{"id":36473,"date":"2021-09-29T15:50:47","date_gmt":"2021-09-29T15:50:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/?post_type=articles&p=36473"},"modified":"2021-09-29T15:50:47","modified_gmt":"2021-09-29T15:50:47","slug":"a-tale-of-two-cities","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/a-tale-of-two-cities\/","title":{"rendered":"A Tale Of Two Cities"},"content":{"rendered":"
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ILLUSTRATION BY PETER OUMANSKI<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A few months after graduating college, I packed a suitcase and moved to Bratislava, Slovakia, for six months. It was a place I\u2019d never heard of\u2014let alone visited\u2014but I\u2019d landed a temporary job at an international advertising agency, and that was reason enough. Looking back now, decades later, the adventure set my life on a completely different course than what I had planned. From Slovakia, I traveled to Italy until I ran out of money. Instead of going next to Los Angeles, as I had been planning to do, I packed my bags and flew to New York City to crash on a friend\u2019s floor while I looked for another temporary job. I\u2019ve now lived in New York my entire adult life, but I\u2019ve always wondered what my world would be like today if a different decision\u2014or fate\u2014had sent me somewhere else. Apparently, others have too.<\/p>\n

During the first few months of the pandemic, I watched as two themes played out among my friends and follows on social media: The majority locked down as the world seemingly descended into chaos; then, there were the outliers, those who for individual reasons made a move\u2014often to a very unexpected place\u2014out of want, or need, or sometimes both.<\/p>\n

This past spring, as coronavirus vaccines rolled out and travel loosened up a bit, I fled to Mexico City, desperate to shake off what had been a dark year for NYC by renting an apartment there for a few months. My own \u201cmove\u201d turned out to be temporary, but not everyone\u2019s was. For those who made the choice, did a snap decision to change a living situation in uncertain times lead to regret? Was life better now for those who relocated, or did they want to return and resume the life they left? Would they do it all over again if given a choice or chance? And did they learn the truth of that old saying? \u201cWherever you go, there you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alessandro Bellini was born in Florence and spent much of his childhood there. Several years ago, Bellini\u2014who by spring 2020 had been living in Chicago for well over two decades\u2014and his wife, Sarah Borland Bellini, purchased a home in his Italian hometown with, he says, \u201ca vague plan in mind to possibly move sometime in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Then the coronavirus crisis hit and sent the United States and the rest of the world reeling. \u201cThe pandemic had us think, \u2018Well, truly we don\u2019t know how much time any of us have so let\u2019s make our plans and just do it now,\u2019\u201d he tells Grazia USA.<\/p>\n

The couple understood a sped-up timetable meant that their 9-year-old daughter, Elena, would have an easier time transitioning to a new school and country because she would still be young.The move, he says, became a teachable moment:\u201cWe explained to her how life is full of changes and how people are often coming and going in life.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fall 2020, the family sold their home and began a new life. The hardest part about leaving their old life in Chicago behind, Bellini says, was saying goodbye to loved ones. Day-to-day issues in their new home country included learning Italy\u2019s system for dealing with the pandemic, from regional lockdowns and curfews to grocery shopping and overcoming bureaucratic hurdles\u2014a potentially confounding issue even in non-pandemic times.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife and daughter also have the challenge of learning another language,\u201d Bellini says, observing that Elena is learning Italian quickly and already sometimes steps in to act as translator for her mother. Not so much of a challenge for the three: Florence\u2019s slower pace means they have a less hectic lifestyle than in Chicago. \u201cWe take longer walks and spend more time together as a family,\u201d Bellini explains. Indeed, priorities have shifted for many post-COVID, even if our surroundings haven\u2019t changed so drastically.<\/p>\n

Bellini and his wife plan to return to Chicago for summers with their daughter, and the couple now wishes they had made the hop across the Atlantic even sooner. \u201cIt was often in our conversations about the possibility to move to Florence, and we would do it over again in a heartbeat,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Another couple, Eduardo Polo and his husband, Erik Savoie, also found a way to turn the crisis to their advantage. When in spring 2020 it became obvious the pandemic was spreading unchecked across North America, the couple was living in Toronto and initially planned to wait out the crisis in the Canadian city.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe then thought that since we did not have an office to go to because all work had gone remote, it would be great if we tried to make this pandemic work in our favor and explore the United States,\u201d says Polo, who grew up in Spain. (His husband is originally from Pennsylvania.) \u201cMy spouse and I are huge fans of the U.S.A.\u2014we met in New York City when we were both working there\u2014so we thought we should embrace the more rural lifestyle and explore some areas we had not been to, this time for longer periods than just a vacation.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, the couple embarked on an itinerary of six-week rentals in Kentucky, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico before finally winding up last February in Johnson City, a college town tucked in northeast Tennessee\u2019s Blue Ridge Mountains. \u201cThe funny thing is that before the pandemic, we had not even heard of Johnson City, and thanks to all the road trips we had to do when we were driving from one short-term accommodation to the next, we happened to stop in Johnson City for lunch,\u201d Polo says. \u201cWe promised ourselves that we would return because we wanted to explore the area further.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two arranged in Johnson City what was meant to be another new temporary home on their list of destinations. One day during breakfast, Polo says, he was browsing a real estate website. \u201cI realized that there were very cute homes in the area, and I thought the [affordable] prices were a mistake,\u201d he explains. \u201cSomething told me it was time to invest, especially after falling in love with the area.\u201d<\/p>\n

He and his husband talked it over and decided to contact a real estate agent. One morning, they spotted a new property that had just come onto the market and agreed they liked it, at least on paper. \u201cWe did not want to get too excited, but we went to see it that afternoon,\u201d Polo says. \u201cErik and I looked at each other and said, \u2018This is it.\u2019 It was a very rainy day and we loved it, and they say that if you love a house on a rainy day, it means you will always love it, and, so far, it is true.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, instead of Toronto\u2019s traffic, says Polo, \u201cwe have miles and miles of trails, mountains, and lakes all around us. We have not been bored for a second, although you must love nature and outdoor experiences if you want to live here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like others who moved during the pandemic, Polo and Savoie did have to face new issues, ones they likely wouldn\u2019t have confronted if they had stayed put in their Canadian comfort zone. \u201cThe most challenging part is being in a same-sex relationship in the South,\u201d Polo reveals. \u201cHowever, we like to think that we can expose people to diversity and that we can try to do our part to turn this into a positive situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson City, for example, had a Pride parade the year before the pandemic started, and Polo and Savoie heard it was a huge success. They will likely be around to experience the next parade in person, since they eventually plan to live between Tennessee and Canada as the pandemic eases. \u201cWe do love the idea of being able to split our time between city living and rural living,\u201d Polo says, noting that he now realizes just how much he loves a home surrounded by mountains.<\/p>\n

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ILLUSTRATION BY PETER OUMANSKI<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The decision to go between the two extremes was a longtime dream that was \u201calways just talk and not much action\u201d for the pair, Polo says. \u201cWe probably would not have our place in Tennessee if it wasn\u2019t for the fact that the pandemic pushed us out of the city.\u201d Buying a home during a global crisis was \u201cstressful at times,\u201d says Polo, but they would definitely travel the same route all over again\u2014literally. \u201cWe have realized that we should have never worried so much about doing something like this.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a sentiment that Los Angeleno Kilee Hughes shares since she\u2019s made her second home base in Colorado off and on since the first summer after the pandemic struck. \u201cIt has really reminded me that when I want to do something, I shouldn\u2019t put it off and wait for a \u2018better time,\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cWe really don\u2019t know what\u2019s in store for us in this world and when you\u2019re considering a lifestyle change, whether it\u2019s moving, dating, work, school or really, anything, if it\u2019s replaying constantly in your head, listen to that voice and run with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

So run, in a sense, Hughes did. The founder and CEO of the beauty, wellness, and lifestyle public relations outfit Six One Agency was living alone in LA and found that not having constant companionship\u2014not even a pet\u2014was all \u201ca bit mentally draining. I felt much more confined and cooped up than I had expected.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hughes\u2014who says that spontaneity could be her middle name\u2014began to think about her next move.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought getting back into nature and operating out of a slower, more down-to-earth city would fuel and satisfy me more,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Like Polo and his husband, Hughes wanted to explore her options but didn\u2019t have a definitive destination firmly in mind.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always been very much a \u2018this feels right for now so let\u2019s run with it\u2019 type of person,\u201d she explains. With family in California, Hughes wanted to be able to return to the state easily, including by car if necessary, but surrounding states like Texas, Utah, Arizona, and Oregon didn\u2019t hold much appeal for her. She decided Colorado was where she wanted to be, packed her bags, and headed to Boulder\u2014without any preconceptions of how the move would play out. \u201cMy thought process was to travel freely: no plans, no road map,\u201d Hughes says.<\/p>\n

She ended up staying at the Embassy Suites in Boulder for her first three months in Colorado, and it turned out to be exactly what she needed. \u201cAn empty hotel with amenities, top-floor views of the skyline, and a pool were fuel for my soul,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

When it came to her heart and dating, Hughes also found the nourishment she craved, especially after she moved on to Denver. \u201cI tried to be as social as possible without putting myself or others at risk of COVID-19,\u201d she says, joking that the Mile High City \u201cis not known as Men-ver for nothing!\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite coronavirus, meeting people was \u201cpretty easy and effortless\u201d as vaccines became more plentiful and restrictions eased up, and Hughes found others \u201cjust wanted to connect,\u201d she says. \u201cThe downside to the pandemic is that it has caused us all to be socially isolated and awkward, but we work through it.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a Black small business owner, she\u2019s also working on expanding her LA-based agency into a new market, which has been an unexpected but welcome boon. \u201cColorado affords me the opportunity to transition from small fish in an overactive pond in the beauty, lifestyle, and wellness brand consulting space to potentially dominating an entirely untapped landscape,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

In her personal life, Hughes takes a more philosophical approach when thinking about her pandemic experience in Colorado: \u201cI fully believe that every action out in the universe outside of your control helps guide you to where you\u2019re supposed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sabina Hitchen and her husband, Alexander, would agree. In March 2020, the two were working in New York City and living with their now-2-1\/2-year-old daughter, Juliette, across the Hudson River in Englewood, New Jersey. The family\u2019s home was on the tenth floor of a condo building, and using a shared elevator with other tenants\u2014some of whom were becoming sick with coronavirus\u2014was becoming, as Hitchen says, \u201can impossible situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

The parents were aware their options were becoming more and more limited each day. \u201cOne night I just knew in my gut we had to go. We had to get out of the city,\u201d she explains. \u201cAt the time, I thought it\u2019d be just for a few weeks. I packed up our car with essentials that night, and the next morning we drove to Maine. It really was a casual thought that became serious action pretty quickly, but times were intense. We were just thinking about our family and expecting we\u2019d return within a month.\u201d<\/p>\n

As they drove north toward the state where her parents and sister live, Hitchen says they whispered their goodbye to New York City under their breaths, and her thoughts kept returning to a line from an E.B. White poem her sibling had just shared with her: \u201cI would really rather feel bad in Maine than feel good anywhere else.\u201d Leaving, she thought, \u201cjust felt like the right choice\u201d at the time.<\/p>\n

Well over a year later, it still does. The family found an Airbnb and kept extending their stay since Hitchen, the founder of PressforSuccess.com, was able to work from anywhere running her company, which creates online education and publicity resources for small business owners. Her husband easily continued his job as a media consultant working from home. They decided to put down permanent roots in Portland.<\/p>\n

Leaving during the beginning of the pandemic did prove to be difficult in many ways, but the most challenging aspect of the move for Hitchen is that she has yet to return to the New York area since going to Maine. \u201cIt happened so suddenly and I didn\u2019t get a chance to say goodbye\u2014to friends, to my favorite coffee shop people, to the spots that hold special memories, to the expectations of the future I\u2019d have on the East Coast, to so many parts of our life that came before the pandemic,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

At the same time, her family has gained just as much as they\u2019ve lost, including a \u201csoothing\u201d newfound connection to nature and loved ones. \u201cAt the end of the day, your family and your health are all that matter, and the people you love are what makes a home\u2014and you can recreate that anywhere,\u201d Hitchen says. \u201cSo though this has been one hell of an 18 months, someday we\u2019ll look back on it and think, \u2018This is where our story began, again.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28964,"featured_media":36501,"template":"","format":"standard","categories":[38,16],"yoast_head":"\nA Tale Of Two Cities - GRAZIA USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A few months after graduating college, I packed a suitcase and moved to Bratislava, Slovakia, for six months. It was a place I\u2019d never heard of\u2014let alone visited\u2014but I\u2019d landed a temporary job at an international advertising agency, and that was reason enough. 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