This is the story of my first day.*
INTERVIEWED BY Sharon Johnson


DEPARTED FROM
Kochi, India

ARRIVED IN
Chicago, Illinois

YEAR
1999

NOW LIVES IN
Chicago, Illinois

I would like to tell you all about when we first came to the United States back on August 6th 1999, that was the most memorable day in our lives.

It was exciting to come to this new land. We definitely had our own worries about coming to a new place and getting started all over again especially because we had a two-year-old also with us, but it was exciting because we had come over like a family so me, my husband, and my two-year-old together, we knew we could make it.

So when we came, it was a nice warm day but we were used to warmer days back in the Arabian Gulf because we had lived there for some time so certainly this was not, 85, 90 degrees was not that warm, it was good. And when we came here it was really good because we were awed by the sights of the whole place, it was really beautiful. And everything was ready for us, the apartment, the job, so that way it was very helpful.

The first month or so had its own goodness and also struggles too because we had a lot of jetlag also, but we had family also helping us because both my sisters with their families were here so they were here to welcome us so it was easy. We got used to the food over time. Sandwich meat was kind of strange for us because we had never seen sandwich meat, and that was, so it was good. We had our first McDonald’s and flavored yogurt. We were used to having plain yogurt back home, only plain yogurt not flavored yogurt. When we came over here we went to the store, we went to Jewel Osco we just happened to pick up a yogurt and that happened to be vanilla, *laughter* it seemed so funny because it was sweet.



* The contributor of this story has asked that their name be withheld.

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