I FIRST came to Scotland in the summer of 2003. It was raining. And maybe because of the weather I did not fall in love with Scotland at first sight.

I am Polish and I moved to Scotland not because of work, but because of love. Many years ago, somewhere on the edge of Europe, in Poland, I met my Scottish husband.

Initially, living and working in many places abroad, I came mainly to Scotland for holidays. At that time, we lived in the countryside, and my little piece of Scotland was made up of family and neighbours who treated me with kindness and curiosity.

Poland was for them quite an exotic country. After Poland’s accession to the European Union, when the first immigrants came to Scotland, I was informed every time a new Pole arrived in our community. But the flow was soon so big that our neighbours stopped doing that.

Time passed very quickly. As some say, life begins after 40 so I decided to change mine. I moved to Scotland five years ago, got my home address, my tax number and set up my business.

Family was already in place so quite a big piece of work was already done. I had left a very well-paid, senior job as a country director in Poland.

The first moments in Scotland were a challenge. The easiest task was setting up a company. Scotland is a very friendly country for entrepreneurs and local authorities and officials are commited and helpful. I do not sweat when I get a letter from the tax office.

It was more difficult to deal with some stereotypes. I think that Scotland is still a very masculine country. One of the first lessons in business I got, was the information that Scottish men still dislike it when a woman manages guys.

Nowadays Scotland is not just where I live; I definitely feel part of the community.

Everything changed during the 2014 referendum campaign. For the first time, I felt how important this country and people are for me. I travelled with my husband all over Scotland from meeting to meeting, talking about independence and economics.

In Poland we had to fight for our independence, so voting for it in a democratic referendum was one of the most important experiences in my life.

Scots are a mystery. Some of them were able to reject the absolutely bloodless opportunity to run their own country, while others accepted the referendum result with dignity. Since then I have been involved in Scottish politics on a regular basis. I take part in local elections, participate in many events and try to understand the Scottish soul. I also find myself getting more and more involved in Polish community issues.

Over time Scotland became my home, my passion and has a special place in my heart.

I have strong relations with both Poland and Scotland, and I want to be a bridge between them. I write about Scotland as beautifully and truly as I can. As a journalist I am planning to launch in Poland a blog about Scotland. Scotland’s political future is also the subject of my PhD.

I like concept of “People of Scotland”, where the most important thing is what you do not where you come from.

My two favourite places are Glasgow and Warsaw, but I wasn’t born in either of them. As a New Scot, I never cared for British citizenship, dreaming one day I will get a Scottish passport.

I trust that Brexit shows how deep is Scotland’s love for me. In the end I have even come to like the Scottish weather.