Before moving to the US in November last year, I thought I was a very strong independent girl. I had a job that I absolutely loved, work-life balance, trips to look forward to every month and would often enjoy my evenings or weekends with family and friends. I saw the world through rose-tinted glasses and was living it.
However, within a few days of landing here, I realised I had never really done anything by myself. I had never cooked my own food, never cleaned the dishes or never even brought my own groceries in India – not to forget the more complex stuff of handling bank work, taxes, bills or insurance. We always had professionals or helpers around to do this or could hire them easily. I started questionning everything I believed I knew. I even joked about not being sure which is the first-world country here – because life is India was truly royal.
Cooking as therapy
Coming to US made me realise I won’t always come home and be greeted with warm home-cooked food – I had to make my own. And so new learnings began for me.
It is a whole new way of living but, it allowed me to explore and find my potential. Now, I do enjoy doing things for myself – especially cooking, and I find that to be very therapeutic after a long day at work. I even record my food experiements, american breakfast trips and started a food page on Instagram to record some of my favourite memories. Although everytime I am doing the dishes – I get homesick again.
What truly surprised me at my new life in Atlanta was that it’s so green, peaceful and quiet out here – almost like living in a mountain home. Coming from the hustle and bustle of Mumbai city – it seemed eery at first and even the slightest bit of sound would terrify me. Now I absoutely love the silence and early morning chirping of birds, deers running behind trees. I even spotted Coyotes and Racoons. It’s absolutely gorgeous.
I landed during the winter months and was very excited for my first Christmas here. I visited almost every Christmas market across the city, tried the local food and hot-chocolate, tried ice-skating – and was truly enjoying the vibe. So I expected Christmas Day to be the most spectacular. Almost like India’s “Diwali vibe“. But on December 25 – the streets were empty. Everyone was home or out of town celebrating it with their families. Christmas is a special family day and I look forward to spending it with my family in USA this year.
Driving as biggest goal
Driving in India – I took the public transport or uber for everything. We did have a car in India, but sold it within two years because public transport was so much more convenient and the car was just lying around. But here, you must have a car. I don’t see people walking around much – everybody drives, and people usually take their car to complete errands. So that’s my biggest goal for now – getting my license and a car. The roads here are beautiful and I can’t wait to start. It’s a good adjustment.
Since my arrival in Atlanta I try and do a road trip around Georgia preferably every month to explore the countryside. I very much look forward to travelling to other cities and exploring this beautiful country. I am also waiting for my mom to visit me and experience this new way of living. This time, I’ll be the one cooking for her and I am sure she will love that.
As already mentioned the most difficult after my move has to be washing the dishes – I just can‘t. On a serious note – I believe, nothing in life is difficult. It’s simply requires a mindset shift. Moreover, the entire Messe Frankfurt US team has given me such a warm welcome from day one and made everything so easy. MF Inc truly is an extended family!
Work as challenge
From a professional point of view, what I liked most about my move was that here: I have my new tasks. It‘s a challenge, but one that I love. My work experience from India, my team and my mentors Raj and Winston helped me build a strong foundation in PR and Communication fields. I already know and understand all the show brands, guidelines and markets. Extending my learnings here and adapting it to the US market has been a very elemental transition. So it’s possible that some of the most successful PR/marketing tactics that work for the exhibition industry in India may not directly work for the US market.
The US office has amazing cultural diversity. My team is a diverse mix of Americans, Mexican, Turkish and of course myself – an Indian while our President is German. There are so many interesting perspectives, different points of view and personal history that everyone brings to the table. But what binds us are the “Messe values and work ethics“ which resonates strongly and remain unchanged.
Ruhi Shaikh (MFUSA)