ABOUT
Valeria is from Odesa, Ukraine. Currently, she works as a science writer, besides working full-time on her lifestyle/ travel brand and YouTube channel, Dramatically Expatic – so, basically, she has two full-time jobs.
tell us about yourself
I hold an MSc in Media and Film Production from the University of Bologna, in Italy, where I also did my bachelor’s in Theatre and Film Studies. I’m (obviously) very passionate about traveling and learning more about new cultures, and I’m also an avid language learner: I grew up bilingual, speaking both Ukrainian and Russian, and I’m fluent in English, Italian, and French. I also understand some Turkish, but it’s still a huge work in progress for me.
Moving to Bologna
When and why did you move to Italy?
I’ve traveled around the world for as long as I can remember – first with my family, later on, various school exchanges and other cool programs. I’ve always known that I want to try living abroad and it was actually a total coincidence that Italy became my country of choice. I was 19 and I was looking for a place where I’d like to go to university – and although I spoke zero Italian, Bologna seemed like a really cool place for young people (spoiler: it is!). So I came here for my gap year when I learned Italian, but decided to stay and enrolled at the university.
How did you get set up? (phone plan, bank ..)
The initial process was a bit stressful since I didn’t speak Italian – but I’ve managed to get all the bureaucracy sorted in a couple of months. It wasn’t difficult to get a phone plan or a bank account (although some banks won’t accept you before you get your residency); household bills were much more complicated to understand and I ended up going to the various offices asking people to explain everything to me in English. Italian bureaucracy can be terrible, but it’s something you get used to and learn to accept over time.
What surprised you about life in Italy?
I’ve been to Italy numerous times before as a tourist, so I can’t say there have been many things that surprised me. I still can’t get used to driving the narrow roads here – and it stresses me out a lot! What I love, on the other hand, is how much people here value the work-life balance. I also love how social Italians are – it’s very common to be a part of some club or have a collective hobby, like doing art or dance classes, so you always have someone to socialise with – and it’s really cool, especially when you first arrive here and don’t know anybody!
What should people consider before deciding to move to Bologna now?
Finding an apartment can be a headache. But once you’re past this stage and have found a place to live (at least temporarily) – you’re set. Finding friends is not difficult here, the city is lovely, there’s something going on at all times, it’s very vibrant – and the culinary scene is amazing!
How did you find an apartment in Bologna?
Finding an apartment in Bologna was hellish almost eight years ago when I arrived, and now it’s become even more complicated. The prices have been skyrocketing, and being approved for an apartment can be tough unless you have a work contract for an indefinite period of time. Being a student, I’ve faced other difficulties (some landlords didn’t want arts majors in their apartments). At first, I ended up renting a place outside Bologna, then I moved into a shared apartment in Bologna, and for a couple of years now I’ve been renting my own apartment. I used the agency to find my first apartment, and then I found a room in Bologna through personal connections (which is the most common way to find student accommodation here) – I paid 250 euros per month for my room and it was considered cheap even several years ago; now single rooms cost about 500-600 euros per month. I rent my current apartment directly from a landlord, so my experience with the agency has been somewhat limited. As for the prices, you can now expect to pay anything from 750 to 1200 euros for a studio apartment in Bologna.
What did you bring with you?
I didn’t bring too many things at first – just my clothes, actually. Then, when I decided to stay, I’ve been gradually moving more stuff – but I’m not a very sentimental person when it comes to things, so I haven’t brought much anyway. I also hate to be in cluttered surroundings, so I try to live as minimally as possible. Other than that, I feel like you can (luckily!) buy almost everything you might need once you’re here.
Living in Bologna
What specifically is Bologna famous for?
Bologna is famous for numerous things! First of all, its university: the oldest in the western world, the University of Bologna was founded in 1088 and has seen many prominent alumni, like Copernicus and Gallielus. Bologna is also the birthplace of lasagne, tortellini, and tagliatelle al ragu (known in the rest of the world as spaghetti bolognese – but this dish should never be prepared with spaghetti!). It’s a gastronomic haven, truly.
What apps do you find useful in your daily life in Bologna?
I would highly recommend Roger App if you’re driving a car in Bologna – it allows you to pay for parking your car from your phone, which is super convenient, considering most parking machines will only accept cash; and if you’re anything like me, and probably never carry it, this app could be a life-saver 😀
What are your favorite places in Italy?
This might sound a bit cliche, but Florence and Venice. I don’t care about crowds of people (moreover, if you know where to go and when to go there, you can totally avoid this – and I talk a lot about it on my channel!). Venice is just… Venice! The most magical and romantic place on Earth, especially by night. Florence is different but equally magical: whether it’s the sweet Tuscan air or the history, it just feels like my happy place. I’ve been to both places more times than I can count, but I never get tired of these two cities.
What do you think about young Italians?
It’s interesting, because there’s a huge generational gap on one hand, and on the other it is also quite common for people of different ages to merge together. I have friends ten or fifteen years older than me, and we’re getting on perfectly well, and you can often see young people (high schoolers even) play cards with elderly people in the park – it’s really cute! However, young Italians are definitely more open to encountering other cultures and adopting new things coming from other cultures, they are way more globalised, and I personally like it.
Did you feel safe as a woman?
Most of the time, yes. Italy, and Bologna in particular, is not a dangerous place. That said, no place is 100% safe and you should always adhere to common sense.
What's your list of favorite Italian dishes and restaurants?
As simple as it is, I’d choose pizza Margherita over anything on any given day! I’m also a huge fan of gelato al pistachio, and pistachio croissants. Everything pistachio is just the best in Italy. I don’t have just one or two favourite places, and I actually recommend many of those on my YouTube channel!
Can you tell us something else about Bologna that we might not know?
A random curious fact: Bologna was among the first cities in the world to abolish slavery – it happened here in the XIIIth century, and the document stating that every person living in or coming to Bologna is free, is still conserved!
How can people learn more about Bologna?
Well, my best advice would be to actually live here. No amount of books or movies would prepare you for what to expect from Bologna, it’s the city where you need to live and experience it to the fullest in order to understand and feel it. However, if you want to learn more in advance, I’d recommend any book on local history if you’re into it, or any book about local cuisine – since it’s such a huge part of Bologna’s identity, you can learn a lot through the food.
Are there any experiences there that you are particularly proud of or that surprised you ?
I think for many expats these experiences are quite similar and mostly related to managing to do certain things, especially for the first time. The first time you manage to have a conversation in Italian with a random person, the first time you spend an entire evening in an all-Italian company, speaking Italian… Or the first time you manage to deal with the bureaucracy and feel like a winner! In terms of surprising experiences, some things will always shock you, whether it’s a cultural thing or admin stuff that is just so different from your home country. For example one of the first things I’ve learnt here and that surprised me a lot was that it is easier to buy a house in Italy than buy a car. You need to get your residency for the latter, but you don’t need it for the house purchase – as a result, buying a car can take quite some time!
What are some disadvantages to living in Bologna?
For someone who comes from a city with more than one million inhabitants, Bologna sometimes seems a bit too small. But it has its advantages, too, many of them: like not needing to spend 40 minutes to one hour in the car/public transport to get somewhere you need to be, and being able to walk relatively anywhere. I also miss the sea: it takes about an hour to get to the nearest beach, but the Adriatic coast of Italy is not as beautiful as, say, the Ligurian coast. However, overall the pros outweigh the cons here, and this is the most important thing for me.
Final Thoughts
Was it easy making friends and meeting people?
Italians are usually quite friendly and welcoming, at least the ones I’ve met here in Bologna. I never had a problem meeting new people and making new friends, although I guess it depends a lot on your personality and the place where you end up living; no two experiences will ever be the same. Regardless, there are plenty of options to meet other expats here, too. I’d say my friend circle is currently 50% Italians and 50% other expats.
What are your plans for the future?
I try not to look too far into the future, so I can’t say for sure whether I’ll stay in Bologna for another couple of years or not. For now, I’m here, and as long as living here feels good, that works for me! My main focus now is on my YouTube channel and brand, so hopefully, I’ll keep growing and expanding it, while also enjoying all the perks of living in Italy.
Thank you Valeria for your insight into Bologna! I enjoyed that you said we can learn about Bologna through food, I am sure a lot of our readers will love that too! I wish you well on your Dramatically Expatic journey!
