I’ve lived in the same apartment for twenty years. Two failed marriages happened here. Three kids grew up in these rooms. My son’s still here. My daughter visits. There are twenty years of life compressed into this space, furniture, boxes, memories, weight.
When you decide to leave the country, you have to decide what comes with you. For most people, the answer is almost nothing.
The Reality of Moving Internationally
Shipping is expensive. A standard shipping container from Canada to Albania costs thousands of dollars. Most of what you own isn’t worth the cost to move. If you do want to ship anything, the easiest way to find out what it actually costs is to compare quotes from international movers. SIRELO-PLACEHOLDER lets you do that in one place, enter your origin, destination, and what you’re moving, and you get quotes from multiple companies side by side. For most people the numbers will confirm what you already suspected: your old couch isn’t worth it.
What’s Worth Taking
Documents first. Passport, birth certificate, any legal paperwork you might need. Originals, not copies. Photos, physical or digital, doesn’t matter, but take them. These are irreplaceable. One good suitcase of clothes, enough for a few weeks, then you buy what you need there. Clothes are cheap in Albania and there’s no point hauling winter coats to a warmer climate. Your laptop, phone chargers, maybe a backup drive. Medications, if you take anything regularly, bring enough to get you through the first month while you figure out the local pharmacy situation. And one or two sentimental items that fit in a backpack. Not everything. You can’t carry your whole life.
What to Leave Behind
All the furniture. Leave it for the next tenant or donate it. It’s not worth the space or the cost. Books, unless they’re irreplaceable, leave them. Digital versions take no space. Dishes, cookware, kitchen stuff, buy new in Albania, it’s cheap, and you don’t know what your kitchen will look like yet. Anything that’s just taking up space because you feel guilty throwing it away, throw it away. Let it go.
The Apartment
After twenty years in one place, you’re entangled. The landlord knows you. You know the building. Leaving feels like abandonment. It’s not. It’s just moving on.
Give proper notice, usually sixty days if you can manage it, thirty at minimum. Clean the apartment and take photos showing it’s in good condition. Get your damage deposit back. Close your utilities, electricity, water, gas, internet. Make sure you’re not liable for anything after you leave. Forward your mail and update your address with the government, banks, and any services that need to know where you are. This is boring but critical. You can’t afford to miss tax notices or legal documents because mail went to an old address.
The Money Part
Before you leave, settle what you owe. Pay rent through your notice period. Pay utilities. Close accounts you won’t need. You want a clean break, not a trail of unpaid bills following you across the ocean. Keep your Canadian bank account open and confirm with your bank that they’ll still service you once you’re abroad. Some banks close accounts for people who move permanently.
The Emotional Part
Twenty years is a long time. You’ve had good moments and terrible moments in that apartment. Leaving it feels like closing a chapter, which it is. That’s okay. You’re not erasing the past. You’re just not taking it with you into the future. The memories stay. The apartment stays. You move forward with what actually matters, the people you care about, the things you’ve learned, the reasons you’re leaving in the first place.
Leave the rest.