TRANSLATED – I was born in San Cristóbal, Venezuela. At a really young age I moved to Cúcuta, Colombia. Then when I was almost 9 years old, I moved to Medellín, Colombia so most of my memories are from there. Moving here was hard for me because I struggled to adjust to the different language and culture. I moved with both my parents and my younger brother in October 2021. We moved here to just have a better life. Living in the US gives my family and I the opportunity to have better jobs and education in general. We moved up here alone since our family couldn’t come with us, so we didn’t know anyone here.
The biggest difference living here is the language. It makes it a whole lot harder to talk to people around me, or even make friends. The move for me is still new, and I miss my family living in Colombia. I miss my grandparents, my uncles, and the friends I still talk to, so we try to go back when we can. On the other hand, I do really enjoy it here. I’ve had a lot of different and new experiences that I wouldn’t have had still living in Colombia or Venezuela.
Something I like about living here is that everyone comes from different cultures and backgrounds, which is great, but it does make it harder for me to get to know more people, especially with the language barrier. Over time, my English has been getting better, and all the teachers are really understanding and helpful when it comes to learning the language. Also, I can understand a lot of english so I pay attention, it is just the talking that I struggle with. But overall, I enjoy it. I’m still getting used to it but I find this as a great opportunity in my life.
TRANSLATED – I was born in Ilobasco, El Salvador. Moving here was easy for me. I moved here 3 years ago in February of 2020. I moved here with my mom, my sister who is 21 and my younger brother who is 12. Honestly, we only really moved up here to live with my stepdad. I feel like life here is so different. In El Salvador, you’re always playing in the street or you go home with your friends after school. Living here, I noticed that it seems like you never have enough time with your family because they are always working or I’m at school. And specifically, I feel like people don’t go out that much, only for vacation, which is not something I’m used to.
Something I really miss is how small the country was. Because it is the smallest country in Latina America, everything is relatively close. In a day you can go to the beach or visit different places and you don’t have to plan a vacation for it, everything you need is there. I definitely miss my friends from there and especially my grandparents because I never get to visit them. On the other hand, I don’t miss school, I didn’t really like the teachers there; they are way nicer here and I like school more here.
Initially the change was hard, but after living here for a year and learning some English it got easier. I try to put in a lot of effort to learn English and almost all of my friends only speak English, which has given me the opportunity to learn and practice the language a lot. Living here gave me like a new start. I got to fix mistakes I’ve made in the past as well as learn a new culture and language; I enjoy it.
TRANSLATED – I was born in Armenia, Colombia. I moved to the US about 6 years ago in January of 2017. At the beginning, it was hard to move because I would have to learn a new culture, language, and make new friends. It was really hard when I first got here. I made the move with my mom and my brother and we moved in with my dad, who was already living here. Mainly, I moved because my dad and all his family lives here. We also moved here because there are a lot more benefits in the states with education and work is better.
The only thing I really miss is my family still living there and the food, but I don’t miss the school. They always gave us too much homework compared to here. My favorite part about living here is definitely being able to visit places I thought I would never go to. I always grew up seeing places like LA and San Francisco in movies and now I can actually visit those places.
I find that the biggest difference here is the communication, since I moved here I had to learn English from nothing. When I speak English it takes a lot of effort, and people just talk so fast. But I think the biggest difference between here and Colombia is that in Colombia everyone is like one big family. Everyone helps each other, people are always on the street and you always greet them even when you don’t know them. In my time here, I’ve learned a lot of English, and I understand it better than I can speak it. I really do love it here, even with learning the new language, but life moves way faster here. There is always stress and somewhere to go and something to do.
TRANSLATED – I was born in Orlando, Florida, but when I was 2 my family moved to Michoacán, México. When I was 14 years old, I moved in with some of my aunts living in Tijuana, México by myself. From there, I moved with my aunts to California for the opportunities that getting an education here has to offer.
The biggest difference I have seen from living here is the opportunity that everyone has. I left a lot back in Mexico, especially my friends. I miss the culture that I grew up with but most of all my parents. Almost all my family lives there still. I try to visit every December, but it is still hard being away from everyone I love. But even with all that I really like it here. I like the teachers here much more than the teachers I had growing up. I’ve made new friendships that I know I would have never had just by moving here. I think one of my favorite parts about living here is being able to go out with my friends and go to things like the dances the school has.
A big struggle is being able to to talk with the people in English. Most of the people I have become friends with speak Spanish which has made it easier for me to get used to living here, I just don’t have as much pracitce with the language. But everyday I’m learning more of the language, and I understand it way more than I am able to speak it. In the beginning it was hard for me to move, but now it is going good. It was weird living without my parents at first but now I am used to it.
TRANSLATED – I was born in Managua, Nicaragua. The move here was really hard for me. I moved here almost a year ago in October of 2022. I came with my brother to the states and we moved in with my aunt. I honestly moved up here for the opportunities that living here provides.
Living here is so different. I feel like living in Nicaragua I could go out a lot more compared to here. Also the school here is so different. Going to high school here is more like going to university in Nicaragua. I miss everything about living there because I don’t think I have lived here enough to fully get used to it. I miss my friends, and being able to play soccer all the time. I used to play for the national team for the capital of Nicaragua, and I miss that the most. We used to practice almost every day, and we got to travel a lot to play other national teams. Living here, I play soccer on a team but it’s just different then what I was used to.
A big difference in my life is my friends. I have a very small social circle because I can’t really talk to that many people here. Learning English is hard and connecting with others in a different language is a lot. I feel like I’m learning a lot but pronouncing the words is the hardest. I can read it fairly well and understand some things, but speaking it is different than understanding it. Honestly, I like it here, I miss my old country and it is taking a lot to get used to life here. The first few months of me living here, I didn’t go to school or anything so I was extremely bored being in the house all day, but now with school and friends, being able to play soccer, it feels normal, and it is getting better.
