Tommaso & Lorenza exploring Germany
Tommaso is a born and bred Italian who has been living in the german-speaking countries of Austria and Germany for the last 7 years. He is well versed in the German language and has been living in the city of Munich. Tommaso moved to Amsterdam in April 2020 with his partner Lorenza who is also a proud Italian.
When asked for a fun fact about his culture Tommaso has this to say:
“People may not be aware, but Italians are very superstitious and every region in Italy has its own way of demonstrating this. However, a nationwide custom is to wear a little chilli pepper made of silver which is worn on a necklace or bracelet and is supposed to dispel bad spirits/energies.”
As any good Italian would say the biggest thing that is missed from home is the food! Of course, family is very important in Italy and they are missed as well. On the subject of life in Italy however, Tommaso says “Actually living and working in Italy isn’t something I find attractive. I’ve been studying and working abroad all of my adult life and therefore don’t have any strong connections to Italy in this sense.”
Relocating during a Pandemic
Moves are stressful for everyone, but can you imagine relocating during a global pandemic? This is exactly what the couple did moving from Munich to Amsterdam in a van to minimise the risk of exposure.
“We did the move by land. We moved with a van because the current situation with Corona meant that things were complex in terms of taking other modes of transport for personal safety. We took it upon us to move everything ourselves. The drive took around 8.5 hours and it was a very smooth journey with no problems as it is an easy route from Munich to Amsterdam.”
When asked about what the experience was like as a whole Tommaso had this to say:
“To be honest if we had been on our own it would have been very difficult, but with the support that Settly gave us the experience was so smooth and I truly don’t think we could have done it on our own. Settly was so helpful from the personal experiences they shared and the advice they gave, we couldn’t have been happier with the service”
Before arriving the couple virtually viewed properties in Amsterdam and managed to secure an apartment before arrival. Tommaso states that although Settly played a part in the relocation he has to also give credit to his partner Lorenza who is the expert organiser of the two. After unpacking and getting things sorted on the first day of their arrival the couple sat down and did a very Dutch thing and ordered their bicycles. The bikes arrived the very next day and the couple began exploring the city straight away.
The van which took them 825km from Munich to Amsterdam:
Meet Tommaso & Lorenza’s Amsterdam
This is a bit of a difficult section of the interview for Tommaso and Lorenza because they have arrived during the midst of the Netherlands smart lockdown to combat corona. Life is not normal for the residents of Amsterdam and many of the attractions of the city are closed. That being said they wanted to share some of the insights of their first few weeks.
Observations
- Positive people - ‘We were so positively surprised that even during this pandemic that people are very neighbourly, everyone is speaking to each other in the streets which is lovely. After years of living in Germany, this comes as a breath of fresh air let me tell you!”
- Relaxed atmosphere - “We didn’t expect to find such a relaxed situation here in the Netherlands. This smart lockdown is completely different from what we saw in Germany which was much stricter.”
- Bikes - “Lorenza and I made a good call getting our bikes straight away, because the city is beautiful”
- Neighbourhoods - “We live in one of the neighbourhoods outside the centre of the city and we have found loads of little cafes and restaurants (closed for now) everywhere. We can’t to be able to experience them fully and would recommend for everyone to explore the city as much as possible.”
Lorenza’s new Dutch form of transportation:
Keeping the hobbies and interests going
Tommaso is a student of Jiu-Jitsu and hopes that once the lockdown is over he can join a school in the city and start practising again.
Being Italian means that the couple is very busy in the kitchen and are always cooking which is proving to be a great time killer during the lockdown.
The couple says that “feeling at home is so important wherever you are in the world” and so they spend a lot of time making sure that their apartment is comfortable. Although Tommaso despises IKEA furniture, a sentiment which I (and I’m sure you the reader) deeply understand.
Both he and Lorenza have secured technical roles for great companies and are both hard at work bringing themselves up to speed on their new jobs.
