Hello! I am Luisana Castellanos, and I am 27 years old. I left my country on April 19, 2017, and I currently live in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
I think it goes without saying that my farewell at the Maracaibo airport has been one of the most difficult experiences I have been through. However, upon arriving at the Maiquetía International Airport there was a power cut, and this was a sign that no matter how hard the road I was taking was, my decision was the right one.
It would be best if you didn’t misunderstand what I am about to say. I love my country and my city, but I think it is not my place; I knew that sooner or later I would leave, but there is a BIG difference between leaving by choice and being pushed out of your country and given no other option. And my case is the last, although I wish it had been the first.
Just before coming to Argentina, robberies, deaths, and other things reached my social / family circle, which raised an alert that I could not continue to ignore.
I decided to come to Argentina because my sister was already here, getting papers is easier than in other countries, and I saw it as the best option to work in my field, as an Industrial Engineer. I consider myself a fortunate person, and so far, I do not regret the decision I made.
During the first months, I had the support of my parents and my sister; I was unemployed for three months. I must admit that I was distraught because even though I had financial support, I felt guilty. I went to all kinds of interviews, from project manager at Movistar Argentina to Burger King; I didn’t care about anything. I just wanted to work.
I finally got a job in a decorations store as a salesperson; then, I was promoted to branch store manager. The job was basically the same, but with different degrees of responsibility. I had to do things that I had never done or imagined doing: decorating places, hanging mirrors, lowering boxes, moving furniture, organizing the warehouse, and let’s not forget customer service that we know is often complicated.
Despite this, the people I met in that place made everything much more enjoyable. I am fortunate to say that in that job, I made great friends that I feel I have known for a long time and they were one of the main reasons why I stayed there for 2 years.
Today I work as a consultant in an important oil company in the area of Business Intelligence, where once again I’ve had and have the joy of interacting with incredible human beings willing to teach and listen to me.
I must admit that when I started working here, I didn’t know anything about management. I had to google what BI stood for. I got this job thanks to the versatility that working in customer service gave me. Apparently, I took advantage of my job as a salesperson, and I sold myself in the interview, haha. Luckily they saw something in me, and I am very grateful that they gave me this opportunity.
Rather than tell you about all the gray moments that, as migrants, we have to go through, I wanted to give an optimistic purpose to my story to highlight all the blessings that have come to my life since I set foot in Argentina.
If I could give a message to someone who is about to migrate, it would be the following: you are about to leave your home, your memories, your everything behind. It is your decision; take your time and digest everything that this implies, but, above all, you must understand that you are going to a country that is not yours. That is, not everything will be the same as what you are used to, but that is not bad. Allow yourself to open your mind and adapt to this new culture without losing your essence.
Nostalgia will be part of your day to day, it goes hand in hand with breathing. I swear that time passes, but the nostalgia is the same, it is still there, but you will learn to live with it. You will have good days and bad days, it is part of the process and of life in general, but believe me when I say that little by little, you will see the light at the end of the tunnel.
I think that one of the things that helped me to cope with my immigration process in an easier way was that in the world there are good people and there are bad people, and that does not depend on nationality, and also, that as sad as it sounds, there is nothing left of the Maracaibo that I left behind almost four years ago.
Do I see myself living the rest of my life in Argentina? I don’t know, although I would love to say yes, socialism is back and a lot of things have changed. But with my heart in my hand, I can assure you that if one day I were to leave Argentina, whatever the reason is, my heart will suffer as much or even more than when I left Venezuela.
Translated by: Pascual Díaz
