Maria Randall, 54, from London, made a spontaneous decision to move to Croatia with her husband in July 2023 after a three-day holiday. Three weeks later, they boarded a one-way flight with their dog, but the reality quickly set in.
Overwhelmed and Exhausted
“I was exhausted,” Randall told creatorzine.com. “People imagine moving abroad is exciting and glamorous, but I felt strangely numb. Everything had happened so quickly that I had barely had time to process it.” Her first solo trip to the supermarket ended in tears when Google Maps stopped working and a local shouted at her for eating a cereal bar before paying. “I burst into tears,” she said. “Looking back now, it is funny. At the time, I wanted to get on a plane and go home.”
Tragedy Strikes
Shortly after the move, the couple’s beloved dog died. Then, within 18 months, Randall lost her younger brother and her mother. “Nobody really talks about that side of living abroad,” she said. “People see the sea, the sunshine and the photographs, but they do not see what it feels like when major family events happen hundreds of miles away.” She also faced a health scare when a dairy contamination incident sent her to the hospital. “Being in an ambulance and then a hospital environment where I struggled to understand what was happening around me was one of the most frightening experiences I have had since moving here,” she revealed.
Turning a Corner
Despite the challenges, Randall began to understand the culture and made friends, many of them fellow expats. She started a boat tour company, Island Discovery, with a skipper she met on a boat trip soon after arriving. “It started as a conversation, then somehow I had a boat, then a website, then a skipper, then our first guest,” she said. She now lives in Podstrana near Split and runs tours along the Croatian coastline. “There is something magical about the Adriatic,” she said. “The colour of the water still amazes me, and some mornings when I am walking my Jack Russell, Sid, along the coastline, I spot dolphins in the distance.”
Advice for Aspiring Expats
Randall notes that Croatia has changed significantly since joining the EU and adopting the euro, with higher rents and rising prices. “Everywhere I look, there are new apartment blocks, villas and construction projects appearing,” she said. Reflecting on her journey, she added: “When I moved here, I thought I knew exactly who I was. What I did not expect was to spend my fifties learning about websites, social media, marketing, accounting, boating and how to build a business from scratch. I realised I was tougher than I thought. Looking back, I do not think Croatia simply changed where I live. I think it changed who I am.” Her advice to her former self: “Buckle up, it will be one hell of a ride.”
