Happy Wanderful Wednesday!
Before getting started on today’s blog post, we have an exciting announcement for you….
Celebrating Wanderful Wednesday’s First Birthday
We can’t quite believe that next month on 17th May, we are celebrating one year of the Wanderful Wednesday linkup! We have loved hosting this link up, getting to know new blogs and continuing to connect with our old friends each and every week.
As a way to celebrate all of us in this community, we would like you to take a photo of yourself, where you live or where you are travelling, holding a sign saying ‘”Happy First Birthday Wanderful Wednesday! From___________ (destination)” Please send us the photo either to one of our email addresses or via inbox on Facebook, don’t forget to also include your blog address in the message, so we can mention it in the post.
We will be sharing the posts on our blogs on Wednesday 17th May so please send us the photos by Wednesday 10th May at the latest. We can’t wait to see all of your photos! 🙂
Now for today’s post…
Next week marks 18 months of living in Chile (this time around), which sounds like a long time when you say it as a year-and-a-half as I can no longer say I just moved to Chile or I haven’t been living here for long etc. 
There are so many things you have to figure out when living abroad, especially when you live somewhere with a different language. The culture is different and certain things run totally differently. Luckily, I have Carlos to guide me through each and every step. But today, to mark 18 months, I wanted to list moments that have been teeny tiny moments, but moments that have made me feel like I made it!
The Yay Moments:
The moment when somebody stops to ask you directions, and you can actually tell them where something is.
The first time you go to the market by yourself and order the correct amount of fruit and vegetables using weight measurements.
Receiving your very first visa after a very long 6 month wait.
The first time you return something to a shop and have to nervously explain what is wrong with it.
A phone call to the bank where you have to explain something really complicated and they actually understand what you are talking about.
When you get asked for your Chilean ID number (that happens everyday in Chile – at the chemist, the supermarket, any transaction you are doing) and you actually have one.
When somebody new arrives to Chile and you can answer their questions about a whole range of topics.
Doctors appointments in Spanish where you have to google so many words beforehand but everything runs smoothly and you end up with the right prescription.
When you know where to get off the bus or which exit (of the 8!) of the metro to leave at. It’s nice not having to look at Google Maps for every single trip you take.
Knowing how much to tip in a restaurant or to the person who packs the bags at the supermarket. And knowing how much to give to somebody busking on the metro.
Knowing little facts about Chile ~ who some famous people are, which food dishes are the most important to Chileans, the national flower and tree… they are things that come up a lot and you can contribute to conversations using them!
When you can be in and out of the supermarket really quickly because you know exactly where everything is.
What are your yay moments when living in a new city or country?
I’m currently away in Chiloe and Puerto Varas for my Autumn break from school and will be with limited internet so please excuse my slow commenting and replying this week 🙂
Marcella xx
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Welcome to the Wanderful Wednesday Link-up!
More information:
Consider yourself a wanderer?! Well then, this Blog Hop is for you!
Meet your hosts: Lauren of Lauren on Location, Van of Snow in Tromso, Isabel of The Sunny Side of This and me, Marcella of What a Wonderful World.
Here on Wanderful Wednesday we hope to promote an open and supportive community for like-minded bloggers- expats, travelers and all kinds of wanderers! The linkup will take place every Wednesday at 8:00am GMT.
Wanderful Wednesday Guidelines:
Link up a wanderful travel related post below! One per blogger per week please!
Spread the LOVE! Blog Hops are all about hopping around & getting to know others within the community! At the very least please try to comment on one other post before you go!
Let’s get Social! Really liked a post you read? Don’t be shy! Share your favorites on Social Media! You can use the hashtag: #wanderfulwednesday
Don’t forget to grab the button and link back to your wanderful hosts! Help us spread the word and let’s get others involved!
Ahhhh that first Yay moment of knowing where you are so you can give directions – that never gets old!!
Totally agree! Or when you get to tell somebody a bus number 🙂
Love the idea 👍
Thanks!
Yay for you 🙂 I love when I can answer someone’s question on the street or give directions.
Totally! It’s such a great moment 🙂
both my times living abroad was in English speaking countries (UK and US), so conversations where smooth! I’m so into giving directions so (and really into maps and directions) so I agree on that!
I think the language definitely complicates everything, but also adds that extra challenge!
So much of this I can totally relate to here in Germany!! 🙂 #WanderfulWednesday
Yay! I was thinking lots of these things would be universal 🙂
happy birthday to your wanderful linkup!
Thanks, it’s actually next month and I hope you can join in with our photo prompt!
One year already? Time really flies. Happy first linkupaversary. 🙂 #WanderfulWednesday
Crazy, right? I hope you can join in with our photo post 🙂
Yes, crazy. I’ll try. 🙂
I can totally relate to all of them!! hahaha. I’m not 100% there yet, I still don’t know where things are but that moment happened to me once in Slovenia. It felt like a total win!
Definitely! I’m also definitely not a 100% there yet, but it’s nice to always celebrate those small moments!
I spent two months living in Japan, and it was only at the end of our stay that I felt confident actually putting the garbage out, knowing I’d sorted it into the many correct piles! 😉
Haha, I know that sorting out recycling and rubbish can be so confusing!
Ha such a good list! Gotta love those “yay” moments…and it’s much more fun to focus on those than the non-yay moments ;). and 18 months?? Really?? Seems like you just moved there, at least to me!
Crazy, right? Time runs away with you!
And yes, all about focusing on those happy moments, no matter how small!
Wow – you and I must have become expats in the same month because I am celebrating month 18 too 🙂 It’s the little things, isn’t it!!
Oh yay to that!! 🙂 Cheers to us!
I can only imagine how awesome it feels with all of these small moments when you’re living somewhere so completely different from your home country! I have to admit, I love when I get asked for directions, even if I’m just visiting a location, because it makes me feel like I fit in and look like a local!
Definitely! It’s especially great for me as I have zero sense of direction, so I always get the proud feeling 🙂
I had some yay moments when I lived in Germany and could order without pointing at what I wanted in the case or on the menu!
That’s a great one! Especially when you have to point for a good while, then one day you don’t 🙂
I love all of these so much!! I really feel you on knowing which metro exit to take – I always feel like such a badass local knowing this kind of stuff. AND ordering the correct weight measurements at the market – yes yes yes! Do you ever feel awkward when you know more about the city or country than a Chilean person? This happens to me sometimes, haha. Congrats with all of your yay moments and living abroad successes. These are amazing and should be celebrated!
This post was actually prompted by a conversation we had a long while ago through some comments 😉 So thanks to you!
We are all doing great at this living abroad thing!
Congrats on all these happy moments! It sounds like you are successfully integrating. 🙂
Thank you! It’s great to celebrate the small things! 🙂
Great list – I moved to the UK years ago, and still get nervous when returning things to the shops 🙂 #wanderfulwednesday
It’s always a bit scary that they are just going to say “no”, especially in Chile where returning things isn’t really the culture!
My biggest Yay moment is finding a place to live and moving in. Then after that comes working out my bearings. Finally getting myself to work without having to use the GPS. Using the same slang swear words that everyone else does with they encounter a bad driver. Or feeling like I’m part of the crowd. #wanderfulwednesday
Yes to that! Those were big yay moments for me too, as you finally start to feel like you actually live in a place and you aren’t just on holiday 😉
I feel like you know more about Chile than I know about my home state. Somebody wants directions? Ummmm? And don’t even ask me which stop I need or how to navigate the metro where I live. (We usually just drive.) So it sounds like you’ve accomplished a lot! 🙂 I’m especially impressed at your being able to go to the doctor and get a prescription in a different language! I think that’s the dream! And I know you’ve worked hard to get there! 🙂 #WanderfulWednesday
Haha, I know what you mean 😉 When I get stopped in London I usually don’t know either! And in Santiago, it’s only happened a handful of times, but those times are great 😉
So many great achievements! It’s crazy how when you first move to a new country, so many things that used to be so simple are suddenly 10 times harder. You’ve overcome so many things. Definitely yay moments!
So true! The everyday simple things… become major hurdles! So conquering them is the best feeling 🙂
So many great moments!! Congratulations on each and every single one of those milestones… but especially the bank… because I feel like that would be the most challenging!! 🙂
Thanks so much! Any paperwork things are always tricky in another language!
All of these things are just on point!! I can’t really remember my biggest yay moments though – I’m scratching the 3 year mark now so for me, most things have become normal – but I definitely went through most of your yay moments as well 🙂
So glad you can relate! 🙂 I feel like I’ll be having lots of yay moments for a long time to come, all the little steps!
This was such a positive post to read, especially as a fellow expat! I understand all of these moments, and why they are so important – like going to the doctor. Unless you’ve experienced having to do it in another language you can’t appreciate how easy it is to do it in your own!! Off to think about my yay moments now…
Thanks so much! 🙂 And you’re so right, it’s so easy to take everything for granted! Until it takes an hour to prepare for a 2 min conversation, hehe!
What a fun post!! I love the idea of a Yay moments post!! Getting in and out of a supermarket is a yay moment anywhere! May have to do one for RVing moments. And yay for celebrating 1st birthdays 🙂 So many great ideas!!
Thanks Melanie! Would love to read your version too, it’s always fun to share the positivity!
It’s a great idea. Love it
Great yay moments, fabulous photos. Congratulations Wanderful Wednesday on your first birthday and thank you to all the hosts!
Thanks Jo! I hope you can join us for the photo post next month 🙂
Love this – all these little things we take for granted at home must be so challenging when you’re settling in a new country, and it must be such a buzz when these yay moments then start to happen. My yay moment in my new town was my first night sleeping in a comfy bed in an actual house after years of backpacking hostels, and tiny flats in London with Ikea beds. Bliss! 😉 Looking forward to the Wanderful Wednesday anniversary post and hope you’re enjoying your trip! 🙂
That’s so fun! There is nothing like having a real bed and real sheets 😉
Hope you can join in for our photo post next month!
I’d love too – going to try and find somewhere to go next weekend to take the picture 🙂
Great list. Loved the way you described them as yay moments. 😀
Thanks Mani! 🙂
I love reading your posts like this! Mostly because they are SO relatable to me hehe … I still get super excited when people ask me for directions and I know what to tell them! Not having to use GoogleMaps all the time is awesome too! Thankfully the metro system here is so great 😀
Wellll…. being a week in, I’ve not had many yay moments yet (the biggest yay was getting our visa to get here in the first place!) but I’m sure they’ll start coming thick and fast. Especially when we find somewhere to live. That’s next on the list! I think a big yay moment for me is when you become familiar with the local currency so that when you have to pay for stuff you don’t need to stand and gaze at your cash for ages before selecting the correct change 😀
I think the moment you can navigate without Google Maps to major destinations, you already feel like a local. So many great things have happened in your life since you moved! Very happy for you, Marcella! ❤
Totally! And thanks for all of the positivity 🙂
My pleasure 🙂
Aw I can’t believe you’ve been there so long already! Yes to all of these! That truly means you’re assimilating haha
Me neither… time flies!!
Hi Marcella! Wanderful post (see what I did there? ;-). I am a soon-to-be-expat in the planning stages. It’s exciting and scary at the same time! I began my blogging journey just 2 months ago to connect with like-minded expats and travelers. Love your #wanderfulwednesday blog hop idea, but not sure exactly how to participate. Can you provide a bit more help? Thank you!
Hi! It would be great if you joined us. Every Wednesday (8am GMT) at the bottom of my post there is a link, just click on it and upload a blog post of yours and then hop around and read other posts too 🙂 Hope that is clear but let me know if you have any other questions!
Ha! Found the link to the Linky Tools List page with 46 entries… and at the bottom it says this page is now closed. I guess I should have been quicker! 😉
It’s open every week between Wednesday and Friday so you’ll be able to link up this Wednesday! 🙂
Awesome! I will check back. I am in California so that would be 1 AM for me. Yikes. Break out the cafe con leche!
Oh my goodness, YES! I lived in Bogotá (and now Madrid) and was nodding along to each one of these. A yay moment for me is being able to help travelers who don’t speak Spanish or are totally confused at how to use a metro card or something that seems ‘everyday’ to me.
Totally agree! It’s fun that I can now help those people out, and think that I used to have no idea! 🙂