Why a European being foreign in Europe is irrelevant?
There is no such thing as being foreign in Europe, and let me explain why!
As a 'Franco-British' European , I truly believe that being foreign in Europe makes no sense. I will develop on this through my own experience. I am now 27, and in the last few years, I have lived, studied, travelled and worked in quite a few countries. A quick sentence on my recent international experiences : a BA in Brussels, a MA in Cardiff, 5 months volunteering and travelling in India and Israel, an internship in the European Parliament, a social enterprise launched in England - and I am currently travelling around Europe in the context of the 'Peter Kirk Scholarship' that I have been awarded http://gerardspencer.com/uncategorized/peter-kirk-scholarship-european-adventure/ .
All those experiences have led me to understand one simple thing : all in all, everywhere you go can become your home; you just have to make it your home. And once you have made it your home, then being foreign does not apply anymore. So the true question is, how do you make a new country your home in order not to feel foreign ? The human being is a social creature : we need others to talk to, laugh and play with, debate with, argue with, interact in all kinds of ways basically. So meeting people is essential ! And in 99% of cases, peple will end up staying with people whom they can relate to through a 'common theme' : they are from the same country, they also like football, they also like going for walks in the nature, they also lke reading and writting poetry etc.
And this is where technology intervenes in the equation. On the internet, there are many websites that are all about meeting people, like minded people. Two of the main websites coming to my mind are https://www.couchsurfing.org/ and http://www.meetup.com/; those websites are all about allowing people from different horizons to meet-up. When going to the meetings organized on the websites, it is very easy to relate to the other attendees because they are also there for the purpose of meeting people. A large percentage of people attending those meetings will be internationals looking to meet new people with common interests. Even without internet, it is quite simple to meet new people if you are willing to get out of your way. For instance, go to a tennis or a squash club, and you will definately find people putting adverts stating that they are looking for new partners with whom to play with. Regarding homesickness : skype, whatsupp and other technologies simplify contact with your relatives and friends at 'home', making it easy and costless to stay in touch. And regarding missing food from home : well, it is easy to find a Spanish Tapas bar, a Polish store, a British pub, an Italian pizzeria or a French bakery in most major European cities.
Why do we feel at home in our own country ? Because this is where we have our familly, and friends that we have often met from school, university, work and hobbies. We are in our comfort zone where meeting people does not require to be proactive in getting out there. We also have a natural understanding of the countries culture. During my internship in the European Parliament, I met many young graduates from the four corners of Europe who had experienced programs such as Erasmus or EVS. For many of them, living internationally and going from country to country has become a way of life. Being European became a passport to the whole continent, or even to the whole world. Experiencing other countries is simply a way to understand that home is everywhere if you have the right and open attitude !
Through this scholarship that I have obtained, I have since early May 2014 already been to seven European countries, and will continue travelling till November. I am basically doing a comparative study of street perfoming regulations throughout Europe. Each country has become my home for the time I was there. As a musician, I got to meet so may people through my street performances. Locals opened their doors to me, and we got to share cultural facts, anecdotes and jokes of our respective countries.
All in all, even though this may sound harsh, I believe that being foreign in a country that is not your home country is a matter of choice and effort. Put yourself in the right frame of mind : meet the right people, go out to the right places, make effort in understanding the countries specific culture, and make a foreign place your new home.