Lin is originally from China. She relocated to Belgium in 2009 on a student exchange program and fell in love with the country. In spite of the language barrier and cultural challenges, she made it and shares her expat experience with Expat.com.
Can you please introduce yourself and tell us about your background?
My name is Lin Jiang and I was born in China. I completed my bachelor's and masters' studies in Belgium with backgrounds in both engineering and management. I'm currently working as an IT consultant in Infosys for Toyota Motors Europe. I love writing and sharing useful information with others. I have an English personal blog called LinJian Online, and run a Chinese blog on WeChat called "work_in_belgium".
What brought you to Belgium? For how long have you been there?
I came to Belgium through an Erasmus program between KU Leuven (Groep T) and my university in China. I have been living in Belgium since 2009, and it has been a wonderful 12 years here.
Did you find it hard to adapt to Belgium? What were the major challenges, and how did you overcome them?
In the beginning, it was a bit difficult to live in Belgium. I had two major challenges -- first, Belgium has not one but three official languages, and English is not one of them, and secondly, the Flemish people are quite reserved, which makes it difficult to integrate into Belgium as an international student.
To overcome the challenges, I started to learn Dutch and French in an evening school and started practising them as much as possible with local students. I also tried to attend as many activities as possible to interact more with others. After a few years, it started to pay off. Life in Belgium became less challenging.
Have you been able to make new friends since you arrived?
Yes, I have made friends with people from both Belgium and other countries. It requires some effort, but once you are friends with Belgians, they are there for life.
Did the COVID-19 pandemic have an impact on your social and professional life?
Yes, definitely. Most of the social activities and travels stopped all of a sudden. But meanwhile, I find myself with lots of free time. For example, I spent a big part of 2020 writing the thesis of my second master program. After that, I dedicated most of my weekends to reading and writing. My husband and I also started following Japanese online lessons. Now that everything is opening up, I find myself running out of time once again.
What are your views on the way Belgium dealt with the crisis?
I think Belgium has been quite flexible with the situation. It could have been a bit tougher with the young people.
How is the current situation in Belgium?
I got my second shot of vaccine recently, but we will still be careful as the Delta variant emerges. Life is slowly getting back to normal --cafés and restaurants are full of people. Many of my colleagues are going on vacation also.
What do you miss the most from your home country?
My family! For the rest, I can find everything in Belgium.
Is there any advice that you wish you had got before moving to Belgium and that you'd like to give to anyone who would like to relocate there?
I would say come to Belgium (actually anywhere) with an open mind and heart. If you see something strange in a country, try not to judge first but find out why. It is a journey to learn about the culture. Belgium is quite a special country with lots of complexity, but many people love living here.
If you had to make your move to Belgium all over again, is there anything that you would have done differently?
Nothing.
Where do you see yourself in the next five years?
We might still be in Belgium or end up somewhere else in the world. Let's see what life brings.
