7 American habits I gained when I moved from Russia to US.

1) Say 'Hi' to everybody and even wonder 'How are they?' If you plan trip to Russia,  don't expect people be nice to you on the street. Always remember, it is cold in Russia, so every unnecessary muscle move can lead to keeping energy away from keeping you warm :). Jokes aside, I learned to smile to strangers and engage into small talks with nice ladies in the supermarket (which here is grocery store). And I myself recently found it so rude when a guy at the church didn't want to shake my hand when exchanging peace.

Book review for parents in U.S.

     Today I would like you to join me in some kind of book review. Many expat wives face (or will face) the challenge of being pregnant, deliver and grow a baby in a new country. We all grew up noticing and judging our parents, friends' parents and a number of other people, we have all received implicit or explicit parenting tips, inevitably thinking ‘when I finally have a baby I will do it my way’, the smartest way,  ‘I will do this and I won't do that’. Then you become an expatriate wife and

US,I'll miss you!

During my vacation I had a chance to talk to a friend who used to live abroad and then decided to come back to her home country. Difference number one between me and her was that she didn't follow her husband, number two, she didn't move across the ocean. Anyways, listening to the story of someone who expatriated from her home country and came back was very interesting and made me ask myself a question: what would I miss about the US if I came back to Europe?

To dispute or not to dispute?

     If you've been living here for a while, you may have noticed some differences between your county and US. Depending on your case, you may admire many of these differences like pride to be independent, free speech rights, a reassuring justice system. All conquests of a democratic country. It is great to live in such a country. But do these rights apply to you?

What are you thankful for?

One of the most important days in a year is coming up: Thanksgiving Day. If you have been living in the US for a few years already, you are definitely used to it and you may well have become an expert at cooking a turkey.

The finish line

What is a perfect image to you? Your perfect collection of humor, habits, posture, manners, education, fashion... most certainly do not fit in the new picture you are part of right now. True? That's culture shock. And it's about time to share how to overpass it...

Already Americanized?

  Hi,everyone! Today I'm writing this post from Italy, I'm here to renew my visa. Oh, yes, when you just think that you are done, suddenly all your documents need to be renewed. I want to share a personal experience regarding expat adjustment stages again. It's when you read something and you think: "Nope, it's not about me!". But then it all seems so true.

A self-conscious expat moment

After a few initial months in Philly you may find yourself thinking about how your new American life is. In the first two or three weeks of your stay, it might have still felt like being on vacation. Everything was completely new and very exciting. While you were going around the city to run all the necessary errands related to the documents, house contracts, bills, etc. you also had an opportunity to discover new sites and what’s more, to discover them from a resident, not a tourist, point of view.