This time last year – on this exact day – I was sitting in a polleria in Calama, Chile, booking the most ridiculous flight of my life. I was a month into the most incredible adventure of my life and although that particular moment was not the happiest of all my time there, I’m smiling thinking back on it.
The Atacama Desert, Chile
Now that I have my freedom back, nostalgia for South America is stronger than ever and I’m being overwhelmed by a desire to go back there – not just for a holiday, or even an extended trip, but to live.
It’s such a tantalizing, ridiculous dream that I barely dare consider it, but at the same time, I can’t stop thinking about it. To live in Buenos Aires, Salta or La Paz, to speak Spanish and wander the streets of those achingly charismatic cities, to drink a cafe cortado in some sunny plaza at the end of each working day… the thought is almost too much to bear.
‘My’ street in Salta, where I spent almost a month
It’s hard to say how much of this is due to rose-tinted memories – with my travel fund miserably empty, I have no prospects of getting out of the country until I start earning some money later this year and I am going absolutely stir-crazy. Thinking about where I was this time last year seems understandably rosy. But even when I think about it more rationally, the desire to move to South America does not diminish. I remember walking through Buenos Aires, wanting to stay forever, returning to La Paz after I’d been there once, desperate for another day, enjoying the daily, working life I had in Salta.
Looking over Southern La Paz
I know that bureaucracy in Argentina is dire; I know that life in Bolivia is not easy. I’m prepared to deal with this reality.There was something about the pace of life, the enjoyment taken in little things – whether it was the quasi-European lifestyle of Buenos Aires or the Andean rhythms of La Paz.
Beautiful old house for sale in Buenos Aires – I’ll take it!
There was something to celebrate almost every day – and weekends saw parades, music, laughter and dancing – people coming together for no other reason than to have fun.
Colours of a parade in La Paz
Whatever happens, I have at least another year in the UK, getting through my induction as a new teacher. But as I consider my future after that, it seems to always come back to South America.
So I would like to know: have you emigrated to another country? What were your experiences? Was it a good decision?
Oh my friend, I DO understand this longing in your heart, AND the frustration you feel until this beautiful dream becomes a reality. Yes, I have emigrated to another country.
Once to the US when I was 16, and to Australia last year. 
Both were wonderful experiences, ones I don’t regret a single bit. The US was my home for a while, but now Australia is, and I’m so very, very happy. 
Yes I’ve emigrated to Italy twice and I lived there for about 7.5 years in total. Now I’ve just moved to the UK for a second time as well. I’ve had both positive and negative experiences.
Hi Cathy, thanks for commenting – you sound like an expert at this emigration thing! I will check out your blog. Whereabouts in the UK are you now?
This is how I feel about France. It is a combination of good and bad – and I think we do have a tendency to put on rose colored glasses when longing for a place – but you know what? I still think it may be worth it. We lived in France and to Holland, both for just a couple of years each – and it was worth all the hassles. And there were a ton of them!
Very pragmatic view Margo, glad it was all worth it! I will be calling on you and Krista for advice if I decide to take the plunge!
I lived in Europe for almost 4 years and I do remember it through rose colored glasses. I enjoyed it immensely, but was happy to go home. We lived in a very rural area and I think I’d be more inclined to go back if I could live in a major city. Good luck with your decision!
Hi Colleen, thanks for your comment – I guess what kind of place you live in will really affect your experiences of another country. Still, four years is a good length of time, I can imagine I would be missing home a bit by then!