Moving to a New City
Having just moved to a new town, I am reminded of what it’s like to feel dazed and confused as I navigate my surroundings. I recall moving to a big city for university and the thrill of discovering every new café, bar, park, theatre and activity. I would talk to anyone I met fearlessly. Now I am a lot slower moving, retreating to the comfort of my own blog and gently venturing out into the wild unknown.
Yesterday I discovered that my local grocery store also has an excellent café where I can sit and drink good coffee, eat a delicious sandwich and read the local free papers. These news rags give me a feel for cultural events and local businesses. Just sitting among people gives you a feeling of belonging and takes almost zero effort. That’s why we writers like to sit in cafes, to get out and get inspired by real life unfolding around us.
If you can connect with just one local person, they will be a fount of information. I know one woman who grew up here so I can text her to ask where a good massage therapist works, which lake is worth an afternoon drive, or when to catch the local ferry to the tiny island nature reserve across the bay. She has also promised to introduce me to her writer friends.
If you don’t know anyone, there’s Google and GPS. How did we ever find our way before these came along? I remember trying to meet friends using the landline and a map, catching the bus and lying on the grass waiting for them to appear. Sometimes we spent hours with our own thoughts before the cell phone occupied our every waking moment.
I am shocked to learn that this town doesn’t do curbside recycling of plastics so I will have to drive them to the depot. They also don’t have any doctors taking on new patients and only one drop-in clinic, which is totally insufficient. The best option seems to be a forty-five minute drive to the next town over to see someone if I’m sick. This worries me and I have become as practically boring as anyone else approaching sixty.
However, I am proud of myself for making a big move later in life. Embracing new experiences and meeting new people will be challenging at this age, but I’m open to it. I am meeting a friendly Twitter follower next week for coffee. Who knows, maybe I’ll meet a real kindred spirit and one good friend is all anyone needs to be happy.
Have you ever moved to a new city or town? Please comment / subscribe and share your own experiences..
