Today Marks 1 Year Since Moving To Eastern Europe

The bikes of mom and me, in the park in our hometown in 2007.

Today marks exactly 1 year since moving out of my childhood home in The Netherlands. It was a cold Sunday morning as we woke up on our mattresses in the empty living room, in our empty house, after spending 6 frantic months cleaning out the entire house and front and backyard. All the while grieving over the loss of my parents – and trying to come to terms with how my mom was treated throughout her illness.

I felt nervous, but I was already mentally prepared for the moment of saying goodbye to the house I spent 31 years of my life in.

My chapter in the Netherlands has come to an end. I took the opportunity to go ahead and see Eastern Europe – something I’ve always wanted to do. Although traveling with cats is not easy. We went from Bucharest, Romania to Ruse, Bulgaria, where we were able to rent an apartment long-term. The cats have calmed down and enjoy their stay, but we’re not sure for how long we will be staying in Ruse.

Truth to be told, although Ruse is the 5th largest city in Bulgaria, it doesn’t offer the same amenities and infrastructure as the capital of Sofia, or places such as Varna and Plovdiv. Ruse is a nice and comfortable city, with beautiful areas and parks for walking, but for long-term living, the additional facilities that bigger cities have to offer appear to be something we miss. So who knows. But for now, I’m certain I will be celebrating my birthday, Christmas and New Year in Ruse.

Life Without My Parents

Something that still comes up regularly, is this sudden realization of “oh yeah, my parents aren’t there anymore”. Especially when it comes to things I would have loved to share with them, such as updates about the cats, finding our own apartment, discovering tasty foods etc.

I mean, I used to be very close with my parents and always updated them of my whereabouts when I went out.

But losing my parents is, albeit very difficult, a natural part of life. It isn’t necessarily so much that I miss my parents, but more that I’m still trying to come to terms with how fast it all happened.

From spending so much time together with my parents – especially with mom as dad was already largely impaired after his first stroke in 2009 – my dad getting a second stroke in 2020, my mom getting diagnosed with cancer on December 21st of 2021 and my dad passing away on January 14th, 2022. I was there both times by the way. I watched both of my parents die in the span of less than 1,5 years time.

The Journey Continues

I’m grateful for the opportunity to travel and learn more about other countries. The Journey continues and I will of course occasionally post personal updates like this.

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