Ever think of moving to a different country?

[denver_tickler]

I live in possibly the richest country on the planet. I work close to 60 hours a week and make a fair wage. I get 40 hours of paid vacation a year and 80 hours of sick time. I have a roof over my head (and a nice one at that). I pay taxes. I vote. I served proudly in the military. I give to charities when I'm able. I'm a pretty typical middle-class American.

I look at France... I have a natural dislike for them because they seem to be very critical of everything American; which is difficult not to take personally, since, you know, I'm an American and all. But once I get past that, I see a country where the gov actually caters to the citizens instead of the richest 1%. And I like it. A lot. I see a country where people get shorter work weeks and at least 5 or 6 weeks of vacation every year. New moms get six months paid leave. The gov provides free health care, daycare, and college. The average lifespan is longer. And most importantly, people seem to be happier than they are here...

Being your typical patriotic guy, I'm a little torn... Every country has it's issues, but at the moment I can't think of any good reason why I should stay here and work myself into the grave when I could be enjoying my life more somewhere else. More than that, when I think of what it'll be like to raise children, I'd like to do that in an environment where they'll have every opportunity a human should have regardless of their financial status.

So I'm just curious... Are there any other folks that have considered this? Any expatriates? Anyone want to vouch for other countries aside from France (I know we have a few Brits and Canadians on here)? Anyone know what's involved with a relocation like this? Pros and cons of moving to a different country?

Please note that I'm not bashing America. Also, this isn't supposed to be a "My country is better than your country" or a "Love it or leave it" thread, so let's not go there. I'm just looking for some honest information.

Thanks!

 

[Bugman]

I see a country where people get shorter work weeks and at least 5 or 6 weeks of vacation every year. New moms get six months paid leave. The gov provides free health care, daycare, and college. The average lifespan is longer. And most importantly, people seem to be happier than they are here...

All these things come at a price,and guess who pays for them.It's not the government,its the people who work for a living.I understand the unemployment rate in France and a lot of Europe is very high,and there are plenty of problems anywhere you go.I'm not saying don't move there i have never been to Europe myself.I would say check it out very carefully before you make such a drastic change.

 

[aun_existe_amor]

My fiance came to live here in England with me from Colorado. He's happy with his decision, no regrets. We have discussed moving to Colorado together but I'm not sure if I could cope with the culture change so easily. I just think better the devil you know than the devil you don't.

 

[steph]

Yes. Back home to Italy and my relatives. Or to Paris.
XOXO

 

[Comfort Eagle]

I wanna live in Japan, becuase i like Japanese women.

 

[Cosmo_ac]

well, i think their are several questions you need to ask yourself denver.

1. What are you looking for exactly. The more specific here the better.

2. How old are you? The older you are the harder a move can be sometimes.

3. Do you have an trades/skills? Nothing worse then moving to find out you can;t find work.

4. What types of sacrafices are you willing to make? Depending on where you live, even if you make good money you might not have as good a lifestyle as before.

5. Do you have sufficiant funds saved up?

There are probably more questions, but those are a good start.

 

[911]

I've lived in Canada my whole life and I've never wanted to move anywhere else. I may have some problems with Canadian politics but health care, freedom to vote, and english speaking people is where I'm comfortable. You mensioned people being happier in other countries maybe it has nothing to do with their country maybe their just happy.

 

[Knox The Hatter]

A "Grass is Always Greener" situation.

I almost did this, in my teens. I actually looked into "Landed Immigrant Status". I was going to attempt to learn French. Well, not the REAL French, more the local, gutteral patois. I used to sit and think and psychologically prep myself for Montreal winters, which are somewhat harsh. I was going to be close to a surrogate family that would substitute for my real one. I was gonna have a new life!

Eighteen-year-olds very rarely, if ever, do the intellectual gymnastics of such an act. Given the planning I put into it, and the mindset I was in, I doubt very much if I'd have stayed.

It matters little where you actually are. It's what you make of everything, really. France is not a very enjoyable place when both the economy and the societal situation (immigration issues) are both uncertain, and even incendiary, as it has been for quite some time. The same ignorami who bash the French here bash Americans over there (MerdeDonalds, anyone?), and isn't it fun to be among the mindless? Certainly not for an American looking for a better (?) life.

Sounds like you have a good life. Enjoy it. You're doing better than a lotta other people.

 

[The Sean Man]

Australia

 

[Headsnap]

Aye, all the frigging time, but one of the great things about living in an EU member state with a Commonwealth is that I don't need any visas or clearances to go and work in another EU member state and moving to a Commonwealth country (Jamaica, India, Canada, Australia, etc) is not as difficult as it would be for other folk, so the dream of creating a life in a foreign land isn't all that big of a deal to me. If you do want to do it and are serious about going for it then it's worth considering what Knox is saying. The French don't like foreigners. Their government may look like a utopian wonderland to someone unused to free healthcare and 35-hour working weeks, but that's pretty bog standard for most of the biggest EU member states (except Britain) and there are countries far less hostile, smelly and boring to live in. Spain, for instance. As long as you make the effort to learn the language before travelling you'll find the Spanish people are great. Likewise the Portugese, the Germans and the Belgians.

If all else fails you could move to Britain. We get 5 weeks paid holiday leave per year, work a 40-hour week and get free healthcare, plus we all speak English and we welcome foreigners. Well, all except the Welsh. But they're a funny sort anyway.

 

[Comfort Eagle]

I like the way you think. 🙂

Thanks, I was gonna post more, but got tired. 😀

 

[PainTrain]

Nope. I love my country. I do visit England once a year, and I love it.

 

[Goodieluver]

I myself want to visit areas of america before i venture to other nations, wouldnt mind philly, virginia, atlanta, some other areas. Then id visit prob england, poland and perhaps germany. But just to visit, id never move out of the US of A

 

[Goodieluver]

Nope. I love my country. I do visit England once a year, and I love it.

Heh, you have that luxury and i envy it

Here, we can drive 2-4 hours and still be in the same country, you can do the same and go thru how many diff nations?

 

[TklDuo-Ann]

I don't think I'd move to another country...though living in some areas might be nice. I don't know if I'd go for a particular country as much as more specific regions.

I'd much rather we reclaim our own country and kick out or imprison all the crooked politicians who are ruining things for everyone. (And, party isn't an issue here. They're nearly ALL crooked once they get past local levels. Party politics is just one of the many problems.) I look at the things that individuals in my own family are going through right now and wonder how this country even survives.

We're going down the toilet here. We've got illegal aliens being shot by American landowners and the bodies left to hang on the border fences in AZ because we're too busy playing games to properly patrol the borders. We legislate things that the gov't has no business being involved in. We tax people into poverty. We fight everyone's battles but our own. We put money into making the rich richer and leave the poor to starve. Frankly, I'm ashamed of our gov't.

We've got a beautiful country here and some really amazing people. I'm not willing to pick up and leave just because the gov't is to f'ed up to run it properly. It's time we reclaim what's ours! If things don't start changing soon, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see another civil war before long. It's sad that it's going to come to that.

 

[subZer0]

The United Kingdom of Breat Britain and Northern Ireland has rather the same things as France. We have a free health care system (as well as private), and we're not allowed to work more than (I think) 48 hours per week. For that we get a minimum wage (a fair one), with between 4 and 6 weeks holiday per year, with bank holidays thrown in on top. Our maternity leave has gone up to 9 months (paid, of course) from 6 months. Paternity leave is 2 weeks paid and up to 6 months unpaid. From a certain age, our children get free/subsidised nursery care. I could list many more things, but I won't.

I myself am a currrent member of HM Armed Forces, and thankfully enough, we do get quite a lot of financial perks, which helps.

Thing is though, I could list an equal amount of things I'm not too happy with about our nation.

Oh well, hope that was informative enough for you, mate. Just know that should you decide to live here, I'm sure you'd be greeted very warmly; we're a great sort, as I'm sure Gremio would agree with! (I hope)

 

[solay]

I live in possibly the richest country on the planet. I work close to 60 hours a week and make a fair wage. I get 40 hours of paid vacation a year and 80 hours of sick time. I have a roof over my head (and a nice one at that). I pay taxes. I vote. I served proudly in the military. I give to charities when I'm able. I'm a pretty typical middle-class American.

WTF!?!?

i'm working in germany about 40 hours a week
and have 280 Hours paid vacation

🙂

 

[PainTrain]

Oh well, hope that was informative enough for you, mate. Just know that should you decide to live here, I'm sure you'd be greeted very warmly; we're a great sort, as I'm sure Gremio would agree with! (I hope)

I agree mate! All it took was one trip to a pub in Manchester. As soon as they saw me wearing a Cantona Shirt, I was offered a free pint.

 

[Stage Whisper]

I know I'm far too young to consider something as large as going to another country (19), but I'm sure as heck tempted to do just that.. at least for a few years.

I would pick either Canada.. or Japan. I know, random choices to pick for a place to live, huh? Especially the latter, since I'm about as non-Japanese looking as you can get (the whole blonde blue eyes thing sort of gives it away). The thing is, though, I know a few of the ups AND the downs to living in either country.

And the thought of being a librarian in Japan just cracks me up for some reason. I'm not sure why.

But again, too young to consider it, too inexperienced in travel. I've only been to both countries once... Canada for a couple of days, and Japan for a month. Not much to go by for real-life experience.

 

[Bugman]

The only other country i would have ever considered moving to is Australia,but it seems they are becoming another socialist state in many ways and have been moving in that direction for years.I still love those Aussies though,they are wonderful people.😀

 

[Belmont]

I just got back from seeing Sicko, which sure has edged me closer to hitting up Toronto or Vancouver

 

[Bugman]

Being Michael Moore though, I'm sure he left out anything that didn't help to make his point.

Now he would not do anything like that would he? 🙄

 

[Belmont]

No I agree. Just brings the issue back into my head. If I went with the movie, I'd be gunning for France.

 

[Cosmo_ac]

Yeah... That movie definitely provides some food for thought... Being Michael Moore though, I'm sure he left out anything that didn't help to make his point.

As for Canada, I've heard from several people and friends of friends that even though the you can see a doctor quickly, the wait time for a specialist can be life threatening. Anyone have any experience with that?

And private insurance companies will try and deny your claim until your dead. It's true that there can be large wait times for seeing specialists, but no system is perfect. However, given the choice between the Canadian Health care and the US health care, i'll take Canada every time.

Something that should be noted though, is that some provinces, unless i'm mistaken, also have private health care along with the normal Canadian healh care system, so if this is a major concern for you, then i would recomend moving to those provinces.

 

[General Zod]

Spent three years in Britain I was in the USAF at Lakenheath I did get asked by a few Brits if I was in the American RAF Never took offense at it Was funny to me

I have been driving big rig eleven years now Been to all 48 continental states and five Canadian provinces Nice people up there But it gets too cold for me up there

Britain was great But I don't think I could drive on the wrong side of the road