I was getting onto a night train leaving from Rijeka, traveling back to Prague. The only thought on my mind was who I would be sharing the sleeping cabin with on this fifteen-hour journey. As I stepped inside, I saw a couple already sitting there, looking back at me. I imagine they were having the same thought I was having: who is this person, and will this be a peaceful journey?
A Night Train Back to Prague
At that point, I had been traveling around Slovenia and Croatia for about three weeks. I was tired and ready to return home to Prague. At the same time, my curiosity about who these two travellers were got the best of me. I asked where they were from.
Three Points of Connection
What I quickly realized was that there were three points of connection that made the usual social walls fall away. First, there was a Ukrainian connection. One of them was from Ukraine. My grandparents had immigrated from Ukraine to Canada in the 1920s. Second, all three of us were foreigners, a Canadian, a Ukrainian, and a Pole. And third, maybe most importantly, we were all living in the Czech Republic and understood what life there can feel like as an outsider.
When Distance Disappears
Once I realized this, I felt less guarded and more at ease. What stood out to me wasn’t that we had a deep conversation, but how quickly the distance between strangers disappeared.
Belonging in Motion
I’m sharing this story because it became a frozen moment in time. On a train, between destinations, three people found connection, a sense of belonging, and the beginning of a friendship that has continued. When I boarded that train, none of this had crossed my mind. I was hoping for a quiet journey back to Prague. Instead, I met two good friends in an unexpected place.
What made this interaction different from others I’ve had while traveling or living abroad was what came after. The connection didn’t end when the train arrived to our final destination. Even though we lived in different cities in the Czech Republic, there was a genuine desire to stay in touch and meet again. It challenged an assumption I had about belonging, that you don’t always need to search for it. Sometimes, belonging finds you in the most unexpected places.
How Living Between Cultures Reshapes Belonging
This kind of belonging felt very different from being in Canada, where my community, friends, and family are already established. Experiencing it in motion, with other foreigners, showed me how belonging can emerge when people meet each other where they are, shaped by both the culture they come from and the one they’re living in.
Questions for you……?
- Where have you experienced a moment of belonging that surprised you?
- What made that moment feel different from other connections in your life?
- How does belonging show up for you now compared to earlier in your journey?