Why I Will Never Come Back to the United States

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Timestamps:

0:00 - Intro
1:13 - Part I: Why I Left
8:11 - Sponsor
9:22 - Part II: Why I May Never Return

[nathanieldrew]

I wanted to make a little correction! At 7:23, Jana says that "People outside sometimes think that Luxembourg is just all about BANKS." This is a reference to a criticism the country receives on how its economy is run.

My goal here was to show that even a small country like Luxembourg, despite its size, has wonderful people and so much to offer culturally.

What do you think? Have you ever been to Luxembourg before?

[illneas]

'In Search Of Where I Belong" so well said it's echoing in my head.

[Ojuolape]

“To anyone who isn’t satisfied with the place they were born in.” Are you me?

[FortunateXpat]

Couldn’t agree more. 32 years ago I met a woman while working in Stockholm that summer. The next year, I left Brooklyn to live in Sweden. The best decision that I ever made. After a good career in the Swedish Royal Opera, I collected my pension and now live in a small village outside of Palermo. No regrets. I’ll never return to the states. 😂

[jen]

I went to Spain as an 18 yr old and sobbed like a child when I had to board the plane to come back after just 3 weeks. It has been part of my soul since then.

[LoboBrasileiro]

I'm an African American that did grow up on two continents: North America and Europe. (Military Brat) I have a mom that was super protective and didn't like to travel and hoped that I wouldn't either. But I craved and wanted adventure, I spent time in libraries, reading Atlases, Geography Books and really pushed for foreign language classes throughout Middle and High School. I was grooming and preparing myself for world travel. In my Junior and Senior HS year, I wanted to go abroad with friends to Europe and South America, but my mother was fiercely against it. I was PISSED that I couldn't go and swore that I will go on my own when I leave home. I mastered speaking French, German, Spanish and Portuguese, getting myself ready for a big adventure. At 19, I got my passport on my own and went abroad. (Much to my mother's chagrin) Canada, Mexico, Caribbean, South America, Europe and Asia...Spent my 20s traveling around. I'm now 34, a skilled Sushi Chef (I do indeed speak Japanese) about to start my own business that will allow me to travel and make money doing what I love.

I know what it's like when your World is instantly expanded and you are able to broaden your horizons and your question of "Home" is tested.

[johnkennedy]

A similar story: I left the US in 1983 to study in Paris, after I graduated I got a job offer to work in Switzerland (1996). I thought that some European work experience would be good on my CV. In 1990 I decided to "return home" in the US: I already had a job in a large corporation lined up. I only stayed 6 months as I really hated the work environment and conditions. I almost felt like a foreigner in my own country and felt that I had little in common with my peers. I quickly decided to return to Switzerland and have been here ever since. I became a Swiss citizen in 2015 and renounced my US citizenship in 2016.

[mylesnmore]

I'm with ya bro, I left the USA in 2004 and haven't returned. Not all who wander are lost.

[mayamichelle]

I can relate. Growing up in the USA, I never connected with the traditions: prom, football, xmas, Tday.... I left over 25 years ago. I've lived in 6 different countries. I have never looked back. I'll never return.

[tonytheattorney]

"There are many ways to get an education and this is mine."
-Nathaniel Drew (2021)

[bbacalhau]

Dude!!! What the heck! How are these videos soooo good?! The amount of work you put into it is just mind blowing

[maxxrenn]

I am from Europe and spent my life wishing I could move to the US. I finally moved this year having worked hard to get sponsored for a work visa. For me Europe was a place I needed to escape. Its interesting to see it from the other side.

[whatmeworry]

I was born in the UK, came to the US as a baby, lived in the US for a total of 40 years before I left for Europe. Like you, I didn't feel like I belonged. I felt culturally different. I just couldn't relate. My heart was always in Europe. I left California in 2004 for Ireland, lived there for 4 years before I fell in love and moved to France, been here since. I don't ever want to leave.

[michaelwinsor]

Your point that moving to a new country lets you "be who you want to be" me really resonated with me. I also left the USA a few years back, and I feel more free to be who I really am rather than follow some subtle (maybe imagined?) cultural pressure to be "American." Living in another country, people don't expect you to totally fit in 100%, so you can find this nice mix between different cultures that suites who you really are.

[Mobytts]

"Never" is a strong word. I lived abroad for more than 10 years, in Europe and Costa Rica and other places, after a while, you realize that every country, every place, has problems, whether is the lack of space, cost of living, family thousands of miles away, not getting by the way locals do, etc. The grass is green where you water it, not on the other side. I lived like a nomad and had wonderful experiences but there's something to be said about responsibility, time loss, routine, etc. There's also a deep-rooted running away from stuff in the name of travel and adventure and that always bites you in the end. We all pay a price at the end. Nothing is truly free. Cheers!

[LeannsAdventures]

When I first traveled outside the country I knew immediately that I was not meant to grow old in the States. My soul literally needs to be else where. ❤️

[antwanthorogood]

I absolutely LOVED my time in Luxembourg. I took a year to leave the US and just enjoy Europe. Like you said, a few hours on the train, you’re in a whole other life and experience

[Swrd]

the production quality only gets better, happy for you nathaniel

[nhmooytis]

I left the US in July 2017 on a one way ticket to NZ, at age 65 after I retired. I had no idea how long I’d be gone. Ended up spending 15 months in NZ and the rest of the time in Australia, with hop outs of 2-3 weeks to Hawaii, Bali and Fiji. I’d intended to go on to Japan in the spring of 2020, and then on to Greece as the beginning of taking the train all around Europe on a Eurailpass. Then Covid hit, so I’ve been in Sydney since Febrile 2020. I like it here, have met people from all over the world—had roommates who were Chinese, Malaysian, Vietnamese, Indian, Italian, German, Brazilian (even a few Americans!), but still want to do Japan and Europe when things open up. People ask if I want to go back to the US. I lived there 65 years and traveled all over including 3 cross country drives, but I’m over it 😃. I’m having a wonderful time. Wish I’d done it when I was younger but always had commitments—family, school, jobs. Now I’m free as a bird!

[jorgitosertanejo]

Dude, as a Colombian myself, I truly appreciate you for sharing this amazing video with us. I was born and raised in Colombia, and I moved to the United States when I was 16. It was a total cultural shock for me, because I was not used to life the way it is here. Fast forward, when I was in my junior year (2018) my high school was shot up and 17 of my peers died, it was a tough event and a unforgettable experience; even though it was a traumatic experience, our Hispanic community and Brazilian community got together as one and we became friends with each other, and that was honestly the best thing it could’ve happened, because I was close to a culture completely different from the one I grew up to, and the one I was living in. I started to get close to my Brazilian peers and I started to feel I finally fit in a culture, I totally felt like I was Brazilian my whole life. It’s been 4 years since the shooting in my school, and i thank God something good came out of that horrible day, the day I realized my heart belonged to Brazil. I’ve met the best people in Brazil, I started feeling like truly myself there and I can’t wait until I move to the country I’m truly happy in🇧🇷❤️