Camille Scher

Moving to Paradise

In my sophomore year of high school I went to Maui, Hawaii with my mom; we spent a

week in Lahaina and immersed ourselves in the island. We hiked, attended cultural events, drove

around the island several times, and talked to locals. Driving through the island and going to

secluded places made me fall in love. Not only was the island beautiful, but the culture was so

interesting. When I reflected on my experience in Maui, Hawaii I realized it had changed my

view of what I wanted my future to look like. I wanted to travel and explore the beauty close and

far from me as much as I could. “Travel could range from merely exploring your own

neighborhood to venturing beyond and embarking on an adventure to a neighboring country”

(Thompson).

There are as many ways to travel as there are reasons to travel. Some feel “stuck” at

work, or don't feel as they are spiritually in the right place in life, as well for others they might

just be relocating for career or educational purposes. “I moved because I have always dreamed

and wanted to live in Hawaii and I also wanted a fresh start. I took the leap because I just

graduated highschool and I had nothing attached to home besides my family” (Dagostini). There

are many reasons to move to another area, but it's important to look at the pros and cons before

you make your decision.

There are many reasons and excuses not to move -- as well as many reasons and excuses

to move. You would immerse yourself in a different culture: meeting new people, eating new

foods, and create many opportunities to personally grow and mature.

It’s a given that you’ll experience immense personal growth both emotionally --

and physically -- while living abroad. The emotional growth you’ll experience is
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something that you may have been lacking in your current living situation; if you

think about it, you’ve probably experienced and explored everything there is to do

and you’ve met almost everyone around. (Thompson)

Moving allows you to make even more relationships with people and expand your social circle.

“You never know who you’ll meet abroad. [It] also means you’ll be expanding your career

network. In addition to creating personal friendships, you’ll also make professional connections”

(Thompson).

In addition to making new relationships, you'll also be introduced to new cultural and

social mannerisms. Feeling overwhelmed and uncomfortable is normal, and people may

experience culture shock. “I believe I experienced a little bit of culture shock just trying to figure

out how everyone lives and functions when you go out in public” (Dagostini). “The best way to

adjust to the shock as quickly as possible is to physically go out and immerse yourself in the

culture as much as possible” (Thompson). If necessary, someone might attempt to learn another

language or learn how people in that culture converse. “I’ve realized that everything from the

scenery, to the people, to the slang are different, but being different too, that's completely okay.

Adapting to my new lifestyle… has been quite an interesting transition to say the least” (Denae).

Not only will you adapt to a new culture, but you will have to adapt to a new currency or budget.

It may take time to save or find a steady job or source of income; it would be

recommended to have money saved before your move. You could call or search online for job

openings or internships before your move. If you are dedicated to your dream of living in a

certain place, you will find a way to make it work. “If you budget your finances, take on extra

work (if you have to), or shift what you spend your money on, you can make it” (Constable).
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Once you concluded that you are indeed moving, it's time to start looking for places to

move into or temporary rooms. “The first thing I suggest you do is pull up a map of the island…

figure out where all of the cities are and figure out where you want to move on the island” (Hill).

The area you move to will contribute to your experience in your new hometown; by researching

areas and mapping out how far away you are from work or the center of town, you'll be able to

narrow down your options.

We met a women who had recently bought a beautiful home on a nicely

manicured acre of tropical forest. She was fresh from the mainland and apparently

quite taken with the property when she looked it over several times before the

purchase, and appeared to be really excited about her decision to move to

Hawai’i. She went back home, had all her belongings packed and shipped over

and arrived at her new home… Much to our surprise, it wasn't a month later when

we heard her start complaining… because people didn't do things the way she had

come to expect from her Mainland experiences. (Tomsen)

If you are buying a house you may need to talk to realtors. If you are unsure about

moving into a certain area, at least six months before you intend on moving you might consider

staying in a hotel or apartment prior, so you could get a feel for the city. During that time talking

to local realtors is a good idea; they can help find friendly neighborhoods within your budget.

“Hiring the right Realtor is extremely important when moving to another state. A knowledgeable

real estate agent should be able to help guide you in your house hunting process. They should

also know the market inside and out, and be able to help you with all legalities and paperwork”

(White Your). After that researching moving companies, establishing legal domicile, getting a
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new driver's license (all of course if needed) will be required and should be done immediately to

ensure no setbacks occur during the moving process.

If someone is interested in renting, checking websites and calling apartments in the area

is recommended. Websites such as: Craigslist, Zillow, Trulia, or appartments.com allow you to

see available rooms in certain areas. “You download [the app] and go to a location, you type in

your budget and the app will give you a list of apartments as well as a map of where the

apartments are” (Hill). On these apps you'll be able to sift through apartments and contact the

realtors or apartments managers through the app. After that, you'll be able to secure a living

situation in your new paradise!

Depending on how much things you possess, you might need to include professional

movers into your budget. The average cost of hiring professional movers is $4,300 if you move

out of the country (White 10). There are many tips and tricks to save money moving your items,

and you could use family or friends to help. If not: renting trailers, moving trucks, portable

moving containers, and looking for discounts and deals will help you save your money. Before

you start packing everything on U-hauls and trailers, you might consider selling many items

beforehand. Ask yourself, is it worth moving? If not, Craigslist and the local Goodwill will love

to have it. “​You’ll almost certainly want to bring some of your stuff, but the vast majority of

what you own is replaceable” (Meslow).

When you have all your items at your apartment/house it's time to start unboxing and

getting used to your new living situation. Depending on where you moved from and to, you

might have to adjust to a different size of your living quarters. “​I have grown up with a big

family and in a medium size house in order for us all to be comfortable. So since moving here, I
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currently live in a little studio and just a kitchenette. It was hard at first but now I really like it”

(Dagostini). Adjusting to your new place may be hard at first, but once you get settled in you’ll

realize it was much worth the troubles of selling your unwanted things and settling into a new

area.

While living in a new area you may experience setbacks and obstacles to overcome.

Financial setbacks are common, moving may have gone over budget slightly. “If you’re in love

with the place you’re living, you ​can​ afford it” (Pratini). It’s no reason to move back or regret

your decision. If you travel or move for educational purposes, you may realize you rather put

your time and energy into other things your interested in. “Working… in the community was

going to be so conducive to my growth and to my business’ growth, whereas school was stressful

and I didnt want to be doing that” (Brautigam). Focusing your setbacks and bad feelings towards

a positive stepping stone may help you completely overcome the fear of your future in your new

life.

“I have had many setbacks, my car has gotten broken into, my first job I got wasn't what

I expected it to be, but in the end I have grown and learned so much from the setbacks that I have

had” (Dagostini). If you have a dream to live somewhere, don’t let anything stop you. Letting

negative thoughts, fear, and limiting beliefs take the best of you takes up too much time of life.

You may have struggles but you have to trust yourself that you can do anything your put your

mind to if you work hard enough.

While you are exploring your new home and self you'll come across many new people

and opportunities to explore. You’ll figure out over time how to accomplish everything you need

to do. It may feel overwhelming and you might feel lost, but after a few weeks you’ll look back
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and be amazed at how much you have accomplished and created for yourself. Moving and

starting over forced you to step out of your comfort zone and challenged you to make the most of

it, showing yourself what you are capable of doing (Wesselman).

While you are out and potentially alone in a new place, you will eventually start to miss

where your friends and family are. It’s important to make time to re-connect with people back

home. “If you completely submerge yourself in your new home, you are bound to feel

overwhelmed” (Bell). It’s important to keep connections, and also make new ones: find people

that may be in the same situation as you are. Whether they moved for school, or for a new start,

you both have something in common that you might be able to help each other with.

It is important to build social life and a lifestyle routine; eating out, leisure activities,

joining sports or other community activities will help not only with meeting people, but it will

also help by feeding yourself positive energy. Getting out and doing things in a new place will

make you more comfortable and make wherever you are living feel more like a sense of home

(Swift).

It is exciting and scary to move and travel abroad, but once you complete all the tasks of

moving you will see how much you are capable of doing. Completing and overcoming obstacles

will feel very rewarding. Instead of dreaming of moving, you should look into actually moving.

Putting yourself out there is going to be the only way you will be able to travel and live abroad.

By pulling yourself out from where you feel stuck under and making sacrifices, you will get to

experience a set of new cultural and social mannerisms (Feder). You will meet people and learn

to grown and mature from applying yourself. There will be some ups and downs in the process of

moving, but its not reason to quit on your dream. “It has made me have a broader outlook on life
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and that the little things don’t really matter. When you have setbacks you must keep striving for

better things and good things will come. You must have trust in the process and in your life that

you can get through anything that you set your mind to” (Dagostini). Moving away will be

tough, but it’s well worth it once you have moved in and explored your new city!
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Works Cited

Bell, Jaimee. “How to Live in Another Country (Without Losing Yourself).” ​HuffPost​, HuffPost,
7 Apr. 2016,
www.huffpost.com/entry/how-to-live-in-another-country-without-losing-yourself
_b_9619870.

Brautigam, Alyse. ​Why I'm Dropping Out of College & Moving to Hawaii,​ 7 Sept. 2015.

Constable, Kimanzi. “7 Myths About Moving To Hawaii.” ​HuffPost,​ HuffPost, 11 May 2016,
m.huffpost.com/us/entry/us_7200868.

Dagostini, Kady. Personal Interview. 30 October 2018.

Denae. Personal Interview. 27 October 2018.

Feder, Ben. ​Take Off Your Shoes: One Man’s Journey from the Boardroom to Bali and Back.​
Everafter Romance, 2019.

Hill, Kellie. ​Moving to Hawaii: Finding an Apartment​, 28 Mar. 2016.

Meslow, Scott. “How to Move Cross-Country Without Going Broke and/or Insane.” ​GQ,​ GQ, 2
Dec. 2017, ​www.gq.com/story/how-to-move-cross-country​.

Pratini, Napala. “3 Excuses That Are Holding You Back From Moving To Your Dream City.”
Elite Daily​, Elite Daily, 13 Nov. 2018,
www.elitedaily.com/life/excuses-move-to-city-of-dreams/1276664​.

Swift, Sharon. “International Relocation Success in 6 Steps.” ​HuffPost,​ HuffPost, 1 Oct. 2014,
www.huffpost.com/entry/international-relocation-success-in-6-steps_b_5911186​.
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Thompson, Amanda. “Pros & Cons of Moving to a New Country.” ​GoAbroad.com,​ 13 July
2017,
www.goabroad.com/articles/jobs-abroad/the-pros-cons-of-moving-to-a-new-count
ry​.

Thomsen, H. Skip. ​Affordable Paradise: the Secrets of an Affordable Life in Hawaii​. Third ed.,
Oregon Wordworks, 2009.

Wesselman, Sanne. “6 Reasons Why Moving Abroad Is Such a Valuable Experience.” ​Spend
Life Traveling,​ 11 May 2018,
www.spendlifetraveling.com/6-reasons-why-moving-abroad-is-such-a-valuable-e
xperience/​.

White, Marian. “Your Checklist for Moving to Another State.” ​Moving.com,​ Moving.com, 17
May 2018, www.moving.com/tips/your-checklist-for-moving-to-another-state/.

White, Marian. “10 Cheap Ways to Move Cross Country.” ​Moving.com​, Moving.com, 17 May
2018, ​www.moving.com/tips/10-cheap-ways-to-move-cross-country/​.