Would you leave your country and why?

  On 8/6/2020 at 6:28 AM, Braintree said:

This subject has been at the front of my mind for the past few weeks. Leaving the country has crossed my mind but I'm not sure if I could get rid of the gear I've amassed over the years. I'm definitely trying to figure out my exit strategy for San Francisco, though. Probably Portland, or back to Columbus, OH. I had some friends in NYC but most of them moved out.

I'm getting more established in my career, so I kind of want to buy a cheap house and post up for a few years before I figure out what else to do. It's important for me to have a community wherever I end up, naturally.

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if you decide to move to/visit portland give a heads up. 

Yes, MAGA.

Canada is looking nicer and nicer. 
 

What’s your favorite part of Canada, everyone? I need to check out Montreal once this shit is over. 

I have decided I am not planning on moving just yet. Too big of a step

  On 8/4/2020 at 8:16 PM, ignatius said:

wouldn't mind being in montreal but fucking cold though.. somewhere in Van BC - too expensive.. toronto? no idea what it's like. 

 

Toronto is just as expensive as Vancouver with the added benefit of shitty winters and a bunch of wankers who think Toronto is the centre of the universe. Montreal is a far better city.

  On 8/6/2020 at 8:16 PM, Candiru said:

Canada is looking nicer and nicer. 
 

What’s your favorite part of Canada, everyone? I need to check out Montreal once this shit is over. 

BC is gorgeous, so is Western Alberta (Banff, Jasper, Canmore etc.). Vancouver is obviously crazy expensive, as is most of the lower mainland and Vancouver Island. Banff and Jasper are tourist towns, so also expensive, but goddamn they are gorgeous. Canmore not so touristy, but it is full of old people and no "night life" to conceive of. But if you love nature and not many people - these are good places, if you can work primarily online (or do anything manual labour related).

skip the prairies altogether.

Toronto - cold and expensive, but good food and shows.

Ottawa - the only benefit is I live here (this may or may not be a benefit).

Montreal - great city, housing is expensive but not as bad as other places. Learn French (not completely necessary but will enhance quality of life there).

Maritimes - they exist.

  On 8/3/2020 at 10:23 AM, thumbass said:

I am considering moving the The Netherlands, I go there every year and the language is easy to learn for me (Afrikaans sounds and is in general a lot like Dutch). I'd prefer to live in a more stable country (or continent) than the one I am in right now. Also a lot of my family lives there.

I think you mentioned studying law, which is a kind of bad profession to switch countries because laws are so different in each country. Not sure how many semesters you are in (or maybe you do trimesters in SA, don't know), but if you really want to move to the Netherlands and are still at the beginning of your studies, maybe consider switching your course of study to something more universal. Sorry for advice you never asked for.

I did, because I could. In the UK right now...good thing is I can always move on somewhere else more sensible.

Life is just a game in some daft simulation anyway and you do not want to be stuck on the very first world you encounter.

True friendships prevail space/time.

The price you pay are relatives/friends dying off without saying goodbye etc.

Those extra EXP points though.

  On 11/3/2020 at 9:11 PM, dingformung said:

I think you mentioned studying law, which is a kind of bad profession to switch countries because laws are so different in each country. Not sure how many semesters you are in (or maybe you do trimesters in SA, don't know), but if you really want to move to the Netherlands and are still at the beginning of your studies, maybe consider switching your course of study to something more universal. Sorry for advice you never asked for.

No i appreciate any advice that i get! And you are quite right, i did choose a pretty bad study if i do really want to move. Thankfully this is my first year and i can always switch. The problem is the urge tot move had faded away a little. I can still always decide to move later but right now i think I'm going to stay here and keep studying law. The country i live in is deeply divided and full of unrest but it's still my country.

In that case I'm guessing they are in dire need of people like you and you should try to fix things.

  On 11/3/2020 at 11:21 PM, dingformung said:

In that case I'm guessing they are in dire need of people like you and you should try to fix things.

Hahaha I wouldnt say that about myself but id like tot making the country more equal. Tentions between white, black and coloured people are rising again and i detest it. I just don't get why and how people can hate each other so much all the time...

• I would...
• Because weed is not legal... 

Resurrecting old threads cos I'm new and missed out.

I grew up nomadically. I lived in 5 countries before the age of 12:

UK, Netherlands, USA, Myanmar, Pakistan 

I've got British and Australian passports, but never lived in the latter. 

My family settled in the UK when I hit my teens. I moved to France last year after 25yrs in the UK.

I would have left the UK years ago had I not been married, or if my ex-husband was up for living elsewhere.

Reasons for wanting to leave the UK:

It never felt welcoming. I wasn't raised "British" and never identified with the country, even though I'm a national, and I eventually came to speak with an English accent and came to understand British culture/ psyche.

I feel more comfortable being a clear foreigner, than being a "hidden immigrant" (someone who looks like they belong in a place, but has a different cultural upbringings)

The UK is in collapse. The political right are destroying the Union. The political left are a useless opposition. 

I was restless. I crave novelty.

Why France? After my separation I explored some of Europe on my own. I met a guy on my travels. Spent time with each other back and forth from UK-france. 

Eventually I agreed to move in with him. I now live in his ancestral home in a village in central, rural France. I didn't imagine myself ending up in the countryside, but turns out I was really ready for it. I'm done with the aggression and superficiality of city life. 

Le Pen ia a danger, politically, in France. I'm really hoping the far Right don't take hold in France too. 

But I respect how fiercely France holds onto ideas of liberté, égalité, fraternité. They are more concerned with holding politicians to account, rather than creating division amongst themselves (as evidenced in the UK). 

This is my new neighborhood.

I don't see myself here forever. I fantasize about moving back to Myanmar one day. 

Had the opportunity to live in India for 4 months in grad school and Brazil for 3 months for my job. Had a great time in each place.  While that's not long enough to really "live" somewhere, it made me realize I could probably make my own happiness anywhere as long as my basic needs are fulfilled.

However, I don't plan on leaving the US. I'm lucky to have a well-paying job that I actually enjoy.  I plan on retiring at 55 to Washington state, and buy some house high on a hill with a view of Puget sound, where I can wake up and mosey on out to the deck and have my breakfast while staring at the scenery.

Lived in the UK my whole life and am going to be spending Sep 2021 - May 2022 in France.

apart from the many advantages that france offers, it's a cursed land that no one in their right mind would even consider moving to. you brits are crazy.

I mean it looks quite beautiful,  how are you integrating ? Did u guys learn french before going there ? I have always heard france is quite stubborn about speaking other languages besides french. How are you guys experiencing that is that just a dumb stereotype?

Short answer: No

Longer but still pretty short answer: I'd like to for a bit, but I'm pretty sure I would come back in the end. 

I've thought about going to school in Germany for a year or two. I have the savings, and from what I've read it's very well set up for Canadians to do that. Then of course COVID hit, so who knows if/when that will be possible. 

goal is to have enough money so I can call anywhere home

I would, because my life is probably half over and I haven't experienced enough interesting new things.  I probably won't though, because it's too much of a hassle and I'm bad at planning ahead.

Put my ass in Montreal. I took five years of French through school and I love hockey, so I will fit right in.

Shove a steamie in my mouth.

  On 5/11/2021 at 1:25 PM, Thu Zaw said:

I don't see myself here forever. I fantasize about moving back to Myanmar one day. 

Myanmar is looking a little spicy at the moment, unfortunately. I'm sure you're beyond aware and know far more than I do about it though.

We will probably be moving to the most southern point of the Netherlands soon, because of work. so that will feel like another country at least for me it will lol 

  On 5/12/2021 at 1:14 AM, Wunderbar said:

I mean it looks quite beautiful,  how are you integrating ? Did u guys learn french before going there ? I have always heard france is quite stubborn about speaking other languages besides french. How are you guys experiencing that is that just a dumb stereotype?

I did french at school from age 11-17. I wasn't a model student, but I retained the basics. My bf is french but speaks English pretty well. We have Google translate when we need it. We do conjugation in bed. (Saucy).

Other people are very patient, and appreciate that I'm making the effort. I've met other anglophones living in France who don't try to learn. I can't imagine that easy for them. 

Cos of covid, I've not been able to launch my bizness. But I feel confident that when I do, my language is now passable.

I know a lot of people now through my bf.  

  On 5/12/2021 at 7:32 AM, xyrofen said:

Myanmar is looking a little spicy at the moment, unfortunately. I'm sure you're beyond aware and know far more than I do about it though.

Spicy is a word for it. Myanmar was in the grips of dictatorship at the time I lived there as a kid 80s/90s. I've experienced that before. This current revolution feels very different to the uprisings of 1988 or 2007. This time, the Tatmadaw will be toppled for good. No negotiation; no "transitional gov". Hopefully with the fewest lives lost. A Federal Army is being trained to fight against the junta as we speak. Ethnic armed groups have already weakened the junta, and there's daily stories of defectors.

Myanmar will be safe the moment the Tatmadaw are removed; I know this. 

This is Tatmadaw propaganda vs the Kachin Independence Army...

Spent long periods with of time away from the UK (including 3 years in Australia) but always happy to go home. I like England though I don’t like how crowded it has become, a lot of quiet places I knew as a kid are just heaving with people nowadays. It’s become a rat race. That aside it’s alright. 

  On 5/12/2021 at 8:50 AM, Thu Zaw said:

Other people are very patient, and appreciate that I'm making the effort. I've met other anglophones living in France who don't try to learn. I can't imagine that easy for them.

When I go on holiday to Greece people always give us free sides at restaurants because they appreciate us having taken the time to learn some basic Greek so we can interact with people politely and respectfully in their own country. I imagine they appreciate you not being a typical English-speaking person with the "if I point rudely and shout really loud in English then they'll understand me" mindset