Are you looking for a unique Filipino rom-com that is lighthearted, and cultured yet altogether picturesque for its tourist spots? Here’s a Before Sunrise-like movie that you’ll love if you’re a big fan of adventures and a bonafide traveler. OFWs abroad will enjoy the sights of Dipolog city in Zamboanga and the sceneries of the Kremlin in Russia.
If you enjoyed Gerald Anderson leading-romcom movies like My Perfect You or Between Maybes, then you will love To Russia with love since it has that kilig actor with a unique twist. Here is a list of top 7 life and love lessons you’ll learn from the film that you should take advantage of.
1. Don’t let your career consume your life
It is easy to let our careers get the best of us, especially if you’re an OFW. It’s easy to fall into the same routine and feel like we’re living a mundane life romanticized since we were abroad.
Whether you’re a bonafide workaholic or just passionate about your work, don’t let it rip off your work-life balance. You must allow yourself to breathe and have time for other aspects of your life, like fun and bonding moments with your family or loved ones. Dennis ( Gerald Anderson) was content with his job as a restaurateur and his day-to-day life until Oksana; a Russian tourist showed up in his area.
2. Be open to new opportunities
You should not close your doors on other opportunities just because you’re content. For Dennis, when his family encouraged him to tour Oksana around Dipolog, he became open to falling in love again, having fun, and not letting his career consume him. Being open to new opportunities will help you shift your perspective, enjoy life, and conquer your fears. If you do not try new things, you will never grow and never know new things about yourself.
When he said yes to new opportunities, Dennis’s life was never the same and for the better. If you’re an OFW, salute to you since you have already taken the first step to being open to new opportunities by being abroad, the next step is seeing what doors will open for you!
3. Embrace your wild side
There is something thrilling in diving into the unknown; when you decide to work abroad, you probably don’t know what to expect since there is so much at stake and to learn. With Dennis, he managed to achieve his dream of paragliding and going to Russia when he met Oksana. He managed to conquer his fears and stop his self-limiting beliefs about himself. Sometimes embracing your wild side and being adventurous will help you grow and go to places you’ve never been before; you’ll thank yourself for taking the risk and betting on yourself!
4. Seize your dreams
Now that you’re abroad and feeling invincible since you’ve already made it this far, you can reinvent yourself, fall in love, shift to a new career, learn a new culture and have a new lifestyle that will fit your needs. You have all the reasons in the world to seize your dreams; whether you have a bucket list like Oksana or Dennis, it’s time for you to work on making your dreams come true.
Stay on that track if you plan to be abroad for a short term to migrate to a different country like Spain or any part of the world. If you want to open up a small business, start by learning the trade or making connections. Whatever you do right now will help build a strong foundation for your future.
5. Don’t let fear stop you
It’s okay to be scared and take the first step, even if you’re quivering in fear. The first step is always the hardest, but once you do, you’ll realize that fear shouldn’t hinder you from achieving all the good things in life, whether you’re working abroad or not. You must not allow fear to distract you or demotivate you from your dreams, and fight for your goals despite the challenges you will face since it’s part of life.
Fear is real, it’s not only in mind, but it’s something you can overcome, especially with the right mindset, tactics, and having the right support system. With Dennis, his family’s encouragement allowed him to befriend Oksana and let love bloom naturally during her 5-days visit to Dipolog city.
6. Love is worth fighting for
Now that Dennis and Oksana are in a relationship, another thing that can make their newfound love challenging is long distance and cultural differences. Dennis has to fly to Russia to visit Oksana and get his father’s approval, where the real struggles begin. Since Dennis and Oksana have a huge cultural difference, they have to grapple and learn a lot about each other and work through their relationship. If you’re an OFW, then you know that LDR can be tricky; others would say it wouldn’t work, while others say it would with the right efforts and patience.
7. Learn your partner’s culture
This one is for the OFWs you are dating or married someone outside of their culture or nationality, then you know that relationship dynamics can be different than dating your fellow kabayan. One of the first steps that you should take is to learn your partner’s culture and get common ground with them. Dennis has to learn a lot about Russian traditional courting methods and how to get the approval of his ultra-conservative father.
Fortunately for Oksana, she was raised by a Filipino nanny, which makes her familiar with the Filipino language and culture, which is a bonus for her. It can be fun but challenging to learn a lot about a new culture and tradition, but if you really love a person and have learned to appreciate your differences, then it wouldn’t be a big problem. The movie highlighted the beauty and culture of Dipolog city and also in Kremlin, which can be interesting to watch since it’s the best of both worlds, from quiet greenery scenes in Dipolog to the busy streets of Russia.