'He moved to me in Moscow, and then took me to America': an instructive story of immigration

Daria went to the USA for a part-time job during the summer holidays and met her future husband. As part of a series of materials about compatriots who have moved abroad, "Lenta.ru report»Publishes her story about life in Chicago.

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

Back in 2010, after completing the second year of RUDN University, my university friend offered to go with her to the United States on the well-known Work & Travel program, which for many became fateful. To be honest, I have never been particularly eager to go to America. At the university, I studied German and dreamed of one fine day to go to study and live in Germany. But fate decreed otherwise.

In June 2010, we flew to Miami, and literally a week later I met my future husband at a Russian restaurant on Sunny Isles Beach, where we often visited.

The whole summer before my departure back to Moscow, we were inseparable: we saw each other absolutely every day, went to the beach, organized parties and had a good time as best we could.

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

After my return to Moscow, we were constantly in touch by phone and online. Plans for a trip to the United States during the winter holidays failed because I was denied a visa. Instead, Christian arrived for a month to stay in winter Moscow, and later came up with something incredible. Being a brave adventurer, he transferred to distance education at his university, moved to Moscow and got a job in several schools of English, where he mainly taught children to Russian millionaires and billionaires at home.

In July, 2011, during a trip to the island of Eleuthera, he made me an offer, and upon returning to the capital, I was scheduled for an interview on a visa for the bride at the US embassy in Moscow.

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

We used the services of an immigration lawyer, and the whole process took a little more than eight months. At the embassy, ​​we were interviewed separately and asked tricky questions, trying to catch a lie, which was a surprise for me. In the end, my visa was approved, and in August 2012, we moved to Gainesville, Florida, where my husband had to complete his undergraduate degree.

Despite the full support of my husband and his wonderful parents, who immediately accepted me into their family as their own daughter, it was very hard for me to have no relatives.

Friends and communication in Russian, of course, also lacked. But on the other hand, immersion on Wednesday was inevitable and very fast. Her husband's family moved to the USA from Cuba for quite some time, in the 60s, they are already very Americanized and speak English as their native language. My English was not bad in principle even before moving to the USA, but ideally I spoke after the first year of life here. Americans are often amazed at my lack of a Russian accent, but I myself don’t know how it happened.

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

In August, 2014, we moved to Chicago, where we currently live. We work in the same company: I got the first job, and after a few months my husband came there. At first, I was very complex at work because of my English, but I had very kind and caring colleagues who encouraged and taught me. With many, we have become good friends. Most of them are the same as me - immigrants or children, the so-called first generation Americans.

In Chicago, as in any other large US city, a huge number of immigrants from all over the world, you can find national grocery stores, cafes, restaurants and other businesses.

It was here that I tried the cuisine of many nations and peoples. Americans themselves are very friendly, polite and helpful. They will never correct or accuse a foreigner of poor English proficiency, they are always treated with great understanding and interest.

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

Chicago, like any metropolis, looks like Moscow. The infrastructure is very well developed here: public transport, medicine, education (two of the ten best universities in the country are located here), tourism, art and culture. A huge number of career opportunities. Many people can afford housing here: there is no big difference between the average household income and the price of a house or apartment, such as in New York or San Francisco. However, there is the largest real estate tax and sales tax (10,25%). Utility prices, in principle, in the States are very high. For example, the basic package with Internet and television will cost at best 100 dollars with all taxes and other markups.

I work in the health sector and can talk about American medicine, but, unfortunately, not much good. The quality of service is often high, but the fact that the whole sphere is, in fact, is in the private sector of the economy and is a business, for me it is wildness. Doctors are not by vocation, and very often due to financial interests. My health insurance costs 370 dollars per month, of which approximately 75 percent is covered by my employer.

At the same time, I still need to pay three thousand dollars out of my pocket during the calendar year before the insurance starts to cover something a little serious: operations, childbirth, X-rays, ultrasound, or something like that. And this is just the tip of the iceberg!

Photo: instagram.com/daashun

To understand the system of private insurance companies and government-related programs in medicine, you need to have a degree, and this is not a joke. For a Russian citizen, American medicine will seem too complicated and confusing.

I see my future exclusively in the USA and I am determined to receive citizenship. Ideally, I would like to bring my parents here, because they are the only ones I miss in Russia.

Of course, I love my homeland with its rich history and culture, but the quality and standard of living of the average citizen lags far behind the United States. Everyone knows how quickly a person gets used to the good, and does not want to go back to the past. Every couple of years I visit Moscow and plan to continue to adhere to this tradition. I love my hometown and am always glad to meet old friends and former classmates.

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