria. I think this definitely made a difference, otherwise I would have not been able to pay all the expenses in Austria. The scholarship and the PhD student worker salary were in normal limits, they definitely allowed me to individually financially support myself.
12. Did you have any information on Austria? Did you receive any support (financial, morally, etc.) concerning your commute to Austria?
Madalina: Of course I had some colleagues from Romania that already have worked to the Austrian Institute in Hagenberg, and they knew a lot of facts about Austria, about the system, and mostly about my work at the university and in the research facilities there. This definitely helped me a lot, and I would recommend it to everyone who wants to move abroad: Get in contact with anyone who is already abroad from your home country and can help you with any information about the country you want to move to. Of course you have to also filter this information, since everyone is subjective, but still this will give you some first insights on your future expat life to come.
13. Describe us shortly 3 main challenges you faced when you moved to Austria.
Madalina: 1. The Language: I learnt German for the first time in Linz, Austria. In Romania I only learnt English and French, so when I arrived in Linz, even though I could use English to get around in a lot of places (especially at the university, but also at the doctor’s office or in the supermarkets), I still wanted to learn German to be able to communicate with the locals and the people in the official mother language. German is a challenging language to learn, but I think if you have a lot of perseverance and will, you will do just fine. Just be patient, for me it took around 2 years until I started to talk German. 2. The Dialects. This is connected with the first challenge. So once I started to learn German, I still encountered another challenge: and that is, most of the locals and most of the people I met were talking dialects, so my learning from the German courses were not very helpful here. It is good to practice the German language then with locals and try to learn as many dialects words as possible. 3. The Mentality: I think this would apply in any country, you have to adapt your mentality to the new traditions and the new habits and embrace them as part of your own, this while still trying to keep the authenticity of your own traditions. It takes a lot of patience, but it is possible I assure you.
14. How much does it cost to reasonably live in Austria? (i.e. monthly living costs and expenses – such as housing, food, transportation, saving, entertainment, clothing, house utilities, etc.)
Madalina: This depends of course. I mean for a decent living per month I would say something like: for rent or housing you would need at least 400-500 euros (this excludes any intention of buying an apartment, these prices are only for rent), for food around 200-300 euros, for transportation around 100 euros (if you do not own a car, if you own a car then you definitely need to invest here more resources), for entertainment and clothing around 200-300 euros, and for home utilities around 200 euros. This probably in a city like Graz. Please notice that these are only roughly minimal margins, I currently am not living in rent anymore, since together with my partner we decided to invest in our apartment. But I tried to compare everything to my timings as a student here, thinking about the latest prices.
15. Did you know anyone in Austria when you first arrive there?
Madalina: I knew some colleagues from Romania who were already working in Linz, which was very helpful for me I would say. Sharing experiences and advice, even little tips and tricks is definitely a plus when moving to a foreign country. So try to get in contact with as many people from your home original country if you decide to move abroad and gather as many information on the new country as possible. You can also use now the internet to gather this information, but just be sure to also filter this information, a lot of information is always very subjective, so do not trust any sources of information till they prove worthy.
16. What about learning German? How did you cope with learning German?
Madalina: Yes, as I said before this was one of the biggest challenges for me. But I was over-determined to learn German. I started with my German classes in 2008 and with the beginner level course. I then continued the next German course levels and by 2010 I finished them all I think. Still I only started to talk German fluently in 2012 I think (and with mistakes or gaps, which is okay by the way), and this when I started to use German both at home and in my workplace. As long as you use English in your workplace, this will not bring you very further with practicing German, in my opinion. So do not be afraid of making mistakes (mistakes are part of the learning process), and start talking German everywhere to improve it. Of course it helps if you can practice German (and dialects) at home, I am of course here very grateful and lucky for all the learning from my partner.
17. How did you meet new people in Austria?
Madalina: Good question, I am in general quite sociable and communicative, so I think the extrovert in me helps me here. In the beginning I learnt new people mostly through acquaintances, at the workplace of course, but also for instance through some “English-German Stammtisch” events in Graz.
18. How would you describe the mentality in Austria?
Madalina: Different. I think each country has its own mentality, and I find this great, it should definitely be like this. Here in Austria you notice on the one-hand side a West-European mentality, and then a German-speaking country mentality. The West-European mentality referring mostly to being open minded and being slightly individualism-oriented was not completely new for me, since as an undergraduate student I had a scholarship in France when I was like 20, so this helped me. The German-speaking country mentality is something I just find fitting for me, since I like the punctuality and the well-organization everywhere. Also, for me, coming from Transylvania (which was once part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire), helped me here, since some things are quite similar, we have some similar dishes or even words as in German back in Romania. What was challenging for me was to mix and to combine my Latin extrovert character with the German-introvert-like mentality. I now use either one of them depending on the situation, which I think is quite useful.
19. What is your advice for the readers who decide to move to Austria? Or: name 3 pieces of advice you know now and you wished you knew them before you move to Austria.
Madalina: 1. Just do it. 2. Be consistent with your decision: If you took a decision, just stick with it, and don’t ever look back. After taking a decision, it is always good practice to go ahead and live with the consequences without thinking “what if”. 3. Be open-minded and flexible. This is always a good advice in life in general I would say, it will take you further than you thought. Don’t be afraid of the unknown, exploring it will only bring you further in your development.
20. Where is “Home” for you?
Madalina: “Home” is where my heart is. So I would say home is where my family is, home is where my source of energy, my source of positivism and my source of optimisms is and that is there where my partner and our growing family is (and for now that is in Graz, Austria 🙂 ).
Sincerely yours,
Madalina
Madalina is currently living with her family (from which she learnt a lot of Austrian habits and traditions) in Graz, Austria and is currently working in technical domains as a software engineer in the semiconductors area. She first came to Austria in 2006 for following her master and then her doctoral studies in technical sciences in Linz, Austria, where she learnt German, and where she first came into contact with the Austrian mentality, traditions and habits. Being an adept of the healthy living, in her free time, she likes to practice a lot of sport, to cook, to travel, and to spend time with her friends and lately especially with her growing family.
Motto: “Every day is a chance to learn something new about yourself and to try to be a better version of yourself. Don’t be afraid of the unknown and embrace any change with a lot of enthusiasm and optimism. Just make sure to also keep your authenticity in your development process.”