Do you feel homesick
No, don't worry about me. Although I can also long for my own perfect latte macchiato, our dog, my entire wardrobe (yes sorry, but it's true) and especially for my girlfriends and my most fun colleagues after a few weeks of pasta and wine. Yes, even my gym visit and personal training session I might miss. My daughter has it a degree worse. The first ten days go well, then she asks every day ‘if we will go to our Haarlem house’, to add after a little silence: ‘In half an hour?’ Homesickness, no matter how nice it is somewhere, can just take you by surprise. I felt it too when we were abroad for Holland's Next Top Model for two weeks. I had a great time, but I missed mine. This is what you should do.
1. Call a lot and often
A lot of messaging and FaceTiming and sending photos gives you the feeling that you are close to each other. This will reduce the feeling of missing someone.
2. Exercise
Yes yes, exercising releases endorphins that can counter feelings of depression. This also applies to homesickness. And you feel fit, which also contributes to a better mood.
3. Do things you also do at home
When I was interning in Singapore, I could calmly drive with my English friend Juliette to the other side of the city to buy the perfect European bread instead of that mushy Asian stuff. Or when we stayed over at each other's places, we would set the air conditioning to very cold so we could sleep comfortably under a thick duvet.
4. Do something useful
If you are not at home anyway, it gives you a good feeling to do useful home-related tasks. Your administration, cleaning up your mailbox, finally making that digital photo book. By doing those things, you feel connected to home and when you are really home, you will be extra satisfied with yourself.
5. Make it visible
Where does your homesickness come from? Try to write that down. If you know what causes something, you can often handle it better. Write down when you feel unhappy and what you did about it. Count the days and think about all the special things you can still do, because you are there now anyway.
6. Look for fellow countrymen
Sounds terribly xenophobic, but sometimes it is so nice to speak your own language with people with more or less the same references. And then to complain together about the weather, that silly bread, that strange little language. And then afterwards you go back to normal and embrace the other culture. For as long as it lasts, you can manage that quite well.
