Mon, 28 May 2012
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Teenager Kirsty Johnstone explains how she coped with moving to the Netherlands with her family at short notice from her Scottish homeland and offers some advice to help other newcomers settle into life abroad.Sixteen year old Kirsty Johnstone’s life changed when her parents announced that the family “would be going on a small family vacation to the Netherlands.”
On the trip to the Lowlands, “they dropped the bombshell that this was us actually checking out the possibility of moving to Holland in the near-future. To help us recover from the shock, we visited all the major tourist sites in Amsterdam first before travelling down to a small city called Arnhem.”
Kirsty and her family relocated to Arnhem on 1 August 2005 with her parents and sister.
Kirsty Johnstone on the ups and downs of settling into the Netherlands:
Moving to a different country can have an effect on your wellbeing.
I felt lost and like part of me was missing. The first few weeks in the Netherlands was all about settling into the new house and getting to know our new environment. 
It just so happened to be that our street was hosting a ‘Street party’. This was a fantastic opportunity for us to meet and get to know all our neighbours.
If your street is hosting one of these parties then be sure to go along and check it out as the Dutch people make you feel very welcome!
When reality hits home
After the initial high of preparing to jet off to another country, reality kicked back in when we started to unpack all our beloved items into our new ‘crib’.
Seeing all the furniture and the family pictures’ being put up in our new living room was when it really began to sink in that I would be living in the Netherlands for the foreseeable future.
Thinking about waking up every morning and going to sleep every night without being in Scotland made me feel upset, but when I thought about the great opportunity I had to live in a new country, it didn’t seem as bad. I reminded myself that I would still be able to go back and visit Scotland a couple of times a year and that friends and family would be able to visit me.
My advice to help you get through the first few weeks of living in a different country is to get out and about as much as you can.
For me, the simplest things helped; from buying the groceries at the local supermarket to taking the bus to get around. The Dutch people are always interested in where you come from and why you are here.
Now that I have been living in the Netherlands for a few years, I still miss certain things about Scotland but I’m glad that I moved here.
So far it has been a wonderful experience even though sometimes it has its downsides, like not fully understanding the language. But I’m getting there!
A guide to telephone, internet and television along with utility services water, electricity and gas in the Netherlands.
Lost in the Dutch immigration system? Look no further than this guide compiled for our Survival Guide 2012.
Expatica offers a whistle-stop tour of life in the modern Netherlands.
The challenges and benefits of the maternity system in the Netherlands and how it differs to other countries.
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