After the interview with Séverine, now settled in Los Angeles, here is the interview with Amélie, who also obtained her Green Card through the DV Lottery process. She has been living in New York for a few months now and tells us about her experience.

 
1 – Hello, can you introduce yourself?
My name is Amélie, I am 33 years old. I am originally from Paris, but I lived in Provence for a long time before coming back to the Big Apple.

2 – How long had you been playing the DV Lottery before being selected? What motivated you to apply?
I was selected at the second attempt… I did not really believe it, but I played just in case. An internship of several months between 2013 and 2014 made me fall in love with New York, and I felt that the story had only just begun when I left. As a little anecdote, I cried so much on the plane that a kind flight attendant came to comfort me and talk with me… he became my friend, and I saw him again in New York not long ago, more than three years after that emotional return. When I came back to France, I felt completely disconnected and very nostalgic. That nostalgia took a long time to calm down, but it never truly disappeared over those years.

3 – What was your reaction when you found out you had been selected?
I literally froze in front of my computer screen, then tears started coming. My American dream might finally be coming true. I remember that I was unable to work for the rest of the afternoon because I was in such shock.

4 – For you, what was the most difficult part of the DV Lottery process?
I did not really find the paperwork itself very complicated. It is more that everything is very structured: you have to organize your documents and try to remember lots of details. It is both an organizational task and a memory exercise. But the hardest thing was definitely the mental side of it: understanding that a possible departure was becoming real.

5 – How did your relatives react when you announced your move to the USA?
That was not necessarily easy. Moving far away changes family balance and friendships, and even when people are happy for you, the distance is still there. It is always emotional to announce that you are leaving for another country, especially for the United States.

6 – How did you prepare your departure for New York?
There were many practical details to manage: documents, personal belongings, the timeline, and also the emotional aspect of turning a long-held dream into an actual move. Once things become concrete, everything suddenly feels much more intense.

7 – What was your first impression once you arrived in New York to settle there?
There was huge excitement, of course, but also a need to adapt quickly. New York is a city with an enormous energy, and living there is very different from simply visiting it. At the same time, it was exactly the place that had made me dream from the beginning.

8 – Looking back, what advice would you give to people entering the DV Lottery?
Try your luck seriously, but keep your feet on the ground. Being selected is only one step. Afterwards, you need patience, organization, and the ability to deal with uncertainty. But yes, it is possible, and that is what makes the story so beautiful.

Amélie’s story is another reminder that the DV Lottery can truly change a life, but that behind the selection there is always a real human journey.