Following my husband’s new placement in Frankfurt, our move to Germany was imminent. On arriving to the city for the first time, I was welcomed by rain and cold weather, it would be fair to say that leaving the sunny shores of Spain wasn’t an ideal move for me at the time. Although relocating for a new adventure was very exciting, being an expat brings lots of “news”. A new climate, new people, new culture, new food, new bureaucracy, new language and also new loneliness. I quickly began to realize that my loneliness was short-lived, Frankfurt is full of different cultures with lots of other expats experiencing these “news”. The longer I spent in this cosmopolitan city, the more I loved it. The initial shock of a new culture was easing away. A few weeks in and once the priority “to dos” were taken care of, I took an intensive German course to help me integrate into life in Frankfurt. Although English is widely spoken, I wanted to face the everyday issues such as, going to the supermarket, buying a train ticket, ask for an address, buy some new furniture and even just have a chat with the neighbors. Now it was time for my job search. Finding something suitable was a lengthy process because of my language skills and because my expertise was not in the engineering, IT or pharmaceutical industries. Then one day I was lucky enough to find a role that interested me and perfectly fitted my profile, working for an international company where they valued for experience as an expatriate. Now it was time to face my biggest challenge yet, a new job, in a new company, in a new country and new culture. I am very pleased to say that the hurdle wasn’t as big as I thought. My boss helped me with the documents required for me to work, such as, Sozialversicherungsnummer, a Krankenkasse and the Steuernummer. It was wonderful to make new friends, my German improved and I was doing my job well. Now, I am used to life in Germany, I have integrated into personal and professional life, I socialize with my new friends, and that makes this adventure even better. Elvira Martin, Marketing Assistant EMEA