Transplants by Laura Peruchi - Conversations With Women Thriving Abroad

Monica Morales was encouraged to dream bigger from an early age. Growing up in Colombia, she heard from her parents that there were better opportunities abroad — and they made sure she was prepared for them. She learned English and was inspired by family members who had already left the country to pursue a life internationally. When the time came, Monica decided that studying abroad would be her p...

In this solo episode, I reflect on my recent trip back to Brazil, and the emotional rollercoaster that comes with it. The familiarity, the distance, the memories that resurface, and the strange in-between feeling of belonging to two places… I reflect on my point of view and experience on how environments shape our mindset, why going back doesn’t feel like a vacation, and how places can hold both c...

Négar Chahkhalili’s life has been shaped by movement, resilience, and the art of adapting across cultures. She was born in Tehran and left Iran at just six years old, during the 1979 revolution. What followed was a life lived across continents and cultures. She grew up with her grandparents in the south of France and moved to the U.S. to study and build a career. Eventually, she met her husband, w...

Gabriella Zarowsky’s first move abroad was over a decade ago, when she and her then-husband left Brazil to pursue graduate degrees in New York City. They both shared the dream of living abroad, and they were no longer feeling safe living in Rio de Janeiro. Studying abroad was the most feasible choice for them. While he pursued an MBA, Gabriella earned her master’s degree at FIT. They built a whole...

Asia Dawn had waited for a ring for years - so, when her long relationship ended, she was left heartbroken and suddenly questioning her entire life, including her job and the place she called home back in California, in the U.S. Suddenly, she got reconnected with an old dream: living abroad. After the divorce, with nothing really strong keeping her attached to her home country, she saw an opportun...

Lisa Baisl grew up in a small town near Munich, in Germany — a place she eventually moved to in order to attend law school, something that seemed like the obvious choice to follow a traditional path. She didn’t even know what it meant to go through law school, what it took to become a lawyer, or even how long it was going to take. And her time as a student was hard — really hard. The whole competi...

In the famous book The Artist’s Way , the author Julia Cameron suggests reframing failure by asking not “Why me?” but “What’s next?” And when I think about Trish Estuart’s story, it feels like a living answer to that question. Trish grew up in Cebu, in the Philippines, and started working at a young age. Yes, all her basic needs were covered, but she constantly felt deprived financially. While wor...

AnnSophie Salomez had what many would call a perfect life in Belgium: steady jobs, a renovated house, pets, stability. It was the Belgium dream, as she describes. But although life looked perfect on paper, a quiet question kept coming back while she was living her life between traffic jams and long workdays: there must be more to life than this. So, she and her husband got reconnected with old dre...

Consuelo Cantisani grew up in a tiny village in southern Italy, and she knew early on that she wanted to study languages, perhaps inspired by the trips she would take with her father, who traveled constantly for work. When she was around 14 years old, she left home to move to another town in Italy to study English. Later on, at 19, Consuelo moved to London, where she spent a decade studying, worki...

Cate de Leon had a very clear goal when she decided to move from Manila, in the Philippines, to Madrid, in Spain. She wanted to ditch the corporate ladder and skip vertical growth to search for self-actualization and horizontal growth. Before moving abroad by herself – to a city she had never been to before – Cate had what many would call a “successful” career: columnist, managing editor, communit...

When Emanuela Buccafurri left her tiny village in southern Italy for an exchange program in Lyon, France, she thought she would stay for just six months. But when the opportunity to stay longer and continue her studies was presented to her, she took a leap of faith, stayed in France. And twenty years later, she hasn’t gone back to Italy. Quite the opposite: driven by curiosity, she also explored w...

Immigration has been part of Soldana’s life since forever. It’s part of her roots: her grandmother left the Philippines to pursue a better life in the United States, a decision that deeply shaped Soldana’s story. Like many people growing up in the U.S., she was raised as a multicultural kid, surrounded by both Filipino and American influences. Maybe that’s why Soldana has been drawn to life abroad...

Sandra Romero knew early on that she wanted to explore the world and live abroad - she was inspired by her mom, who shared stories about living abroad. She decided to study translation and spent a formative year in England. From there, she took her first teaching job in Belgium, and it hit her: teaching Spanish could be her passport to keep living abroad. That insight became an operating system: p...

When Monique Kreis booked a one-way ticket to London from Australia, she felt called to make a leap - much like when she moved alone from Australia to Tasmania. But London’s gray weather didn’t convince her to stay, and after listening to her best friend’s advice, she secured a Workaway opportunity and booked a ticket to Tuscany, Italy. Following a long-held passion for food, Monique split her tim...

Welcome to this special episode featuring  some of the best moments from the episodes that were published this year. I selected highlight from the conversations I had with 15 women living abroad that are truly inspiring - and can help you to set the tone for the new year! Episode 1 - Adalia Aborisade   American in Mexico Episode 2 - Ambika Mathur - American in Italy Episode 3 - Raquel Paiva - Braz...

Marion Müller is originally from Switzerland and now calls Singapore home. What was meant to be a temporary move for her boyfriend’s job became a life-changing decision - even after their relationship ended. Yes, Marion decided to stay in Singapore, far away from the place she used to call home, to start a new life, by herself. Previous to the move to Asia, her life back in Zurique was pretty good...

When Olga Kudrick took a 36-hour bus from Lithuania to London, she was just a young woman looking for new opportunities and hoping to support her family. Sleeping on the floor, nearly becoming homeless, and being harassed were definitely not on her bingo card — but little by little, after overcoming a series of obstacles, she began building a new life. Olga met her husband, they had their daughter...

From a 21-year-old English teacher in rural Japan to 15 years on a Thai island and now a future in Valencia, Kaila Krayewski has been chasing belonging across continents. Being originally from Canada, Kaila's first experience abroad was in Japan - moved by the belief that Canada was not the right place for her and inspired by her parents, she thought that living in Japan to teach English would be...

In 2012, Celia Alves was a math teacher in Portugal: her life was stable; she had a house, a husband, and two kids. But Celia was pretty tired of her career; she felt burned out, and she knew that being a teacher forever was not something she was excited about. Then, while some European countries were facing an economic crisis, her brother invited Celia and her husband to attend a job fair focused...

When she was a kid, Karen Bussen always dreamed of moving to New York City. Eventually, that dream became reality: she moved to the Big Apple and built a successful, creative career. After more than two decades working as a wedding planner and even creating her own startup, she truly believed she would live in the city forever. Until Paris happened. Led by her love for the French capital and the F...

When Fernanda Santos first moved to the U.S., she had a clear plan: study journalism and return to Brazil. But everything changed after a chance encounter at a job fair. She met the love of her life, decided to stay, and built an extraordinary career, becoming the first Brazilian staff writer at The New York Times , contributing to major publications, publishing a book, and now serving as Editor-i...

Aneri Desai was born and raised in India, and expected to follow a path shaped by tradition, including getting an arranged marriage. When she went to London to study abroad for a while, she discovered another world - and then she decided to pursue an MBA in the United States. And her arranged marriage… turned toxic. But Aneri had the courage to walk away - with nothing. With no money - and no choi...

Gabriela Dutra landed her dream job as a fashion designer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, before even turning 30. But she soon realized that path wouldn’t be enough. Inspired by her grandmother, travel blogs, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, and even pineapple plantations in Hawaii, she made a bold decision: she moved back in with her parents to save money, grabbed her backpack, and left everything behind t...

Kimberly Anne always dreamed of living abroad, and while she only made it happen at 56, she had already lived quite a life before moving solo from the U.S. to Portugal. She walked away from a 20-year abusive marriage, recovered from addiction, and navigated a complicated family dynamic, especially with her father. In this episode, Kim opens up about her path to Portugal: her journey of healing, th...

Milena Berry is originally from Bulgaria and she is the co-founder and CEO of PowerToFly - a platform that connects underrepresented talent to inclusive companies, helping women, LGBTQIA+ folks, and people of color find jobs, up skill, and thrive in tech and beyond.  She first moved from Bulgaria to Netherlands and then to New York City, as an international student, right before 9/11. Milena built...