Thank you, Brussels!

Gratitude is the key to everything, so this is a short gratitude video to say thank you to Brussels - for everything.

See you around!

Brussels Diaries: The Feel of A City

When you move to a new place, even for a few months, at first you feel like an overly excited tourist.

You walk around with your camera, trying our local foods (in case of Belgium - also local beers) and just look at the world through rosy shades of a city neophyte.

Then you might get into a little bit of a funk. When you already saw all the sights, learned the necessary metro stations and got into a routine, you hit that part of adaptation, when you are neither here nor there - not a tourist anymore, but still not a local.

Until THAT day comes. (Please, read also The sense of HOME)

The day when you suddenly feel like you belong, for the first time.

The day when everything around you feels very nice and familiar, like the city accepted you finally.

Brussels diaries: My minimalistic room

Hello, amazing people!

Today I'm moving back to Palermo. Actually, I'm writing these words in the airport, enjoying my last Leffe Blond and waiting for boarding. 

Am I sad? No. 

Am I ready to go back to my beautiful Sicily? Yes. 

Am I going to miss Brussels? Oh, hell, yes!  

It was a great time - I managed to accomplish many amazing things, travelled a lot and was very productive. And even though I'm pretty sure I will come back to Brussels many more times, I want to remember and honour this page in my life. 

So by clicking on the video below you can watch my room tour. I moved to Brussels with 2 suitcases and brought things for two different seasons and a smart casual dress code. And I was very happy with how my room turned out - I didn't invest in any decorations and opted for functionality and simplicity, and it really worked for me. So without further ado - please, watch, like, share and subscribe!

My gate was just announced. What is waiting for me on the other side of the plane flight? A wonderful new chapter of life, a new flat, new projects, my loved ones and a beautiful Sicilian winter.

Stay tuned and thank you for your attention and kind thoughts! See you!

Brussels diaries - The kindness of strangers

Two days ago was exactly one month since I started my experience in Brussels. 

I kinda celebrated this day by going back to Palermo for a couple of days to deal with some bureaucratic stuff and also to attend my friends' wedding in beautiful Castellammare and Segesta (the video about this trip will be up on Saturday on my channel).

But this post is not about this. It's about kindness that doesn't cost us anything but can really change someone's day.

 

... It's raining in Brussels - whole day, every day. I'm going out of the tram on my stop and open my umbrella - it's too small to really protect me from the rain, but it's better than nothing. I want to cross the road and get home as soon as possible - to put on a pair of warm socks, eat some hot soup and watch The Good Place on Netflix. To do this I need to let the tram pass first, so I'm patiently waiting as it will start moving. A guy next to me all of the sudden decides to run across the road exactly in this moment. I makes me angry, so I look at the driver who as to hit the breaks. I assume he will be angry but he just smiles at me knowingly (because we both kind of judge that guy for being irresponcible and impatient) and shows me that I can also pass. I smille back and accept his offer. This little thing brightens up this grey evening and I return home happy and full of energy. Instead of Netflix I manage to work for a few more hours very productively.

Brussels diaries - the Atomium

Hello, people!

Since I was a very, very little girl I always dreamt about travelling. I don't remember ever wanting to marry a prince that badly, but I do remember imagining myself in various places around the world (mostly in Karnak or Acropolis) all the time, as I was reading every adventure novel I could find. Mind that in those times travelling, especially with a Ukrainian passport, wasn't all that easy. 

So now, as my dreams started to come true 4 years ago, I already saw three places I was absolutely obsessed with - Angkor wat in Cambodia, Acropolis in Greece (only from afar, but I will go back there) and now the Atomium here, in Belgium. 

I saw it for the first time when I was about 5 years old - my grandfather was working in Syria in the beginning of the 60s and he brought back many cool things with him, including a small device with a few boxes of slides from around the world. And I was spending hours looking at the pyramids of Giza, Greek temples, Damascus and its beautiful buildings covered in mosaics. And the Atomium, that was a very new thing at that time - it was constructed for the World Expo of 1958. 

I instantly became obsessed with it - to the same extent, as some people who are mesmerized by Eiffel tower. It looked so cool and futuristic and modern, and just like something that I really wanted to see. 

But as I was growing up I was adding more and more must-see destinations to my bucket list and the Atomium wasn't a number one anymore... Until July 2017, when I realised that - holy cow, I'm going to live in Brussels! 

So yes, on my first weekend here I went straight ahead to the Atomium and had an amazing day dorking out at how weird, futuristic and old-school sci-fi it looks. I have a feeling I will go there a few more times till the end of November, because... just because!

For some more footage and photos check out my video and instagram, and subscribe if you like what you see :)

Ciao!

A suitcase review and a Life Update

Hello, people!

Today I have a quick, but important life update for you, so here we go (remember to like and subscribe if you are as excited about the future content of my blog and channel as I am):

See you around! :)