“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world” according to the renowned French novelist, Gustav Flaubert. The quote pretty much sums up my view of travelling or migrating.

I used to be a journalist and I considered myself lucky as I have travelled to many different parts of the world although travelling is not my favourite pastime. For a start, I hate packing and unpacking my luggage. I still vividly recall how I dragged my feet to the airport for business trips to Shanghai, Guangzhou, Seoul, Tokyo, Mumbai, Dubai, Qatar, Jakarta, Singapore etcetera. Many of the cities I’ve visited left me in awe with their skyscrapers, bullet trains and high standard of living but a few others showcased true pictures of poverty and hardship.          

Travelling or migrating to another country could be prompted by leisure, career advancement, education, wars, poverty among many other reasons. I am here in Switzerland because of love. Thus, in the pursuit of happiness, I bid adieu to my thriving career as a financial journalist, my apartment, shopping malls, best friends, family, relatives and in a nutshell, my life in Kuala Lumpur.

Travelling for work or leisure is different compared to migrating. There are no business class flights, fancy hotel rooms, tourist guides, public relations officers to take care of all your needs and it goes without saying, a return flight ticket to your well-accustomed home town. For a person who doesn’t even like to get on a plane, I think I have made a very bold decision of uprooting myself from Kuala Lumpur to Zürich. I embraced my new life in a new country in a different continent with an open heart, which has so far been a thrill, an eye-opener, a challenging yet rewarding journey. It has been two years since I moved here on July 26, 2017 and this is my adventure in this beautiful foreign city that has become my home.  

Getting started

Well, the preparation to move into a different country was not an easy task, especially if you are getting married. But, after a year of courtship that involved travelling back and forth between Zürich and Kuala Lumpur, we both decided to be together for good. After all, I was already 40 and my fiancée was 59 at that time – so the timing was just right!

Two months before my departure, all related documents had to be verified, securing a tenant for my apartment, spring cleaning my wardrobe and apartment, getting someone to continue paying the hire purchase of my car, credit card bills, phone bills, apartment maintenance bills and of course I had to leave my lovely cat, Bobbi, with someone reliable. I had also left my treasured book collections behind.

In short, I had a lot do in about a month’s time before saying goodbye. There were also many farewell parties, dinners, lunches in between my hectic schedule in preparation to move to Switzerland.

Leaving the country also meant that I had to quit my job. As a financial journalist at the leading English newspaper in Malaysia, I was married to my career. It was an emotional episode saying goodbye to my office, fellow journalists, editors, photographers and of course the joy of just being a reporter. It was the best job ever as over time I have mastered the skills of being a savvy journalist. I used to meet new people on a daily basis, interview successful corporate leaders, write important news stories as well as attend press conferences and cool media parties. I left behind a lot of things, but deep inside I know the memories will always be a part of me and the experience has somewhat changed my view and priorities in life.  

After a tearful departure at the airport with my best buddy, Usha and a 14-hour flight, I was very tired emotionally and physically when I touched down at Zürich airport. But, when I finally saw my fiancée - all that chaos and stress to get here simply evaporated in thin air. For the first time, I breathed in the fresh air of Zürich so deeply in the embrace of my love.

Back to reality and it does sometimes bite, our marriage application process didn’t go as smoothly as expected due to bureaucracy. My fiancée and I had problems with our documents where mine had to be sent to Swiss embassy in Bangkok and his back to England as he is English. The agony of waiting for the green light was simply a torture. I must admit that the urgency of the matter did get to the best of both of us. After about two months of holding back, we finally exchanged our rings. It was a simple signing affair with only one guest of honour, Michael and of course a night of celebration with friends at Big Ben Niederdorfstrasse.      

After the nuptials, the process of getting my residence card went on smoothly and by that time I had  already enrolled myself in German language class and had my health insurance taken care of.

Settling in

It’s a tale of two cities – adapting to my new life in Zürich which is very different from Kuala Lumpur.

Although Malay is the official language in Malaysia, I speak English most of the time and in Zürich I have to learn German as well as the Swiss-German dialect.

Kuala Lumpur as the capital of Malaysia is the most populated city in the country with an estimated population of 1.8 million while Zürich city has a population of over 390'000.

As Kuala Lumpur is more populated and bigger, I used to drive to get around and I couldn’t remember the last time I took a bus or a train. But in Zürich it is the other way around, as most of its residents rely heavily on the super-efficient public transportation system.

Except for my husband, at first I knew no one here. I had to start from scratch from making friends to getting around in public transport.

But, everything new begins slowly from a crawl, a single step, to walking and running or even dancing.

Interestingly, food is the thing I miss or crave the most. It has never occurred to me, before I decided to quit my job and pack my things to share my life with my husband in Zürich, food would reflect the biggest part of me as a Malaysian. Even in Kuala Lumpur, I was picky with my food as I am originally from the state of Penang- the gastronomy paradise of Southeast Asia.  

And it was a slow process to get accustomed to the Swiss and German dishes in Zürich. But, it was a blessing in disguise as it has reignited my passion for cooking. So, whenever I have the craving for any Malaysian delicacies, I would simply get myself busy in the kitchen.  

Strangely enough, I never had any problems adjusting to the weather in Switzerland although it’s really a chore to put on layers of clothing every time I want to get out in the winter.  

Desperate housewife

Let me be frank here- I’ve never imagined myself being a housewife and I, like many other trailing spouses, have this ideal notion that we could easily find a job here. No, it’s not that easy. Getting a job is probably the most difficult thing I have to endure in Switzerland. After my nine-month course of intensive German, I tried to apply to many English speaking jobs to no avail. It’s frustrating as I never had a problem finding something I like to do to earn a living in Malaysia. But, I will never give up and will keep on trying. It took a while for me to realise that I could bank on my expertise as a writer to start something on my own. So, I decided to enroll for an English language teaching course with Cambridge and here I am now, promoting my language services through this humble website. Nevertheless, in that cosy little corner of my heart, I still have this great dream to be an accomplished novelist- why not?