Building Joy Abroad: Chop Life Gang, Aberdeen

Building Joy Abroad: Chop Life Gang, Aberdeen

When she moved to the UK, she didn’t wait around for life to happen. Instead, she built community from the ground up. In this episode of The Immigrant Gaze, we hear from the founder of the Chop Life Gang, a group of women in Aberdeen, Scotland, who meet regularly to explore the UK and Europe, celebrate life, and support each other through the highs and lows of migration. From spontaneous road trips to meaningful friendships, this story is about reclaiming joy, connection, and sisterhood in a new country. Recorded at Stories and Small Chops in collaboration with The Chop Life Gang.

Starting Over After Loss

After losing both her parents, she moved to the UK hoping for a fresh start but grief followed her. In this episode, she shares how navigating loss in a new country reshaped her life and identity. If you’re dealing with grief or emotional challenges while adjusting to life in the UK, support is available. Contact Mind, Mental Health UK for help.

Starting Over After 18 Years

After working for 18 years in her home country, she packed up her life and moved to the UK, only to realise she'd have to start her career from scratch. In this episode, she shares what that journey has looked like: the identity loss, the small wins, the moments of kindness and cruelty, and how she’s built a new life she now loves. This is a story of resilience, reinvention, and what it really means to begin again in a new country. Recorded at Stories and Small Chops in Aberdeen, in collaboration with The Chop Life Gang.

Alignment, Accents & New Beginnings

In her first few weeks in the UK, this Kenyan-Ethiopian woman met warm hearts and a few bad apples. In this episode, she reflects on how those early encounters shaped a beautiful experience so far, and why she believes deeply in the power of alignment.

The Only Black Girl in Elgin, Scotland

What happens when you leave everything you know behind, armed with little information and a lot of faith? In this episode, a Nigerian woman shares how she found herself as the only Black person in a quiet, freezing village in Scotland, and what it took to adjust, survive, and find connection in the most unexpected ways.