Tessa Enright moved to Dresden several years ago. She left Arizona, where she met her husband during her business marketing studies. After two challenging years in Saxony’s capital city, she initially moved back. She completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in German studies. But the desire to live a life in Germany remained. When the opportunity arose for her husband to take over his father’s company, the couple’s decision was made. They would move to Görlitz at the end of 2016.
How to feel at home
Tessa was excited right from the start: “I saw that I had a lot of opportunities that I wouldn’t have anywhere else. In Berlin or Dresden I am one of thousands, but here I can make a difference”. And she put that into practice right away. After arriving in Görlitz, Tessa initially looked for an English-speaking group in which to network – but to no avail. Without further ado, she founded a regular meetup that, if circumstances allow, meets once a month. The effort was worth it: “The friends I met there are priceless,” says Tessa enthusiastically. This is how she got to know people from all over the world who network with each other in English. The feeling of being alone was long forgotten.
Görlitz – the place to be
Much more exciting than the question of how and why Tessa moved to Görlitz is the question of what motivated her to stay in the border town, to leave her familiar surroundings behind and to build a life far away from the States. Tessa can only gush when answering, “As an American, I’m totally charmed by the old town, by the history, how old it all is here. There’s nothing like it in Arizona.” To this day, she enjoys strolling through the picturesque old town or unwinding at a café on the Untermarkt. “Not only that, but I think the proximity to neighboring countries is cool,” Tessa adds. An attribute that undoubtedly makes Görlitz unique. Thirty minutes to the Czech Republic, five minutes across the Old Town Bridge to Poland. A stone’s throw. It’s easy for her not to miss the sunny weather in Arizona and Mexican cuisine too much. Especially since she has learned to cook her favorite dishes herself.
There’s a lot to be done
Certainly, Görlitz is not perfect in all respects. The city, like any other, has its rough edges. But that’s exactly where Tessa sees opportunities. “Görlitz is for people with new ideas, for people who want to make a different, to start something new.” In English, she adds, “There’s a lot to do, but that’s good for people like me who want to help.” Because of the fact that Görlitz is a small city, everyone can find their place here and discover new opportunities to become a part of this city. Tessa has already succeeded in this. Todays he works in the cultural and tourism sector and offers translations from German into English. She also runs her own blog, where she tries to convince her readers of the city’s quality of life with travelogues and expressive photos. She already is!
Life in Görlitz Working in Görlitz Become a Görlitz resident
This project has received funding from tax resources on the basis of the budget adopted by the members of the Parliament of the Free State of Saxony.
